Microban International and Rifra Masterbatches announce partnership
Microban International has announced a new distributor agreement with Rifra Masterbatches, a global player in the production of tailor-made additives – such as colour or various complexes – used to process plastic products.
The two companies share a goal of providing novel masterbatches with antimicrobial properties, to be able to offer their injection, blow moulding, extrusion and compounding customers more choice in solutions.
Rifra Masterbatches has provided various additives to the packaging, building, medical device, E&E, and toy industries for over 40 years. The company has recognised an increasing interest in including antimicrobial technologies into plastics and welcomes the opportunity to work with Microban.
Antimicrobials have always been of interest for manufacturing companies, but adding them into products can be challenging and is fraught with regulatory loopholes. Microban has a wealth of expertise in incorporating built-in antimicrobial protection into a vast array of products and has a similar customer-focused approach to Rifra. The partnership will begin as a distributor agreement, but both parties aim to explore further opportunities for the co-development of unique additive products which will combine features and simplify formulations.
Giorgio Rimini, Director of Business Development for Europe at Microban, said: “We are particularly excited about partnering with Rifra Masterbatches. It is a global player in the plastic additives field with an extremely bright future, and we look forward to discovering some really exciting prospects on the horizon together.”
Elisabetta Rampa, General Manager at Rifra Masterbatches, added: “Most masterbatch producers have decided to avoid an antimicrobial product portfolio because of the challenges associated with formulation and regulatory requirements. However, we wanted to address the needs of our customers, and have chosen to work with Microban, the global leader in the field, to achieve this goal.”