So, did you watch Audi’s “Green Police” commercial (see above) during the Super Bowl? Eventually, it gets around to touting the company’s A3 TDI clean diesel vehicle as a good environmental choice — the “Green Car of the Year” (according to Green Car Journal). It is clever and makes great use of a parody re-recording of “Dream Police” — the 1979 power pop hit by Cheap Trick.  And most of the ad is hilarious — I particularly like the poor guy in his kitchen who gets nabbed in the spotlight of a “green police” sting  as he throws melon rinds and orange peels into his trash can: “Put the rind down! Sir, that’s a compost infraction!” 

But to the plastics industry, some of the commercial’s bits were not at all funny — especially coming from the auto industry, which can thank plastics for many of its innovations.  Audi’s campaign (yes, there will be more ads) features several plastics products in an unfair and unflattering way — specifically regarding plastic grocery bags, bottles and foam cups. On the contrary, these items are lighter than alternatives, saving fuel during transportation and producing less greenhouse emissions. Ironically, recycled plastics products are increasingly being used to make parts in new cars — including new Audi cars.

With this TV ad, Audi essentially bites the plastic hand that feeds it – the plastics industry that make its precious A3 TDI so environmentally sound to begin with! In it’s press release extoling the “Green Car of the Year” recognition, Audi points out the A3 TDI’s fantastic fuel economy and greenhouse gas emissions benefits. Unfortunately, it fails to mention that this fuel economy and many of the car’s features could not be achieved without plastics. Check out this video of the A3 TDI that highlights the innovative uses of plastics throughout the car.

On this blog we have pointed out time and time again the enormous benefits that the increasing use of plastics has brought to the auto and aerospace industries – from weight savings to support reduction of fuel consumption and carbon dioxide emissions to substantial design freedom allowing advanced creativity and innovation. Audi’s own marketing touts its use of lighter materials, including plastics, to cut fuel consumption. We have also tried here and there to point out the health and safety merits of plastics packaging, and, in many posts, the importance of plastics recycling and our industry’s efforts to do so. 

Audi’s “Green Police” ad uses over-the-top humor to make a point: We all can make choices every day to help the environment – in the cars we drive, the products we buy and the way we use them.  But the company is also speaking out of both sides of it’s mouth when it comes to plastics. Get the facts – about bags, polystyrene foam cups, bottles and more —  at http://www.greenpoliceconfused.com/

It has been six months since the premier of the International Plastics Design Competition (IPDC) at NPE2009. In the relative quiet since the awards were celebrated and the last exhibits found their way home, I was recently reminded again of the excitement and pride we all felt to learn of so many critical problems being solved through innovation with plastics materials. 

Last week, as  I continued to read through news of the earthquake recovery efforts in Haiti, I thought of one plastic product in particular: the WaterBrick, which won two IPDC Awards last June — in the Sustainability Part/Component and Industrial/Military categories. Two plastics industry companies — FPM Tooling & Automation (designer and moldmaker) and ACM Plastic Products(molder) — were key to producing this life-saving resource. 

The WaterBrick is an industrial container made of HDPE (high-density polyethylene) that is recyclable and approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for water storage. It can be air-dropped into disaster zones to provide 3.4 gallons of clean water per container to people in need.  The use of HDPE renders the WaterBrick less costly than comparable steel containers, and careful design enables the containers to withstand the impact of a fall to the ground from a plane.  Once the water inside is used, the WaterBrick can be refilled with dirt or sand and utilized as a building block for construction of shelters in lieu of expensive concrete blocks (which is the case in Mkuze, South Africa.) 

It occurred to me that if these WaterBricks were not being sent to Haiti, then someone should find a way to get them there.  I was thrilled to discover that WaterBrick International had indeed formed a partnership with GlobalGiving to raise funds to get as many WaterBricks as possible into Haiti.  I encourage everyone  to donate – as little as $10 provides one person with a week’s supply of clean water!  (Currently, WaterBricks are not being used for shelter purposes in Haiti.)

It is gratifying to work directly with people and companies whose products transform lives and help overcome challenges of this magnitude — and we in the plastics industry get to do it a lot.  Let this example be a reminder for us to continue encouraging innovation and supporting one another’s efforts to make the world a safer, healthier place for all.

On  the January 8th episode of CNBC’s investement show Mad Money, hyperactive host Jim Cramer devoted a significant amount of time discussing the plastics industry and, in particular, SPI member company PolyOne. Watch the video above.

Once you get passed his antics with the two Barbie dolls — which, in explaining plastics’ processes and societal contributions he names as his two girlfriends “Polly” and “Ethel” (get it?) – Cramer describes the strategic and managerial changes PolyOne has made to transform the company.  Cramer calls PolyOne a “fabulous bet on America’s economic recovery”  and a ”true plastic turnaround story.”  He concludes by saying, “I know that everyone is looking for recovery plays that have not happened… I want you to look no further than PolyOne.”

Headquartered in Avon Lake, Ohio, PolyOne Corporation, with 2008 annual revenues of $2.7 billion, is a premier provider of specialized polymer materials and services.  According to Plastics News, PolyOne posted profits of nearly $44 million in the first nine months of 2009, despite sales falling 32 percent to $1.5 billion compared to the same period in 2008. The profit during this nine-month time period was four times as large as profit from the year-ago period.

Have you heard the news?  After being held in Chicago since 1971, NPE is moving to Orlando in 2012. Of course, as a regular reader of this blog you already knew that.  Are you someone who doesn’t adjust well to change or who just wishes you knew more about the Orange County Convention Center prior to NPE2012? Well, three concurrent SPI events taking place the third week of March will provide you with an opportunity to get a sneak peek at the new NPE venue: the Spring 2010 National Board Meeting, the Thermoforming Committee Conference and the Equipment Council Annual Business Conference. All are being held at Rosen Shingle Creek – mere minutes from the Convention Center.  (Members attending the Equipment or Thermoformers meetings may attend any portion of the National Board Meeting for no additional charge.)

Attendees of these meetings will have multiple opportunities to learn more about the Orange County Convention Center, the vendors who will be assisting you during NPE2012, and the hotels and restaurants of the surrounding area. 

Looking in detail at the Equipment Council Annual Business Conference, being held March 16-18, there will be an impressive lineup of guest speakers; an SPI Advocacy Update from President Bill Carteaux and Senior Vice President, Government Affairs and Public Policy Jon Kurrle; and plenty of scheduled tours/events at the Orange County Convention Center.  Register for it today!

And if you are not yet excited enough, one creative SPI staffer (wisely remaining anonymous) has penned “Orlando,” sung to the tune of Swedish pop group ABBA’s biggest selling single “Fernando.”  So, cue up this video of “Fernando,” and sing along with our NPE-inspired lyrics below:

Can you hear the hum, Orlando?
We remember mere months ago the anticipation of this
In humid August, Orlando
You were wooing us with promises of cheap Pepsi
We could hear the distant rumble
Of the arrival of tons and tons of plastics machinery

The anticipation is growing, Orlando
Every day we get closer to 2012
We are so excited, Orlando
Our show will continue to grow and thrive
And we’re not ashamed to say
The thought of so many exhibitors makes us want to buy!

There will be something on the floor that day
Another molded part give-away, Orlando
Rows and rows of machines
Some extruding, Orlando
Though we never thought the show would move,
There’s no regret
If we had to do the same again,
We would, my friend, Orlando

Now the deal is sealed, Orlando
Get ready for Expo Gene.
Can you hear the hum Orlando?
Are you ready to help us continue to go green?
We can see it in your support
How proud you are to have us through 2015.

There will be something on the floor that day
Another molded part give-away, Orlando
Rows and rows of machines
Some extruding, Orlando
Though we never thought the show would move,
There’s no regret
If we had to do the same again,
We would, my friend, Orlando

According to the National Association of Manufacturers‘ National Center for the American Workforce, there is a “broadening skills gap….taking an increasingly negative toll on America’s ability to compete in the global economy” and the challenge will be more severe as Baby Boomers in the manufacturing sector retire with no skilled employees to replace them. In fact, more than 80 percent of U.S. manufacturers report an overall shortage of qualified employees and 46 percent of small and medium manufacturers report that finding qualified employees is one of the most serious problems facing their company.

In an attempt to illuminate plastics careers to the next generation of students, a new episode of Degrees That Work, an award-winning documentary television series co-produced by Pennsylvania College of Technology (Penn College) and WVIA-TV, is devoted to our industry. With past episodes devoted to nanotechnology, welding and fabrication and advanced manufacturing, the series was developed to build awareness of careers that may not be familiar to the public but offer ample opportunities.

With an extensive amount of footage shot at NPE2009 last June, the episode follows a group of high school students who are enrolled in a technical education class as they design and create the plastic body for a remote-controlled car to be raced against other high schools at an annual Plastics Experience event at Penn College.  The program also features interviews with national plastics industry experts as well as a visit to K’NEX Brands, a large injection molder that produces popular construction toy kits among other products.

There are only five accredited plastics engineering programs in the country. Two of those – Penn College and Penn State Erie, The Behrend College – are in Pennsylvania.  Get more information about plastics and polymer technology majors at Penn College.  

In addition to Penn College professors of plastics and polymer engineering, other  experts interviewed in the documentary include SPI President Bill Carteaux; Dana Gier, Julie McKenna and Erica Ocampo of Dow Chemical Co.; Dennis Gros of Gros Executive Recruiters; Robert Grace of Plastics News; Greg Koski of plastics.com; Michael Araten of K’NEX Brands and Tim Womer of Xaloy Inc.

You can watch the 28-minute program right here (see above)!  It will actually premiere at 7:00 p.m. (EST) on February 1st on public television stations serving northcentral and northeastern Pennsylvania, and will air several more times on those stations in February. The program will also air on select other public television stations — find your station here and request the program. Educators are invited to download the episode for classroom use. 

This would be an excellent resource for an outreach activity in your company’s community.  Ask Andrea O’Neill, WVIA’s director of education, about free DVDs and  lesson planning guides.