NPE2018: The Plastics Show to feature Plastics Leadership Summit

Education program is designed to provide business insights to C-suite executives.


The Washington-based Plastics Industry Association (Plastics) has announced the launch of a new educational event—The Plastics Leadership Summit—which the association says adds “a compelling educational component to NPE2018: The Plastics Show," which is May 7-11 in Orlando, Florida. The Plastics Leadership Summit provides plastics industry and end market executives and senior management with access to the latest organizational tools and up-to-the-minute business imperatives and insights that determine company success now and in the future, Plastics says.

The series of half-day executive symposia with networking lunches features keynote speakers from financial institutions, consumer brands, plastics manufacturing companies and national associations, plenary talks and interactive discussions covering topics from investment capital, acquisitions and projected demand to new product ideas, supply chain efficiencies and emerging technologies. The networking lunches allow executives the opportunity to meet and talk with the event’s speakers but also with their peers.

“The Plastics Leadership Summit will provide plastics executives unique access to premium learning and networking opportunities and facetime with industry experts to build the relationships they need to drive strategies leading to company success,” says the association’s President and CEO William R. Carteaux. “The Plastics Leadership Summit’s half-day schedule is intentionally designed to encourage executive attendees and speakers to visit the show floor, where they can marry what they’ve learned with technologies and innovations being showcased by exhibitors whose products and services relate to the presented themes.”

Over three days, the Plastics Leadership Summit features specific tracks and speakers:

  • The Profit track, Tuesday, May 8, is specialized to support C-level executives and small- and middle-market company presidents and chief financial officers. Topics include capital sourcing for growth and acquisition, company valuation and corporate financial strategies. Speakers and panelists include:
  • Sharon Miller, managing director, Bank of America;
  • Charlie Gailliot, partner, Goldman Sachs;
  • Craig Staub, managing principal, Odyssey Partners;
  • John Hart, managing director, Plante Moran Corporate Finance; and
  • Sam Smith III, senior vice president, Customers Bank Commercial Finance.
  • The Product track, Wednesday, May 9, is designed for senior business development, sales and marketing and product/divisional business managers. It focuses on projected demand for existing and new ideas in aerospace, medical, food and beverage, lawn and garden and other industry market segments. Speakers and panelists include:
  • Theresa Hermel-Davidock, worldwide director or core technologies, Becton Dickinson;
  • Stephen Livernois, vice president of procurement, Becton Dickinson;
  • Rene Lammers, senior vice president of global beverage R&D, PepsiCo;
  • Catherine Hawkins, senior director of procurement, The Boeing Co.;
  • Jay Olson, materials, engineering and technology manager, John Deere; and
  • Scott Farmer, executive vice president, Berry Plastics.
  • The Production track, Thursday, May 10, is geared toward manufacturing executives and general managers of manufacturing facilities. Topics range from workforce development to innovations including additive (3D and 4D) manufacturing and “smart manufacturing” throughout the supply chain. Speakers and panelists include:
  • Jay Timmons, president and CEO, National Association of Manufacturers;
  • Greg Haye, general manager materials and process development center, Local Motors Inc.;
  • Tim Weber, global head of 3d materials and advanced applications, Hewlett Packard Inc.; and
  • Peter Stansky, digitalization development manager, Siemens Inc.

In addition to the Plastics Leadership Summit, eight specialized education programs at NPE2018 will cover every facet of the plastics industry and offer insights to solve specific on-the-job challenges, Plastics says.

New educational programs at NPE2018 include the 3D Printing Workshop, presented by Additive Manufacturing Media and Plastics Technology; the Bottle Zone Technical Forum, hosted by PETplanet and the International Society of Beverage Technologists (ISBT); and the Re|focus Sustainability & Recycling Summit.

Returning educational programs at NPE2018 include the Agricultural Plastics Recycling Conference, ANTEC, Carpet America Recovery Effort, Plastics Industry Insights—IHS Markit and Seminarios Latinoamericanos, presented in Spanish.

NPE2018 is the triennial international plastics manufacturing exposition representing the entire plastics supply chain, where 65,000+ attendees from all sectors and from every part of the worldwide supply chain gather to learn about new technical advances, meet industry leaders and peers and explore every facet of the business, Plastics says. To attend the plastics industry’s leading educational programs, to register and for more information, visit www.npe.org.  

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