International Plastics Design Competition Gets Underway as Entry Submission Opens at PlasticsDesign.Org

The second International Plastics Design Competition (IPDC), sure to be a highlight of NPE2012, is now open for entries from any end market and any country in the world, it was announced today by SPI: The Plastics Industry Trade Association. NPE2012 will take place April 1-5 at the Orange County Convention Center (OCCC) in Orlando, FL.

Entries may be submitted online at www.plasticsdesign.org and must be submitted by February 29, 2012. Entries can be for finished products or components and can be submitted by any individual or company along the supply chain: designer, toolmaker, processor, material supplier, equipment builder, or OEM.

Photos and details for most entries will be posted at www.plasticsdesign.org. Visitors to the site will be able to cast their votes for a People’s Choice award. At NPE2012, products or parts entered into the competition will be displayed in a prominent area of the OCCC’s South Building dubbed Technology Central. An awards reception and ceremony will take place during NPE2012 on Tuesday evening, April 3. At the ceremony, winners, along with their supply chain contributors will be recognized and honored.

All awards other than the Peoples Choice will be based on the decisions of judges selected by SPI for their knowledge of plastics and design. Entries can be submitted in any of eighteen end-use market categories, from agriculture to transportation. There will be an award for the winning product in each category, a grand award for the most innovative part or product in the competition as a whole, awards honoring advances in sustainability, and other special awards. In addition, a separate panel of judges chosen by the Industrial Designers Society of America (IDSA) will select the winner of an award co-sponsored by the IDSA and the industry newspaper Plastics News.

The IPDC is organized by SPI, the founder and producer of the triennial NPE plastics exposition. Details on the IPDC can be found at www.plasticsdesign.org, including photos and information on winning entries in the first IPDC at NPE2009. Extensive information on NPE2012 is available online at www.npe.org.