Former Mainer plans to reopen plastics plant

GREENE – A former Rumford resident who lives in New York plans to reopen the former Maine Poly Inc. plastic manufacturing plant.

Kimball Dunton has agreed to lease Maine Poly’s old equipment and manufacturing space, and has hired a half-dozen workers, said Bill Dunton, who lives in Rumford and is Kimball Dunton’s nephew.

Bill Dunton said he helped his uncle draw up a business plan for the new business, which he said should be operational in eight weeks. If all goes as planned, the company could have more than 100 employees in a year or two, he said.

“We’ve been looking at all possibilities of what could go wrong,” Dunton said. “I think we’ve leaped all the hurdles.”

Greene Town Manager Steve Eldridge said he is confident Kimball Dunton can bring Maine Poly back to profitability. Kimball Dunton was not available for comment.

“This is a go,” said Eldridge. “It’s a positive thing for the town of Greene.”

Maine Poly, which once employed as many as 250 workers, manufactured custom plastic packaging for a variety of products ranging from junk food to computers. Its customers included L.L. Bean, Old Town Canoe, Dexter Shoe and Poland Spring Water.

In late June it abruptly informed its remaining 123 workers that the plant was closing. The company filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in July, estimating that it had $9 million in assets and $13 million in debt.

Bill Dunton said his uncle has made a livelihood of turning around ailing companies across the United States, including garment manufacturers and printing companies, but never a plastics company and never in Maine.

He said the new company will keep the Maine Poly name. It will have a startup staff of 29.