NPE 2015 posts unprecedented achievements

The crowds of attendees and the noise of on-floor machine demonstrations that filled the giant exhibit halls at NPE2015 told the story better than numbers, but now there are statistics to make it official: NPE2015 was the largest

show in NPE history.  Data from SPI (The Plastics Industry Trade Association, founder and producer of NPE) showed that NPE2015 attracted 2,029 exhibitors over 1,128,200 net square feet (104,813 sq.m) of exhibit space—exceeding the previous records of 2,009 exhibitors and 1,041,000 net square feet (96,712 sq.m) set in 2000. In addition, registered attendance for NPE 2015 was 65,810 — 19% higher than the previous edition. These registrants came from 23,396 unique companies — 22% more than the 19,198 companies at NPE 2012 — representing a substantial increase in buying potential.

 

International participation also set new NPE records. Nearly 44% of exhibiting companies and 26% of registrants came from outside the United States. Of all exhibitors, more than 20% are from China, which led the 37 participating foreign countries. In descending order of number of exhibitors, the ten largest participating countries are China (Taiwan not included), Taiwan, Canada, Italy, Germany, India, Turkey, France, Switzerland, and South Korea. These figures don't include many companies that are based in other countries but exhibited through their US subsidiaries.

 

Nearly 5,000 registrants were from Latin America alone. Besides, many Brandowner buying teams from companies as diverse as Apple, Bayer/Medtronic, BD/Becton Dickinson, Berry Plastics, Bemis, Chrysler, Covidien, Ford, John Deere, Kimberly Clark, Mars, Newell Rubbermaid, Phillips Respironics, Tervis Tumblers, and Toro also visited the NPE2015.

 

SPI president and CEO William R.Carteaux acclaimed NPE 2015 as the most successful NPE by many measures. "What made NPE 2015 a milestone in the 69-year history of NPE was not only its size and international diversity, but also

the richness of its offerings to attendees," said Mr. Carteaux. "The hundreds of machines operating on the show floor, the customer service centres provided by material suppliers, the pavilions and programmes on current issues and emerging technologies, the extensive agenda of colocated conferences—this wealth of content surpassed our previous shows and now provides a guideline for making future NPEs even more attractive to participants. The plastics industry should be truly proud of its show."

 

One of the highlights of the exhibition was the unique fashion show at the opening ceremony which featured recycled plastics where models wore creations made from recycled, reused, or repurposed plastics. The garments and accessories were designed by The Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) students. "We found the students at SCAD to be not only talented and creative, but also very involved with environmental issues," said Brad Williams, director of marketing and sales for SPI. "Their designs are vivid demonstrations that recycled plastics can gain new lives in many forms—both as purely utilitarian goods and as objects of beauty. The Pursuing Zero Waste Fashion Show at NPE2015 added a new dimension to our industry mandate to reduce, reuse, and recycle the valuable materials that make up our products."

 

The next edition, NPE2018, will take place on May 7-11, 2018 at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Florida.