Plastics News - Show Daily - October 22, 2022 - 34

34 * Plastics News, October 22, 2022
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HOF
Continued from Page 1
assuming that our international
footprint is smaller due to a lack
of awareness, so we will be making
a push to get the word out. "
As part of that push, Steinwall
spoke at an Oct. 21 reception at
the K show in Düsseldorf, looking
to build international awareness
about the group. She spoke at an
event to promote the NPE 2024
plastics show in Florida, where
the hall will have its next induction
gala.
The hall honors people working
in all facets of the industry, but so
far, membership has skewed toward
Americans.
Of the 39 members outside the
U.S., there are 21 Germans, five
Canadians, four Japanese, three
English and two or one each from
South Africa, Austria, Italy and
Taiwan, she said.
" A nice goal [for internationalization]
would be 50 percent, "
she said. " I know the selection
committee uses the [hall's] judging
guidelines to bring the best
individuals forward - regardless
of country.
" It is more than a person's lifetime
accomplishments in the industry
- it is also how they share
their knowledge with others
through publishing or speaking, "
Steinwall added.
The HOF started in the United
States and its former president,
Jay Gardiner, had been instrumental
in guiding it into until he died.
After that, interested members of
the group gathered to redefine it,
Steinwall said.
" I have the honor to serve as
the president, probably because I
had just retired and had the availability
to take on the challenge, "
she said.
Steinwall is co-owner of injection
molder Steinwall Inc. in Coon
Rapids, Minn., and in 2015 was inducted
into the hall.
The organization had previously
relied on the Plastics Industry
Association in Washington, a
trade group that supports the U.S.
industry, for administrative help.
But Steinwall said with its drive
to be more global, its leaders felt
they should have a more independent
structure. It recently incorporated
and updated its website.
" A big thanks goes to [the plastics
association], who supported
the hall for several decades, "
Steinwall said. " But given our
international emphasis, we felt
the need to create a stand-alone
Uniloy
Continued from Page 1
principal owner of automotive
processor Decatur Plastic Products
Inc., where his two sons now
run the business.
Riley replaces
former CEO Brian Marston, who
left Uniloy the company to join
investment firm Gamut Capital
Management.
There are challenges with the
business that Riley said he is eager
to tackle. Under Milacron, the
company had lost its way and
became too reliant on layers of
bureaucracy that slowed down
its progress, he said. The Uniloy
business had become stagnant
and lost its competitive advantage,
even as its employees were
overworked at times, he said.
Maureen Steinwall, left,
took over as president
of the Plastics Hall of
Fame earlier this year.
She visited K 2022
with Timothy Womer,
senior vice president of
the Hall of Fame.
Plastics News photo by
Caroline Seidel
corporation that all industry organizations
and associations will
support to get a truly international
focus. "
Steinwall said the 50-year-old
organization had its first international
inductee in 1976, Herman
Mark from Austria.
Current HOF members vote on
the next class, with judging guidelines
focused
on
accomplishments,
industry contributions
and character.
The hall's new leaders are also
changing the induction ceremony.
Previously, one ceremony had
honored living inductees and a
separate event honored those admitted
posthumously.
Now, they'll be combined and a
single ceremony will honor both
groups every 18 months - with
one at the K show and a second
at NPE.
The group has also tried to add
more volunteers, with 23 active,
on three committees: nominating,
events and communications. It
Expansion started at Uniloy
in February, when the company
purchased Century Die Co. LLC
of Fremont, Ohio, and renamed
it Uniloy Fremont. The site now
produces blow molds for Uniloy
customers, while the company is
offering rebuild and repair mold
facilities in Tecumseh, he said.
Riley is now working on changing
the Uniloy culture and enhance
customer service. His
mantra is that employees must
be appreciated for their work and
feel as if they are part of the overall
team. He has had his leaders
read The One Minute Manager, an
older volume that expresses the
idea that managers should praise
their employees, even if they only
have a minute to do so out of
their workday.
" It's the small things, " he said.
has no paid staff.
" The big difference between
our current structure and the
past structure is the number of
volunteers, " she said. " The quantity
of volunteers is a tremendous
sign of support for the mission. "
Steinwall also said she wants to
the hall to tell the industry's story
and examples of the role of plastics
in society.
" I am interested in documenting
the industry's history as simple
stories that people can often
quote, " she said, citing no longer
using ivory to make billiard balls,
or transporting electricity safely
with fire-resistant cables, or packaging
food to preserve it and reduce
waste.
" Plastics provided solutions to
many challenges, " she said. " Simple
stories will help frame current
events, helping to keep the industry
proud and optimistic. That's
my goal. "
She also said she hopes the hall
can bring in more female members.
" You have pay attention to people.
It only takes a minute to
praise someone, but they remember
that for a lifetime "
Riley showed a picture on his
phone of a toolmaker standing
beside a large mold of a plastic
houseboat component that was
difficult to produce. They worker
was grinning, happy that he accomplished
something that some
might have thought too difficult.
Uniloy was owned by Milacron
for 21 years before its separation
three years ago. The company
was sold to private equity firms
Osgood Capital and Cyprium Investment
Partners. The company
has primary operations outside
the United States in Mexico, Italy
and India. But Riley, with an international
business background,
has his eye on other markets
Right now, the gender diversity
is worse than the geographic
diversity. Only four women are
among the hall's 218 members.
" I'll have you return to our discussion
about attracting international
attention. I would not find
it appropriate to set a goal to induct
50 percent women, but rather
have us induct only the best, "
she said.
" The trick is to get the word out
so that we attract only the best
into the nomination process, " she
said. " I have personally recruited
several women to submit their
nomination forms, and we are
now up to four women. "
She said she wants to encourage
more nominations and wants
people " to stop saying you don't
feel accomplished enough to be
in the hall. "
" We have all industry roles inducted:
sales, production, CEOs,
scientists, product designers, engineers,
and association leaders,
to name a few, " Steinwall said.
where blow molding is emerging
as a viable growth opportunity.
Riley, 67, has served as CEO of
private-equity-owned international
businesses operating in Europe,
China, Malaysia, Thailand and
South Korea and has lived in those
countries. He said that Southeast
Asia poses a particular opportunity
for growth in packaging, as
many companies are switching
from bags for beverages to bottles.
Riley has roots in Southeast
Asia. He also is an owner of Ningbo
Global Sourcing Co. Ltd, a
company that helps operate manufacturing
companies in China
and export them to the West.
However, before making the
leap to manufacturing in Asia, the
300-employee company must first
assess whether there is enough
local support on the ground to
" Sure - there are five Nobel
prize winners in chemistry - but
there are also entrepreneurs that
made a difference. If someone
wants to nominate you, that is an
honor, and you are enough just
as you are. "
The group is currently accepting
nominations for the 2024
class.
She also said she's heard from
people who had a negative reaction
to not getting in on the first
ballot, but she said the group gets
many more nominations than it
has spots.
Once someone is nominated,
their application stays in the
pool, with a request that it be updated
every three to five years.
" Someone rarely makes it in
the first round, " Steinwall said.
" We got over 100 nominations for
about 15 spots. We want to keep
the number of inductees small
so that the ceremony can focus
a spotlight on everyone in a very
special way. "
service machines and provide
parts. " We can't put someone on
an airplane from Tecumseh or Italy
and fly them to Asia, " he said.
" We must be in those markets. "
The company is also looking at
other applications for its equipment.
With Riley's background
in automotive there are opportunities
in blow molding for automotive
parts, even though times
have been tough lately. Such applications
as windshield washer
containers and other fluid containers
are areas that could be
opportunities, as is outdoor yard
equipment, he said.
The K show was important to Riley's
strategy to make Uniloy front
and center again in customers'
minds. " We see better days ahead, "
he said. " We lost our way for a few
years but we're proud to be back. "
Plastics News - Show Daily - October 22, 2022

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