PLASTICS Report: Plastics Machinery Shipments Grew in Third Quarter

WASHINGTON –  The Plastics Industry Association (PLASTICS) today announced that shipments of primary plastics machinery (injection molding and extrusion) in North America increased in the third quarter according to the statistics compiled and reported by PLASTICS’  Committee on Equipment Statistics (CES).

The preliminary estimate of shipment value from reporting companies totaled $333.8 million in the third quarter. It increased 4.0% from the previous quarter and 8.8% from a year earlier. The value of shipments of twin-screw extruders rose significantly by 44.4% in the third quarter and was 61.2% above the third quarter last year.

In the third quarter, shipments of single-screw extruders rose by 7.2% from the previous quarter and 15.9% from the third quarter last year. Injection molding shipments edged up 1.6% from the second quarter and 5.7% from a year earlier.

“Plastics equipment shipments picked up in the third quarter as the economy continue to emerge from the pandemic. Moreover, the increase in shipments was consistent with higher plastics production, which in the third quarter rose 4.2% or 5.9% from a year earlier. The upward-sloping demand for plastics equipment has not changed,”according to Perc Pineda, Ph.D. the Chief Economist of PLASTICS.

The CES also conducts a quarterly survey of plastics machinery suppliers that asks about present market conditions and expectations for the future. In the third quarter survey, 75.5% of respondents expect market conditions to either improve or hold steady in the coming quarter – lower than the 92.7% of respondents who expressed the same view in the second quarter’s survey. As for the next 12 months, 75.0% expect market conditions to be steady-to-better. This is lower than the 78.7% of respondents in the previous quarter’s survey who were expecting growth in the next 12 months.

“While the survey results show that growth expectations have moderated it also reveals that plastics machinery suppliers remain optimistic about market conditions four quarters ahead,” said Pineda. 

Plastics machinery exports increased by 6.1% to $390.2 million from the second quarter. Mexico and Canada remained the top export markets of plastics machinery from the U.S. The combined exports to USMCA partners in the third quarter totaled $172.6 million, which was 44.2% of total plastics machinery exports. Imports fell by 3.0% to $848.4 million resulting in a $458.3 million trade deficit.

The U.S. plastics machinery trade deficit decreased by 9.6% in the third quarter. U.S. trade data in the third quarter are in sync with the improving global trade outlook. The World Trade Organization now expects a 10.8% increase in global merchandise trade this year—an upward revision from its 8.4% projection in March.

“Data we’re seeing at PLASTICS confirm our prior projections that the outlook for plastics machinery in the second half of 2021 is positive albeit shipments will continue to fluctuate. The likelihood that supply-chain issues will continue to be a headwind in 2022 remains high. The globe is still emerging from the pandemic,”said Pineda.

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Way2K: Industry interviews in the lead-up to the K 2022 fair “The big digital project of the future is predictive maintenance .”

Interview with Markus Gschwandtner, CEO of Bruckner Servtec GmbH

Mr. Gschwandtner, your company has to ensure that Bruckner film lines run trouble-free at customer sites. What role does digitalization play in this operation?

Digitalization is of crucial importance to us as the interface between Brückner and the customer, which is why we continuously drive forward integration and exchange of data and information. To this end, we have set up a digital service platform where the customer can access our services online. Let me give you an example: the delivery scope of a plant includes extensive documentation.

Up until now, it has always consisted of many folders. If the customer wanted some information, it could take a while to find the relevant passages. On our service platform, this documentation is now available online at any time. The service technician standing in front of the machine then has easy and quick access to the necessary information via a tablet or smartphone.

Consequently, access to information is becoming easier. What other advantages are there?

The fundamental advantages are transparency and simplicity. Here is another example: we install about 30,000 parts in each machine. Many of these are labeled with a QR code, including parts from suppliers. It identifies each component from the beginning of its life with Brückner until it is used at the customer’s site. All customers need to do is scan the part they want to replace; both we and the customer then know exactly which part is concerned and when it will be available. This allows us to react much more quickly and, if necessary, to fix a problem much sooner.

Many companies hesitate when it comes to handing over data. How do you convince them?

We have to ensure that the data is truly secure. At our company, there are no leaks. We are TÜV-certified. But that assurance alone isn’t enough to convince a customer; the decisive factor is that we need to make sure the customer sees the enormous advantages. The benefits of data integration are the greatest where corporate boundaries are crossed. Over 70 percent of our customers are already on our digital platform. Basically, it’s the same principle as a smartphone: you see what’s possible with it, and soon after, you find you can’t do without it.

What is the next big digitalization topic?

The big digital project of the future is predictive maintenance. When one of our production lines comes to a standstill, the customer loses around 10,000 euros on average in revenue, and that figure is per hour. It is therefore important to keep these stoppages as brief as possible, but in any case, to be able to predict
them.

We are already well on the way to doing that, installing sensors, for instance, to assess the status of critical components. In the future, we will also use artificial intelligence to predict when a part might break or when
maintenance should be carried out. The goal is to increase the ability to plan necessary maintenance work ahead because that will save considerable costs and increase production uptime.

Will resources be conserved?

Predictive maintenance helps make utilization of the production line and also all subsequent steps more sustainable. For example, if maintenance is carried out without it actually being necessary at the time, spare parts will also be replaced needlessly early. So, you will need a lot more material over the life cycle of a plant. But resources are also conserved if, for example, we install more energy-efficient motors during upgrades and modifications. The goal must be to use as few resources as possible, be it material, energy, or raw materials. Only through digitalization can we achieve the transparency necessary for this purpose.

How are digitalization and the circular economy interrelated?

Without digitalization, it would be very difficult to enable a circular economy. With it, however, we can for example label products during the production process. Then machines can recognise later in the waste collection cycle what the packaging film, is actually made of. It is then possible to identify that a piece of packaging film is made of polyethylene and does not contain more than five percent different and foreign materials. This means it is fully recyclable. But the production lines have to be prepared. Such mono-material structures require numerous modifications to the plants. Only then can a high-quality plastic packaging film, which is ready for circular economy, be guaranteed.

What’s the next phase in the circular economy?

With regard to packaging films, a circular economy can only work if we aim for mono-material structures. But it is also important to have a better collection system for plastics, comparable to that for bottles. It must be made as simple as possible for the consumer. Next, the plastic has to be separated so that you get single-source plastics. The next step is single-source recycling. But then there is the question of what to use the recyclate for. Turning a packaging film back into a packaging film remains a vision for the time being but turning recycled packaging film into good products that can be used in injection molding, for example, would make sense.

What are the major challenges?

The technical challenges will be overcome. It will be more difficult to implement a viable collection system. And then it is important that the circular economy is established all over the world. A lot is collected in Germany or Austria, but not so much yet elsewhere in Europe and in many other parts of the world. The quantities are still too small for the circular economy to be economically viable. That has to change, too.

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EVBox Group and Covestro To Introduce More Sustainable Materials into EV Charging Stations

EVBox Group and Covestro are looking back on a 10-year partnership of producing EV charging stations. The relationship has gone from strength to strength in recent years as EVBox Group has worked toward meeting the demands of the automotive industry. Covestro has proven to be a trustworthy partner providing reliable material solutions, including testing and validation support.

In the early stages of the polycarbonate value chain, ISCC Plus certified (International Sustainability and Carbon Certification) hydrocarbons from renewable sources are being used. With this process, Covestro can change the feedstock for the production of high-performance polycarbonates from purely fossil resources to renewable alternatives. EVBox Group is set to begin using these more sustainable plastics during production.

For now, tests and pilots with the more sustainable polycarbonate material, Makrolon  RE, are being performed to determine to what extent this material can be used in production. The new polycarbonate could be key to the production of EV charging stations made using more sustainable plastics.

LANXESS India is now Great Place to Work- Certified™

• Over 1100 organizations assessed in India
• Survey done across more than 22 industries

Mumbai, October 21, 2021 – Leading specialty chemicals company LANXESS India has been Great Place to Work-Certified™ in India (from October 2021 to October, 2022) by the Great Place to Work® Institute. The certification recognizes organization’s efforts in building a High-Trust, High-Performance Culture™ and delivering an excellent employee experience for all.

Great Place to Work® is the global authority on workplace culture. Since 1992, they have surveyed more than 100 million employees worldwide and used those deep insights to define what makes a great workplace: trust. Their employee survey platform empowers leaders with the feedback, real-time reporting, and insights they need to make strategic people decisions. The Institute serves businesses, non-profits and government agencies in more than 60 countries and has conducted pioneering research on the characteristics of great workplaces for over three decades.

Commenting on the success, Neelanjan Banerjee, Vice Chairman and Managing Director, LANXESS India said, “It is an extremely proud moment for all of us. As an organization, we believe in continuously raising the bar and are committed towards creating a credible and fair workplace for our employees. We are thankful for this recognition and are delighted to become a Great Place to Work-Certified™ company.”

In India, the institute partners with more than 1100 organizations annually across over 22 industries to help them build High-Trust, High-Performance Cultures™ designed to deliver sustained business results. Hundreds of CEOs and CXOs from India Inc. are part of the great place community that is committed to the vision of making India a great place to work FOR ALL™.

The Institute’s research shows that great workplaces are characterized by great leadership, consistent employee experience, and sustainable financial performance. These organizations are able to deliver a consistent experience to all their employees irrespective of their role, gender, tenure or level in the organization. Their leaders believe in the vision of creating and sustaining a Great Place to Work FOR ALL and role model being ‘FOR ALL’ Leaders.

    Xometry Acquires Thomas, Accelerating the Manufacturing Industry’s Digital Transformation

 Xometry, the global marketplace for on-demand manufacturing, today announced the acquisition of Thomas  a leader in product sourcing, supplier selection and digital marketing solutions. The cash and stock transaction, valued at $300 million, is expected to close this week. Xometry’s rapidly growing digital marketplace provides real-time access to global manufacturing capacity and demand, helping accelerate the digitization of the manufacturing industry.

The acquisition of Thomas is expected to rapidly expand Xometry’s buyer and seller base, significantly enhancing Xometry’s global digital marketplace for manufacturers. Xometry also expects to leverage Thomas’ marketing and data services to deliver an unmatched suite of end-to-end services for sellers with additional fintech and digital marketing products.

“Xometry and Thomas share a common mission of championing the digital transformation of the manufacturing industry, one of the largest sectors of the global economy and the foundation for innovation everywhere,” said Randy Altschuler, CEO of Xometry. “Thomas brings strong brand equity, trusted and extensive relationships, proprietary data and advanced full-funnel marketing services – assets that perfectly complement our digital marketplace. Together, we will introduce new services, cross-sell to our combined base and expand our suite of products, particularly in fintech and digital marketing.”

“Thomas has a long and proud history of bringing active buyers and sellers together on our Thomasnet.com platform and providing the data and marketing services that inform decision-making,” said Tony Uphoff, President and Chief Executive Officer of Thomas. “In joining forces with Xometry, we’re uniting our products with the power of the Xometry marketplace so we can do even more for industry together.”

An industry leader in on-demand manufacturing, Xometry connects enterprise buyers across industries such as aerospace, consumer products, defense, industrial, automotive, medical, energy, robotics, green-tech and more with sellers of custom-manufactured parts worldwide. At the end of Q3 2021, Xometry had 26,187 active buyers, including nearly 30% of the Fortune 500. Leveraging AI and machine-learning technology, the Xometry marketplace provides immediate pricing, delivery lead times and quality assurance in a highly fragmented environment, as well as a suite of financial products that enable manufacturers to grow their businesses.

Thomas brings deep relationships with highly qualified enterprise buyers and engineers. The company’s industry leading  platform boasts more than 1.3 million registered users (including 93 percent of Fortune 1000 companies) and more than 500,000 commercial and industrial sellers, including 45,000 diversity certified sellers. Every year, more than 20 million sourcing sessions are initiated on Thomasnet.com, generating extensive first-party buyer intent data across multiple sectors.

www.xometry.com

Kumovis to show new end-to-end workflow for medical 3D printing

• This November, Munich-based start-up Kumovis will be presenting new developments at AM Medical Days, COMPAMED and Formnext in Germany.
• The highlight is a new end-to-end workflow that enables medtech companies and hospitals to manufacture products from high-performance polymers such as PEEK
  and bring them to market more quickly in accordance with FDA and MDR criteria.
• In addition to the Kumovis R1 3D printer, which will manufacture implants live at the company’s Formnext booth, panels and presentations are also part of the program.

Munich – Kumovis, the Munich-based medical 3D printing start-up, will show its new end-to- end workflow for the additive manufacturing of medical products this fall. With the industry- specific development, Kumovis enables medical devices made of high-performance polymers such as PEEK to be manufactured more efficiently than with conventional processes. What is more, manufacturers can bring these products to market in accordance with FDA and MDR criteria using the Kumovis workflow. Besides exhibiting the Kumovis R1 3D printer and medical applications at its booths, Kumovis will also be represented in panels and presentations at this year’s editions of COMPAMED, Formnext and AM Medical Days.

AM Medical Days: Experience medtech future today

The latter is the new decision-makers and experts conference on all things medical 3D printing at the Estrel Congress Center in Berlin. “As a founding partner of AM Medical Days, Kumovis is proud to be able to make another contribution to the future of 3D printing in medicine today,” says Stefan Leonhardt, co-CEO and co-founder of Kumovis. “Anyone who is professionally involved with 3D-printed medical devices or the future in the operating room shouldn’t miss this event.” Topics like these will be the focus of the panel discussion with Kumovis on the first day of the two-day conference. “Beyond AM Medical Days, we are looking forward to finally getting in touch with people in person again at the two must-attend events COMPAMED and Formnext,” Stefan Leonhardt adds.

Furthermore, he will speak about the current state of 3D-printed polymer implants in his lecture at AM Medical Days: Which applications are possible today, which are still in the development phase? And how can innovations be implemented using 3D printing under more difficult market conditions – MDR is the catchword? Kumovis will answer these and other questions during AM Medical Days. From November 22 to 23, visitors will also find representative 3D-printed build parts made of medical-grade polymers at the Kumovis booth.

Formnext: Additive manufacturing of implants live

The Kumovis team will exhibit its new developments in Frankfurt too. At the start-up’s Formnext booth, Kumovis R1, the FLM 3D printer built for medical manufacturing, can be assessed live at an event for the first time since 2019. This year, Kumovis plans to 3D print implants on site so that every visitor will be able to convince themselves of the part quality.

As at the other two events in November, visitors to the Kumovis booth at Formnext will learn everything about the new end-to-end workflow – from DICOM processing, 3D printing and post-processing to the approval of a medical device. On the one hand, the solution includes the provision of the 3D printer and slicing software; on the other hand, Kumovis provides application-specific processes and regulatory data such as machine qualification and biological and mechanical validation. With this complete package, medical device manufacturers can save costs and serve MDR and FDA markets compliantly and faster than with conventional processes such as milling or injection molding. Kumovis will be at
Formnext from November 16 to 19 in hall 12.1, booth E29.

COMPAMED: Approval is focus

Medtech companies and hospitals achieve the familiar mechanical properties from conventional manufacturing when 3D printing medical products with Kumovis R1 and materials such as PEEK, PEKK or PPSU. Like visitors to Formnext, those at COMPAMED in Duesseldorf will be able to get their hands on 3D-printed parts at the Kumovis booth and see the parts’ quality for themselves from November 15 to 18. Application-specific products will be available at the Kumovis booth. And another medical technology concern is on the agenda: the new regulatory requirements of the MDR. Kumovis will address this topic in the “COMPAMED Suppliers Forum by DeviceMed” and give a presentation under the title “Implants and instruments individualized or mass-produced from high-performance polymers – design, 3D printing and approval”. The Kumovis medical and polymer technology experts will be available for further questions and discussions in hall 13, booth D32.

Brief overview of where to meet Kumovis
– COMPAMED starting November 15; hall 13, booth D32, Messe Duesseldorf
– Formnext starting November 16; hall 12.1, booth E29, Messe Frankfurt
– AM Medical Days starting November 22; booth 04, Estrel Congress Center Berlin

Media contact
Stefan Killer

ALPLA is awarded Platinum rating for sustainability Top ranking among 75,000 companies at EcoVadis

Hard, 21 October 2021 – After the ALPLA Group achieved Silver in 2019 and Gold in 2020, EcoVadis has awarded the company its Platinum status for sustainability for the first time in 2021. ALPLA – a global manufacturer of plastic packaging and recycling specialist – is therefore among the top 1 per cent of all 75,000 companies evaluated.

Each year, 75,000 companies in 200 fields of business and 160 different countries carry out the self-assessment from EcoVadis, the world’s largest and most trusted provider of business sustainability ratings. Major global companies, including many of ALPLA’s customers, use EcoVadis ratings to gauge the sustainability and responsibility of their suppliers and ensure that they apply high ethical and environmental standards.

The ratings define how socially ethical a company is in four fields called environment, sustainable procurement, ethics and labour and human rights. Health and safety also play an important role in them. A total of 21 different criteria are assessed within these four main themes.

Strong improvement
ALPLA has been using EcoVadis for a number of years and has continuously improved its ratings over time. This year, the ALPLA Group has achieved 73 out of a possible 100 points, making it one of the best (the top 1 per cent) of all participating companies that use EcoVadis to rate their corporate social responsibility. EcoVadis awarded ALPLA Platinum status for this. ALPLA achieved Gold status last year and Silver status two years ago, documenting the enormous improvement made in recent years. The rating is another milestone in ALPLA’s activities in sustainability management. The company will be expanding them even further in the future. Rogelio De la Rosa, Head of Corporate Health, Safety & Environment, adds: ‘We are delighted that EcoVadis has rewarded us with its Platinum status for our extensive commitment at all levels of sustainability management.’

About the ALPLA Group
ALPLA is one of the leading companies involved in plastic packaging. Around 21,600 employees worldwide produce custom-made packaging systems, bottles, caps and moulded parts at 178 sites across 45 countries. The high-quality packaging is used in a wide range of areas, including for food and drinks, cosmetics and care products, household detergents, washing and cleaning agents, pharmaceutical products, engine oils and lubricants.

ALPLA operates its own recycling plants for PET and HDPE in Austria, Poland, Mexico, Italy and Spain, and in the form of joint ventures in Mexico and Germany. Other projects are being realised elsewhere around the world.

WITTMANN BATTENFELD with complete WITTMANN 4.0 production cell at the Interplastica trade show

From January 25 to 28, 2022, WITTMANN BATTENFELD will present its Industry 4.0 solution in the form of a production cell networked via WITTMANN 4.0 to interested trade visitors at Interplastica in Moscow in Hall 02, Booth 2.1/A23.

WITTMANN BATTENFELD will demonstrate its digitization expertise in Moscow with the production of a medical part. The machine to be used is an all-electric EcoPower 55/350, equipped with the software packages HiQ Flow® for compensating viscosity fluctuations, HiQ Melt for material quality monitoring and HiQ Metering for active
closing of the check valve.

Equipment integrated in the machine’s UNILOG B8 control system via WITTMANN 4.0 will include a WITTMANN W918 robot, a gravimetric dosing unit GRAVIMAX G14, an ATON plus H70 segmented wheel dryer and three temperature controllers from the TEMPRO plus D series, as well as the TEMI+ MES system.

The electronic mold data sheet will also be used by UNILOG B8. It enables the production cell, integrated via a WITTMANN 4.0 router, to check whether the connected auxiliaries are sufficient for the selected product data set, or whether additional equipment is needed.

The automation system is implemented via an Easy Cell developed and manufactured by WITTMANN BATTENFELD Deutschland in Nuremberg. The Easy Cell requires no safety gate and thus takes up only a minimal amount of space beside the injection molding machine. In spite of its compact design, customers
receive the complete range of CE-compliant safety features.

Furthermore, WITTMANN auxiliaries will also be on display as stand-alone solutions at Interplastica in Moscow.

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THE PERFORMANCE REVIEW INSTITUTE APPOINTS JAY SOLOMOND AS EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT AND CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER

The Performance Review Institute (PRI) has announced the appointment of Jay Solomond to the role of Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer. Mr. Solomond will lead and manage all aspects of PRI’s strategy, continuing to add value for the global stakeholder base and supporting PRI’s continued global growth, operations and programs.

David L. Schutt PhD, CEO and President of the SAE Group said:

“Jay is a highly successful global executive with over 25 years of leadership across various industries. He is a transformative and forward-thinking leader, which is exactly what’s needed at this pivotal time. We are excited to have Jay’s involvement, and his passion for quality and safety, to lead PRI into the future.”

Throughout his diverse professional career, Mr. Solomond has led teams and projects in multiple countries, with responsibility for strategic decisions and delivering ever richer value and confidence to all stakeholders, including the general public. Customer- and quality-focused, Mr. Solomond has an innovative mindset, holding four patents, and a strong commitment to continuous improvement.

Jay Solomond said:

“PRI is known and trusted worldwide as the steward of quality in critical industries such as aerospace and medical devices through its unique collaborative supply chain oversight programs, world-leading quality management systems approval program and expert professional development programs. I look forward to working with the PRI stakeholders, and leading the transformation, towards the provision of ‘next generation’ services.”

Tony Maguire, Head of Quality, BAE Systems – Air, and Chairman of the PRI Board said:

“Quality and safety go hand-in-hand and ultimately, it is the customer and the public that benefits. PRI’s unique value proposition as a provider of critical, actionable intelligence is a key enabler in ensuring our work continues effectively. Jay’s considerable experience will add an extra dimension to the organizational leadership that enables PRI to move to the next level while assuring a continued focus on customer satisfaction. I look forward to working with him.”

Mr. Solomond holds a BSc degree in Science, Ceramic Sciences and Engineering from Penn State University; and a MSc degree in Administration, Business and Management, from Central Michigan University.

CORE Industrial Partners Forms a New 3D Printing Platform with the Acquisition of RE3DTECH