AboutCircle Packaging Machinery, Inc.
Circle Design and Manufacturing Corporation (as it was known then) was founded in a small shop in New Jersey by two engineers/entrepreneurs, Mario Natelli and Bob McCloskey, in 1959. Circle started out manufacturing 10-inch wide multi-lane vertical pouching machines for liquid freeze pops. The business soon added designs that enabled the machines to package individual moist wipes/towelettes as well as other liquid and powder products.
Success with vertical packaging machines and customer interest inspired Circle to introduce multi-lane horizontal machines for unit products. Some of the earliest applications included pens, tea bags, glass vials and test strips. The ability of the machines to produce tight, peel-able seals for sterilization pouches provided the opportunity to adapt the horizontal machines for the fast-growing medical device and medical consumable industries.
Paxall acquired the business in 1979. Paxall, a Chicago-based packaging machinery manufacturer (product lines included Clybourn Cartoners, Parsons Scales, Pakmaster Case Packers, and Thiele Cartoners) oversaw growth of the product line, particularly in offering wider and faster models for existing markets. 16-inch, 18-inch and 22-inch models were added to the product offering during this period. Paxall was purchased in 1991 by Sasib, an Italian-based machinery manufacturer. In 1995, the Circle product line moved from Chicago to De Pere, Wisconsin, a Green Bay suburb, to join what was then the recently acquired FMC flow-wrapper business, becoming the company's site for its flexible packaging businesses.
In 1998, the Circle business was purchased by John Dykema, a former FMC and Sasib plant manager, who retained the business' employee expertise in the Green Bay area. Immediate developments included upgrades to full electronic drive and controls on all vertical and horizontal models. Recent developments include the introduction of the Circle Integri-Seal with state-of-the-art advances for speed, control and validation of seals, high-speed (10-lane) swab and towelette machines, ultrasonic cutting of extruded product feeding the packaging machine, and the addition of a 30-inch wide model.
In 2004, Circle moved into its new 24,000 square foot facility in De Pere, Wisconsin. With an addition underway this floor space will increase to 40,000 square feet in 2021. This building is on property adjoining the affiliated Campbell Wrapper Corporation site.
Circle has built its reputation in the 60 plus years since its founding as a provider of ruggedly dependable, multi-lane four-sided seal packaging equipment able to significantly increase a customer's packaging output. The machines are simple to operate and straightforward to maintain and troubleshoot, two traits that continue to be hallmarks of Circle equipment.
