plastics community study

2016 Plastics Community Study

PlasticsToday Meets Readers Needs

How would you rate PlasticsToday in each of the following areas?

alerting you to suppliers and products you were previously unaware of

helping stimulate ideas for new or different technological solutions

alerting you to specific products/services that may address problems or opportunities

69%

70%

75%

Readers Turn to PlasticsToday First

What is your level of agreement with the following statement about PlasticsToday?

agree44%

strongly disagree2%disagree

7%

neutral37%

strongly agree10%

Topics of Interest

What topics would you be most interested in reading about in future issues of PlasticsToday?

people on the move (e.g., job changes, promotions)

opinion pieces

plastics in building/construction

troubleshooting

product introductions

industry trends/analysis

materials research

breaking industry news

13%

15%

21%

44%

54%

60%

62%

66%

Other Topics of Interest

What topics would you be most interested in reading about in future issues of PlasticsToday?

Topics of Interest

Which of these industry trends/topics interest you the most?

industry association news

employment trends/challenges

mergers and acquisitions

market statistics

education/training news

industry trends and analysis

equipment news

end-use applications (automotive, medical, packaging, building and construction, etc.)

product design

new products and services

emerging technologies (e.g., 3D printing, Industry 4.0)

14%

18%

21%

25%

37%

38%

46%

49%

52%

72%

75%

Satisfaction of Website Features

How would you rate PlasticsToday's website, PlasticsToday.com, in each of the following areas?

ability to interact/engage (e.g., commenting)

quick poll

end-market coverage

functionality

overall design

navigation

topics selection

44%

45%

54%

60%

60%

60%

60%

Monthly Use of Resources

About how often do you use each of the following resources for work-related purposes?

industry conferences/trade shows

online communities (e.g., chat rooms, bulletin boards, blogs/user groups)

industry analysts/research organizations (e.g., Frost, Gartner)

direct mail

case studies/white papers

online supplier directories

webcasts/webinars

suppliers' sales reps

suppliers' e-newsletters/emails

online catalogs

social media (e.g., LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter)

online engineering tools/calculators

videos (e.g., product demos, corporate profiles)

trade publication: e-newsletters

trade publication: websites

trade publications: print format

suppliers' websites

trade publications: digital format

word-of-mouth/peers/colleagues

20%

23%

29%

35%

40%

41%

42%

46%

48%

49%

50%

52%

59%

60%

61%

62%

66%

67%

67%

First Place to Learn of New Technology

Through which resources do you typically FIRST hear about new work-related technologies, products, or companies?

industry analysts/research organizations (e.g., Frost, Gartner)

online supplier directories

videos (e.g., product demos, corporate profiles)

online communities (e.g., chat rooms, bulletin boards, blogs/user groups)

online engineering tools/calculators

case studies/white papers

online catalogs

direct mail

webcasts/webinars

suppliers' e-newsletters/emails

social media (e.g., LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter)*

suppliers' websites

industry conferences/trade shows

suppliers' sales reps

trade publication: websites

trade publication: e-newsletters

word-of-mouth/peers/colleagues

trade publications: print format

trade publications: digital format

5%

7%

8%

8%

9%

12%

12%

12%

14%

16%

17%

18%

22%

23%

25%

34%

36%

44%

49%

Trade Show & Conference Attendance

About how many of each of the following industry events do you attend in a typical year?

conferences: paid

conferences: free

trade shows

1

1.4

1.8


Assuming the content is interesting and relevant, how likely would you be to attend an industry TRADE SHOW/CONFERENCE in each of the following scenarios?

the conference offers continuing education credits

you have to fly to the location

the event sponsors evening/after-event networking activities

the conference location is beyond 300 miles from your home

the event is multiple days (requiring overnight stay)

the trade show location is beyond 300 miles from your home

the city/destination of the event is appealing to you

you can travel by car to the location within a day

travel/lodging is paid for by your company

18%

21%

23%

23%

24%

28%

32%

52%

53%


In the past two years, what trade shows or conferences have you and/or your company attended (either as attendees or as vendors)?

Plastindia

Biopolymers Symposium

JEC

FAKUMA

Medical Grade Polymers

Plastimagen

Plastics Recycling Conference

INTERPLAS

BIOMEDevice

Chinaplas

Interpack

ANTEC

K-Show

Design & Manufacturing

PACK EXPO

MD&M

PLASTEC, PLAST-Ex, Expoplast

NPE

2%

2%

2%

4%

4%

5%

6%

6%

9%

9%

12%

15%

16%

18%

25%

28%

30%

35%

Primary Job Function

Which of the following best describes your PRIMARY job function?

corporate man-agement

18%

sales/marketing18%

production/manufac-turing

9%plant management

4%purchasing

3%QA/QC

2%

none of these6%

engineering40%

Primary Business Activity

Which of these best describe the primary business activities of your company?

blowmolding

extrusion pipe and profile

thermoforming

extrusion film and sheet

moldmaker/moldmaking services

materials/resins/additives/colorants

injection molding

9%

10%

10%

14%

15%

23%

39%

Approved Vendor List Use

Does your company currently work with an approved supplier/vendor list?

no21%

no answer2%

yes77%

Involvement with Vendor Selection

When your firm seeks to identify and evaluate suppliers/vendors, how are you typically involved?

other

prepare reports/presentations on the alternatives

participate in planning/budgeting

involved in or supervise the evaluation process

involved in the final decisions/approve recommendations of others

research/recommend suppliers to evaluate

identify specific needs for a new or different technology

meet with suppliers

6%

22%

26%

34%

39%

52%

54%

58%

Final Decision in Vendor Selection

When selecting suppliers/vendors, how important are the following factors in your final decision?

brand recognition

word-of-mouth reputation

number of years the supplier has served the market

qualifications (e.g., ISO, GMP)

price

technical abilities

quality of product/service

35%

54%

59%

68%

77%

90%

92%

Purchase Timing in the Next Two Years

When is your company planning to purchase items and/or services in each of the following categories?

Time Frame Auxiliary Equipment MachineryMaterials (E.G., Resins, Additives, Colorants) Mold/Dies

2 years or later 6% 9% 4% 4%1 up to 2 years 17% 21% 6% 11%within 12 months 28% 28% 55% 36%never 10% 10% 9% 16%don't know 33% 28% 22% 28%no answer 6% 4% 4% 5%

Age of Equipment

How many years has your company had its major manufacturing equipment/systems for plastics processing?

10 years or more60%

5 - 9 years11%

fewer than 5 years23%

no answer6%

28% of companies

plan to replace equipment within two

years

Business Challenges

In what areas is your company experiencing challenges?

mergers/acquisitions of firms

integrating the activities of our departments, facilities, and/or suppliers

responding to pressures for custom products/services

re-engineering our business process

needing to open new revenue streams/markets

introducing higher quality products/services

more competitors/more aggressive competitors

dealing with regulatory issues (e.g., safety, environment)

conducting business globally

staying current with rapidly changing technology

effectively implementing technological improvements

responding to pressures for less costly products/services

less experienced/less educated work force

increased pressures for productivity

creating products/services that have a competitive edge

shortening development/process/production time

increased pressures for profitability

9%

12%

13%

14%

16%

17%

22%

23%

24%

25%

25%

27%

29%

29%

30%

33%

40%

Time in Industry

Approximately how many years of experience do you have working in the plastics processing industry, in any role and for any employer?

40 or more11%

30 - 3922%

25 - 2912%

20 - 2411%

15 - 1913%

10 - 1411%

5 - 98%

1 - 46%

less than 15%

no answer1%

The average age of the

community is 53.5 or

older

Methodology

The findings cited in this report are based on a survey sponsored by UBM. The purpose of this researchproject was to measure engagement with and opinions of various media channels among the audiencestudied, as well as to learn about their involvement in the plastics industry.

The survey sample of 18,812 included two audience segments within UBM’s plastic industry database:• all emailable, domestic, non-UBM-employee (based on email address) recipients of PlasticsToday who have

opened an email from Plastics Today at least three times in the last 6 months• all emailable, domestic, non-UBM-employee (based on email address) individuals who registered for or attended

a UBM plastics event (PLASTEC, PLAST-Ex, and/or Expoplast) in the last 12 months

The survey was designed jointly by PlasticsToday and Readex. Placement of the survey on a web page, distribution of the electronic survey invitations, and tabulation of the results were handled by Readex. On August 22, 2016, Readex contacted all sample members via an email in the name of UBM’s marketing manager, which included a link to the survey, asking for their participation in the study. As an incentive to participate, respondents were able to enter into a drawing for a chance to win one of two $100 Visa gift cards. Reminder emails were sent on August 25 and 29 to those with deliverable email addresses who had not yet responded.

In an effort to understand the impact incentive language within the subject line of an email has on response, UBM and Readex agreed to deploy a test during this study. The sample was randomly divided into two segments: one segment with a typical subject line (i.e., no mention of incentive), while the other received an email which included the mention of the incentive giveaway in the subject line. With the exception of the presence (or absence) of the incentive language in the subject line, the survey and correspondence were otherwise identical.

About Readex Research• Readex Research is a nationally recognized independent research

company located in Stillwater, Minnesota. Its roots are in survey research for the magazine publishing industry, but specialization in conducting high-quality survey research (by mail and/or the Internet) has brought clients from many other markets, including associations, corporate marketers and communicators, and government agencies. Since its founding in 1947, Readex has completed thousands of surveys for hundreds of different clients.

• As a full-service survey research supplier, Readex offers professional services, and in-house processing of all phases of each project (traditional mailing, broadcast emailing, and data processing) to ensure complete control over project quality and schedule. Analytical capabilities include a range of multivariate statistics and modeling techniques in addition to the more traditional stub-and-banner tabulations.

• This survey was conducted and this report was prepared by Readex in accordance with accepted research standards and practices.

plastics community study

Marketing