While prices moved up for three of the five commodity resins, there was potential for a flat trajectory for the rest of the third quarter.

The need for increased warehouse space, like this one from Guttenberg, was one area survey respondents said business shifted in 2021. (Photo: Guttenberg Industries)

Ultradent's entry of its Umbrella cheek retractor took home the awards for Technical Sophistication and Achievement in Economics and Efficiency at PTXPO.

Across all process types, sustainability was a big theme at NPE2024. But there was plenty to see in automation and artificial intelligence as well.

August 29-30 in Minneapolis all things injection molding and moldmaking will be happening at the Hyatt Regency — check out who’s speaking on what topics today.

“Plastikos saw sizeable raises and increases in our hourly rates and entire compensation structure to support everyone on our team and position us as a leading employer in our local region,” Katen notes.

Plastics Technology covers technical and business Information for Plastics Processors in Injection Molding, Extrusion, Blow Molding, Plastic Additives, Compounding, Plastic Materials, and Resin Pricing. About Us

Average mold-change time is one metric Top Shops are measured on. Pictured here, Qualicase swapping out a tool. (Photo: Qualicase)

Processors with sustainability goals or mandates have a number of ways to reach their goals. Biopolymers are among them.

Because of resin availability shortages and delivery delays, many survey respondents noted that 2021 forced them to take on more warehouse and inventory responsibilities, both for raw materials and molded parts. “The challenge for the past two years has been the need to warehouse additional inventory to account for delays in delivery so we could maintain production and revenue generation,” Guttenberg’s Kreul says.

“We were all shocked,” Goerges says. “Thank God we had inventory for enough orders that this didn’t become a bigger nightmare than it was.”

“We have seen some increase in the number of requests for design support for new projects with several customers,” Accudyn’s Stolarski says. “This has largely been caused by the lack of engineering resources at our customers’ facilities.”

For 2021, Top Shops in the U.S. paid an average hourly wage of $18.06, while other U.S. respondents paid $19.74. Those figures were up from $17 and $16 per hour, respectively, in 2020. While hourly wages might have been lower, Top Shops benefits far exceeded those of other survey participants. Top Shops offered 401(k) plans (U.S. only), 401(k) matching, bonuses, education reimbursement and profit/revenue sharing at rates that were, respectively: 23%, 19%, 19%, 34% and 21% higher than other respondents.

Despite the many market challenges, many of 2022’s Top Shops, including Plastikos Medical picture here, expanded operations. (Photo: Plastikos Medical)

When, how, what and why to automate — leading robotics suppliers and forward-thinking moldmakers will share their insights on automating manufacturing at collocated event.

Resin drying is a crucial, but often-misunderstood area. This collection includes details on why and what you need to dry, how to specify a dryer, and best practices.

The Top Shops benchmarking survey of injection molders queries participants on demographic data, performance indicators, and business and process strategies. A selection of those performance metrics are then scored, with the highest scoring companies named Top Shops for 2022 based on their 2021 operations.

For Precision Tool and other participants in Plastics Technology’s annual Top Shops benchmarking survey of injection molders, those supply-chain shocks and nightmares would give way to a grudging acceptance of the new post-COVID “normal” and a shift in how they conducted their businesses. Perhaps nowhere was this new normal felt more acutely than in the resin market.

Successfully starting or restarting an injection molding machine is less about ticking boxes on a rote checklist and more about individually assessing each processing scenario and its unique variables.

Across the show, sustainability ruled in new materials technology, from polyolefins and engineering resins to biobased materials.

Building, certifying, and maintaining a controlled cleanroom environment in a manufacturing facility can be quite costly. To help clients capitalize on cleanroom manufacturing without investing that time and expense or having to send work overseas, The Rodon Group has built an ISO Class 8-capable cleanroom for its injection molding operations.

“The wide-range impact of inflation throughout the past 12 to 18 months has definitely been a challenge,” explains Philip Katen, general manager and president of Plastikos, Erie, Pa., who noted that Plastikos paid more for packaging materials, utilities and people, along with, at times, monthly resin-price increases.

Take a deep dive into all of the various aspects of part quoting to ensure you’ve got all the bases—as in costs—covered before preparing your customer’s quote for services.

Mold maintenance is critical, and with this collection of content we’ve bundled some of the very best advice we’ve published on repairing, maintaining, evaluating and even hanging molds on injection molding machines.

“2021 was an extremely busy and challenging year with lingering COVID issues, numerous supply-chain difficulties, price increases, labor shortages, etc.,” Katen at Plastikos says. “It was extremely busy with all our customers, whether due to pent-up COVID demand or just continued growth.”

“I believe that successfully navigating all of the variables that hit us in 2021 actually made the business environment in 2022 almost normal,” Accudyn’s Stolarski concludes.

At the start of 2021, as it does every year, Plastics Technology asked injection molders to look back on the year prior and take stock of their operations. The only difference this time: COVID-19.

Amid these supremely challenging conditions, PT once again named its Top Shops honorees, including Qualicase, Bridgville and Precision Tool. These molders were able to exceed strict production benchmarks in areas like on-time delivery when their own suppliers were most certainly not on time. The 24 Top Shops of 2022 hailed from three continents, four different countries and 11 different states, ranging south to Colombia, north to Canada and east to India, with three each from Michigan, Minnesota and Pennsylvania. In total, the survey, which is in its sixth year, drew responses from 19 different states—three Canadian provinces—and eight different countries.

Join KraussMaffei for an insightful webinar designed for industry professionals, engineers and anyone interested in the manufacturing processes of PVC pipes. This session will provide a comprehensive understanding of the technology behind the production of high-quality PVC pipes: from raw material preparation to final product testing. Agenda: Introduction to PVC extrusion: overview of the basic principles of PVC pipe extrusion — including the process of melting and shaping PVC resin into pipe forms Equipment and machinery: detailed explanation of the key equipment involved — such as extruders, dies and cooling systems — and their roles in the extrusion process Process parameters: insight into the critical process parameters like temperature, pressure and cooling rates that influence the quality and consistency of the final PVC pipes Energy efficiency: examination of ways to save material and energy use when extruding PVC pipe products

Greater profitability is one metric that is used to determine Top Shops, and this year’s survey found that in 2021 fully 75% of Top Shops increased machine-hour rates while only 50% of other survey respondents did.

Additive technology creates air pockets in film during orientation, cutting down on the amount of resin needed while boosting opacity, mechanical properties and recyclability.

While prices moved up for three of the five commodity resins, there was potential for a flat trajectory for the rest of the third quarter.

When it came to bearing the burden of higher resin costs, Top Shops reported a general ability to pass along higher prices to their customers. “Our customers across the board have been quite understanding, supportive and overall agreeable to production price increases,” Katen says.

In addition to carrying a bigger price tag, resins were often simply not available, forcing molders and their customers to rethink the material of choice for a given product. “We partnered closely with our customers to identify, sample and qualify alternative lower-cost raw materials,” Katen says.

Plastics Technology’s 2020 Top Shops benchmarking survey reveals that the most effective molders are, not surprisingly, the most efficient, accomplishing more than their peers from a smaller manufacturing footprint.

Sustainability continues to dominate new additives technology, but upping performance is also evident. Most of the new additives have been targeted to commodity resins and particularly polyolefins.

Despite the myriad challenges posed by a molding sector emerging from the pandemic, many respondents said 2021 was a banner year in terms of business. “2020 was very challenging for Precision Tool,” Goerges says, “yet we somehow pulled off our best in the the history of the company. And 2021 was even better — go figure.”

In this collection of content, we provide expert advice on welding from some of the leading authorities in the field, with tips on such matters as controls, as well as insights on how to solve common problems in welding.

In this collection of articles, two of the industry’s foremost authorities on screw design — Jim Frankand and Mark Spalding — offer their sage advice on screw design...what works, what doesn’t, and what to look for when things start going wrong.

Join Engel in exploring the future of battery molding technology. Discover advancements in thermoplastic composites for battery housings, innovative automation solutions and the latest in large-tonnage equipment designed for e-mobility — all with a focus on cost-efficient solutions. Agenda: Learn about cutting-edge thermoplastic composites for durable, sustainable and cost-efficient battery housings Explore advanced automation concepts for efficient and scalable production See the latest large-tonnage equipment and technology innovations for e-mobility solutions

“For almost all of our customers, Accudyn was able to pass resin increases through to our clients,” says Don Stolarski, v.p. sales and business development of Accudyn Products in Erie, Pa. “It was not always easy, but we engaged our customers, providing the data they needed to approve the increases.”

Introduced by Zeiger and Spark Industries at the PTXPO, the nozzle is designed for maximum heat transfer and uniformity with a continuous taper for self cleaning.

Precision Tool Technologies’ routine order for labels laid bare the vagaries of the global supply chain as it barely functioned in 2021. Instead of next day, next week or next month, Jim Goerges, president of the Brainerd, Minn., injection molder was informed that the labels his company applied to a marine part — which he was ordering one year in advance — were back-ordered for 18 months due to the lack of a component in their adhesive, which was itself back-ordered from China.

While the major correction in PP prices was finally underway, generally stable pricing was anticipated for the other four commodity resins.

Multiple speakers at Molding 2023 will address the ways simulation can impact material substitution decisions, process profitability and simplification of mold design.

Higher costs for materials, wages, utilities and more, coupled with delivery difficulties for both incoming supplies and outgoing production, posed unique challenges to 2022’s class of Top Shops.

Thousands of people visit our Supplier Guide every day to source equipment and materials. Get in front of them with a free company profile.

Formnext Chicago is an industrial additive manufacturing expo taking place April 8-10, 2025 at McCormick Place in Chicago, Illinois. Formnext Chicago is the second in a series of Formnext events in the U.S. being produced by Mesago Messe Frankfurt, AMT – The Association For Manufacturing Technology, and Gardner Business Media (our publisher).

In this collection, which is part one of a series representing some of John’s finest work, we present you with five articles that we think you will refer to time and again as you look to solve problems, cut cycle times and improve the quality of the parts you mold.

The average machine age at 2022’s Top Shops was just nine years compared with 14 for other respondents. (Photo: Champion Plastics)

Given the breadth of geographies and markets the survey participants serve and the materials they use, it is rare to see unanimity in a question response, but when asked if their average resin price increased, decreased or stayed the same in 2021, 100% of Top Shops reported paying more for material, while 92% of the other participants did as well. It wasn’t just resin prices that marched higher, either.

Despite price increase nominations going into second quarter, it appeared there was potential for generally flat pricing with the exception of a major downward correction for PP.

Standing orders and penciled-in quotes went by the wayside in 2021, as constant customer contact took over. “Our customers required weekly reports on our inventories—both for finished goods and resin,” says Tom Moneta, owner and president of Bridgville Plastics in Stevensville, Mich. “We had to keep them posted continually if our resin suppliers were going to be late on shipments.”

In a time where sustainability is no longer just a buzzword, the food and beverage packaging industry is required to be at the forefront of this innovation. By adopting circular packaging processes and solutions, producers can meet regulatory requirements while also satisfying consumer demand and enhancing brand reputation. Join Husky to learn more about the broader implications of the circular economy — as well as how leading brands are leveraging this opportunity to reduce costs, increase design flexibility and boost product differentiation. Agenda: The cost and operational benefits of embracing circularity Key materials in circular packaging — including rPET and emerging bioplastics How to design a circular food and beverage package Strategies for selecting sustainable closures to future-proof packaging solutions Optimization and streamlining of production processes for enhanced efficiency How Husky Technologies can enable your sustainable success

Ignatowski at Champion Plastics says his company has seen huge demand for design-for-manufacturing (DFM) services. “Many of the young design engineers don’t have the experience to properly apply the needed drafts, uniform wall thicknesses, etc., for injection molding.” In Champion’s case, the company typically revises part CAD files, modifying the design to enable easier molding before tool steel is cut.

Join this webinar to explore the transformative benefits of retrofitting your existing injection molding machines (IMMs). Engel will guide you through upgrading your equipment to enhance monitoring, control and adaptability — all while integrating digital technologies. You'll learn about the latest trends in IMM retrofitting (including Euromap interfaces and plasticizing retrofits) and discover how to future-proof your machines for a competitive edge. With insights from industry experts, it'll walk you through the decision-making process, ensuring you make informed choices that drive your business forward. Agenda: Maximize the value of your current IMMs through strategic retrofitting Learn how to integrate digital technologies to enhance monitoring and control Explore the benefits of Euromap interfaces and plasticizing retrofits Understand how retrofitting can help meet new product demands and improve adaptability Discover how Engel can support your retrofitting needs, from free consultations to execution

This month’s resin pricing report includes PT’s quarterly check-in on select engineering resins, including nylon 6 and 66.

“Some resins did not increase in price; some doubled; some resin lead times went to four months,” explains Bruce Borstmayer, owner of Alberta-based custom molder Qualicase Ltd. “All our customers are businesses themselves, and they are aware of the current business climate, so nobody was surprised. Now, however, we have to requote every time we get a new order.”

In this three-part collection, veteran molder and moldmaker Jim Fattori brings to bear his 40+ years of on-the-job experience and provides molders his “from the trenches” perspective on on the why, where and how of venting injection molds. Take the trial-and-error out of the molding venting process.

This Knowledge Center provides an overview of the considerations needed to understand the purchase, operation, and maintenance of a process cooling system.

The aim of this presentation is to guide you through the factors and the numbers that will help you determine if a robot is a smart investment for your application. Agenda:  Why are you considering automation? What problems are you trying to solve? How and why automation can help Crunch the numbers and determine the ROI

On average, Top Shops run smaller machines, with only 4% utilizing machines over 1000 tons, 18% fewer than other respondents. (Photo: CH3 Solutions)

Discover how artifical intelligence is revolutionizing plastics processing. Hear from industry experts on the future impact of AI on your operations and envision a fully interconnected plant.

“Our strategy to deal with inflationary pressure involved carrying more inventory to hedge any supply issues, combined with purchasing larger quantities to maintain pricing,” says Jeff Ignatowski, director of sales and marketing at Champion Plastics, Auburn Hills, Mich.

"Rodon’s cleanroom is the latest investment in reshoring manufacturing in the critical healthcare supply chain,” explains Michael Araten, company president. "Rodon has been committed to American manufacturing for almost 70 years, and our team is excited to couple our ISO 13485 certification with our cleanroom to bring advanced precision manufacturing solutions to our customers.”

Second quarter started with price hikes in PE and the four volume engineering resins, but relatively stable pricing was largely expected by the quarter’s end.

“The shortage of people and high inflation is driving wages to unsustainable levels for businesses,” states Rodney Davenport, v.p. at CH3 Solutions, Dalton, Ga. At Champion Plastics, Ignatowski says the company asked managers to wear additional “hats” to try to hold labor costs in check, but it also invested in existing employees. “We also stepped up our internal continuous-improvement activities to lower costs and invested in additional training for our employees.” A tangible result: The lead process tech became a certified RJG Master Molder who went on to reduce cycle times and improve quality for the facility.

Top Shops and other survey respondents were similar in one respect: providing product design as a value-added service. Some 67% of all survey respondents, Top Shops or otherwise, provided design services for their customers.

This article is sponsored by The Rodon Group, a company specializing in custom plastic injection molding and precision manufacturing solutions since 1956.

Gifted with extraordinary technical know how and an authoritative yet plain English writing style, in this collection of articles Fattori offers his insights on a variety of molding-related topics that are bound to make your days on the production floor go a little bit better.

At Precision Tool, “Product design has increased for us, it’s a big deal,” Goerges says. When the company starts a new project with a customer they internally call the process “Struggle Street,” as they work to understand the customer’s struggles.   Goerges adds, “When we know upfront all the issues and pain points, it gives us a new understanding, and many times we can creatively solve many potential issues to keep them from ever becoming a problem.”

Learn about sustainable scrap reprocessing—this resource offers a deep dive into everything from granulator types and options, to service tips, videos and technical articles.

While the melting process does not provide perfect mixing, this study shows that mixing is indeed initiated during melting.

After successfully introducing a combined conference for moldmakers and injection molders in 2022, Plastics Technology and MoldMaking Technology are once again joining forces for a tooling/molding two-for-one.

“Guttenberg Industries sought to mitigate some of the inflationary pressure by focusing on efficiency and waste elimination,” says Dave Kreul, president of Guttenberg Industries in Garnavillo, Iowa. “But ultimately, certain costs had to be passed on to customers.”

Mixed in among thought leaders from leading suppliers to injection molders and mold makers at the 2023 Molding and MoldMaking conferences will be molders and toolmakers themselves.

Modifications to the common core pin can be a simple solution, but don’t expect all resins to behave the same. Gas assist is also worth a try.

The Plastics Industry Association (PLASTICS) has released final figures for NPE2024: The Plastics Show (May 6-10; Orlando) that officially make it the largest ever NPE in several key metrics.

Exhibitors and presenters at the plastics show emphasized 3D printing as a complement and aid to more traditional production processes.

Finding, training and keeping experienced operators remains a challenge, even for Top Shops like Qualicase. (Photo: Qualicase)

With advocacy, communication and sustainability as three main pillars, Seaholm leads a trade association to NPE that ‘is more active today than we have ever been.’

Mike Sepe has authored more than 25 ANTEC papers and more than 250 articles illustrating the importance of this interdisciplanary approach. In this collection, we present some of his best work during the years he has been contributing for Plastics Technology Magazine.

technotrans says climate protection, energy efficiency and customization will be key discussion topics at PTXPO as it displays its protemp flow 6 ultrasonic eco and the teco cs 90t 9.1 TCUs.

For Moneta at Bridgville Plastics, getting alternative resins approved by the customers became the new norm to keep production going. “In all of Bridgville Plastics’ 35 years of operations,” Moneta explains, “we had more alternate resins used and approved during these past two years by our customers than in all of the other years combined.”

Core Technology Molding turned to Mold-Masters E-Multi auxiliary injection unit to help it win a job and dramatically change its process.

Borstmayer at Qualicase is more blunt about the need to help with design, particularly when it comes to manufacturability: “Most customers have no idea what is required to make an injection molded part. We will always have to modify their drawings to design a part that can actually be molded.”

Against this backdrop of higher costs for utilities and materials, the ongoing labor difficulties felt across manufacturing could only exacerbate the financial challenge of 2021 for the molders surveyed. At Bridgville Plastics, Moneta says the company raised its wages to keep current employees and try to attract new ones. “Wages were our single largest inflationary challenge over the past two years,” he says.

Join Wittmann for an engaging webinar on the transformative impact of manufacturing execution systems (MES) in the plastic injection molding industry. Discover how MES enhances production efficiency, quality control and real-time monitoring while also reducing downtime. It will explore the integration of MES with existing systems, emphasizing compliance and traceability for automotive and medical sectors. Learn about the latest advancements in IoT and AI technologies and how they drive innovation and continuous improvement in MES. Agenda: Overview of MES benefits What is MES? Definition, role and brief history Historical perspective and evolution Longevity and analytics Connectivity: importance, standards and integration Advantages of MES: efficiency, real-time data, traceability and cost savings Emerging technologies: IoT and AI in MES

"Now more than ever, it’s imperative that we bring manufacturing back to the U.S.,” says Dave Steen, Rodon’s QC manager. "With Rodon’s state-of-the-art Class 8 cleanroom — now a Class B modular cleanroom — we can help do just that, not only for medical device, pharmaceutical, and food and beverage companies but anyone who needs a clean-environment part for secondary operations.”

Today, more than ever, granulation is an important step in the total production process. Our expert explains a few of the many common traps to avoid when thinking about granulators

Plastics Technology’s Tech Days is back! Every Tuesday in October, a series of five online presentations will be given by industry supplier around the following topics:  Injection Molding — New Technologies, Efficiencies Film Extrusion — New Technologies, Efficiencies Upstream/Downstream Operations Injection Molding — Sustainability Extrusion — Compounding Coming out of NPE2024, PT identified a variety of topics, technologies and trends that are driving and shaping the evolution of plastic products manufacturing — from recycling/recyclability and energy optimization to AI-based process control and automation implementation. PT Tech Days is designed to provide a robust, curated, accessible platform through which plastics professionals can explore these trends, have direct access to subject-matter experts and develop strategies for applying solutions in their operations.

The company uses FDA-grade materials and operates over 115 presses and robotic systems in its Hatfield, Pennsylvania, facility. In addition to cleanroom manufacturing, Rodon’s services range from toolmaking and mold design to high-volume custom injection molding.

The modular cleanroom utilizes an HVAC system with a HEPA filter, enabling Rodon to modify the room’s particulate level and class based on a project’s requirements. Clients can choose the cleanroom class that meets their needs and budget, ranging from Class 8 to a white space. Allowing for flexible equipment arrangement, Rodon can also scale operations up or down, fitting six to 15 injection molding presses in the room or incorporating additional work cells.

Say “manufacturing automation” and thoughts immediately go to the shop floor and specialized production equipment, robotics and material handling systems. But there is another realm of possible automation — the front office.