Building better aids

Design, medicine and manufacturing are coming together for a project launched at Ferris State University in Big Rapids, Mich., that could make life easier for children who wear glasses and use a cochlear implant.

The Protoconch is an adapter that connects to the frame of a pair of eyeglasses and contains the external processor for a cochlear implant, rather than requiring a separate processor.

Daniel Taylor, dean of the Michigan College of Optometry at Ferris State, has a son, Britt, who uses glasses and a cochlear implant. But the temple tip of the glasses often is in the same space taken up by the implant processor, making it uncomfortable to use both devices, the university noted in a news release.

Ferris State is home to a big plastics school and has a product design engineering technology program, so marrying Taylor's concept with a manufacturable prototype within the university made sense.

"Our device should allow those requiring glasses and cochlear implants to wear them both together, with comfort, usability and security," Taylor said.

The Protoconch has now received a patent, crediting both Taylor and Jaclyn Vander Ploeg, who did formative work on the prototype in her senior project. It is entering beta testing now.

It probably isn't a surprise that mergers and acquisitions are lower in 2023. Higher interest rates have meant that it's more expensive for potential company buyers to borrow money and buy firms.

But, as Frank Esposito notes in a special report for week's print issue of Plastics News, it's still happening. In fact, the North American M&A market is on pace to beat pre-COVID years.

"Private equity is still figuring out ways to get deals done, even if some bigger deals have been harder to do," PMCF Managing Director John Hart told Frank.

The packaging and medical industries remain the most in demand by buyers, M&A experts said. And some said companies that can offer a greener option are garnering extra interest.

"Every other phone call is about sustainability," said Peter Schmitt, managing director with Montesino Associates LLC. "It's almost an essential part of deal negotiations today. Buyers are asking when the industry is going to switch from petroleum to bio-based streams."

Plastics and plastic waste don't typically bring bring communities closer, but for a town of 300 residents in Panama, plastic waste collected from beaches and mangroves has been recycled into a bridge providing the only access road for the town.

Volunteers from Banco Latinoamericano de Comercio Exterior SA (Bladex) and residents of Kosovo, a small town south of Panama City, converted almost 2 tons of waste into the bridge, Bladex officials said in a news release.

The bridge with its recycled plastic planks spans about 150 feet and took 350 volunteer hours to complete. It is the first bridge of its kind in the region, Bladex said, and "an inspiring example of how the circular economy can have a significant impact on mitigating the effects of climate change."