PMMDA chairman Dave Raine senses optimism in the air ahead of two of the industry’s major upcoming events. With Interplas just around the corner, and Fakuma following closely on its heels, September looks like it’s going to be a bust period for the industry, and many people will be wondering what attendances are going to be like. The latest information would suggest that Interplas is set to be the best attended by both visitors and exhibitors for some time, which is all good news. With this in mind, the opportunities for manufacturers and suppliers alike to engage in good meaningful conversations about how to remain competitive should be grasped firmly with both hands, and in order to do this, some thought needs to be given to what we as an industry are trying to achieve.
Traditionally, the plastics industry has sat within the engineering sector, and this has been viewed sometimes as a 'dirty, hands on' working environment. Although a visit to any one of the many clean rooms currently producing componentry within the UK and Ireland would immediately dispel this myth, there is still a large sector of the industry that sits outside of these specific requirements, and in most cases, these are exactly the businesses that need to attract a younger generation of would-be experts and engineers. As an industry, we have an aging workforce, and every effort needs to be made to create better working environments, with adoption, of automation & IIOT-type reporting and integration top of the list of priorities. Interplas and Fakuma are the ideal forums for this, with industry experts aplenty available to everyone.
One final thought before these exhibitions is the green angle. Consumers, and indeed prospective employees, especially those of a younger generation, are thinking carefully about where they work and who they spend money with, and transparency regarding environmental progress and plans need to be clear and visible - simply disclosing net zero as a target or aim in the future is not enough, and proof of action will be required.
The above points will mean that suppliers and customers alike will need to plan visits carefully to get the most out of their precious time, and the sad truth is that these plans will need to be considered and implemented against a backdrop of UK, EU and indeed global uncertainty. Therefore, my hope and wish is that the upcoming events provide a forum for positive and meaningful discussions, and that we as an industry embrace and seize this opportunity to converse with peers, and develop a 'resilient, best practice' approach to the coming months and into 2024.