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PMMDA held its’ Annual General Meeting at a breakfast event at the Telford International Centre during PDM last week.

Along with the usual business of confirming the association’s annual activities, changes to the Committee were part of the proceedings.  Having served the maximum time as PMMDA President, Tim Peet of UK Plastics Machinery stepped down from the Committee.  Existing Chairman, Nigel Flowers of Sumitomo (SHI) Demag Plastics Machinery UK Ltd took his place as President, with current Deputy Chair Kevin Horne of Renmar Ltd stepping into Nigel’s shoes as Chairman.

Richard Hird of Premier Moulding Machinery then took on the role of Deputy Chairman, which incorporates the job of Treasurer.

With Tim’s departure from the Committee, Marcel Machado of Romi Machines UK Ltd was nominated for the vacancy on the Committee and unanimously voted in to take the position.  Nigel Baker of BMB Plastics Machinery Ltd, Colin Tirel of Arburg Limited and Andy Gibbens of Piovan UK Ltd remain as Committee members.

During the meeting, grateful thanks were given to Tim Peet who served on the Committee for many years and offered tremendous support and enthusiasm.  He was presented with a parting gift by the incoming Chairman, Kevin Horne.

Marcel was welcomed as the newest member of the Committee and it was noted that, with his enthusiasm and strong participation in past PMMDA member meetings, he will make an excellent member of the team.

Any enquiries can be directed to Nikki Williams at pmmda@pmmda.org.uk

The ‘PMDA’ – The Plastics Machinery Distributors Association Ltd (as it was then called) was incorporated under the Companies Act, 1948 on the 1^st June 1966.

The Memorandum & Articles of Association show that the formation of the Company  in 1966 was subscribed by representatives from Mortimer Machine Tool Co. Ltd, Soag Machine Tools Ltd, Denis Leader (Machinery) Limited, Industrial Plastics Limited, Ed Brand Limited, Hamilton Machinery Sales Limited, John Kimbell & Co Ltd and Fulcrum (Industrial Equipment) Ltd.

The Memorandum of Association lays out the objects for which the Association was originally established as the very same objectives that PMMDA aims for today:

• To promote the common interests of those engaged in the distribution of machinery and encourage co-operation in the conduct of business
• To facilitate the exchange of information and ideas with a view to the improvement of standards and quality
• To encourage fair trading
• To enter into agreements with authorities, exhibition promoters and other associations on matters of benefit for members
• To provide facilities for social networking

PMMDA has seen many changes over the 50 years since inception, with various personalities on the Committee and some member companies who have been with us from the start.  In August 2000, it was decided to change the name to the Polymer Machinery Manufacturers and Distributors Association and this name remains today.

The PMMDA website is currently being re-designed and will shortly be launched with a new ‘up to date’ look.  With this in mind, Members were asked for comments regarding membership and what it means to them.

Neil Bathard, UK National Sales Manager for Romi Machines UK Ltd said:

‘ROMI UK continues membership of the PMMDA because of their support for machinery manufacturers and the plastics industry as a whole, whilst keeping us up to date with latest news and legislation from Government.’

Nigel Flowers, MD of Sumitomo (SHI) Demag Plastics Machinery UK Ltd commented:

‘Sumitomo Demag have been strong supporters of the PMMDA over many years, we believe it is vitally important that we as polymer equipment suppliers have a strong voice representing our views in the market. The PMMDA provides that voice.’

To celebrate the ‘Golden Year’, members and past members will be invited to an event at the House of Commons in November.

 Any enquiries can be directed to Nikki Williams at pmmda@pmmda.org.uk

For the last 13 years, PMMDA has carried out an annual exercise to gauge trends in polymer machinery sales in the UK.  Member companies are invited to share their annual sales figures confidentially and the data is then collated to demonstrate UK and Ireland totals.  Those members participating receive an analysis of the figures together with a year on year comparison.

Following the collection and breakdown of figures for 2015, PMMDA Chairman Nigel Flowers commented:

‘The trend for UK injection moulding capital equipment sales remained very strong in 2015.   Results of the recent 2015 Market Survey showed that the 643 machines imported represent the strongest market since 2004.   Interestingly enough, if we ignore the large machine imports which distort the data, the average machine value in 2015 is lower than in 2005 when adjusted for inflation!  In fact since 2010 the UK market has grown in unit numbers by a staggering 36%.  To a large degree you could argue that this has been driven by the continued investment in automotive but this is only really reflected in the large machine imports (36 units over 1000 or 5.6%), the truth is that there has been significant investment across all sectors including traditional trade moulding which has taken a hit over the last few years.’

‘There is a similar story on the automation side, with 41% of machines supplied with automation last year, compared with just 32% 10 years ago. The UK compares very well with the rest of Europe as the Euromap production data shows automation over-stagnating as 20% of machines produced are equipped with automation.  Again there is an argument that automotive has driven this increase but I think that we are seeing investment across the board to leverage the cost reductions and increase in productivity that automation brings.’

UK sales figures for Ancillary Equipment and Robots were also included in the survey, and showed a significant rise in trade during 2015.

Any enquiries can be directed to Nikki Williams at pmmda@pmmda.org.uk

At the end of November, the Polymer Machinery Manufacturers & Distributors Association (PMMDA) members and guests were fortunate enough to visit the Houses of Parliament.

At the event, organised by Committee Secretary Nikki Williams, those attending were able to take part in a fully guided tour of the House of Commons and the House of Lords.  Members and guests were then led to a Drinks Reception which was held in one of the Terrace Dining Rooms.  Mark Pawsey MP, Member of Parliament for Rugby and PPS to the Minister for Small Business, Industry and Enterprise was the Guest Speaker, having sponsored the occasion. Before election to Parliament, Mr Pawsey ran his own business supplying products to the catering trade and is a member of, amongst others, All Party Groups on Manufacturing, Micro-Businesses, Packaging and Small Business.  Mr Pawsey spoke about his experiences in business and politics and chatted with guests on issues members raised with him.

PMMDA Chairman Nigel Flowers thanked Mr Pawsey for taking the time out to support the event and stated: ‘In preparation for the event I looked at the rate that the UK plastics industry is investing in high output / low energy equipment and discovered that at the current rate of investment it will take 20 years to replace the current aging installed base.  Government and your support of manufacturing and small businesses is vital if we are to continue to pursue a high technology based manufacturing economy by accelerating that change.’

After the Lunch Reception, all were invited to watch the Speaker’s Procession through Central Lobby, and view debate in the House of Commons Chamber from the Public Gallery.

Any enquiries can be directed to Nikki Williams at pmmda@pmmda.org.uk

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