Paul Caprio Joins LS IMM USA

LS Mtron Injection Molding Machines USA (LS IMM USA; Duluth, Ga.) announced that industry veteran Paul Caprio has joined the company as president of sales. The move reunites

Caprio with LS IMM USA President Peter Gardner. Gardner and Caprio first worked together in 1989 at Machinery Systems in Chicago.

Caprio went on to KraussMaffei, where he worked for 25 years and last held the position of President for North America. Caprio then served as president of Engel’s U.S. division from January 2020-February 2022.

Gardner joined Daiichi Jitsugyo America Inc. (DJA), the importer of Niigata machinery to the U.S., and was the VP in charge of North America for more than 25 years. Gardner brought the LS Mtron IMM business to North America through DJA and helped orchestrate LS Mtron’s buyout of DJA in 2021. 

LS Mtron is a division of Korea’s LS Group: a $30 billion/yr conglomerate with more than 25,000 employees worldwide. LS Group has nearly 4000 employees in North America, with manufacturing facilities in the U.S. and Mexico. LS IMM USA has two tech centers in the U.S., and one planned in Mexico. The company says it eventually plans to assemble injection molding machines in the U.S. 

A release noted that Gardner talked Caprio out of an early retirement, with Caprio noting his interest was piqued by the company’s plans for a North American expansion, including the plans to build a machine plant in the U.S.

In 2022, LS Mtron expanded its operations in North America by adding three new locations for parts and service. In 2023, LS IMM USA says it will continue to expand its service capabilities and staffing. The company’s U.S. headquarters are in Duluth, Ga., near Atlanta, with a tech center in Wood Dale, Ill. and a large machine testing and tech center site in Brownsville, Texas, as well as a parts and service center in San Diego.