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FPD Highlights - December 2006

SPI Activities in Support of FPD

NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF MANUFACTURERS' (NAM)2006 - NAM Small Manufacturers Operating Survey released November 16, 2006 showed respondents anticipate solid growth in the months ahead from strong sales and increases in exports and capital investment. Yet hopes were tempered by rising health care costs, taxes and legal fees. Sixty-three percent of the respondents expect their sales to grow more than five percent this year. "This is the second most optimistic response in a decade and more positive than the expectations of sales growth in the later half of the 1990s," said David Huether, NAM's chief economist. An improved focus on foreign markets is a highlight of this survey. More than 10 percent of the survey respondents say that exports account for at least a quarter of their company's sales. This is an improvement from 2001 when less than four percent of survey respondents got a quarter of their sales from exports. Similarly, 41 percent of respondents expect they will increase capital investment in 2006 by more than five percent. Dampening these positive figures is the news of rising health care costs. Nearly half of respondents said their health care costs have risen from 11 to 20 percent in the past year.

FPD Activities

SPRING 2007 CONFERENCE will be held at the Hyatt Tamaya Resort in Santa Ana Pueblo, NM (near Albuquerque) March 25-27, 2007. Dan Loffa, AGC Chemicals Americas, and Kenneth Koziel, Saint-Gobain, are the conference co-chairs. Planned presentation topics include: Quality Environmental/Risk Management (Joseph Caprio, Saint Gobain), International Trade Issues (Eugenia Ross, SPI), Marketing/Internal Performance (Dr. Milton Bergstein), SPI Issues and Goals (Bill Carteaux, SPI), and more.

You will not want to miss our keynote speaker - Patrick Moore, one of the original founders of Greenpeace. Dr. Moore has since left the organization and in recent years, has been focused on the promotion of sustainability and consensus building among competing concerns. Please visit the FPD Spring Conference website for registration and further details on the program.

FALL 2007 CONFERENCE is planned for The Venetian in Las Vegas, Nevada on Sept. 23-25, 2007. Please save these dates. The Conference Chairmen are Tim Grattan, Daikin, and Dave Ely, Chromatics Inc.

SOCIETAL VALUE OF FLUOROPOLYMERS - A subcommittee is being led by Bruce Nesbitt, to develop awareness of the societal values of fluoropolymers. The subcommittee members are Evan Laganis, AGC Chemicals, and Dick Rockosi, Arkema. A Societal Values Powerpoint Presentation has been placed on the FPD website.

MEMBERSHIP SUBCOMMITTEE Another subcommittee, led by Robert Smith, Dupont, was formed to reach out to the industry for additional members. Other subcommittee members include Al Damico (FPD Chairman), Richard Baillie (Membership Chairman), Terence Neville, Mike Patterson, and Eric Walsh.

MONTHLY FPD HIGHLIGHTS - Please include E. Robert (Bob) Hill on your press release list at eben_hill@msn.com, so we can note your company and staff accomplishments and honors.

WINTER 2007 ISSUE OF FLUORONEWS We are now accepting input for the Winter 2007 issue of FluoroNews, the newsletter of the Fluoropolymers Division. This is your opportunity to brag on your company and your staff. Also, we are again offering 5 free business card size advertisements to members, first come-first serve. Only one free per company per calendar year, please. Please send your input to E. Robert (Bob) Hill at eben_hill@msn.com.

FLUOROGUIDE - We did full updates of FluoroGuide and the related Section and Member tables in late January, mid-June 2006, and early November 2006. We plan to do updates of the section and membership tables every 4-5 weeks to keep them current, and do full updates of FluoroGuide 3-4 times per year. The next full update of FluoroGuide is expected in the first quarter, 2007. Please check your company input on our website and give Bob Hill any needed further revisions at eben_hill@msn.com.

FPD WEB SITE HITS continue to increase steadily, and reached 548k hits, up from 508k hits in the prior quarter. The Summer 2006 Issue of FluoroNews was the most popular hit for the last two quarters. The Safe Handling Guide received 3,926 hits.

FPD Section Activities

FPD Section activities continue to be strongly emphasized at all of our conferences. The PFOA issue is a major issue in all sections. See this website under Conferences in early 2007 for the Section Programs for the upcoming Spring Conference at Albuquerque, March 25-27.

  • Coating Section had good attendance at the Fall 2006 Conference. The group wants to increase its efforts in reaching out to coater member prospects. It will work more closely with the Fluoropolymers Manufacturers Group (FMG) to communicate progress on the PFOA issue to existing and prospective members.

  • PTFE Processors Section - Jim Redmond resigned as Section Chair. Chuck Bloser, AGC Chemicals, led the PTFE Processor Breakout at the Fall Conference in place of Jim. Eric Walsh has accepted the position of Section Chairman, effective immediately.

  • Wire & Cable Section - NFPA and plenum cable remain a major issue.

    • People on the Move

    FPD: Jim Redmond, Jrlon, has resigned as Processors Section Chair, and has been replaced by Eric Walsh of DeWAL Industries. Our thanks to both Jim and Eric.

    Industry Highlights

    W. L. GORE & ASSOCIATES (GORE) , a leading provider of aerospace wire and high data rate cable, is pleased to announce A. E. Petsche Company as the exclusive North America distributor of GORE™ Bulk Wire and Cable. This agreement enables Gore to continue to provide its key customers with excellent service and sales support. "Gore is committed to meeting the needs of our customers," says Doug Hardy, global product manager for bulk wire and cable. "This agreement brings together the technical expertise of Gore with the service expertise of A. E. Petsche while benefiting our customers with shorter lead times, lower minimum order quantities and improved sales support." For more information, call Gore at 800/445-4673 (USA) or 302/292-5100 (international), or visit www.gore.com.

    ASAHI GLASS COMPANY (AGC) has announced yet another capacity increase for Fluon® ETFE (ethylene-tetrafluoroethylene) fluoropolymers. This expansion at AGC's Kashima Plant in Japan will substantially increase AGC's ETFE manufacturing capacity and further strengthens AGC's position as the leading manufacturer of ETFE in the world. Construction is scheduled to begin soon, with startup occurring in the first quarter of 2008. This expansion comes on the heels of a new ETFE production facility at the company's Hillhouse Plant in the United Kingdom. This facility will begin operations in April 2007. According to US Senior Business Director for ETFE, Evan Laganis, this expansion is necessary to meet the increasing demand for ETFE in worldwide markets, particularly wire and cable, automotive, construction, and films. For more information, go to the company's website www.agcchem.com.