Names in the News: KraussMaffei, Conair and Turner Group, PTi, PUR Foam Fall of Fame and moreNames in the News: KraussMaffei, Conair and Turner Group, PTi, PUR Foam Fall of Fame and more

Firs to Munich where plastics processing machinery manufacturer KraussMaffei reports that its Competence Forum open house event on May 19, 2011 drew more than 1500 customers and visitors from 25 countries to see the 30+ machines and systems showcased by the KraussMaffei and KraussMaffei Berstorff brands. There's more information on the exhibits here.

For the western U.S. and Canada, Conair Group has tapped Turner Group Inc. to represent its full line of plastics auxiliary equipment. The firm, headed by Laura Douglas and Chuck Roehm, who founded the agency with Norm Boshoff in 1992, will serve processors in Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, Colorado and Utah, as well as the Canadian provinces of British Columbia and Alberta. Conair regional manager, Bill Oscar, manages the territory.

In California, Arizona, Nevada and the maquiladoras of Mexico, Turner Group will work in alliance with Pacific Plastics Systems, whose owner, Robin Walford, held management positions in Conair before becoming its representative in 1994. In addition, Tom Piekunka of Piekunka Services Inc. serves extrusion processors specializing in medical applications in California, Arizona and Nevada for Pacific Plastic Systems. 

At sheet extrusion systems manufacturer PTi - Processing Technologies International LLC (Aurora, IL), Dennis Paradise joined the company as its senior VP of sales and marketing. He joins PTi with more than 30 years of plastics industry experience, and most recently was VP sales and marketing for Extrusion Dies Incorporated (EDI).

Inducted posthumously into the Flexible Polyurethane Foam Hall of Fame were Bob Bush, Sr. and E. Rhodes Carpenter. The induction ceremony took place during the PFA's spring general business meeting in May in Baltimore, MD.

Bob Bush, Sr., one of the Hall of Fame inductees, was a founding father of the Polyurethane Foam Association. He played a pivotal role in the development of the flexible polyurethane foam and furniture industries throughout his 50-year career at Hickory Springs Manufacturing Company, one of the largest polyurethane foam producers in the country. Accepting the Hall of Fame honor for Bob Bush, Sr. were his sons Bob Bush, Jr. and Jimmy Bush.  Both are members of the Hickory Springs Manufacturing Co. management team and, following in their father's career path, are active members of the U.S. flexible polyurethane foam, furniture and bedding industries.

E. Rhodes Carpenter was founder of E.R. Carpenter, commonly known as Carpenter Co., one of the top 300 largest privately held companies in the U.S. and one of the few to pass the $1 billion sales mark. Ed Malechek, president of Carpenter Co., Myron Reinhart, retired president of Carpenter Co., and Ann Day, E. Rhodes Carpenter's step-daughter and president and chair of the board of directors of the E. Rhodes and Leona B. Carpenter Foundation, accepted the Hall of Fame honor on behalf of E. Rhodes Carpenter.

Another award presented posthumously last month was the Heinz List Award, awarded posthumously to Professor Morand Lambla. Each year, the Heinz LIST Award is presented to an individual who has made outstanding contributions and achievements in the area of polymer devolatilization and/or reactive polymerization technologies. Professor Lambla (1939 - 1997) was an internationally recognized academic who dedicated his professional career to the study of polymer and co-polymer synthesis, as well as reactive processing. He published over 100 papers and was awarded 12 patents, among many other accomplishments. He was one of the founding members of the Polymer Processing Society and in 1995 took office as its president. In special recognition, the Polymer Processing Society has a distinguished Morand Lambla award.

The Heinz List Award, sponsored by LIST USA, was established by the SPE Extruder Division to honor the contributions and innovations made by Heinz List during his career. 

There has been a changing of the guard in Lee's Summit, MO where Todd Riley has taken over as CEO of moldmaker R&D/Leverage and its 320 employees, replacing Rex Luchtel. Riley, a 19-year company veteran who had been national sales director, plans to install a new management team. The company supplies injection and blow molds for the food, beverage, home, personal care and healthcare industries. Leverage, Integrated Industrial Design, is R&D's consumer packaging design unit, located in a separate facility within the R&D campus in Lee's Summit.

The CEO of Bayer MaterialScience has been elected the new President of PlasticsEurope, the continent's trade association for plastics suppliers and compounders. In the U.S. the Plastics Pipe Institute honored five member companies for outstanding plastic pipe projects, and four individuals whose dedication and actions advanced the goals of the association while providing broad benefit for the industry. 

Patrick Thomas succeeds Jacques van Rijckevorsel as president of PlasticsEurope for the next three-year term. The organization's General Assembly elected Smith during an industry summit held in late March. Thomas held various positions at ICI and Huntsman before joining Bayer MaterialScience in 2006.

PlasticsEurope's more than 100 member companies account for more than 90% of all plastics production across the EU27 member states plus Norway, Switzerland, Croatia and Turkey.

Meanwhile the members of non-profit industry group The Plastics Pipe Institute Inc. (PPI) announced winners who were awarded for significant achievements and exceptional service involving the use of polyethylene (PE) pipe. PPI also bestowed an Honorary Lifetime Membership to James Goddard, who recently retired from Advanced Drainage Systems Inc. (ADS) as the company's chief engineer.

PPI member companies recognized for outstanding projects include Performance Pipe, Rehau, Jain Irrigation Systems Ltd., Dow Chemical, Endot Industries, Blue Diamond Industries Inc., LyondellBasell and Lane Enterprises Inc.

Individuals recognized for their efforts were:

"PPI's membership is involved in many highly-sophisticated applications and exciting projects involving various pipe applications that supply critical resources globally while protecting communities and conserving natural resources," stated Tony Radoszewski, executive director of the PPI.   "This is our second year awarding outstanding programs and people and there were an abundance of submissions.  I wish we could have acknowledged each and every one."