PlastikMedia: The Morning Brief

In today’s brief: 📊 Intouch Acquisition: Abingdon acquires Intouch Monitoring to accelerate AI development for factory performance analysis. ♻️ AI Lego Sorting: Lancashire-based WeBuyBricks says its automated sorting system has helped save 25 million Lego bricks from landfill. 🏭 Shapers Buys Mitras: Shapers’ Group acquires Mitras Automotive UK, adding complementary composite manufacturing capabilities. 👷 McLaren Youth Opportunities: McLaren’s expansion is highlighted as a potential route into advanced manufacturing for young people outside employment, education, or training. For the full stories, visit plastikmedia.co.uk.

In today’s brief: 🔥 M&H Plastics Fire: Three business units suffer extensive damage following a major fire at the company’s Beccles site. ♻️ Sustainability Now: Plastribution brings polymer producers and industry professionals together to examine commercially available sustainable materials and technologies. ✅ RecyClass Accreditation: Recycle for Future gains independent recognition of its recycling processes, controls, traceability, and material quality. ⚙️ Material Control Technology: Summit Systems and Maguire Products announce a practical Technology Day focused on reducing waste, increasing automation, and improving repeatability. For the full stories, visit plastikmedia.co.uk.

In today’s brief: 🏆 MGS Company of the Year: MGS Technical Plastics wins two awards and receives two high commendations at the 2026 Northern Automotive Alliance Awards. ♻️ Recycled Polymer Partnership: SG Moulding Solutions signs an exclusive European agreement with Honest Ocean, with 1,000 tonnes of food-grade rPET available from UK stock. ⚙️ Kongskilde in Glasgow: The company prepares to present its recycling, trim-handling, and pneumatic conveying systems at Scotland’s Manufacturing and Supply Chain Conference. 📋 Resources and Waste Strategy: CIWM calls for a long-term strategy covering the 2030s to support investment, reuse, recycling, and UK reprocessing. For the full stories, visit plastikmedia.co.uk.

In today’s brief: 🤖 Sam Carr HotSeat: FANUC UK’s injection moulding sales manager discusses energy efficiency, automation, skills, and his career in plastics. 🧪 Sustainable TPU Adhesives: Bjørn Thorsen prepares to showcase lower-impact adhesive solutions at WAC 2026 in London. ⚙️ Polymer Compatibility: Bausano explains why HDPE and PP require careful formulation before being combined in extrusion. 🏛️ Government-Business Talks: Prime Minister Andy Burnham meets senior executives to discuss investment, job creation, and UK growth. For the full stories, visit plastikmedia.co.uk.

In today’s brief: 🎉 Plastek Anniversary: The injection moulding and tooling group celebrates 70 years, with its UK team raising £2,500 for Rainbows Hospice. 🏭 MP Visits Ebble Group: A visit from local MP Chris Bloore focuses on recruitment, manufacturing growth, and local engagement in Redditch. 🛡️ Sonic Solutions Accreditations: The company secures JOSCAR and Cyber Essentials accreditations to support its work across aerospace and defence. 📈 UK Economic Growth: The economy grows by 0.4% in July, supported by services and businesses involved in artificial intelligence. For the full stories, visit plastikmedia.co.uk.

In today’s brief: 🛠️ IMS Website Launch: Injection Moulding Supplies launches a new website and online shop covering its UK-manufactured components, consumables, and mould shop equipment. 📊 Shapers Production Savings: The UK injection moulder increases OEE from around 60% to 80% and cuts monthly overtime costs from £24,000 to £2,000 using Intouch monitoring. 👤 Summit Systems Appointment: Matthew Ross moves from Group Sales Director to Business Development Director. 📦 Packaging Skills: The UK packaging industry calls for greater awareness of career opportunities as demand grows for specialist technical skills. For the full stories, visit plastikmedia.co.uk.

In today’s brief: 🏎️ McLaren Investment: The British supercar manufacturer plans to create 1,000 UK jobs through a £450 million investment in Woking. ♻️ UK Recycling Technology: Impact Recycling’s BOSS technology is powering Finland’s largest plastic recycling plant. 🧪 Bespoke Plastics Testing: Impact Solutions explains how tailored testing can support better material, design, and processing decisions. 👤 Hardie Polymers Appointment: Mark Tomnay joins as operations manager, overseeing purchasing, warehousing, and logistics. For the full stories, visit plastikmedia.co.uk.

In today’s brief: 🏭 Automotive plastics manufacturer Forteq UK will close its Huddersfield production facility in November, affecting around 50 to 60 employees. ⚡ Make UK calls for Budget action on industrial energy prices and other business costs following the Chancellor’s growth speech. 🚘 Industry figures warn that JLR’s planned 4,000 job cuts could affect skills, research, development, and the wider automotive supply chain. ♻️ A chemicals industry pilot shows that recovering plastics from end-of-life vehicles is technically feasible, although cost, sorting, and material quality remain obstacles. For the full stories, visit plastikmedia.co.uk.

In today’s brief: 🎙️ The PlastikMedia Morning Brief reaches its 100th episode. ♻️ LATI, Crossen Engineering, and Bloc Blinds validate a chemically recycled PA6 compound for structural blind components, reducing the material’s carbon footprint by around 70%. 🚘 Jaguar Land Rover plans to cut 4,000 jobs over the next two years as it targets savings of £1.7 billion. 👤 Northern Ireland thermoforming specialist Donite Plastics appoints Des Hassett as General Manager following a five-year machinery modernisation programme. For the full stories, visit plastikmedia.co.uk.

In today’s brief: 🎓 Rutland Plastics offers a two-week work placement to a finalist in the 2027 Design Innovation in Plastics competition. 📈 Plastribution expects most September polymer prices to roll over, although tight LDPE supply could bring increases of £20 to £40 per tonne. 🧪 Innovate UK invests £2 million in feasibility studies supporting advanced materials innovation and commercialisation. 🌎 UK-owned RGE Group opens a new injection moulding facility in Texas to support its North American expansion. For the full stories, visit plastikmedia.co.uk.

In today's brief: 🏆 North East compression moulder Fairgrieve Compression Moulding is shortlisted in two categories at the 2026 Make UK Manufacturing Awards. 🤖 FANUC UK restructures its sales leadership to accelerate growth in aerospace and defence. 🚘 JLR’s electric vehicle investment is described as a vote of confidence in Midlands manufacturing, jobs, and suppliers. 🔐 Made Smarter Yorkshire launches a £400,000 cyber security programme offering fully funded support to SME manufacturers. For the full stories, visit plastikmedia.co.uk.

In today's brief: 🏭 JC Moulding Investment: The South Wales injection moulder installs two Haitian MARS Gen 5 machines to support reliability, energy efficiency, and competitive production. 💡 UltraView60 Launch: VeriVide introduces a compact, cost-effective, all-LED light booth for standardised colour assessment. ♻️ RECOUP Awards: The 2026 shortlist recognises projects, technologies, and products advancing plastics circularity. 🚘 Range Rover Electric: Range Rover unveils its first fully electric model, supported by new production lines and workforce training across the West Midlands. For the full stories, visit plastikmedia.co.uk.

In today’s brief: 🤝 Machinery Partnership: Billion will continue supporting its existing injection moulding machines while recommending ENGEL for future equipment purchases. 🎨 ColorForm Technology: KraussMaffei introduces automatic in-process colour changes and an ultra-thin polyurethane coating that can reduce material use by up to 80%. 👤 FANUC Appointment: Dan Fisher becomes FANUC UK’s new Head of Sales, supporting the company’s continued growth across robotics, CNC systems, machine tools, and factory automation. 🛠️ HASCO at Fakuma: HASCO prepares to present new mould base components, hot runner products, and digital design tools at Fakuma 2026. For the full stories, visit plastikmedia.co.uk.

In today’s brief: 👤 Extrusion Leadership: Ren Xinting is appointed Managing Director of KraussMaffei Extrusion alongside his existing leadership role at KraussMaffei China. ♻️ Recycled Packaging Films: Amcor supplies Tiptree with certified shrink and stretch films containing 30 per cent post-consumer recycled plastic ahead of UK Plastic Packaging Tax changes. 🛠️ Tool Life Extension: Faulkner Moulds manufactures replacement components while customers’ tools remain in production, helping reduce disruption, costs, and equipment waste. 🌱 Sustainable Moulding: TEX Plastics outlines how recycled polymer use, production monitoring, environmental certification, and in-house secondary processes support customers’ sustainability requirements. For the full stories, visit plastikmedia.co.uk.

In today’s brief: 🏆 Manufacturing Awards: MGS Technical Plastics is shortlisted for three Make UK Awards covering regional achievement, business growth, and future talent development. 🤖 Manufacturing AI: WHS Plastics reaches the finals of the Operational Excellence Awards UK for its in-house Manufacturing Execution System and artificial intelligence capabilities. 🧪 Adhesive Solutions: Bjørn Thorsen will showcase adhesive raw materials and sustainable technologies at the World Adhesive and Sealant Conference in London. ♻️ Flexible Packaging Recycling: IPL Brightgreen highlights the importance of investment certainty, reliable end markets, and consistent material quality ahead of mandatory collections in 2030. For the full stories, visit plastikmedia.co.uk.

In today’s brief: 📈 Polymer Pricing: Plastribution reports that feedstock increases have had limited influence on standard polymer prices, while September could determine the market direction for the rest of the year. 👤 Mergon Leadership: Stéphane Maravel is appointed chief executive of Mergon Group as Aoife Beirne concludes more than 12 months in the interim role. ⚙️ UK Machining: Injection Moulding Supplies launches a Corby-based machining and engineering operation for bespoke components, repairs, refurbishment, and mould shop supplies. 🛠️ Toolmaking Growth: HT Tooling Solutions expands its staff, machinery, processes, and wider manufacturing capabilities. For the full stories, visit plastikmedia.co.uk.

In today’s brief: 🏭 Machinery Auction: Apex Auctions offers injection moulding, additive manufacturing, packaging, automation, and ancillary equipment through an eight-lot online sale in Norwich. 🏆 Manufacturing Recognition: Opus International Products is shortlisted for SME of the Region in the Midlands and East at the 2026 Make UK Manufacturing Awards. 🤖 Robotic Decoration: TM Robotics explains how the T-TRANSFER system can bring solvent-free plastics decoration closer to the moulding press. 🔧 Moulding Troubleshooting: Alliance Tooling examines the causes of splay and the practical steps manufacturers can take to improve surface quality and reduce rejected parts. For the full stories, visit plastikmedia.co.uk.

In today's brief: ⚡ Energy Savings: A UK moulder records a 24.6% reduction in total hot runner energy consumption using GÜNTHER BlueFlow technology. 🚗 Automotive Investment: Nearly £130 million of government and industry funding will support zero-emission and automated vehicle projects, alongside more than 1,800 manufacturing jobs. 👤 Team Expansion: PlastikCity and PlastikMedia appoint George Nowill as Marketing Executive, adding further B2B and manufacturing marketing experience to the team. ⚙️ Moulding Software: Sumitomo (SHI) Demag explains how activeFlowBalance can reduce moulding defects, reject rates, clamp force, and energy consumption. For the full stories, visit plastikmedia.co.uk

In today's brief: 🏭 Injection Moulding Growth: Pektron highlights how its partnership with Summit Systems has supported material handling, process control, and expansion at its Derby facility. 🛢️ European Oil Prices: Brent crude rises as markets assess the prospects of reopening the Strait of Hormuz and the potential impact on European energy supplies. 🌱 Sustainability Report: Arburg reports progress on renewable electricity, waste recycling, carbon reduction, and its EcoVadis assessment. 💻 Digital Champions: Made Smarter North West trains 106 employees from 73 manufacturers to help businesses embed digital transformation. For the full stories, visit plastikmedia.co.uk

In today's brief: 🌱 Environmental Management: Pentagon Plastics implements a bespoke EMS across its plastics and tooling operations as it works towards ISO 14001 certification. 🔧 Hydraulic Hose Service: KLEENOIL Filtration launches an in-house hose assembly facility offering replacements, complete machine kits, and free site measurement. 💼 Public Procurement Reform: Government contract bidders will receive greater credit for creating local jobs, addressing skills shortages, and offering work placements. 🛡️ Manufacturing Insurance: PlastikCity Insurance Services outlines the specialist risks plastics manufacturers should regularly review. For the full stories, visit plastikmedia.co.uk