Plastics processors face automation needs, sustainability demands

Novi, Mich. — More plastics processors are turning to automation to fill open positions that get no job applicants and to contain their labor costs at a time of high inflation.

As the robot rollout continues — and even creates some new jobs — sustainability issues are requiring increased attention and innovation pressures never let up, especially to miniaturize products.

Industry executives talked about how they are facing these challenges during a panel discussion about the future of molding at the Injection Molding and Design Expo held Sept. 20-21 in Novi.

The COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting economic stimulus payments given to U.S. taxpayers spurred some of the need for change on the labor front, according to Mark Gomulka, CEO of Las Vegas-based Westfall Technik Inc., a medical and packaging firm that made 18 acquisitions in 18 months in 2017-18 and has 2,000 employees worldwide.

"It was more lucrative for people to stay home than work in factories. That drove us to innovate," Gomulka said of the early part of the pandemic.

Westfall Technik invested in a tooling apprenticeship program and looks to promote from within rather than hire from the outside.

"At the same time, there's a little worry. We live in some extraordinary inflationary times," Gomulka said. "Five years ago, an average operator was making $12-$14 an hour. Right now, there's a $20-plus-an-hour rate. You can imagine the pressure it puts on us. From a direct labor perspective, automation is the key, and we're bringing out the next-level jobs that come with it."

The company's internal training is attracting candidates to two roles.

"When we grow them internally, they can actually make an incredible living being an automation technician or project engineer. Automation is a big focus of ours going forward," Gomulka said. "Turnover rates were double digits. People didn't want to come to work."

Internal training programs also are filling the talent pipeline for skilled labor at Medbio LLC, a Clinton Township, Mich., medical device manufacturer in the biotechnology space, and Champion Plastics, an Auburn Hills, Mich.-based molder for the automotive and motorcycle markets.

In addition to engineers, Medbio is looking to fill skilled technical positions that don't need a college degree. Medbio President Chuck Lee said his message to parents of young adults is to encourage alternate career paths.

"[The hires for] the skilled technical positions I'm filling are making as much as degreed engineers," Lee said.

Gomulka agreed, saying, "I have process engineers making $40-$50 an hour," he said. "A person who doesn't have a degree can make close to six figures."

Champion Plastics needs process engineers and younger people interested in quality management roles.

"We're training within for the technical support we need," said Jeff Ignatowski, president of Champion Plastics.

But that doesn't mean trained support will stick around.

"We don't expect to keep our employees for 20 years. How do we keep them five, six or seven years?" asked Lee.

Second- and third-generation employees also are fewer.

"We have sometimes three generations of toolmakers working in our shops, but it's less and less common," Gomulka said. "We offshored tooling, and fathers told sons don't go into tooling. You'll end up being a truck driver."

To retain new hires, Westfall Technik checks in with new employees every 30 and 60 days, then after they've been on the job six months and a year, mostly using software technology. The feedback has resulted in changes.

"The comments were eye-opening, which in turn made us change our strategy by listening to the employees. If you can utilize [technology], it's incredible from preventative maintenance programs to shop floor management," Gomulka said.

The executive ranks of some privately held companies also are running out of next-generation family members.

"There's no next-in-line to run the smaller companies, and it's a lot harder for them to invest in automation, robotics and even people. With consolidation, you'll see fewer bigger companies," Gomulka said.

While processors grapple with labor issues, their customers are putting sustainability on their front burners, too — or at least starting to discuss it.

"It's huge. The requirements are growing, and no one wants to pay extra. … Customers who weren't talking about it three years ago are talking about it," Gomulka said.

Lee is hearing the same.

"Our customers are very, very concerned about sustainability, but they are very, very unwilling to pay for it or to change their design, so everything is virgin material," Lee said, noting the company serves the medical market with strict material guidelines.

The sustainability initiatives undertaken by processors also are a bigger factor.

"Customers are asking what's our carbon footprint as a consumer of electricity. How have we reduced our energy costs? So we're tracking that," Lee said. "With PCR [post-consumer resin], how do we measure the content in the package we sell? A lot of customers are asking for that information."

Medbio hired a consultant to help track its sustainability progress.

"Ultimately, it will determine whether they award us business or not," Lee said. "It is real, and in our space, we have to provide the information."

The transition to more sustainable manufacturing practices is a period of trials, errors and successes, according to Tom Frank, CEO of Radius Packaging

"What types of materials do we bring in that's biodegradable, bio-based or recycled content? Then, how do we get that into a package without effecting performance?" Frank asked. "That's meant we've had to process a lot of different materials. That's leading to co-injection and, on the blow molding side, multilayer packaging."

It's time to pay attention to environmental responsibility, social impact and corporate governance, known as ESG, Ignatowski said.

"It will affect you at some point in time," he said. "Someone will want to know your ESG score possibly for lending or from an acquisition standpoint."

The lending might be for an investment in new machinery or equipment. Panelists talked about the technological advances they are impressed by and look forward to adopt.

For automotive supplier Champion Plastics, critical safety dimension requirements put vision technology equipment on Ignatowski's radar.

"The vision technology that exists in process and in the lab setting is very exciting to us. You can essentially optically measure a part and get all the dimensions you need vs. a molder having three shifts in a lab measuring parts. For us, that's a huge game-changer."

Ignatowski also pointed to Industry 4.0 capabilities to monitor presses remotely.

"That's important for perhaps a lights-out shift, which is something we're looking forward to doing in the future," he said.

At Medbio and Westfall Technik, investments are earmarked for micromolding and "seeing how small we can get that."

"Everything is getting miniaturized," Gomulka said. "Look at cellphones, medical devices, medical wearable devices. The whole world is going micro, and the next biggest push from our side is micromolding focusing strictly on medical. … The devices right now are being developed, and you want to be involved out of the gate."

Frank said he is watching for advances in technology for press monitoring and sensors in the molds that tell what's happening with the material in the mold.

"If you combine that with the promise of 3D printed molds, which I don't think has met its promise yet but I think will get there, we're looking forward to seeing real-time information on a shot-by-shot basis," Frank said. "What is physically happening in real time? I think that will be interesting in the next few years here."

In the meantime, plastics processors are a crossroad when it comes to the conversion of materials, which had trended toward plastic but now is a grayer area with material deselection to metals and papers in some cases.

"I don't think it's over," Frank said. "A lot of change is happening, and with change there's opportunity. Understand what your customers are going after. If it's CO2 reduction, a glass-to-plastic conversion can still happen to take weight out of shipments. Advances with materials are always happening, and there will be more things to convert if you understand the opportunities in the marketplace and attack it."

Ignatowski said "metal-to-plastic conversion" was a buzzword for a few years but now product designers are incorporating plastic early on, especially for electric vehicles.

"The battery, the skateboard, if you will, is a big chunk of weight on the vehicle, and they have to look at other methods or areas within the vehicle to reduce weight," he said. "So, we're still seeing a ton of [conversion], but a lot of it is being designed upfront."

Other panelists agreed.

"It's less of a conversion and more that new products are being designed in plastic," Gomulka said. "Look at your home; you have a Google dock or a Fire Stick. Products like that didn't exist 10 years ago. It's less of a conversion and more into the next generation of devices for the medical, industrial and automotive sides. Plastics will be around."

Lee also said conversion isn't the focus as much as new materials being developed with properties to design parts and products in plastic that would have been metal a few years ago.

"What I find interesting is going the other way," Lee said. "They're taking plastic and adding materials like glass fiber for strength, metallic compounds for conductivity to imbed electronics, and cellulose to cause plastics to break down and be more sustainable and recyclable."