Intro to plastics 101: Learning curve steep, progress steady

If you haven't noticed yet, there's a new face around these (plastic) parts — mine, that is. I'm Audrey LaForest, and I'm your new host of the weekly Plastics News Now video as well as your go-to reporter for all things automotive and machinery in the plastics industry.

This blog, In Motion, will be a space for me to dive deeper into stories about equipment, the growing role of plastics in the automotive industry as suppliers and OEMs weave the word "lightweight" into present and future innovations, and even how some plastics equipment suppliers are ditching traditional team-building exercises for a more hands-on approach to boosting camaraderie — but more on that later.

First, let me tell you a little about myself.

Prior to joining Plastics News in September, I was covering a different sort of industry. When it's nearly 100° F and humid outside, it's an industry that some might even say they worship. Yes, it's the heating, ventilation and air conditioning industry. When it's hot out, HVAC technicians are working to keep you cool, and when it's cold out, they're making sure you're staying warm. That's not to say that at your office there will finally be a "just right" balance between too hot and too cold, but as with the plastics industry, innovation in technology and controls is leading to increased efficiency and consumer happiness.

And when I wasn't looking up at ductwork, I was covering a smaller segment of the plastics industry: flexible packaging. But many of you already know what stand-up pouches are because you're extruding the film, forming the pouch or figuring out how it can be recycled at end of life.

From injection molding machines to acronyms like TPO, the learning curve of the plastics industry is steep, but I'm confident that in no time saying things like "carbon-fiber-reinforced plastic" will become just as commonplace as reminding people that my name is Audrey, not Aubrey.

Remember when I mentioned team-building exercises earlier? Sales reps along with internal sales and marketing employees from Conair Group, a global supplier of auxiliary equipment with headquarters in Cranberry Township, Pa., passed on traditional trust falls this year in favor of something more charitable at its annual business meeting.

More than 100 Conair employees from across the United States, Canada, India and Mexico gathered at the corporate headquarters to build a total of 10 bicycles that were donated to Lizzy's Bikes, a nonprofit in Seven Fields, Pa., that gives new and refurbished bicycles to disadvantaged children ages 2 to 12.

Magnovo Training Group in Indianapolis and Huffy Corp. provided the unassembled bicycles as part of a Bike-A-Thon charity team-building workshop.

Conair employees were divided into teams that competed in various games of skill — an alcohol-free version of flip cup that also involved catching, for example — in order to get each part of the bicycle, such as the pedals, handlebar, front wheel, seat, helmet and colorful handlebar streamers for the girl's bike.

Chad Stover, Conair's marketing communications manager, recalled being so focused during the games that he mistakenly assumed his team was in the lead.

"During the cup flip/catch, I thought I was on fire, catching cups pretty regularly," he said. "Our total team count was over 30 [cups] caught. Good enough for first or second place, we surely thought."

Stover and his team soon realized they had underestimated the flipping and catching abilities of their Conair counterparts, however.

"There are some real [flip-cup] experts out there," he quipped. "Some teams had well over 100!"

Winning each game was key, as it offered immunity from various handicaps such as wearing blindfolds, so it's really no wonder the competition was fierce. Have you ever assembled a bike blindfolded?

…No?

I didn't think so.