WASHINGTON — The Society of the Plastics Industry Inc.'s Structural Plastics Division has condensed the format of its annual conference, to be held in April in Boston. The group also is seeking entries for that meeting's new-product design competition.
SPD is continuing its partnership with two other industry bodies by kicking off the meeting with concurrent, all-day sessions April 18. The Materials & Processes Section of the Industrial Designers Society of America is organizing one session, while the Society of Manufacturing Engineers' Plastics Molders & Manufacturers Association is putting together the other. Both are educational sessions, covering fundamental topics ranging from materials and process selection to design and lean manufacturing.
The main Structural Plastics '99 conference April 19-20 plans to feature nearly three dozen presentations and display upward of 100 products in the design contest. The meeting concludes with an awards banquet Tuesday evening.
Among the honors up for grabs is the annual IDSA/Plastics News Design Award, which focuses on commercialized products. It recognizes the efforts of industrial designers and highlights the teamwork between designers, toolmakers and processors.
PMMA/SME, meanwhile, plans to sponsor a new competition category, the New Product Concept Award, to recognize innovation of design and uniqueness of application in products not yet commercialized.
SPD organizers point out that April 19 is a Massachusetts state holiday for that day's running of the Boston Marathon, and urges all attendees to make reservations soon at the headquarters, Westin Copley Place Hotel. The group also has introduced half-price conference registration fees for original equipment manufacturers.
For guidelines on submitting a technical paper, visit SPD's Web site at www.structuralspi.org. For further details, contact SPI's Phyllis Hortie at tel. (800) 525-3984 or (202) 974-5247; fax (202) 296-7259; or e-mail [email protected].