Education

ARM is hosting several all day educational seminars, guaranteed to provide you with the tools needed to prepare your company for more profitable operations. These seminars will help increase your understanding of the rotomolding process and help enhance your designs. Seminars being offered include: Practical Rotomolding with the Experts, Energy Seminar and Design Seminar in Rotational Molding. *Please note, this schedule is preliminary; check back often for updates.

Click here to view the Preliminary Schedule for Rotoplas

2011 ARM Fall Meeting Programming

GENERAL SESSIONS

Keynote: Harnessing the Hurricane: Surviving and Thriving during Extreme Change"
Dr. Mark DeVolder

In Mark's signature keynote, leaders learn how to adapt, survive and thrive in a climate of constant change. Participants will receive essential leadership tools and a template to successfully plot a course through the storm: the turbulent times and the doldrums. Leaders will leave with a personal plan to successfully navigate change in their organization, become a leader/coach and develop employee engagement. Don't just survive; learn to thrive during Extreme Change!

Developing high quality products in rotomolding (case study)
Martin Spencer, Rototek LLC

Martin will describe the development of a high quality medical cart used in an institutional setting. The case study will show the stages of development over a (3) three year period which involve numerous professionals in the design, logistics , mold making, and certification of the final product. You will learn some of the pitfalls and challenges in creating a successful rotomolded product.

Extreme applications of Rotomolding
Jan Møllerhaug, Partnerplast

Jan will share developments and applications of heavy duty industrial and marine products in Rotomolding. Jan will talk about the various products they produce that showcase successful products that are used world-wide in extreme applications. Some of the products are for deep-sea applications down to depths as far as 12,000 ft. Partnerplast is a world leader in extreme rotomolding applications.

Lean Manufacturing Journey
Ozzy Larsen, Solar Plastics

Ozzy will present case studies on visually scheduling their 5-axis routers to reduced inventory by more than 70% and reduce needed labor (moved to somewhere else in the plant), improve throughput by 6 days, reduce set-up by 40% and improved uptime by 19%. The presenter will also discuss utilizing available labor to rotate sub assemblies from machine to machine and schedule machine arm by capacity. The presentation will address utilizing labor in cyclical business times to implement improvements and reducing use of forklift for 30% reduction in setup time for molding machines and 10% improved uptime.

Robots in Rotomolding
Tracey Brill, Dutchland Plastics and Jeff Paprocki, Midwest Engineered Systems Group

Tracey Brill will describe briefly how Dutchland Plastics uses robots in their process and will then introduce Jeff Paprocki from MWES who will present on a variety of robotic solutions that they offer.

Next Generation Paxon™ Cross-Linkable High Density Polyethylene Resins for Rotational Molding
Ron Cooke - ExxonMobil Chemical Company

ExxonMobil Chemical Paxon™ 7000 series of cross-linkable high density polyethylene resins are unique materials that offer rotational molders the advantage of high-flow processing and high molecular weight part performance. While these resins are the industry standard, ExxonMobil Chemical has developed a way to make them even better. Potential benefits for rotational molders are reduced cycle time and scrap level along with improved large part performance. Ron will introduce you to these next generation products and explain how they can improve your rotational molding operation.

Ron has worked for ExxonMobil Chemical Company for 24 years. He has held a number of technical roles at ExxonMobil Chemical's Sarnia polyethylene manufacturing facility and for the last 11 years been responsible for providing Applications Technical Service and Resin Development for ExxonMobil Chemical's Rotational and Injection Molding Polyethylene business. In Rotational Molding, Ron provides support for both linear and cross-linkable polyethylene products. Ron is active in ARM as a member of the Materials committee and has presented papers and moderated workshops at a number of meetings.

Out of Control - Disaster Recovery For Rotational Molders
Leisa Donlan, ARMA

How could your business recover without access to staff, phones, mobiles, the internet or road access? There is no doubt that for molders around the world, force majeure is becoming an uncomfortably common problem. Over the past twelve months rotational molders around the world have been hit hard by major disasters. In the first series of case studies including catastrophic fire, category 5 hurricanes, earthquakes & floods Leisa Donlan will detail what the impact has been on molders and how their recovery efforts worked or could have been improved. Of course crisis can come in many shapes and forms and negatively impact on your company. These days most people in business travel extensively and many have done so for years without incident. In the second series of case studies you will hear how other molders have had to deal with travel incidents and staffing issues that could have had a catastrophic impact on their business and what controls they used to ensure their business could continue or at least be insulated from outside factors not under their immediate control.

Polyethylene Outlook – Key Market Drivers Through 2015
Chris Gick, Nova Chemicals Corporation

Polyethylene is a global commodity and Chris will provide perspective and focus on the key factors that will affect the polyethylene market through the middle of this decade. Two key macroeconomic trends will be discussed that will continue to drive a pattern of robust PE demand growth. Market prices for PE are always influenced by volatility in energy, feedstock and raw materials. The key factors will be discussed and expectations for the future reviewed. The balance between supply and demand in the PE market is always fundamental to an understanding of dynamics in the industry. Expectations for significant oversupply starting in 2008/2009 never materialized, and we are now heading into a period when demand likely will outstrip supply in the medium term.

In over 27 years of employment with NOVA Chemicals, Chris Gick has held commercial and technical positions within the polyethylene business, and at a corporate level in Investor Relations. As Manager, Industry and Market Dynamics, he is responsible for monitoring, analyzing and interpreting changes and trends that affect the dynamics of the industries within which NOVA participates.

Chris Gick was born and raised in Montreal. He holds a Degree in Chemical Engineering from McGill University and an MBA from the University of Calgary. He has spent periods of time working for NOVA Chemicals in Calgary and Montreal. He currently resides in Pittsburgh where he works at NOVA’s U.S. Commercial Center.

Midwest Patterns Company Profile
Jim Henry, Midwest Patterns

This presentation will highlight the company's facility and rotational molds being built and completed.  The presentation will briefly touch on additional industries served by Midwest Patterns.

What's New: Power Burnisher
Jason Brownell, Mold In Graphic Systems

This presentation will introduce Mold In Graphics Power Burnisher, which the company states increases efficiency by 46%. The tool has been designed to assist rotational molders with applying Mold In Graphics in the mold.

WORKSHOPS

Make Nylon Work For You
Arkema, Custom Resins and RMB Products will highlight the differences between Nylons, share process recommendations for their materials and suggest end-use applications.

Get Engaged! Love Your Job – Dr. Mark DeVolder
With straight-forward strategies and convincing business examples, Mark shows leaders how to improve the bottom line through the pillars of commitment: clarity, competence, influence and appreciation. You will leave with tools and a template to re-energize, re-engage and transform your workplace and life.

Networking – How to make the most of the ARM Annual Meeting
Kick off the Annual Meeting right with this workshop that will help you network at the tradeshow and throughout the rest of the meeting. The group will share icebreakers, networking tips, and advice on action plans and goal setting. The ARM Board believes networking is the key to getting the most out of the Association; the workshop will briefly address other ARM Benefits as well.

What's Your Problem?
Bring your technical, process or business-related problems to this perennial favorite workshop. Your moderators and colleagues will help you troubleshoot any problem. Sharing your shop difficulties can make this workshop pay for your Rotoplas attendance many times over.

Training - Kevin Cox, Rotational Molding Technologies Inc.; Kathy Gorey, Pelican Products; and Bill Spenceley, Flexahopper Plastics
HR personnel and other leaders from rotational molding businesses will briefly share what sets their training programs apart. The speakers will address common challenges in training and the room will propose shared solutions.

Disaster Recovery for Rotational Molders
In this workshop, Leisa Donlan will expand on her Disaster Recovery general session. The workshop will include tips from security industry experts on disaster planning and travel safety. Leisa will also detail the Disaster Recovery Plan Template ARMA has recently developed for the rotational molding industry, no matter what the situation may be that is putting their business continuity at risk.

Cooling – The Final Frontier
Drs. Gareth McDowell and Nick Henwood, 493K Limited
This presentation focuses on the unknown wilderness of cooling control. Currently the molder only has a combination of three choices: still air cooling (usually so slow as to be impractical), forced air cooling (usually only one setting is available and the cooling rate is totally dependent on prevailing ambient conditions) or water spray (usually far too violent to be any use, especially if dimensional stability is an issue). 493K will demonstrate real-time cooling control on a standard roto machine, using feedback from a K-PAQ temperature measurement device.

Proper Selection and Use of Pigments and Additives in Rotational Molding
Jiong Yu & Michael Amone, BASF Corporation. Pigments are commonly used in rotational molded parts. However, if not chosen correctly, they will have detrimental effects on the mechanical properties of the parts. Proper pigment and additive selection is therefore an essential element in good rotomolding practice. This presentation examines several failures related to pigmented parts and their root causes. Guidelines for proper selection of pigments will be discussed. In addition, the benefits and drawbacks of different antioxidants and UV stabilizers commonly used in rotational molding will be reviewed.

SEMINARS

Practical Rotomolding with the Experts
Dru Laws, Rotonics Manufacturing Inc; Bruce Muller, Plastics Consulting, Inc.; Greg Stout, Blue-Reed, LLC & Sandy Scaccia, Norstar Aluminum Molds, Inc.

This one-day seminar targets the day to day practical issues faced by rotomolders. Starting from finalization of the product design, to getting the right material specification, to the mold construction, these tasks require hands-on experience-based good practices. It is becoming more important in the competitive environment to maintain high standards of product quality, process efficiency and costs. This seminar looks to address these issues with help of four highly experienced prominent speakers: Michael Paloian will discuss design; Bruce Muller will discuss powder quality; Dru Laws will discuss Process QA/QC. They will share their experience and expertise with separate presentations followed by Q & A periods to promote dialogue between the seminar participants and the speakers. Here the participants will have opportunity to discuss and analyze their specific issues with the speakers.

Design Seminar in Rotational Molding
Michael Paloian, Integrated Design Systems

This one-day seminar will provide a basic understanding of how to design a rotationally molded part. The seminar will be segmented into two sections: the first portion will focus on basic design principles, and the second will concentrate on applying these principles to design exercises. Basic design principles will be presented to the group within a two-hour period. The remainder of the seminar will focus on creative application of these principles in two to three product designs. Each attendee will be encouraged to sketch out a design based on rotational molding. Designs will be reviewed and critiqued. One or more of them will then be modeled in CAD by the instructor to demonstrate feasibility, moldability and appearance. Each attendee will be provided with a CD summary of the seminar.

About the Presenter: Michael Paloian is President of Integrated Design Systems, Inc., located in Great Neck, New York. For the past 25 years, Paloian has developed products ranging from MRI machines to pool chlorinators. His expertise as an industrial designer and plastics engineer has provided him with a unique set of design skills, allowing him to design products from concept to production. He has been a frequent contributor to RotoWorld magazine as well as many other trade journals in the plastics industry. He and his firm have designed numerous rotationally molded parts, such as material handling pallets, pool chlorinators, POP displays and toys. Paloian has an in-depth knowledge of designing parts in numerous processes and materials, including plastics, metals and composites. This broad knowledge base, combined with his extensive experience in designing hundreds of products, provides him with a distinct advantage in optimizing designs based on materials, process and cost.

Energy Management in Plastics Processing – Rotational molding
Robin Kent

Energy is rapidly becoming one of the largest costs in plastics processing and this is especially true for rotational molders. Despite this, most molders do not know how to approach reducing energy costs or how to measure their current costs correctly.

This seminar shows participant how to:

• Evaluate and benchmark your company’s current approach to energy management.
• Learn practical tips for identifying and delivering real energy savings across your plant.
• Develop action plans for management issues, services, plastics processing and operations.
• Discuss your plant with a leading expert in plastics processing and energy management.
• Help your company through the current economic crisis by cutting costs the painless way.

Participants will take away:

• Action plans – the course will equip you with practical tools to tackle energy management issues throughout your organization, from the boardroom to the shop floor.
• Inspiration and confidence – Dr Kent’s enthusiasm and passion for cutting energy consumption and costs is infectious and you will leave this course empowered to take action.

The seminar is suitable for:

• Anyone involved in the management, operation or financial performance of plastics processing plants.
• Managing directors / CEOs / company owners
• Production directors / managers
• Technical directors / managers
• Machine and plant operators
• Financial directors / controllers
  

Dr. Robin Kent is an accredited Carbon Trust consultant for energy reduction surveys and specializes in working with plastics processing companies to provide them with concrete guidance on how to reduce their energy costs.

His consultancy Tangram Technology has carried out energy surveys of over 350 plastics processing sites throughout the world. The average savings identified during a survey is in the region of 30 - 35%. The measures identified are a mix of short-term rapid payback actions (payback of less than 6 months) and longer-term payback actions (payback of around 18 months).
Most sites surveyed achieve 25% savings within 1 year and the remaining within 2 years.