Plastic lumber trade group reorganizing
AKRON, OHIO - The Plastic Lumber Trade Association wants to reorganize itself to represent both all-plastic and wood-plastic composite manufacturers, and probably will be renamed the Thermoplastic Composite Lumber Manufacturers Association.
The Akron-based industry association, formed in 1993, has organized a formal meeting for the purpose Nov. 8 in Washington. President Alan Robbins said there has been divisiveness between manufacturers of competing products.
Robbins said the group will be technically based. It will work to address the needs of manufacturers, the American Society for Testing and Materials, building and civil design engineers, architects, testing laboratories, university and materials researchers, raw material and additive suppliers, equipment makers and buyers of plastic/composite lumber products.
PLTA's current committees and leadership will be disbanded and members will begin anew, Robbins said.
Heritage adding conduit plant in Texas
WEATHERFORD, TEXAS - Heritage Plastics Central Inc. is adding a plant in Pasadena, Texas.
The PVC conduit maker, based in Weatherford, will lease a 52,000-square-foot site from industry investor James Pastore, who bought it from Beachwood, Ohio-based Lamson & Sessions Co. in June.
Lamson is leasing the space from Pastore through the end of the year. Heritage officials said the site first will be equipped with blending operations, and then as many as four extruders for specialty conduit products will be added.
Heritage Plastics Central is operated by Bill Raffaele.
Intertape to close Ga. packaging site
MONTREAL - Flexible packaging producer Intertape Polymer Group Inc. plans to close its Cumming, Ga., facility by January to save costs.
The packaging producer acquired the facility in 2000 in its purchase of retail tape producer United Tape Co.
Intertape Chief Financial Officer Andrew Archibald estimated the closing will save US$1.6 million a year. The Montreal firm will take a one-time charge of $2.9 million in the fourth quarter as a result.
The shutdown is part of an overall program begun in 2002 to improve efficiency. A new regional distribution operation at its Danville, Va., plant is a cornerstone of the program. By expanding Danville's distribution role, Intertape expects to save another $2 million a year.
Plastic Omnium expanding S.C. facility
LEVALLOIS, FRANCE - Auto supplier Plastic Omnium SA will spend $30 million to expand its Anderson, S.C., injection molding operation, the company announced Oct. 5.
The project also will add 100 jobs for the plant, which supplies bumpers and a variety of exterior trim for BMW AG and other automakers.
Plastic Omnium, based in Levallois, opened its South Carolina operation in 1994 and has grown steadily since then, said John Lummus, Anderson County economic development director. The company now employs 450.
PN 's online poll: Vote early, vote often!
AKRON, OHIO - Welcome to ballot-box stuffing - cyber-style. At least a couple people with way too much time on their hands got busy last week by voting repeatedly for their preferred presidential candidate in our online reader poll at www.plastics news.com.
Late Oct. 4, we noticed an aberration in the voting pattern when Democratic candidate Sen. John Kerry picked up more than 100 straight votes and surged ahead of President George W. Bush, after trailing by roughly a 2-1 margin through the first few days. Bush then made an equally unlikely rebound.
We investigated and discovered that a programming loophole had allowed these zealous advocates to circumvent our one-vote-per-computer safeguard. One reader spent more than 20 minutes submitting more than 100 consecutive votes for Kerry!
We were able to strike the repeat votes, plug the technology hole and repost the poll hours later. The results, as of Oct. 8: Bush captured 61 percent of the 800 legitimate votes cast, Kerry had 34 percent, Ralph Nader 3 percent, other candidates 1.5 percent, and 1.5 percent were undecided.
