It's that time of the year — no, not to argue the merits of Hillary Clinton vs. Donald Trump. Let's try and forget about politics for a minute — and focus on the Plastics News Processor of the Year.
The annual contest doesn't come with caustic debates (unless you include the judges' meetings to make a final selection). And if you don't win, nobody from Plastics News is going to call you “loser.”
The award process is a great way to spotlight — and, frankly, to brag about — the best things about your company. And it's a fantastic opportunity to get some publicity, by winning the award, making it to the finalists' circle, or picking up one of our PN Excellence Awards.
We're now kicking off the 2016 award, by officially seeking nominations. The Processor of the Year honors a North American plastics processor for its performance, corporate responsibility and overall excellence.
Processors: You can self-nominate your own company. But anyone can nominate a processor, and we've had nominations from customers, suppliers, economic development officials and just about anyone who admires a processor candidate.
Getting started is simple. Just submit an entry form, which includes a short explanation of why you think the company deserves the award. The nomination form is online at www.plasticsnews.com/poy. Plastics News also will have information at our upcoming conferences.
Each candidate must be a plastics processor — a company that manufactures plastic parts. The nominee can be a company or an operating division, public or private, that has been engaged in plastics processing for at least five years. Criteria include financial performance, quality, customer relations, employee relations, environmental performance, industry/public service and technological innovation.
In addition to Processor of the Year, we also give PN Excellence Awards to worthy contestants. Also, former Processor of the Year winners are eligible to apply for our Sustained Excellence Award.
Deadline for entry is Oct. 24. By that date, we want to receive each company's complete submission.
After a processor gets nominated, we ask each company to develop a detailed report. Before you get started on that, we recommend that you read our list of frequently asked questions, at the award website. Also, you should call award coordinator Bill Bregar, a senior reporter at Plastics News. He can be reached at 330-203-5991 or email [email protected]
The awards are judged by members of Plastics News editorial staff.
The 2015 Processor of the Year was Evco Plastics Inc., a custom injection molder based in DeForest, Wis.
PN Excellence Awards went to Nicolet Plastics Inc., a custom injection molder in Mountain, Wis., for customer relations; Dymotek Corp., a custom molder in Ellington, Conn., for employee relations; and Greystone Manufacturing, which makes pallets from 100 percent recycled plastic in Bettendorf, Iowa, for industry and public service.
The Sustained Excellence Award went to GW Plastics Inc., a custom injection molder based in Bethel, Vt.
The new winners will be announced at the next Plastics News Executive Forum, set for March 27-29 in Naples, Fla.