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Following a morning session with individual presentations discussing best practices for establishing and maintaining an injection process, training, design of experiments and more, Molding 2019’s speakers reconvened for a panel discussion that quickly addressed some of the key challenges today’s molders face.

Panelists included Todd Bryant, Paulson Plastics Academy; Rich Oles, ALBA Enterprises; Suhas Kulkarni, FimmTech; Don Paulson, Paulson Plastics Academy; John Bozzelli, Injection Molding Solutions; Alan Landers, Conair Group; and Bill Hartwick, Filter Specialties.

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The trade media’s focus can often shine brightest on the latest and greatest technologies, but those are not the machines most folks are molding on, Oles pointed out, drawing an analogy to the types of vehicles you read about in Car and Driver.

“There are Ferrari’s, Porshce, Lamborghini, but most people own a Chevy or a Ford,” Oles said. “The stuff everyone writes about in Car and Driver isn’t the Chevy Impala, it’s the latest thing—because it is the latest thing—but it is a small percentage considering the overall. These are the companies and the people, that’s how they make their bread and butter by selling parts.”

Panelists touched on topics ranging from low pay and minimal training for most process techs to cultural issues that can cripple a shop’s performance to shortcuts molders take out of necessity that they know they shouldn’t. Check out the video for more: