SPE Product Design and Development Division

We’re thrilled to announce that the Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas are the first to earn our Sustainable Packaging Patch!

Nearly 200 Girl Scouts and adult volunteers gathered in Dallas, TX, to learn about sustainable packaging, including polymer science, recycling, and career opportunities in the field.

This event was made possible by your generous donation last Giving Tuesday. Thank you for empowering the next generation of packaging leaders!

Hello Product Design and Development Division (PD3) Members!

It’s that time of year, when individuals invest in themselves and head back to school to continue to learn new
tools that will help establish a good foundation for when they enter, or re-enter, into industry. Some of these
tools and concepts may be something that others in the industry already utilize and have mastered, while
others may be new tools that will help keep us moving forward. This is one of my favorite times of the year, as
I had a great experience throughout school and was fortunate to connect with teachers and professors who
invested in me and grew my passion for science, manufacturing, and polymers—special thanks to Tim
Osswald, Lih-sheng (Tom) Turgn, and Roxann Engelstad.
Looking at our division, we pride ourselves on being a source for continuous learning and bringing the right
concepts and data to our membership and the industry. Given that objective, the division has decided that
the theme for our activities this year is “Getting the Right Data to Achieve the Right Design”. The theme is in
part to honor the late Mike Sepe who always pushed us in the industry to stop blindly believing preconceived
theories and instead generate data to support one’s theory and design direction. Whether he pushed us to
generate data that allowed us to understand how our design and material would respond not only on Day 1
but also on Day 1,000 or pushed us to explore mold and melt temperatures that were outside the typical
processing window to benefit our part performance, Mike was always more interested in seeing the data
rather than listening to opinions. Despite individuals like Mike preaching what data is important for design, we
still struggle as designers and engineers to find and apply that data correctly. Having a good understanding of
the fundamentals and having access to good data will be critical for us to apply and harness the power that
artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning offer. Therefore, throughout the year, we will highlight
technical content that provides insight into what data is important and how to read it. We will also generate
content that will highlight what can go wrong if we don’t apply these principles in our designs. If you are
interested in contributing to these articles or want to see content specifically about a topic, please reach out
to us and we will try our best to integrate/curate good content.
One of the other ways that we, as a division, are looking to get the “right data”, is to also look to expand our
board of directors. Our board currently has many seasoned veterans that have allowed us to create a good
foundation for the board, and make us a great source for curating the material that I mentioned above.

However, we also recognize that it is important to not only present the right data but present it in the right
format. Additionally, there are new topics that our current PD3 membership may be better authorities on than
our current board to help us bring those topics to the forefront. I think a prime example of the contributions
our “newer” board members can make include Dr. Akanksha Garg’s most recent Design for… webinar, where she
spoke about the importance of understanding and overcoming the material quality issues with circular plastics.
It was a rare opportunity to talk to a real expert that is passionate about this topic, without being masked by
the marketing or public opinion. She brought “the data” and we had a real conversation! To continue expanding
our scope and expertise, we will be bringing on four new board members. We are excited to see where their
passion and unique areas of expertise will take us to keep us relevant to you, our membership. If you are
interested in being more active on the board, please feel free to reach out to me, or any of our board members.
We are always excited to connect with passionate design and materials professionals who highlight the
benefits that polymers can add to our design community!
Until we connect again, I hope you all enjoy the content of this newsletter!

Erik Foltz
PD3 Chair (2023-2025)
The Madison Group

We recently added two new events to our page! Our next Design For…webinar on decoration techniques and a Dynamic Mechanical Analysis (DMA) webinar!

Check them out here!

Mike “The Materials Analyst” Sepe was a long-time SPE member and contributed more than 100 columns to Plastics Technology.

Read the Article

The Society of Plastics Engineers SPE: Inspiring Plastics Professionals recently received accreditation from the United Nations Environment Program (hashtag#UNEP) which gives SPE observer status in the United Nations Environment Assembly (hashtag#UNEA).

This accreditation allows SPE to participate in UNEP activities, including, but not limited to, the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee on Plastic Pollution (INC). SPE’s participation also includes:
– Attending regional and public meetings
– Submitting written contributions to UNEA working documents
– Circulating written statements to governments

As a new member of one of the Major Groups of UNEP (hashtag#Science and hashtag#Technological Community), SPE will contribute educational and evidence-based expertise to the broader discussion of environmental management of hashtag#plastics and hashtag#polymers. SPE will also share details from the UNEP forum to foster discussion among it’s 22,500 members across the globe.

Read more: https://lnkd.in/gpmuCMHP

Be sure to check out our Events page that is continuously updated with webinars and other educational, networking events!

Visit our Events page!

Our Membership Chair Mark MacLean-Blevins was honored at ANTEC 2024 with the President’s Cup Award for his meritorious and outstanding service to SPE. The President’s Cup is an award that is given at the discretion of the SPE president, where only 65 individuals have been award this honor since its inception in 1958. Mark is certainly a worthy honoree. Since joining SPE in 2005, Mark has served in many roles for the PD3, from chair, membership chair and councilor. Mark has served with great dedication and has offered invaluable insight to the different groups to guide SPE and our division forward. He has always taken an active role in his volunteering, which he has stated has given him great benefit both personally and professionally. We took this time to ask him some of his favorite aspects and memories of his service during this time. Please enjoy, and reach out to Mark to congratulate him on this great honor!

Written by: Erik Foltz

April 22, 2024

Favorite Aspect of Being Active in SPE/PD3:

by Mark MacLean-Blevins

“As an independent design services provider, active participation in PD3 and SPE gives me an extensive network of professionals with expertise in most any aspect of plastics that I might need for any given project for a client. In fact, many of these professionals have become friends that have further strengthened my background through discussions of similar projects and experiences. In turn, I have been called upon by others for my opinion and assistance in areas where I could bring value to their particular project or issue to be solved.”

Favorite Memory of Active SPE Volunteering:

“There are many fond memories from volunteering within SPE, however, I would have to say that meeting other members and learning about their past successes and failures is perhaps the one highlight worth mentioning. Attending ANTEC each year and contributing through meetings and discussions has always been rewarding for me as well. Opportunities to attend various functions, like the dedication of the reading room at the Syracuse Library, or the gathering to celebrate Patsy Beall’s Honorary Membership in SPE, were also personal fond memories. In the end, it circles back to making and keeping good friendships with people in the industry from around the globe, people that we get to see each year at ANTEC to visit and share our lives with for a short time.”

This year’s ANTEC was graced by a full-day Symposium dedicated to honoring Glenn Beall, a stalwart of the plastics industry and a luminary in plastic product design. With a career spanning more than six decades, Glenn’s contributions were celebrated alongside heartfelt recognition of his late wife and partner, Patsy.

The Symposium boasted an impressive lineup of 10 speakers, personally selected by Glenn, who delved into various aspects of his legacy. Len Czuba commenced proceedings with a poignant overview of Glenn’s life, setting the stage for Glenn himself to share memories and insights into effective plastic product design. Attendees were treated to Glenn’s trademark presentation style, complete with his classic visuals and engaging discourse, including an unexpected reference to Monica Lewinsky.

Following Glenn’s address, the Symposium showcased nine technical speakers, each representing one of Glenn’s renowned pillars of plastic product design: Design, Material, Mold, and Process. Topics close to Glenn’s heart, such as Rotational Molding, Thermoforming, and Additive Manufacturing, were also highlighted. Speakers included Michael Paloian, Mark MacLean-Blevins, David Tucker, Mark Wolverton, Mike Sepe, Ed Probst, Scott Peters, John Bozzelli (recorded earlier via Zoom) and Jon Ratzlaff who offered personal anecdotes and reflections on Glenn’s profound influence on their careers.

The Symposium culminated in a lively social, providing ANTEC attendees with the opportunity to mingle with Glenn, the speakers, and fellow industry enthusiasts. This memorable event was made possible through the generous sponsorship of SPE HQ, PD3, the Medical Plastics Division, the Rotational Molding Division, the Chicago Chapter, and the Plastics Pioneers Association. Moderated by Al McGovern and Erik Foltz, past and current PD3 Chairs respectively, the Symposium was a fitting tribute to Glenn Beall’s enduring legacy.

Albert McGovern

April 16, 2024

Hello Product Design and Development Division (PD3) Members!

It is a nice spring day as I write this, and it is great to see people at the park getting more active and ready for their spring and summer plans. The PD3 board has also been active this spring with their participation in ANTEC. PD3 was highlighted in many facets at ANTEC this year. We helped organize the Glenn Beall Symposium, were honored as a Patron Ambassador for the SPE Foundation, and had one of our Members receive the prestigious President Cup Award! You can read some of the highlights about the Glenn Beall Symposium in this newsletter. We are also profiling Mark MacLean-Blevins in our newsletter to help highlight why he was a worthy recipient of the President’s Cup. Having such a prominent role at ANTEC gave credence to the praise I bestowed on our board in my previous Chair message. Beyond the PD3-centric highlights for us at ANTEC, I enjoyed attending the conference in St. Louis. The three-day conference consisted of great technical presentations, where I was able to increase my knowledge of PFA-Free Lubricants, the utilization of AI to accelerate UL-screening process for flame rating, and development of machine-learning algorithms for in-process optimization of injection molding. Additionally, this was a great event for me to reconnect with individuals I have not seen in-person since the pandemic. ANTEC certainly lived up to its reputation that it is the conference to grow and strengthen not only your knowledge but also your network! I look forward to next year’s event in Philadelphia.

Besides being active at ANTEC, PD3 has been busy with our Design for… webinar series. We had two great talks about metal-to-plastic conversion and how to better utilize design of experiment (DOE) methodology to optimize secondary plastic processes. Through the Design for… webinar initiative, we have been able to bring presenters both within and outside our current membership. This is exactly what we are trying to achieve with this webinar series: help educate our membership while engaging the greater design community. We will look to continue our webinar series with seminars from Dow on “Challenges and Opportunities with Circularity in Plastics” and from Sussex IM. Please follow us on LinkedIn to stay up-to-date on all our activities. You can access our LinkedIn Page here. Finally, if you are interested in giving a presentation, please reach out to me to get on the schedule.

The final item I’d like to address in this newsletter message is to thank our corporate division sponsors. We have been blessed to have many different sponsors that help us fund the activities and initiatives we have undertaken. The sponsors we currently have are leaders in the design field, and share our passion for highlighting the benefits of plastics in design when utilized responsibly. I encourage you to learn more about each of them, and how they may be able to move your design initiatives forward.

That wraps up this message, please enjoy the rest of the newsletter!

Erik Foltz

Chair, PD3 Board of Directors

2024 Day at the Track!

Visit our Events Page to find out more!