Plastics help designs bring home IDSA gold
 One project provides low-cost, energy-efficient laptops to children around the world.
Foamex reduces debt, lays out growth plans
 Foamex´s “green” foam chair
Hard times force U.S. molder Modern to shut doors
BENTON HARBOR, MICHIGAN (July 29, 2008) -- Modern Plastics Corp., founded in 1937, is closing down -- a victim, company officials said, of the many hardships facing the U.S. plastics industry.
Executives said Modern Plastics got walloped by high costs for resin, utilities, transportation and health care, the inability to pass along price increases, financial turmoil at customers and loss
of work to China and Mexico.
International plastics mergers, acquisitions on rise
 Blaige
Has China lost its ‘low-cost workshop’ status?
 Franz
Southco consolidates North American injection molding
CONCORDVILLE, PENNSYLVANIA (July 15, 2008) -- Southco Inc. has finished moving its injection molding operations into its 12,500-square-meter manufacturing campus in Concordville, which the company
called part of its commitment to manufacturing in North America. Southco molds latches, hinges, handles and other fasteners for a variety of industries, including automotive, aerospace and medical.
It has other manufacturing locations in Shenzhen, Shanghai, and Seongnam-Si, South Korea, as well as in North American and Europe.
Design competition goes international for NPE 2009
WASHINGTON, D.C. (July 15, 2008) -- In a break with tradition, the Washington-based Society of the Plastics Industry Inc. (SPI) will make its next design competition an international event and will
add new design categories. The competition will be held in conjunction with NPE 2009, scheduled for June 22 to 26 in Chicago, Illinois. In the past, the National Plastics Design Competition was
mostly restricted to U.S. entries and limited to load-bearing parts, enclosures and structural parts. The upcoming competition will be open to virtually any type of design, including packaging
products, bioplastics, nanocomposites, and products that address energy efficiency and sustainability.
Auto molders may find lifeline in medical
YORK, PENNSYLVANIA (July 8, 2008) -- As the auto market in North America sinks more due to the economic slowdown, foreign competition and gas price hikes, injection molders that supply the industry
are losing margin, being pushed to the edge, and, in some cases, out of business. The solution for them may be to switch to the medical-molding business, a high-margin, economic-downturn-insulated
and outsourcing-proof sector.
Johnson Medtech completes clean rooms at China plant
SHAJING, GUANGDONG (July 8, 2008) -- Johnson Medtech has opened four new clean rooms in a three-story, 14,000-square-meter facility in Shajing. Johnson Medtech is the medical products part of Johnson
Electric Holdings Ltd., one of the world’s largest providers of motion actuators, headquartered in Hong Kong.
Opinion: Design center gala full of surprises
 Grace
CCL Industries adding label capacity in Asia
TORONTO, ONTARIO (June 24, 2008) -- CCL Industries Inc. will try to capitalize on five years of solid Asian sales with the expansion of its CCL Label operations during 2008 and 2009. The Toronto-based
packaging supplier will build four new plants in China, India, Thailand and Vietnam and will expand facilities in China and Japan. CCL Industries employs about 5,400 and has 55 production facilities
in the Americas, Asia and Europe. CCL Label’s products are sold to the packaging, health-care and consumer goods markets.
U.K.-based BNL to open Thai plastic bearings plant
RAYONG, THAILAND (June 24, 2008) - BNL UK Ltd., a U.K.-based plastic bearing designer and manufacturer, is opening a new factory in Thailand this month. Production will start later this year.
Initially, the plant will assemble parts for some Asia-based customers, with further opportunities to transfer other assembly work and molding activities to the factory. The Rayong plant will also
start injection molding on seven new Krauss Maffei presses.
Univac expands mold offerings
SINGAPORE (June 24, 2008) -- Singaporean molder and mold maker Univac Precision Engineering Pte. Ltd. believes it is the first Asian company to offer its newly licensed multicomponent mold-making
technology. Univac plans to use the Spin Stack technology from Danish firm Gram Technology ApS to expand its offerings in the tools it builds for the export market, for the medical and health-care
fields and the caps and closures markets.
Lee Huat Plastics adds all-electrics, design unit
 Chen
Coloplast opens low-cost plants in Hungary and China
HUMLEBAEK, DENMARK (April 8, 2008) -- European medical products manufacturer Coloplast Group is involved in a major restructuring and efficiency program with new low-cost plants in Hungary and China.
The Humlebæk-based firm makes of special wound dressings and urology and colostomy products.
PN Forum speaker offers keys to unlock creativity
 Innovation expert Ken Robinson
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