Curtain to Rise This Month on PTXPO

Have you registered yet to attend the inaugural Plastics Technology Expo? Let me make it easy on you: Point your smart phone camera to the QR Code on this page and it will direct you right to the registration page.

But please don’t dawdle. The first-ever PTXPO is taking place later this month—March 29-31—at the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont, Ill. Supported by research among our subscribers, this event connects buyers and sellers across the entire North American plastics-processing, mold-manufacturing and 3D-printing industries. Thousands of attendees from shop floors to front offices across North America will be represented at the expo.

Exhibitors and attendees will have the opportunity to meet and connect with the entire supply-chain ecosystem, including manufacturing managers, supervisors, engineers, and technicians, as well as engineers and technical managers at OEMs and brand owners.

Over the past few months, we have signed up trade groups to help urge their members to attend or exhibit. These include the Plastics Industry Association (PLASTICS), the Manufacturers’ Association for Plastics Processors (MAPP), the American Mold Builders Association (AMBA), the Canadian Association of Moldmakers (CAMM), the Society of Plastics Engineers (SPE) Extrusion Division and Chicago Section.

The exhibit area at PXPO is organized into pavilions for major process and product categories, making it easy for you to plan your show experience and find the technology that’s right for you. Separate exhibit areas are devoted to molding, extrusion, auxiliary equipment, recycling, 3D printing/additive manufacturing, moldmaking and materials.

When was the last time you walked a trade show, saw what was new on a first-hand basis, met and engaged with your suppliers? It’s time.

There are also educational opportunities for attendees right on the show floor. There will be live demonstrations of machinery in action at several booths, as well as a series of “Tech Talks” in plastics processing and moldmaking.

We began our pre-show coverage of PTXPO in the February issue (see Keeping Up with Technology section). In this month’s issue, if you turn to p. 14, you’ll get a preview of new technology you will be seeing in injection molding. There is also a schedule of live demos (p. 16) and Tech Talk presentations (p. 18). In this month’s Keeping Up section, beginning on p. 64, you’ll see new products in extrusion, compounding, auxiliary equipment, and more—identified by the PTXPO logo.

These are busy times for our industry. Opportunities beckon as OEMs and brand owners are looking hard at shortening their supply chains. That could mean more projects for you. And when was the last time you walked a trade show, saw what was new on a first-hand basis, met and engaged with your suppliers? It’s time.