By Bob Moser
CORRESPONDENT
Published: August 1, 2014 9:18 am ET
Updated: August 1, 2014 9:22 am ET
Image By: Global Systems International SpA
Italy's Global Systems International SpA invested BRL35 million ($15.5 million) over the past year in three new production plants in Brazil.
SÃO PAULO — Italy’s Global Systems International SpA, a producer of assembled plastic parts for machinery and vehicle manufacturers, has invested BRL35 million ($15.5 million) over the past year in three new production plants in Brazil, with all opening in September to serve growing demand in Brazil and Argentina, the company’s commercial manager told Plastics News.
GSI, which has operations in England, Germany, China and the United States, entered the Brazilian market in 2012 with a commercial office. The company closed a deal last year with Deere & Co. to produce external shields for its Andromeda line of agricultural machinery, prompting GSI to build three Brazilian plants in 12 months.
“We’re betting on Brazil because we see very important growth here in demand for heavy machinery, especially in the agribusiness market,” said Anderson Proença in a recent interview. “The technology with which we work doesn’t have many competitors here, so GSI sees this as a major growth opportunity.”
The company’s main plant in Sete Lagoas will have a 4,000-ton press for sheet molding compound parts, which Proença said is the largest machine of its kind in Latin America. The other two plants, in Curitiba and Horizontina, will focus on paint and assembly.
The three plants feature a combined 50,000 square feet of operating space. Production capacity will total 1,000 tons per year, with scheduled expansion to 2,000 tons by 2016.
The company expects its local production to supply Brazil and Argentina initially, with plans to add a plant in Argentina as soon as 2016. The company is considering two more plants in Brazil, Proença said.
GSI projects 2015 sales of BRL20 million ($8.9 million), rising to BRL34 million ($15.1 million) in 2016.
Of the BRL35 million ($15.5 million) invested, part was from the GSI parent company in Italy and part from Brazilian private investors, which Proença declined to name. Another BRL5 million ($2.2 million) will be invested in the plants over the next 12 months.
GSI Group produces a variety of transformed plastics auto parts for clients worldwide like Case IH, New Holland and Deere in agricultural machinery, as well as automotive and truck manufacturers including Volkswagen, Audi and BMW. | 
