Plastics Forming Enterprises appoints new president

The Amherst, New Hampshire-based recyclability testing and design firm, Plastics Forming Enterprises (PFE), has announced that Kristi Hansen has assumed the role of president.  PFE is working with some of the largest brands in the world to achieve packaging circularity goals.  

Established in 1984 by Louis Tacito, PFE has played an instrumental role in helping to develop quality standards for recycled polyethylene terephthalate (PET) at the recycling industry’s earliest stages, as well as consulting on the construction of some of the first plastics recycling facilities.  PFE’s growth over the years has paralleled the maturation of the plastics recycling industry, increasing the range of material testing and consultation services to include the many resins used in rigid and flexible packaging.

Hansen brings the experience and vision that will enable PFE to continue to evolve with the rapidly changing packaging industry, the company says.  As a design engineer with a degree from Wentworth Institute of Technology in Boston and 18 years of engineering experience in the structural fiber and plastics industries, Hansen brings a great deal of technical knowledge to her new leadership role.  Her professional accomplishments include installing, starting up and training the commercial quality-control laboratories for three food-grade PET recycling facilities and also has assisted Tacito in the full facility design, development and qualification for several major, best-in-class Food and Drug Administration-grade PET plants throughout the world.

“Kristi brings unparalleled experience to the organization, which uniquely qualifies her to oversee and manage the many business functions at PFE,” Tacito, CEO of PFE, says.  “Her roles have allowed her to work closely with the clientele to better understand the recycling community and the challenges that material selection and product design have on the recycle stream quality.”

Among Hansen’s goals for the organization are for PFE to continue to lead in mechanical testing and design consultation but also to support the industry as it moves to address the emerging opportunities in chemical recycling, mitigating ocean plastics and improving the image of plastics. 

“This is an unprecedented and exciting time in the plastics industry,” Hansen says. “PFE has been a force in helping the recycling industry grow and become mainstream in manufacturing. I look forward to leading this organization as it meets the industry’s new challenges in achieving circularity goals.”