President Obama mentioned SPI member company MGS Mfg. Group (Germantown, Wis.) in a speech given on August 16th after he toured the facilities of ZBB Energy Corporation, an MGS customer also based in Wisconsin. Obama shook hands with MGS Mfg. Group CEO Mark Sellers and used both companies as an example as he urged support for  U.S. manufacturing:

“Because of the steps we’ve taken to strengthen the economy, ZBB received a loan that’s helping to fund an expansion of your operations. Already, it’s allowed ZBB to retain nearly a dozen workers. And over time, the company expects to hire about 80 new workers. This is leading to new business for your suppliers, including MGS Plastics and other manufacturer here in Wisconsin.”

ZBB makes batteries used to store electricity from solar cells and wind turbines.  MGS Mfg. Group, an injection molder and moldmaker, provides complete development services to ZBB, including part and product design, tooling, molding, and other manufacturing solutions.

(The following column, sans links, recently appeared in the Janesville (Wis.) Gazette in response to an earlier opinion piece concerning polystyrene take-out food containers.)   

I am troubled by the rise in food-borne illnesses and disease that our society would witness if the irresponsible opinion expressed by Julie Backenkeller of the Rock Environmental Network concerning polystyrene food containers were ever taken seriously. When we take home food from our favorite restaurants we should be confident that it is packaged in a safe, sanitary container. We should not have to worry if it has been infected by E. coli, salmonella or parasites.

We can all agree about the need to prevent the spread of germs and bacterial disease. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, 76 million illnesses occur, more than 300,000 persons are hospitalized, and 5,000 die from food-borne illness in the United States each year. Public health organizations encourage the use of single-use food service products, including polystyrene, because they are sanitary and provide increased food safety – particularly in hospitals, schools, and restaurants where it is critical that the foodservice ware be hygienic. Reusable china and glassware depend on washing after use. But consistent and thorough washing is not always the case: A 2002 study in Las Vegas found that 18 percent of reusable items tested had higher than acceptable bacterial counts.

Reusable plates and cups also have significant impacts on the environment.  They require copious amounts of water and energy to clean, time and time again. Plastic foodservice packaging conserves these resources and allows restaurants, schools and hospitals to save the water, energy, detergents and labor—required to sanitize reusables. Compared to glass, paper and aluminum, plastic foodservice packaging uses fewer resources and creates fewer emissions to manufacture, weigh less and produce fewer air emissions during transport. Check out this study, as well as what these students concluded. 

What is filling up landfills?  According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the number one material is paper at 31%. How about plastic foodservice products? Only about 1%. What about litter? According to a 2007 study by Keep America Beautiful, “Take out food packaging [both paper and plastic]…on average comprised only 4.1 percentof the total visible items on state roadways.”

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration regulates the safety of food contact packaging and has approved the use of polystyrene since 1958.  Polystyrene also meets the stringent standards of the European Commission/European Food Safety Authority and the Hong Kong Food and Environmental Hygiene Department for use in packaging to store and serve food. 

As the leader of the plastics industry trade association, I stand by plastic foodservice products.  They help keep us safe from food-borne illnesses. Citizens in Janesville and across the country should be confident that polystyrene foodservice containers, when used properly, are a safe and smart choice.

It’s the middle of July here in Washington, D.C. and the temperature has been over 100 °F much too much for my liking of late. Thankfully plastics continue to play a critical role in keeping things cool both indoors and out.

From a housing standpoint, plastic building products promote the efficient use of energy and other resources. For example, walls that use structural insulated panels made with expanded polystyrene (EPS) can help homeowners save hundreds of dollars annually on heating and cooling bills. EPS starts out as a plastic pellet and ends up as nearly 95 percent air which is a very effective insulator. Another example is polycarbonate which can be used in windows. In addition to being lightweight and shatter-resistant, polycarbonate has low thermal conductivity, which can help to reduce heating and cooling costs. And what about plastic house wrap technology? Plastic house wrap technology reduces the infiltration of outside air and helps to drastically reduce the energy required to heat or cool the home. So with these technologies (and, of course, air conditioners and fans  — which have plenty of plastic parts) one can keep cool indoors.

When outdoors, what you wear can make a difference. I’m partial to the clothing that uses wicking technologyto keep you cool. Traditional cotton clothing tends to soak up and retain sweat, making the wearer unable to cool themselves off properly and making the garment heavier. Wicking technology utilizes fabrics that move sweat away from the skin to the outer surface of the fabric, where it evaporates. Many of these fabrics are made out of polyester fibers and often can be recycled through program’s such as the Common Threads Recycling Program.

Getting in the water is, of course, a favorite way to keep cool in the summer. Most bathing suits are made from plastic materials such as polyester, nylon and Lycra (or Spandex). Of course, we have blogged here before about the uproar in competitive swimming circles concerning new high tech suits made from polyurethane.

In addition, many above ground pools and most inflatable wading pools are made from some combination of PVC (which has excellent resistance to damage via abrasion, impact and sunlight), polypropylene and polyester mesh. Backyard pools also depend on flexible, durable and easy-to-clean vinyl liners to keep their inner surfaces smooth on feet and protected from sunlight, abrasion and water-treatment chemicals. Swimming pools with vinyl and polypropylene covers bring safety and peace of mind to pool owners with very small children. Even diving boards are usually covered with polyurethane epoxy resin paint that creates a non-skid surface to prevent dangerous slips.

So whether you are indoors or out, plastics play an important role in making these hot days more bearable.

Photo courtesy of Infrogmation of New Orleans

On Thursday, June 3rd, SPI will host a one-hour webinar beginning at 11:00 am EST to discuss the benefits of the Department of Energy’s Save Energy Now initiative.  This webinar is exclusively for SPI member companies.  Register now!

In today’s current economic climate, companies are looking for ways to save money. But I bet not everyone has heard about the Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Save Energy Now program. The goal of DOE’s program is to help American businesses, factories and manufacturing facilities save energy. A key part of the program is that DOE conducts an energy assessment to help manufacturing facilities identify immediate ways to save energy and money. Oh, and did I mention that DOE does this at no cost to the company?

The assessments focus primarily on energy-intensive systems such as pumps, fans, processing heating, steam and compressed air. The program offers several energy assessment options:

• For large plants: The nation’s largest, most energy-intensive plants can apply to receive a three-day system assessment. These on-site assessments are led by DOE’s Energy Experts who use DOE’s software tools and technical information to target a specific system area. Assessments also provide hands-on learning that can help a company’s staff gain knowledge to multiply the benefits of the assessment.
• For small and medium-sized plants: DOE’s university-based Industrial Assessment Centers (IAC) conduct one-day assessments at smaller plants. Teams of highly trained IAC faculty and engineering students apply the same DOE software tools and technical resources to identify key savings opportunities throughout your plant.
• For all plants: Contacting the Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) Information Center is the a great option for any plant, large or small, if you are ready to boost energy savings and improve productivity. Whether or not you receive an assessment, here you will find expert technical assistance and guidance on how to make the most of the Save Energy Now portfolio of resources.

The Save Energy Now energy assessments have helped U.S. manufacturing facilities save an average of $2 million, or 8% of their total energy costs which is pretty impressive. Companies have saved real money with this program, and you can too!  I encourage companies to look into this opportunity by registering  for our upcoming webinar!

No doubt we all hear a lot about reducing waste. But how about using plastics to reduce waste and conserve valuable resources?

Recently I was reading an interesting story about how the German sports lifestyle company PUMA finished a 21 month project to redesign a shoebox.  The time frame appears awfully long to revamp a shoebox, but the results seem worth it.  Puma’s “Clever Little Bag,” was unveiled at a recent press conference at the UK’s Design Museum in London.  The bag itself is made of recycled polyethylene terephthalate (PET) which encases a single sheet of ink-free recycled cardboard.  The plan is for bags to be made available in the second half of 2011, and PUMA will encourage customers to reuse the bag and recycle the cardboard.

The new design (which entails both form and fashion) aims to cut paper usage by 65%.  As a result of the paper reduction, PUMA will reduce water, energy and diesel consumption on the manufacturing level by more than 60% per year.  In other words: approximately 8,500 tons less paper will be consumed, 20 million megajoules of electricity saved, 1 million liters less of fuel oil used and 1 million liters of water saved. In addition, during transport 500,000 liters of diesel is saved.  These stats are pretty impressive.

The new packaging system was designed for PUMA by industrial designer Yves Behar, the Swiss-born founder of the San Francisco design studio, fuseproject, and creator of the jawbone bluetooth headphone and One Laptop Per Child computer.  According to Behar the new bag will protects each pair of shoes from damage from the point it leaves the factory until the consumer takes it home — thus generating savings on the production side due to less material used, reducing weight during transport and eliminating the need for extra carrier bags.

The bag, and an earlier prototype, are currently on display as part of the Design Museum’s new exhibition entitled “Sustainable Futures — Can design make a difference?“  Interesting question.  Based on what I’m seeing here, design can make a difference and plastics continue to be a part of a sustainable future.