News
Plast-Ex Summit starts filling up
It's time for golf
Report looks at auto industry's HR situation
BE ships first 11-layer line
McMaster opens automotive R&D institute
Correction – CPIA awards banquet
Changes
Movers and shakers in the Plastics industry
Classified Ads
Job Forum
Events
Coming Events
Coming Soon From Plastics In Canada Magazine - June
From Plastics in Canada
News
Plast-Ex Summit starts filling up
The Plast-Ex Summit 20068 is just two weeks away. This major conference is held on Thursday, May 22, at the Rogers Centre (formerly the Skydome) in downtown Toronto. It is co-sponsored by Plastics in Canada magazine and the Canadian Plastics Industry Association.
"There's an urgent need for senior executives to form a sharper impression of where manufacturing is headed in this country," says Plastics in Canada publisher Nick Passingham. "The unique dynamic of the Canadian marketplace poses challenges that affect each industry segment differently.
"The plastics industry is having to manage a decline in automotive business, a relatively stagnant packaging field, and a slowdown in the US construction industry. Yet some plastics companies are continuing to grow in the face of this, because they see the potential of emerging niches or export markets.
"The Summit is aimed at helping CEOs, CFOs and other senior decision-makers recognise where these opportunities lie, and what is needed to exploit them successfully into the coming years."
The lineup of speakers includes the heads of several major processing firms, consultants with long history in the industry, and leaders from the technology sector.
The $695 all-inclusive price for the Summit covers the conference itself, lunch, dinner and a networking reception. It also includes a baseball game at the Rogers Centre the same evening, when the Toronto Blue Jays will play the Los Angeles Angels.
To obtain your registration form, and to look at the full lineup of speakers, go to www.plastexsummit.ca
It's time for golf
The leaves are out, and summer's almost upon us. That means it's golf season. If you're planning on improving your stroke over the next few months, here are some of the events the industry is planning.
The Plastic Film Manufacturers Association of Canada holds its 27th annual golf tournament on May 22, at Richmond Hill Golf Club, Richmond Hill, Ont. The contact is Marilyne Berman, 905-678-7748 or mberman@cpia.ca.
Next is the Canadian Association of Mold Makers, on June 1, at Fox Glen Golf and Country Club, in McGregor, Ont., near Amherstburg. For more information, contact Mike Hicks at 519-737-6743 or mikeh@dmscomponents.com.
Two days later, on June 3, there's the Canadian Tooling and Machining Association's 10th Annual Shotgun Golf Tournament, held at Pine Knot Golf & Country Club in Dorchester, Ont. Registration can be made through the CTMA's offices, at 519-653-7265 or info@ctma.com.
Different sections of the Society of Plastics Engineers have tournaments in Quebec and Ontario, both of them also in June. The Quebec section is first, one June 12, at Club de golf La Madeleine, in Ste-Madeleine, Que. Michel M. Vinette, at 819-758-2692 or mvinette@americanpolymers.com, is the contact.
Ontario follows on June 20, at Station Creek Golf Course. The contact is Andrew Marshall at 416-781-5286 or amarshall@ontor.com.
The Canadian Plastics Industry Association's annual golf classic is on August 28, at Cardinal Golf Club, Kettleby, Ont. For more information, contact Erin Cimino at ecimino@cpia.ca or 905-678-7748.
And the Canadian Plastics Pioneers are holding their eighth annual golf tournament and luncheon on September 4, at the Richmond Hill Golf Club, Richmond Hill, Ont. The contact is Tom Thomas, 416-498-4016, or tom.thomas@rogers.com.
Report looks at auto industry's HR situation
The Council for Automotive Human Resources has a new report entitled Competing Without a Net: The Future of the Canadian Automotive Industry. It was released at the APMA's conference held last week in Hamilton, Ont. The report covers companies involved in automobile assembly, truck and bus assembly, parts manufacturing; and the tooling segments of the automotive industry.
"The automotive marketplace is constantly changing and its workforce must change with it," according to John Mavrak, executive director of CAHR. "While having a skilled workforce will not ensure the survival of the industry, the absence of such a labour market will ensure the demise of its competitive advantage. Canada's automotive labour market must remain leading-edge".
As suggested by the title, many of the industry's traditional competitive advantages have disappeared or been significantly reduced. Canadian firms are literally "competing without a net."
The report outlines the current and future environment within the Canadian automotive industry; describes the impacts of technology on human resource requirements; assesses the labour supply and demand and the formation of an automotive labour market including training requirements to ensure workers have the most current skill sets; and identifies human resources policies and practices and how they can maintain a talented, flexible and innovative workforce.
www.cahr-crha.ca/www/site/projects/sectorstudy.htm
Have you updated your listing in Plastics in Canada's Source Book?
This annual directory of the plastics industry is compiled during May, and you should already have had a form mailed out to you. If you've not seen yours, or need to make further changes to your listing, simply go to www.plasticsincanada.com, and click on the Update/Add Listing button on the right.
PLEASE NOTE: we make every effort to keep the Source Book a useful and relevant manual for the industry. This means that every year, we delete listings that have not been updated in the previous 24 months. So, it's advisable to check your listing anyway, to be sure it's up to date, and not at risk of being eliminated. |
BE ships first 11-layer line
Brampton Engineering (Brampton, Ont.) has shipped what it says is the world's first 11-layer blown film line to an undisclosed customer. It uses the company's SCD multilayer streamlined coextrusion die system.
Accommodating the 11 extruders around the die posed a technical challenge because of constriction. BE's engineering group knew that arranging 11 extruders radially around the SCD die would require longer adaptors and result in a very crowded hot section. Its solution was to design piggybacked extruders, or two extruders with one mounted on top of another. The design of the SCD provides a good marriage for piggybacked extruders since the extruder centre line heights are different for each layer.
The configuration for the 11-layer line then became two piggybacked extruders plus seven normal extruders, creating a radial extruder configuration similar to a nine-layer line but with two of the extruders being doubles.
www.be-ca.com
The piggy-backed extruder design used on the 11-layer line.
McMaster opens automotive R&D institute
A new research institute has been established at McMaster University to coordinate its increasing involvement in the automotive sector. The McMaster Institute for Automotive Research and Technology, known as MacAUTO, brings together more than 75 researchers in engineering, science, business and other faculties involved in automotive-related research. This work involves collaboration with more than 30 private and public sector organizations.
"Better coordinating our efforts across disciplines will lead to new ideas and better solutions for the automotive industry," said Mo Elbestawi, vice-president of research and international affairs at McMaster. "It will also make it easier for organisations to access our pool of highly qualified researchers and leading-edge facilities to advance a vital industry sector in Ontario and worldwide."
McMaster is already home to a steel research centre and a manufacturing research institute as well as the Brockhouse Institute for Materials Research.
www.eng.mcmaster.ca
Correction – CPIA awards banquet
A news item last week stated that the Canadian Plastics Industry Association's annual awards banquet would be held on May 22. The correct date for this gala is the evening before: Wednesday, May 21.
www.cpia.ca
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Changes
CDS (Lachine, Que.) has announced a group of promotions, following its first annual sales meeting. Antonio Pecora becomes vice-president of sales and business development; Vicky Fortier becomes vice-president of administration and operations; and Christine Bergeron is now project planner.
www.cdsmachines.com
Mark Mulone has been named extrusion sales manager for The Conair Group. He assumes responsibility for sales of Conair and MPM downstream plastics extrusion equipment and will devote his efforts initially to the large-diameter pipe segment. He has more than 20 years experience in the plastics industry, having worked for Boston Matthews, Coperion Corp., SIG Corpoplast and most recently, Entek Extruders.
www.conairgroup.com
Mark Mulone
Optima Colour (Cambridge, Ont.) now has a manufacturing contract for the thermo-oxidative additive system Addiflex HES, made by GreenClub Inc. In a compost environment the temperature and oxygen present will initiate the molecular breakdown of the polymer. Optima Colour produces colour concentrates and masterbatches.
www.optimacolour.com Honeywell (Morris Township, NJ ) is buying Norcross Safety Products L.L.C., (Oak Brook, Ill.), a manufacturer of personal protective equipment (PPE), for approximately $1.2-billion. Norcross will be integrated into Honeywell Life Safety, part of Honeywell's Automation and Control Solutions (ACS) group. Norcross's revenue was approximately $609-million in 2007.
www.honeywell.com/acs
Blow moulding machinery supplier Bekum America Corp. has appointed Ben Lopez its technical manager. He has worked in the plastics machinery industry for more than 25 years, having learned his trade at Owens Illinois, Battenfeld Fischer, Sig Kautex and most recently, Milacron, Inc.
www.bekumamerica.com
Ben Lopez
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Coming Events
2008
May 12-13: Tenth International Conference on Progress in Biofibre Plastic Composites. At the Toronto Airport Renaissance Hotel. (Contact: Guida Williamson at 519-249-0545 or www.biocomposites-toronto.com)
May 22: The Plast-Ex Summit 2008 is a look at the urgent issues facing the plastics industry in Canada. Co-sponsored by Plastics in Canada magazine and the Canadian Plastics Industry Association. At the Rogers Centre, Toronto. (Contact: Nick Passingham at 416-764-1527 or nick.passingham@plastics.rogers.com).
May 22: Plastic Film Manufacturers Association of Canada, 27th annual golf tournament. At Richmond Hill Golf Club. (Contact: Marilyne Berman, 905-678-7748 or mberman@cpia.ca).
May 26 - 29: Aseanplas 2008 incorporating Aseanrubber 2008, Southeast Asia's main international trade fair for plastics and rubber. At Singapore Expo. (Contact: Messe Düsseldorf North America at 312-781-5180 or info@mdna.com).
June 3: Canadian Tooling and Machining Association's 10th Annual Shotgun Golf Tournament, at Pine Knot Golf & Country Club in Dorchester, Ont. (Contact CTMA at 519-653-7265 or info@ctma.com).
June 16: Windsor Chapter of CAMM dinner meeting. (Contact: Diane Deslippe at 519 255-7863 or info@camm.ca).
June 5: Canadian Plastics Pioneers 12th annual reunion and citation awards dinner. At the Donalda Club, Don Mills, Ont. (Contact: Tom Thomas at 416-498-4016 or tom.thomas@rogers.com)
June 20: SPE Ontario golf tournament, at Station Creek Golf Course. (Contact: Andrew Marshall at 416-781-5286 or amarshall@ontor.com).
September 30-October 2: Interplas 2008, Britain's national plastics show, at the Birmingham NEC, UK. (Contact: Graham Earl at 020 8910 7890 or graham.earl@reedexpo.co.uk).
October 22-23: Rotoplas '08, the international rotational moulding event, at the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center, Rosemont, Ill. (Contact: Maria at 630-578-3266 x225, or mariap@cmservnet.com)
October 20-21: Expoplast 2008, Quebec's triennial plastics show, at the Palais de Congres in Montreal. (Contact: Tom Sockett at 905-678-7748 or tsockett@cpia.ca)
October 22-23: Rotoplas '08, the international rotational moulding event, at the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center, Rosemont, Ill. (Contact: Maria at 630-578-3266 x225, or mariap@cmservnet.com)
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Coming Soon From Plastics In Canada Magazine - June issue
Precision Parts - Moulding to Tight Specifications
Extrusion Report - Innovations in Blown Film
Spotlight on Granulators and Shredders
Product Review of Printing & Decorating
Product Review of Welding Systems
Raw Materials Report
Processor Profile
Closing: May 21, 2008
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