Did you know that through April 2006:
* Production of high density polyethylene resin was up 2.6 percent from a year ago?
* Sales of linear low density PE into packaging film applications increased 3.5 percent?
* Sales of polypropylene into consumer product applications rose 2.9 percent?
* Sales of PVC resin for windows and doors jumped 8.9 percent?
If you are looking for accurate and timely production and sales statistics on the North American plastic resins industry at NPE, seek out the staff members from the American Plastics Council, who will be occupying a corner of the Basell Polyolefins stand at Booth 2603 in the South Hall.
The APC, the plastics division of the Arlington, Va.-based American Chemistry Council, produces a wide variety of extensive statistical reports on the U.S. plastic resins industry.
Based on surveys of major U.S. and Canadian resin manufacturers, the reports are available to anyone via subscription from APC.
The Monthly Resin Report and the annual Resin Review provide production and detailed sales volume information by end-use market for more than a dozen major plastic resins. APC's subscribers also receive timely resin reports on inventory and capacity, while preliminary sales and production reports provide an early ``snapshot'' of the previous month's performance.
With key players and nearly the full industry participating, these reports have been considered an authoritative source of information on the plastic resins industry since the early 1970s.
APC's list of subscribers includes resin producers; resin converters; suppliers of raw materials, equipment and services to the plastics industry; industry consultants; economic consultants; market research firms; investment banks and stock market analysts; universities; and government agencies.
Users of the service can:
* Employ industry sales data to track overall market growth rates and trends in domestic and export markets, as well as key end-use market segments.
* Apply production and import data to improve their understanding of the dynamics of resin supply.
* Use capacity data in combination with production and/or sales data to calculate and track operating rates and trends.
* Analyze producers' aggregate inventory data, which can offer insights into the strength of a resin business.
* Track preliminary sales and production data, which provide an early look at the prior month's overall performance.
Together, these varied data sources can serve as a tool to help in analyzing, understanding and communicating the state of the plastic resins industry in North America. Using these APC reports, a subscriber can look at the industry as a whole or drill down to analyze the performance of a specific resin or market segment.
Stop by at NPE to get an online look at our statistical database or to see the just-published ``2006 Resin Review,'' APC's annual statistical yearbook on resins.
Jean Vallianos is director of plastics industry statistics for the American Chemistry Council in Arlington, Va.