Glenn Anderson will wrap up a 40-year career in the plastics world when he retires from the Plastics Industry Association at the end of 2024.
It's only appropriate that Anderson will be retiring at the end of an NPE year, since 2024 marks his 13th time at the event.
"This is the right time to retire," Anderson said in a recent interview with Plastics News. "I've talked about it with my wife for a long time. I don't see myself going through another show cycle. I don't want to start something that I can't see through."
Anderson joined the industry association in 2020 after more than 30 years at machinery supplier Milacron Inc. in a variety of sales, marketing and corporate roles. He now serves as the association's chief operating officer.
Anderson's plastics experience includes extensive work with highly engineered and customized systems, including hot runner systems and controls, injection molding, mold components, blow molding and extrusion equipment.
While at Milacron, Anderson served as vice chairman of NPE2015 and as chairman of NPE2018. He previously was an at-large officer of the board of directors of the industry organization.
Anderson has been a member of the Society of Plastics Engineers since 1984 and a member of the Plastics Pioneers Association since 2010.
When Anderson joined the plastics association, he had to make an adjustment from the world of machinery sales. Working for a trade group "is different from running a capital equipment business," Anderson said. "You don't have the cadence of sales orders anymore. There's still stress, but it's a different kind of stress."
Anderson added that understanding the trade show business from the association side with NPE2024 has been a challenge.
"It's a whole different level of complexity, but it's been a lot of fun," he said. "You think you know trade shows as an exhibitor, but this is where the rubber meets the road."
The industry association has made some changes to NPE2024 to appeal to younger professionals in the industry, Anderson said. These changes include an opening party, a sustainability hub and more opportunities for networking. New technologies in focus at the show include artificial intelligence and advances in robotics.
Anderson acknowledged the group faced a challenge after the 2021 edition of NPE was canceled because of the COVID-19 pandemic. "Six years between shows is a lifetime," he said. "Capital equipment innovation cycles are typically three years, so we missed an entire cycle.
"But we have a lot of new things planned, and we're hoping to at least be on par with the 2018 show."
Anderson said this year's event has set a goal of recycling 100 percent of all plastic waste items generated at the show, including plastic film scrap. NPE2018 recycled 92 percent of plastic waste.
Exhibitors and attendees are still looking for some similar things from trade shows, according to Anderson.
"Machinery companies are still looking for a competitive advantage," he said. "They want to outwork the competition with their technology. Not all of your projects will be home runs. You also need singles and doubles."
Working at the association has given Anderson a different view of how challenging it is to defend the image of plastics.
"Until you're here and you live it every day and you're working to offset the attacks on plastics, you don't really know what it's all about," he said.
With the trade group, there's "a more focused approach and perspective."
"You understand more about the life cycle of plastics and the impact on the environment," he said. "When you're running an equipment company, you're three steps away from public perception after the consumer, the brands and the injection molder."
Anderson said his career has come a long way since he started with Sterling Extruder in 1984, working with equipment for rigid PVC products and then wood-fiber plastics for pipe, profile and siding. He described wood-fiber as "perfect technology. … It was a big step."
Plastics Industry Association President and CEO Matt Seaholm said in a statement to PN that Anderson has made an impact in his time with the association.
"No one I know loves the plastics industry more than Glenn Anderson," Seaholm said. "Over the past two years, Glenn has been a very important partner in getting [the association] back where we needed to be and help set up the organization for future success."
Seaholm added Anderson's "incredible work ethic and dedication to the industry have fueled his leadership of NPE2024, and I'm very proud of what he and his team have put together for this week in Orlando."
"While we will be sorry to see Glenn leave [the association] at the end of this year, it's safe to say that he'll always be part of the ... family."
In retirement, Anderson said he plans to play some golf and write a book of stories about his travel experiences. "I have 3.5 million airline miles, and I've visited 54 countries," he said. "That's given me something to share."