Kickstart: Arburg looking for greener pastures

If you want an example of the changing dynamics of the global plastics industry, take a look at the news out of Lossburg, Germany, from Arburg GmbH + Co. KG.

The injection molding machinery maker has always made its presses in Lossburg. Always.

It notes that on its website, stating: "We develop and produce our machines, controllers and digital products exclusively in Lossburg, Germany … [with] the complete powertrain in-house."

But during its Technology Days press conference, managing partner Michael Hehl said Arburg will begin assembling machines at its facility in Pinghu, China, and it is looking for sites for production in North America. It currently has sales and technical centers in Connecticut, Illinois and California.

Hehl said Arburg never saw its Lossburg-only production decisions as "dogma or carved in stone," but things are changing.

Different regions of the world require regional responses from companies like Arburg with "ever more dynamic requirements."

Arburg marked its 100th anniversary in 2023

Georgia Institute of Technology students of sustainable plastics may be able to tap into financial help from chemical recycler Brightmark LLC and the Society of Plastics Engineers Foundation.

The new Brightmark Scholarship in Plastics Circularity is a "first of its kind," SPE and Brightmark said in announcing the program March 18. It is open to undergraduate and graduate students attending Georgia Tech pursuing a degree that is beneficial to the plastics industry or "with research or experience related to sustainability" and a circular economy.

No specific value for the scholarship was announced, but it will be awarded to one student.

"By investing in the education and development of future leaders at the Georgia Institute of Technology, we are supporting a pipeline of talent equipped to tackle intricate sustainability issues and drive ingenuity," said Brightmark CEO Bob Powell, a Georgia Tech graduate.

Applications through SPE are due by April 30.

I'm still not convinced this isn't some early April Fool's Day joke, but apparently the fashion brand Balenciaga is showing a bracelet that mimics a roll of tape.

A TikTok user going by the name highsnobiety posted a video earlier this month it said was shot during Balenciega's Paris fashion show. It was of a bracelet that sure looks like a roll of clear packaging tape with an inner core showing the brand's logo and the word "adhesive."

It was, the United Kingdom-based newspaper The Independent wrote, part of Balenciaga's fall/winter collection with a focus on "the collection's utilitarian aesthetic."

The bracelet doesn't show up at this point on the Balenciaga website, and there's no confirmed price for it — I doubt any of us are the intended audience and the old adage of "if you have to ask how much it is you can't afford it" would seem to apply here — but for the sake of comparison, Staples has a four-pack of Scotch-brand for sale about $25.