Plastics Business
MAPP Debuts Innovation Award
To emphasize and showcase the power of creativity, MAPP conducted its first Innovation Award contest. For its inaugural year, the contest focused on mold change carts (or SMED carts) that often are used on the production floor to facilitate and expedite quick mold/die changeovers.
“We received entries from members across the United States, narrowed it down to 12 finalists and asked the entire membership for their opinions,” said Marcella Kates, MAPP’s marketing manager. “After receiving hundreds and hundreds of votes, the three top finishers were identified as Deluxe Plastics (Wisconsin), first place; Plastic Molding Technology (Texas), second place, and Microplastics (Illinois), third place.”
MAPP’s Innovation Award for SMED cart designs showcases how companies in the plastics industry aggressively are addressing issues relating to setup time reductions. As industry judges discovered, the final 12 cart entries were designed to improve efficiency by having all tools, support equipment and supplies readily accessible to changeover professionals.
Sharing best practices and ideas while creating a community that makes everyone better is the true spirit of MAPP – and is the spirit with which this award will be given. The 2016 Innovation Award topic will be announced at the MAPP Benchmarking and Best Practices Conference, Oct. 21-23 in Indianapolis, Indiana.
First Place: Deluxe Plastics
Our SMED cart contains all essential tools and equipment to perform a mold change in an efficient manner. In addition to the physical tools, it also acts as a wireless information center. The SMED cart is restocked and prepared for the next mold change after every use. – Peter Blaas, engineering manager, Deluxe Plastics
Second Place: Plastic Molding Technology (PMT), Inc.
PMT’s state-of-the-art SMED carts are a one-stop shop for the production department’s employees, built for ease-of-access and eliminating unnecessary travel. Our newly designed carts decrease mold setup time by 50 percent, while increasing cost savings. Standardized tool sets readily are available, with all extra equipment now centrally located. – Jennifer Perez, PMT, Inc.
Third Place: Microplastics, Inc.
Our cart has a few benefits that I assume most setup carts have, but probably to a higher level. The back has jumper hoses of every possible length needed, along with 200 and 300 series fittings. This way, the guys quickly can replace leaking hoses and increase our mold up-time. Obviously, all of the necessary setup tools are present and organized properly, but in addition, we keep all necessary pipe fittings, plugs, O-rings and job change paperwork on our cart. This also is our sample cart, so on the side we have a large variety of sprays and lubricants which often are needed for those first shots. – Andrew Schaus, Microplastics, Inc.
Welcome New MAPP Members!
- Engineered Profiles, LLC, Columbus, Ohio
- MedPlast – West Berlin, West Berlin, New Jersey
- Pam Trading, Kernersville, North Carolina
- Laszeray Technology, LLC, North Royalton, Ohio
- Weiss-Aug Co., East Hanover, New Jersey
- Bemis Manufacturing, Lenoir, North Carolina
- Century Mold, Shelbyville, Tennessee
- Majors Plastics, Inc., Omaha, Nebraska
- Paramount Mold and Tool, Fort Lauderdale, Florida
- E-S Plastic Products, LLC, Waterford, Wisconsin
- Revere Plastics Systems, LLC, Clyde, Ohio
- Intralox, Harahan, Louisiana
- Dana Molded Products, Inc., Carpentersville, Illinois
MAPP Welcomes Two New Sponsors
iD Additives is a young company backed by many years of experience and expertise in fulfilling additive needs in the plastics industry. iD’s products and services are of the highest quality, yet engineered to be efficient and cost-effective. iD has a line of foaming agents, UV stabilizer systems, purging compounds and additives that will fulfill a majority of its customer’s needs. Coupling foaming agent technology with other additive and colorant needs allows iD to offer a cost-effective “One Pellet Solution” for its customers.
Aurora Plastics Inc. is a leader in the manufacture of high-quality exterior weatherable RPVC (Rigid PVC), interior grade RPVC, cellular foam RPVC, injection molding compounds and PVC/acrylic alloy cap stock, as well as custom and tolled compounds in both powder and pellet form. Unlike other manufacturers in the market, Aurora Plastics is 100-percent focused on PVC and related blends. Its extensive technical support team, which consists of highly seasoned industry professionals, is available to provide onsite support during trials and throughout the production process.
Peer Networking Conversations Debuts New Group – Operations
The successful Peer Networking Conversations webinars are an easy way to get your questions answered by your peers.Gain new ideas and advice that can be implemented to solve problems in your company. In a previous Human Resources session, the group benchmarked its employee review procedures. This document was compiled from member submissions and now is available on the MAPP website. For the next session, on June 4, MAPP is pleased to announce the formation of a new group focused on operations.
MAPP members may register from the MAPP website calendar page. Peer Networking Groups include Human Resources, Operations and Senior Leaders.
Register today! Don’t reinvent the wheel – reach out to the membership for help.
EHS Summit to be Held June 11-12 in Columbus, Ohio
The Environmental, Health and Safety (EHS) Summit is designed to share best leadership and safety practices with EHS professionals hoping to achieve world-class safety at their companies.
This two-day learning and networking experience will showcase keynote speakers and safety-focused breakout sessions. It will offer thought leadership and advice about safety and risk management, construction safety, compliance and safety technology. The sessions, along with multiple networking events, provide high-level safety professionals with ideas they can take back to their facilities and implement to improve operations and achieve world-class safety.
To register, visit the calendar page at www.mappinc.com.
