Investing to meet increasing US demand
- miapersson
- Oct 7
- 3 min read
Updated: Oct 8
We at Polykemi have been making steady progress in the North American market since we began production in the US in mid 2023. Earlier than expected, we have been able to hire new employees for key positions in sales in the US and customer support in Mexico.
Because the sales forecast is so good, plans are in place for a further capacity increase in 2027 to meet growing demand for customized plastic compounds.
Recruiting for key roles
Reinforcing the North American team means three new employees are now stepping into key sales and customer support roles. In the US, Sonny Nos and Joon Park will join our sales department. Sonny has extensive experience in the industry and will focus primarily on finding new customers in the Southeastern USA. Joon will work with South Korean customers and end customers in the USA, in particular the automotive industry, which he is well acquainted with.
Polykemi Mexico welcomes Octavio Ibarra Magallon to customer support, where he will act as support to Fernando González, Director General, and ultimately, sales staff in the US.
“Sonny and Joon join us with a great deal of experience from the plastics industry, and Octavio has just graduated from University. Together they will significantly strengthen our position and boost our availability for customers throughout North America. Being able to reinforce our operation in this way after little more than two years is truly satisfying,” says Johan Hugoson, CEO Polykemi USA.
The projected expansion of the current two extruder lines with an additional line will probably begin as early as next year, and Sonny Nos is one of the new employees who will help ensure the company’s continued growth.
Expected and unexpected success
The expansion in North America is now accelerating, due to several contributing factors.
“We’re still quite unknown in the North American market, but all the preparatory work we’ve done in the Polykemi Group in Europe and China has been a great help. We’ve been able to expand our collaborations in the USA with the international customers we already have relationships with in other countries. Shortly after opening in the US, we also received inquiries from a number of manufacturers of for example flood and stormwater protection. This was not something we expected, and the construction industry quickly became a large and exciting segment to work with,” says Johan Hugoson.
Our long-term plans have also been realized earlier than expected.
“Most exciting of all is our having established good contacts with major, well-known vehicle manufacturers in the US so soon. It was something we wanted to do but hadn’t dared hope would happen so quickly.”
Planning a 50% capacity increase by 2027
Today, our factory in the USA consists of two extruder lines with a combined annual production capacity of around 7,000 US tons. We aim to plan for another new extruder, which would mean a significant increase in capacity.
“To be honest, I think we can begin planning for the next extruder as early as 2026, which would mean installation and start-up in 2027. The way things are going now, it looks like a serious possibility,” says Johan Hugoson.
