InterPlas Thailand: Moulding a bright future for ASEAN plastics industry

InterPlas Thailand 2015 moved to become a standalone exhibit for the first time in its 24th editions, with the trade show taking place at Bangkok International Trade & Exhibition Center (BITEC). Even with it going solo for the first time, the exhibition remains the country’s only trade exhibition for plastics and petrochemicals manufacturing machinery and technology.

The expo started with a bang, as industry titans from over 300 brands in some 20 countries congregated to display their technologies. Some 20,000 visitors were expected to participate in the trade show, including roughly 12,000 from the plastics and petrochemical industries.

The four-day exhibition had a different theme every day, comprising automotive plastics, plastics packaging, plastic medical devices and using feng shui for business and manufacturing. There were conferences to correspond with each theme.

Prof. Paritat Phanthubanyong, executive director of the automotive manufacturing engineering faculty at Panyapiwat Institute of Management, gave a talk on advancing technology keep Thailand as a global auto manufacturing hub. Keeping current on plastics technology was essential to maintaining the country’s competency and creating a sustainable, knowledge-based industry, he said.

Mayuree Paklamjeak, packaging advisor for the Plastics Institute of Thailand as well as the Thai Packaging Association, spoke about how the imminent ASEAN Economic Community (AEC), to take effect soon and how it will force packaging professionals to stay on top of all the trends in plastics. The economic pact would also reinforce the need to have strong networks and partnerships throughout the region as many industries liberalised.

Thailand continues to grow as a location for medical tourism, and as such it is only natural that demand for plastic medical devices has increased too. Industry leaders provided a breakdown of the technologies being used and allowed enough time for networking as well.

The final day saw an interview with a feng shui guru that aimed to help businesses orient their work towards prosperity.

InterPlas Thailand also featured a plastics innovation zone that showcased new advances in research and development including packaging and telephone cases made from bioplastics and food-grade plastic bags that were breathable, making them safe for kids.