Extrusion International 4-2020

26 Extrusion International 4/2020 INDUSTRY NEWS Covid-19 is impacting the European plastics industry in var- ious ways. More than three quarters of plastics companies reported lower sales this spring compared to April 2019, with around half facing a sales decrease of at least 20%. While the public backlash against plastics has been a worry for most of the plastics sector over the past several years, a majority of European businesses stated that the pandemic is positively impacting the public image of plastics. In May 2020, PIE – Plastics Information Europe conducted a flash survey on business performance to gain insight into business trends in the European plastics industry during the coronavirus pandemic. The current results are based on data from 155 participants from 29 countries. Among the plastics companies reporting lower sales com- pared to April 2019, the smallest enterprises appear harder hit, with almost 60% saying sales fell at least 20%, compared to around 45% of mid- to large-sized firms. By region, re- spondents in the Nordic countries were notable since almost half reported higher sales compared to April last year. A 72% share of plastics processors are dealing with falling sales. Pro- cessors with business in the packaging sector fared better, with around 40% reporting increased sales. Looking ahead, order activity for this summer is reflecting the general state of the European economy and does not seem promising across sectors and regions. Only 16% of re- spondents are expecting an increase in customer orders in the second quarter of 2020 compared to the same period in 2019. Around 40% of companies expect order volume in the next quarter to be at least 20% down year on year. Plastics converters involved with packaging appear most optimis- tic, with nearly 40% predicting higher ordering in Q2 2020, while plastics producers seem much more pessimistic with the ordering outlook. Before the coronavirus crisis, the top three concerns were selling prices, sales volume and material costs. However, only sales volume has survived in this tier during the crisis, mov- ing to the top position (75%). The second and third main concerns are now suppliers’ delivery capability (55%) and lo- gistics (49%) – highlighting the effects that the shutdowns, border controls and other problems have had on plastics companies. Single-use plastic items like medical masks and some food packaging are now being used in the same sentence with “essential” and valued for their roles in preventing the spread of the coronavirus. The public is now viewing plas- tics with regard to the properties that were always present – materials for protection, hygiene and medical supplies – but which were overshadowed by pollution in the past several years. More than half of survey participants report that the Covid-19 pandemic is positively affecting the public image of plastics, while nearly 40% say there is no impact. Only 6% see the image of plastics getting worse as a result of the pan- demic. Covid-19 Impacts on the European Plastics Industry PIE – Plastics Information Europe www.pieweb.com Main concerns before and during the Covid-19 crisis, May 2020 High-Temperature Resistant Polyphthalamide for Extrusion of Stock Shapes BASF has now developed Ultramid ® Advanced N5H UN, a polyphthalamide (PPA) that can be manufactured into semi- finished parts by extrusion. The plastics company GEHR, Mannheim, Germany is using the new PPA to produce ex- truded stock shapes with a diameter of 50 mm. Ultramid ® Advanced N offers excellent mechanics at elevated tempera- tures due to its semi-aromatic chemical structure. It shows ex- cellent resistance to chemicals and hydrolysis, even in aggres- sive environments, as well as good sliding friction properties – and all this at temperatures above 100 °C. Due to its low water uptake its mechanical properties remain stable over a wide temperature range. Even in humid environments, the