|
|
|
| ARMA Annual Conference 2005 24-26 July 2005, Hong Kong The ARMA meetings are always interesting to attend and this one was no different. In addition to a well organized conventional meeting Leisa Donlan put together a guided tour of Chinese molders and cultural highlights. The tour proved to be an amazing success with over 80 people traveling between multiple locations and facilities in Beijing, Shanghai and Zhuhai. 158 people from 19 countries attended the main meeting. David Stoopman is the President of ARMA and he opened the conference with a review of some of the achievements of ARMA as a group including the upcoming water tank standard, training programs developed with Queensland university and on-going research into materials development. He then introduced Mr Zhang, the President of ARM China, who gave a review of the rotomolding industry in China. There are around 70 members currently but he noted that there is the potential for many more and that while the industry is still in its infancy in terms of size and sophistication, it will grow rapidly as molders are exposed to more and more technology. He called for assistance in elevating the competitiveness of molders through support from local professionals. John Ciovacco of Cyclics Corp. gave a presentation on the latest developments of CBT resins and showed a variety of parts that had been molded in trials in South Africa and Australia. This engineering resin demonstrates excellent physical properties and some interesting possibilities for fillers and reinforcement.
The meeting was also an Association of Rotational Moulding Organizations (ARMO) event. It was quite a sight to see the Presidents of all seven member groups in one place at the same time and even more encouraging to see the evident camaraderie and cooperation between them. From left to right, David Stoopman (ARMA), Erich Boersch (ARMCE), Allan Joyce (BPF), Gary Lategan (ARMSA), Jean Martin (AFR), James McGreer (IRMA) and Francesco Mondini (AISR). Each of the Presidents had an opportunity to speak on various topics and after David Stoopman opened the conference:
All-in-all quite a high powered day! There were also contributions from Chinese molders. Luo Hong Yu of Deshun Container gave a company overview and reported that while there are potentially hundreds of molders around China, most are small with sales under 20MM RMB ($1.25MM). Simon Chan of MP Engineering talked about rotomolding in China and some of the issues to address if you are considering investing there. There is limited information on the industry in China but it is catching up fast. However, competition is fierce and margins can be quite low for commodity type products. He also noted that there can be quite complex tax rules in place and that you should make sure of having a local partner to help in understanding local rules and regulations. Louise Flynn of Vanglobe, Ltd. gave a presentation on their renewed approach to the Australian marketplace and their plans for the future. Nick Moldan reviewed the interactive graphic options that Mold In Graphic Systems offers for molders. Peter Unkles (that well known quick wit artist) gave a great review of the rotomolding industry in Australia and how it developed from his early days in the stone age. These are always great talks when the 'old-timers' test their memory skills and give us all a flavor of what it was like to mold in your barefeet over a wood-stove. Dario Masutti of ICO Courtenay's presented details of plans to open a new facility in Brisbane in September of this year and their UV20 grades for the Middle Eastern markets. Pierluigi Sacchi of Polivinil presented details of a new temperature measurement system embedded in the head of the rotomolding machine arm which allows continuous control of the process and details of a 'semi-automatic' control system.
The entertainment was colorful, fun.....
|
Send mail to email@paulnugent.com with questions or comments about this web site.
|
