RACER Trust Honors Sirmax North America, Inc., for Successful Reuse of Former Delphi Corp. Property in Anderson, Ind.

Italian Company Operating Plastic Compound and Resin Manufacturing Facility

OKLAHOMA CITY — RACER Trust today announced that Sirmax North America, Inc., a leading global manufacturer of polypropylene compounds used across all sectors of the economy, is the winner of a 2022 RACER’s Edge Award for Foreign Direct Investment, in recognition of its successful redevelopment and reuse of a former Delphi Corp. property in Anderson. Ind.

A businessman addressing a group from a podium after receiving an award

Lorenzo Ferro, Country Manager for Sirmax North America, Inc. 

Sirmax, based in Italy, invested more than $35 million to build and expand a 144,000-square-foot plastic compound and resin manufacturing facility in Anderson, which began production in 2017 and today employs 70 people.

Elliott P. Laws, of EPLET, LLC, administrative trustee of RACER Trust, presented the RACER’s Edge Award to Lorenzo Ferro, Country Manager for Sirmax North America, Inc., at an awards reception in conjunction with the U.S. EPA’s National Brownfields Training Conference in Oklahoma City. The award recognizes redevelopment excellence at a former RACER property.

“We are very pleased that Sirmax chose our Anderson property to establish a strong presence in the North American market, and congratulate the company for its success,” Mr. Laws said. “Even better, the company has continued to invest in Anderson, recently opening a $30 million plastics operation dedicated to the recycling of post-industrial polypropylene scraps that is providing still more jobs and other benefits for the community. Sirmax North America, Inc., is a major win for Anderson, and for RACER Trust.”

“Our investment in Anderson enabled us to establish our first presence in North America, and from the outset the decision has been very good for the company,” said Lorenzo Ferro, Country Manager for Sirmax North America. “The success of our initial operations made it easier to make additional investments in Anderson, and we look forward to continuing our growth in Indiana. Following our multi-region and multi-product strategy, we are planning additional investments in the same property, with two new facilities by 2025 dedicated to the production of engineering polymer compounds and thermoplastic elastomers, respectively.”

“Sirmax’s presence in Anderson has been transformative for our community, providing good jobs and returning a formerly idled property to productive reuse,” Anderson Mayor Thomas Broderick Jr. said. “Our Economic Development Department and the Anderson Redevelopment Commission worked very hard and were instrumental in identifying Sirmax as a potential investment partner, and RACER Trust worked just as hard to attract Sirmax to Anderson. We are thrilled that their combined efforts, along with Sirmax’s confidence and willingness to invest, are producing such great results.”

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(L-R): Bob Hare, Indiana Cleanup Manager, RACER Trust; Bruce Rasher, Redevelopment Manager, RACER Trust; Lorenzo Ferro, Country Manager for Sirmax North America, Inc.; Elliott P. Laws, Administrative Trustee, RACER Trust.

About RACER Trust: RACER (Revitalizing Auto Communities Environmental Response) Trust was created to clean up and position for redevelopment properties and other facilities owned by the former General Motors Corp. before its 2009 bankruptcy. When it was formed in 2011, RACER was one of the largest holders of industrial property in the United States and was the largest environmental response and remediation trust in U.S. history. Its initial property holdings were at 89 locations in 14 states, principally in the Midwest and Northeast. The Trust was created by a settlement agreement in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court between the U.S. Government, the 14 states where the former GM properties are located, and the St. Regis Mohawk Tribe, which owns land adjoining one of the properties in Upstate New York. For more information, please visit our website: www.racertrust.org.

About Sirmax Group: Sirmax Group, with headquarters in Italy, is the leading independent European manufacturer (and among the top global manufacturers) of polypropylene compounds used across all sectors: automotive, household appliances, power tools, household, construction and furniture. Active since the 1960s, today Sirmax boasts 13 production plants: six in Italy, two each in the United States, India and Poland, and one in Brazil. Sirmax has acquired significant market shares in Europe, North and South America and Asia. Its clients include Whirlpool, Bosch- Siemens, Electrolux, Karcher, Philips, Honeywell, ABB, Technogym, Stellantis, Volkswagen Group, Daimler, De’Longhi, Haier, BMW, and Audi. In 2021, Sirmax employed 850 people worldwide. For more information, please visit www.sirmax.com.