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StatsCan releases first-half figures
Statistics Canada has released data for plastics shipments, imports and exports for the first half of 2007. Machinery sales showed the best performance within the sector, with shipments and exports both showing double-digit growth. So clearly, a lot of processors are focused on developing their businesses, and think business will improve.
The plastic products industry showed a seven per cent drop in shipments and a four per cent drop in exports during the first half of the year. The year 2006 was the first year since 1991 the industry experienced a year-over-year decline in shipments, and going by six-months' data, it appears as though this will happen again in 2007.
For resins, data is mixed. Shipments were up, while imports and exports were both down. This suggests that domestic demand outpaced foreign demand, which for Canadian resin producers is largely in the US.
Mould exports continued to fall. Exports of moulds peaked in 2002, and have been trending downward ever since.
Data is shown below in billions of dollars, and the change compared to the first half of 2006 is shown in brackets.
Plastic products
Shipments: $9.5-billion (-7%)
Imports: $3.8-billion (+4%)
Exports: $4.6-billion (-4%)
Synthetic resins
Shipments: $6.5-billion (+3%)
Imports: $3.2-billion (-7%)
Exports: $3.4-billion (-8%)
Plastics processing machinery
Shipments: $0.69-billion (+16%)
Imports: $0.26-billion (no change)
Exports: $0.60-billion (+14%)
Moulds
Shipments: data is not available
Imports: $0.25-billion (+2%)
Exports: $0.49-billion (-17%).
http://strategis.ic.gc.ca/plastics
Plastics in Canada offering market research
Ever wondered just how much business your market segment offers? What your competition might see as its sales potential?
Plastics in Canada magazine is starting to offer market research projects, through its parent organisation, Rogers Publishing Ltd. The company has recently expanded and enhanced its market research organisation, which has over a quarter of a century of practical experience, and is now linking up with the many different publications Rogers produces to promote customised research.
If you're interested in the potential for knowing more about your market and how well you're serving, contact Nick Passingham at 416-764-1527, or nick.passingham@plastics.rogers.com for more information.
Major networking forum planned for ExpoPlast
It's still a year away, but plans are moving ahead for an expanded ExpoPlast 2008. The show in Montreal next year is going to include a special networking event, the Alliance Plastiques Affaires et Composites forum, APAC 2008, being held on October 22, the day after the two-day show itself closes. Pierre Fillion, director general of the Quebec region of the Canadian Plastics Industry Association, says this is planned as an international matchmaking event for the Quebec plastics industry. If it succeeds as hoped, later APAC events could be extended beyond the Quebec marketplace.
“The idea is that entrepreneurs and decision-makers will meet according to a pre-established matchmaking process,” he says. “These sessions will allow participants to personally establish contact with companies that interest them the most, and enable them to set up talks about possible business opportunities and partnerships.”
Fillion has been a strong advocate of both Lean manufacturing and enhanced exports. He has promoted an entire program for Lean initiatives, specially customised for Quebec processors, although he thinks it could be adapted for use elsewhere. But Lean is no use without export markets, and he encourages CPIA Quebec members to look for offshore customers. He has twice visited China himself.
“Players from every continent will be invited to take part in the forum,” he adds. “We hope to have guests from emerging countries, industrialised nations, Australia and Africa. We are also looking at the possibility of providing participants with access to experts in international law, intellectual property, R&D and the environment.”
www.apacmontreal.com
Pierre Fillion
The new GE Plastics
Things have moved quickly with the purchase by Saudi Basic Industries Corp. (Sabic) of GE Plastics. The deal has now closed, and the Pittsfield. Mass.-based company is now called Sabic Innovative Plastics. Sabic, for many years solely a supplier of polyolefins, acquired DSM's product line of engineering thermoplastics and Huntsman's petrochemicals businesses in Europe over the past few years.
Shortly before the purchase was finalised, GE Plastics (as it still was) bought the 50 per cent of Exatec LLC it did not own. Exatec is the joint-venture it began with Bayer in 1998 to develop polycarbonate auto glazing.
"GE and Bayer were the first to enable the use of polycarbonate glazing technology in vehicles,” said John Madej, Exatec president and CEO. “Exatec has advanced the development of glazing with its patented coating system through aggressive testing against rigorous performance criteria. With the demand for lightweight, environmentally responsible vehicles projected to grow globally over the next few years, the time is right to restructure the joint venture and take it to the next level of commercial development,”
Exatec has a technical development center in Wixom, Mich., near Detroit, and a European subsidiary based in Bergisch Gladbach near Cologne, Germany. Its automotive glazing system covers all processes and manufacturing steps, including moulding with added functionality, 3-D printing, decoration technologies, and plasma-enhanced chemical vapour deposition (PECVD) hardcoats. Producing a scratch-proof hardcoat was one major goal of Exatec in its first years. Its most recent glazing system, Exatec 900, was launched in 2004 and is being evaluated on vehicles in a number of countries.
Bayer MaterialScience will now develop and expand its automotive glazing business independent of the joint-venture.
Brian Gladden is president and CEO of Sabic Innovative Plastics. The company had sales of US$6.7-billion and profit of US$674-million in 2006.
www.geplastics.com, www.exatec.biz
US machinery sales offer hints of hope
US manufacturers and importers of primary plastics machinery and equipment shipped US$225-million worth of primary machinery (excluding components and auxiliary equipment) in the second quarter of 2007, according to the latest equipment statistics from the Society of the Plastics Industry, Inc. Committee on Equipment Statistics (CES). This is a nine per cent decrease from the $247-million shipped in the second quarter of 2006, but is three per cent higher than the $219-million shipped in the first quarter of 2007.
Specifically, SPI reports that the 25 blow moulding machinery units shipped in the second quarter of 2007 constitute eight more machines than were shipped in the second quarter of 2006, and two more than shipped in the first quarter of 2007. For the year to date, the total number of blow moulding units shipped is up 20 per cent compared to 2006.
Economist Bill Wood, who provided the analysis for SPI's report, forecasts improvement for the rest of the year. "Total US investment in industrial equipment – the category that includes plastics machinery and equipment – registered a significant jump in the second quarter after three consecutive quarterly declines," said Wood. "The slow uptrend in the overall equipment spending data will persist through the end of this year and into 2008. For 2007 as a whole, the forecast is for a two percent gain in total investment for new industrial equipment when compared with 2006."
Extrusion machinery shipments in the second quarter of 2007 decreased six per cent from the same quarter last year, and one less unit was shipped compared to the first quarter of 2007.
Units of injection moulding machines shipped in the first quarter of 2007 decreased 12 per cent when compared to the same quarter in 2006, but were up eight per cent from the number shipped in the first quarter of 2007.
The plastics components sector saw a decrease of 15 per cent when compared to the second quarter of 2006, but was up one percent from the first quarter of 2007. The end-market and machinery segments that enjoyed solid gains in the second quarter continued to be medical, aerospace, computers, and packaging. Capacity utilisation rates for the plastics sector increased in the second quarter of 2007, and total output for plastics processors continued to expand.
www.plasticsindustry.org.
A window on the Indian auto market
If you want a look at a part of the burgeoning Indian economy, the country's Ninth Auto Expo in January is a great place to start. This show brings together 1,200 exhibitors from 25 countries, and is the launching-pad for many new vehicles, components and technologies.
Auto Expo 2008, staged at New Delhi's Pragati Maidan fairgrounds, covers 70,000 sq. metres, and in 2006 drew a million visitors. India is a rapidly growing supplier of vehicles, being the world's 11th largest producer of autos, and its second-largest producer of two-wheeled vehicles.
This time, the Ontario Ministry of Economic Development and Trade (MEDT) will lead an Ontario trade delegation to the show. This mission includes significant Ontario participation in the Canada Pavilion, with support from the Automotive Parts Manufacturers' Association (APMA), the Federal Government and Export Development Canada (EDC). Ontario has secured about 72 sq. metres in the pavilion, and the cost to exhibit is $1,200 for a 3x3-meter booth or $700 for a 1.5x3-metre display space. Priority is being given to small and medium-sized companies.
During the show, there will be an Ontario-Canada business dinner with firms from India and other parts of the world invited. Assistance in identifying regional business prospects (including one-on-one meetings) is also offered. There will also be opportunity to attend market awareness seminars and round table meetings, and a report on the automotive sector in India is also to be offered.
For further information, contact Akhil Tyag at the International Trade Branch, Ontario Ministry of Economic Development and Trade (MEDT), 900 Bay St., 6th Floor, Hearst Block, Toronto, Ont., M7A 2E1,416-327-2371 or email: akhil.tyagi@ontario.ca.
www.autoexpo.in
Seminars at K 2007
K 2007 is now just six weeks away. One feature visitors will want to watch for is the presentation each afternoon on evolving industry trends. The presentations are organised by the German plastics industry, under the lead of PlasticsEurope Deutschland e.V., and Messe Düsseldorf, the show's owner. K 2007 will take place from October 24 to 31 at the fairgrounds in Düsseldorf, Germany.
On all eight days, a specific topic will be discussed by panels of experts on the stage of the special presentation area in Hall 6. From 2:00 to 3:00 pm daily, the discussions will focus on the latest trends and the prospects for the future. The first panel discussion is entitled Plastics: think differently about energy, followed by another environmental topic on October 25: Energy-efficient building and living.
For October 26, the theme is Innovation in plastics processing, with a focus on exploiting synergies at every link in the value chain. Then, Prof. Dr. Rudolf Stauber, head of structural integrity and materials at the BMW Group and a member of the Board of Trustees of the Plastics Industry, will lead the discussion on October 27 on Energy efficiency thanks to plastics – mobility and lightweight construction.
The role of plastics in school curricula in Germany and Europe today is addressed by Prof. Dr. Gisela Lück from the University of Bielefeld and the expert panel on October 28. Next day, futurologist Ray Hammond will offer a glimpse into the future of polymers. His presentation (in English) will provide an overview of current research work and which visions of today could be the products of tomorrow.
Resource efficiency and plastics packaging will be the theme on October 30, when the panel will discuss current development trends such as improved packaging techniques, ‘intelligent' packaging and advanced logistical methods. The final panel discussion on October 31 will be Innovation in Macromolecular Chemistry, chaired by Prof. Dr. Rolf Mülhaupt from the University of Freiburg (speaking in English).
www.k-online.de
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Changes
Plastique Micron (Ste-Claire, Que.) has named Thierry Bonnafous its new sales and marketing director. He previously worked as sales director for Canadian furniture manufacturing leader South Shore Industries as well as for Mettler Toledo.
www.plastiquemicron.com
D-M-E (Madison Heights, Mich.) has appointed Gary Zack its new hot-runner sales specialist focusing on the medical and new-domestic automotive markets. He has a diverse background in plastics application, sales and program management, and most recently worked at Incoe Corp., helping commercialise new hot runner technology. He has also owned his own medical supply and services company.
www.dme.net
JER Envirotech International Corp. (Delta, BC) has named John P. Bell to its board of directors. He is currently serving as honorary consul for the Ivory Coast in Vancouver, and patron of the Malaysia-Canada Business Council. In addition, he serves as director on the boards for both Goldcorp Inc. and Taiga Building Products Ltd.
www.jerenvirotech.com
The Royal Group Inc. vinyl window and door profile extrusion plant in Winnipeg will close by year's end. The plant employs 45 staff, and Royal will transfer the capacity to other company-operated window and door plants in North America. Georgia Gulf, a resin and aromatics producer, bought Royal Group last October.
www.royalgrouptech.com
Austrian-based Berndorf AG has bought a 74.9 per cent stake in the Hasco Group (Lüdenscheid, Germany), an international supplier of tool and mould components and hot-runner systems. The minority share of ownership remains with the families of Dr. Rolf and Thomas Hasenclever. Dipl.-Ing. Franz Viehböck has taken over as managing director of the group.
www.hasco.com
Haitian International Holdings Ltd., the Chinese injection moulding machine builder, is paying $9-million for a 90 per cent stake in a German company, Zhafir Plastics Machinery GmbH. Haitian believes this will boost its development of quality all-electric machines. Zhafir has been developing an all-electric machine for the Asian market as an alternative to top-end Japanese, South Korean, Taiwanese or European machines. The purchase is being made by a wholly owned Haitian subsidiary, Sunnew Investments Ltd., based in the British Virgin Islands.
www.haitian.com
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Coming
Events
September 19: Lean Formation – a look at Lean manufacturing in plastics processing. At Hôtel Universel (Best Western), Drummondville, Que. Organised by Quebec region, CPIA. (Contact: Maryse Lavigne at 450-641-5923 or mlavigne@acipquebec.ca)
September 19: CTMA opportunity to network at the Elmhurst Inn in Ingersoll, Ont. The evening includes a business meeting, presentation of highlights from the Wage & Business Survey, a keynote speaker, a cocktail reception and dinner. (Contact: Julie McFarlane at the CTMA at 519-653-7265 or info@ctma.com)
September 20: Monthly dinner meeting of Ontario section, Society of Plastics Engineers, on Improved Competitiveness Through Lean Management; also, the federal Scientific Research & Experimental Development (SR&ED) Program. At the Delta Toronto Airport West Hotel. (Contact: Ron Fisk at 416-740-5300 or ron.fisk@univarcanada.com).
September 24-26: Polyurethanes 2007 Technical Conference, on the theme Step Into The Future. At The Gaylord Palms Resort and Convention Center, Orlando, Fla. Sponsored by the Center for the Polyurethanes Industry of the American Chemistry Council. (Contact ACC at 703-741-5103 or visit www.americanchemistry.com/polyurethane).
September 26-28: World Vinyl Forum III, at the Marriott Copley Place Hotel, Boston, Mass. (Contact Katrina Kona at 703-741-5826 or katrina_kona@americanchemistry.com).
October 3-5, 2007: Polymer Extrusion: Analysis, Design and Troubleshooting, with hands-on computer simulation training. At Compuplast Training Center (KPL Prime Office Inc.), Mississauga, Ont. (Contact: John Perdikoulias at 905-814-8923 or jp@compuplast.ca).
October 15-18: Canadian Manufacturing Technology Show. At the Direct Energy Centre, Toronto. (Contact: Ken Tomihiro, 416-848-1665 or ktomihiro@sme.org).
October 18: Yearly Canadian meeting of CPIA's Composites Council at Composites 2007 in Tampa, Fla. (Contact Duncan Cross at 902-464-2742 or dcross@cpia.ca).
October 8-10: Automotive TPO Global Conference 2007, organised by the Society of Plastics Engineers. At the Best Western Sterling Inn, Sterling Heights, Mich. (Contact: Pat Levine at 248-244-8993 or p.levine@yahoo.com)
October 24-31: K 2007, Germany's international plastics super-show, at Dusseldorf Trade Fairgrounds. Nearly 3,000 exhibitors showing the latest plastics technology. (Contact: Stefan Egge at 416-598-1524 or messeduesseldorf@germanchamber.ca)
November 29: First Quebec Forum on Lean Plastics & Composites. At Hôtel des Seigneurs, St-Hyacinthe, Que. Organised by Quebec region, CPIA. (Contact: Maryse Lavigne at 450-641-5923 or mlavigne@acipquebec.ca)
December 5-8: Euromold is the world's largest mould, tool and die event, held at the Exhibition Centre, Frankfurt, Germany. (For exhibiting, contact Sally Damstra at sdamstra@cpia.ca or 905-678-7748, ext. 280. Visitor info at www.euromold.com/english). TOP
Coming
Soon From Plastics In Canada Magazine -
October
issue
Exporting from Canada today
Specialty automotive injection moulding
Extrusion report: Producing pipe
Spotlight on Mould releases, purging compounds and lubricants
Raw materials report
Processor profile
Closing: September 20
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