A publication of the European Plastics Distributors Association
Issue 18 | October 2006 | www.epda.com
In this issue
Please send this newsletter
to your colleagues.
| A NOTE
FROM THE MEMBERSHIP COMMITTEE I would like to draw your attention to the membership recruiting leaflets available from EPDA or online at www.epda.com/pdf/join/EPDA-promo.pdf. Please take the time to download the leaflet or request hard copies by e-mailing epda@epda.com, so you can carry copies with you, in case you are talking to someone interested in our association. The EPDA needs to attract new members to remain strong, vibrant and relevant. It is important that recruitment efforts are aimed at European distributors; manufacturer members are uniquely positioned to speak to distributors and carry this through. We are particularly interested in new members from countries where we are poorly represented. As a final point, I believe that reading the leaflet about the benefits of membership also underscores the value of membership to all of us and how we as members can get the best for our companies out of our association. Yours sincerely, Plans are in the works for the 17 to 20 May 2007 conference in Torino, Italy. Registration materials will be available in early 2007.
Samara was founded in the 16th century as a fortress on the border
of the Russian empire. In the 19th century, Czarina Katharina II
invited foreigners to immigrate to Russia, and many Germans accepted
her invitation. During World War II, the city (formerly Kujbyschew)
was the temporary seat of the government. As a closed city, Today, more than 3.3 million people call the area around Samara home, and the city has developed into one of the most important industrial areas of the country. Among the city’s attractions are Stalin’s bunker, a
World War II bunker built to house military operations in the event
that Moscow was taken; theaters for opera, ballet and drama; museums
of history, art and literature, the beach along the Volga River
and the Lufthansa and Czech Airlines offer direct flights from Frankfurt and Prague, respectively. More information on the city is available online at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samara%2C_Russia. |
| EPDA members are invited to submit news on their company and products for publication in EPDA’s E-Update newsletter. News may be submitted in any language, to be translated by EPDA staff, and may include photographs. Please e-mail news (in a Microsoft Word document or as text in an e-mail) to epda@epda.com. Please note that submissions may be edited for length and clarity. SILWOOD PLASTICS APPOINTS NEW SALES MANAGER The family-owned business, which operates from a central England logistic facility in Brackley continues to grow its capability and this new appointment demonstrates the commitment of the current managing director to make way for the growth plans that will create great opportunities for its employees and a stronger identity of ownership. Director shareholders Andrew and Debbie Coxall will now undertake a more active role in the daily running of the business, as Brian Coxall prepares to reduce his operational time in the business. For more information, visit www.silwoodgroup.co.uk. ZELL-METALL’S KRAGULJAC HONORED AT
IAPD ANNUAL CONVENTION
He has been involved with the EPDA since its early days, and in 2002, he became the EPDA representative to the IAPD Board of Directors. Kraguljac has also served on the IAPD Membership Committee, actively recruiting members and promoting the benefits of joining both organizations. He has always been one of IAPD’s biggest supporters and is generous with his time and ideas, writing articles for The IAPD Magazine, as well as giving presentations to educate IAPD members on trends in the global marketplace. “Nick deeply cares about IAPD’s mission to grow the plastics distribution industry — worldwide,” said IAPD President Marc Lewis Jr. “The IAPD and EPDA have both developed and been significantly strengthened with the help of Nick’s leadership and guidance.” For more information, visit www.iapd.org. NEW EXTRUSION LINE AT FOAMALITE
The new line has also been commissioned to cater for a shift in customer requirements toward cut-to-size orders. These are manufactured as clean, print ready panels that literally go out of the factory, via distribution, and straight to print production. For more information, visit www.foamalite.ie. |
| Articles reporting on plastic
products are prepared from information furnished by CREATING AN IMPACT Call the sales team at Plastics Plus to discuss your next application using the latest plastic sheet products. For more information, visit www.plasticsplus.co.uk. NEW PLASTICS APPLIED IN MEDICINAL TECHNOLOGIES
The range of products includes the following materials: Acetron® LSG, PC LSG, Ultem® PEI LSG, PSU LSG, Radel® PPSU LSG, Techtron® HPV LSG, Ketron® PEEK LSG, Ketron ® PEEK-GF30 LSG, Ketron® PEEK-CA30 LSG, and Ketron® PEEK-CLASSIX™ LSG. . These new plastics bring tested, semi-finished products that can be used in medical, pharmaceutical and biotechnological applications to the market for the first time. For further information contact www.angst-pfister.com. ITALIAN DESIGN FOR PLASTICS: INNOVATION
IN COMPOSITE PANELS The composite panels made using Birdwing® as their core are called Starlight and are produced by gluing external layers in polycarbonate, PETG or acrylic, clear or coloured, satin or glossy, to the Birdwing® core in transparent thermoplastics. Starlight, with its translucency and a wide range of colours, is much appreciated by architects and designers that use it in fittings for shops, offices, houses, bars, restaurants and in general public areas, exhibition stands and stages for TV and theatre, and also in the furniture production. The core pattern gives Starlight a special and unique decorative effect that, matched with the possibility of changing colour and intensity of light, gives new possibilities when designing partition walls, doors, false ceilings, raised floors to the most demanding architects. For more information, please visit www.bencore.it. KNEES IN TANZANIA
Because they were training at a rehabilitation centre in Tanzania, they asked Quadrant to send materials to the city of Moshi to fabricate three prostheses. These kinds of prostheses are frequently used in Europe, but in Tanzania, they are incredibly expensive and difficult to maintain. The students wanted to fabricate a prosthetic knee for the Tanzanian people — one that would be inexpensive, strong and maintenance friendly. They did this in collaboration with TATCOT (Tanzania Training Centre for Orthopaedic Technologists). In October, the students started to shape Quadrant’s material in a local workshop. The material could be fabricated very easily, as it retains its shape and does not need any lubrication as did the materials they had previously used — wood and steel. The resulting knee was named the Tanza Knee, and was immediately used by someone who had been previously using a uniaxial knee-prosthesis. For more information, please visit www.quadrantplastics.com. PERSPEX® FROST ADDS COLOUR TO PORTABLE
BAR
JUSTINCASE is as versatile as it is practical. The standard model has a countertop made from Perspex® Frost, stainless steel legs and power outlets — but additional options are available to add a sink, beer taps and even speakers with an MP3 system. The idea is the brainchild of Austrian designer René Chavanne. Using Perspex® Frost allowed Chavanne to keep the bar light in weight but also attractive and hard-wearing. Perspex® Frost also enables JUSTINCASE to be specially tailored to promote either a manufacturer’s logo, brand or special event, either by using one of the contemporary and eye-catching Perspex® Frost colors, or by printing graphics on the underside of sheet. For more information, please visit www.lucitesolutions.com. |
| NEWS from the Industry |
| EMERGING
COMPETITION SHAKES UP EUROPEAN PLASTICS The majority of European plastics firms are adopting a mix of strategies in response, such as increasing efficiency, improving technical innovation and product branding, and increasing the level of integration across their supply chains. Others are investigating less proven approaches, such as adopting new price-management techniques and distribution methods. An 18-page paper, Keeping Competitive in Commodity Plastics, based on interviews with 20 senior executives in the plastics industry, as well as extensive desk research, is available free of charge from Sheila Allen at +44 20 7576 8188 or sheilaallen@eiu.com. |
| Industry Events |
| For a list of all events, please visit www.epda.com/industry.cfm PLASTICS ADDITIVES AND
COMPOUNDING CONFERENCE TPE 2006 THE PLASTICS INDUSTRY STRATEGY SEMINAR |
The
2008 conference will be held in Istanbul, Turkey. The 2009 conference
will be held in Samara, Russia. Lada-List has provided the following
information on the area.
Samara
enjoyed a special position in the aviation and space technology
industries during and after the war. 
Schuguli
hills with Samarskaja Luka national park.
Kraguljac
was honored for contributing his valuable time and vast knowledge
to benefit not only IAPD’s North American members, but its
European members as well.
“Above
everything else at Foamalite we never lose site of the core values
that have been fundamental to our success — product quality
and customer service,” said Christine Reilly, Foamalite’s
managing director. “The new line not only allows us to increase
production capacity but also lets us develop our customer service
to a new level with regard to production speed and quality control,
keeping us at the forefront of foam PVC production worldwide.”
This
stunning exhibition stand, featured at the recent Exhibiting Show
at ExCel in London Docklands, was constructed from a Unibox modular
aluminium system and designed by Point2 Creative. The stand utilised
digitally printed acrylic sheet from Plastics Plus Ltd. to promote
the Unibox system at the show, demonstrating how it can be used
creatively in conjunction with acrylics.
Polymers,
which come into contact with human tissue or bodily fluids during
operations, must fulfill very high standards in regards to hygiene
and biological compatibility. Thanks to the new SG (Life Science
Grade) program by Quadrant AG, Angst+Pfister now offers a range
of products, which were approved and documented to meet medicinal
technical guidelines such as the USP, FDA and ISO 10993.
BENCORE®
srl was founded in the year 2000, and has been mixing technology
with innovation on the ongoing and demanding market of plastic composite
panels with its patented thermoplastic core, named Birdwing®.
The
students were working on the renewal of a leg-prosthesis and were
more specifically looking for ERTACETAL, a material to design a
polycentric (more axis) knee, that would strongly improve the walking
pattern of the patient.
The
unit can be easily carried by one person, fits into the boot of
a car and can be erected in minutes, with no need for special tools
or equipment. It has an impressive 2.8 meter bar area. |
Copyright 2006 |
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