Page 61 - Plastics News Issue October 2025
P. 61
BUSINESS NEWS
Covid supply chain crisis, there seemed to be a tunities that the sector offers, such as mould-
heightened appetite for British-made products, ing, toolmaking, robotics, AI/smart factories and
which could command a premium to account even the development of sustainable and/or
for the higher production costs associated with biodegradable polymers. We must all strive to
bringing work back to the UK. change the perception around plastics and en-
courage more young people to come onboard
However, the reality does not appear to have and join us – or the current skills shortage will
matched the expectation. Of the companies only get worse.
with whom I’ve had discussions, reshoring has
not made the positive impact on their business Investment
that they had hoped for. In fact, increased UK
staffing and energy costs have negatively af- As well as an ageing workforce, the plastics in-
fected overall productivity. For any home-grown dustry is also coping with an ageing field of in-
moulding firms considering reshoring, the advice jection moulding machines and other essential
is to do your research thoroughly and speak to equipment. There is a tendency among mould-
companies who have already followed this path ers to run a machine for years and years, then
– forewarned is forearmed. repair it and carry on. However, investing in a
legacy machine is risky – the bill to repair it will
People be extremely expensive and ultimately, you’re
still left with an asset which consumes far more
The UK has an ageing workforce and an ageing energy that today’s new models. This can be a
population as a whole. In this sense, the plastics costly strategy, albeit one that many moulders
industry is no different. But the negative conno- feel they have no choice but to follow.
tations surrounding plastics in terms of its green
credentials means we are finding it particularly With moulders struggling on a number of fronts
difficult to attract young people into the industry. – not least high energy costs – the industry
would greatly benefit from a government in-
Mainstream media reports of plastic as being vestment strategy to support plastics firms to
bad for the environment and damaging to the invest in new, energy efficient, highly productive
oceans have prompted an anti-plastic back- and accurate machines. As well as helping the
lash among Gen Z. While nobody could argue industry to become more environmentally sus-
against fewer single-use plastics, plastic prod- tainable, we will also be better able to compete
ucts are essential to our everyday life and can internationally, creating more jobs, generating
last for years – from the tables and chairs we sit more revenue and ensuring a continued domes-
at in our favourite coffee shop, to the plane we tic pipeline of plastic production – which, as we
take to reach our holiday destination, to the in- saw during the pandemic, was literally lifesaving.
halers and medical devices that keep us healthy.
The smart choice
We need to showcase just how useful and es-
sential plastic is to the next generation,and get For moulding firms themselves, investing in an
them switched onto the exciting career oppor- accurate all-electric injection moulding solution
October 2025 PLASTICS NEWS 61
