Plastics New Zealand celebrates 60th

Plastics industry body Plastics New Zealand celebrates 60th

On Monday 7 June 2004 the New Zealand Plastics industry marks another significant milestone with their industry organisation, Plastics New Zealand, turning sixty.

7 June 1944 saw the formation of the organisation under the New Zealand Manufacturers Federation of New Zealand. At this time there were just 18 known plastics manufacturing companies in New Zealand. Today there are more than four hundred employing over 8,000 New Zealanders. The industry has a turnover in excess of $2 billion and direct exports of $350 million.

While some might start slowing down at sixty the New Zealand plastics industry is embarking on the development of an ambitious growth strategy. The earliest versions of this put forward targets to double industry turnover to $4 billion by 2010 and increase exports by 25% annually.

Plastics New Zealand, is an association of plastics manufacturers, plastics raw materials suppliers, and recyclers and has over 170 members, representing more than three-quarters of the plastics industry in New Zealand.

Robin Martin, CEO of Plastics New Zealand says "We have an industry with a per person productivity of $250,000, against a national average of $32,000. This is a result of 60 years of innovation and entrepreneurship by the fore fathers of the industry. The ability of competing companies within the industry to work together through Plastics New Zealand stands us in good stead for the next sixty years. The advice we heard in Dustin Hoffman's the Graduate "The Future is in Plastics", is just as true today."

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