Some 3m t of thermoplastics were consumed in the UK last year, a new study by British market researcher Applied Market Information (AMI, Bristol; www.amiplastics.com) has found. That translates into about 8% of total European thermoplastic polymer demand in 2009. Most of this demand (94%) was for commodity resins, including PE, PP, PVC and PET. Almost 20% of polymers processed in the UK in 2009 were injection moulded, with PP leading the way as the favourite material. Altogether, AMI’s new guide to “The Injection Moulding Industry in the United Kingdom” asserts, 85% of UK injection moulders used PP.

At 41%, the largest end market for injection-moulded goods last year was the packaging industry, followed by automotive (14%) and household goods (10%). The most frequent processing technique used in the UK in 2009 was film extrusion, accounting for 710,000 t of plastics processed. At 597,000 t, injection moulding took third spot last year, preceded by blow moulding (622,000 t).

UK injection moulders’ consumption of thermoplastics dropped during the five years leading up to 2009, a development AMI attributes both to the decline in the number of moulders operating in the country and the economic downturn. Overall, some 300 injection moulding sites have closed up shop since AMI’s last survey in 2006. The British researchers point out that while the decline has been evident for some years already and used to be linked to outsourcing production from the UK, most recently bankruptcy, voluntary liquidation or the consolidation of production sites have been the prime reasons.

Indeed, the UK’s overall volume demand growth for plastics resins tumbled from 3.8m t in 2002 to 3.1m t last year. Although AMI believes the market will recover somewhat until 2015, the British researchers do not believe it will reach pre-crisis levels during this time.

Leading injection moulders active in the UK include McKechnie (Stamford Bridge, York / UK; www.mckechnie-plastics.co.uk), Plastic Omnium (PO, Levallois / France; www.plasticomnium.com) and Birkby’s Plastics (Liversedge, West Yorkshire / UK), which have focused on the automotive and E&E sectors. However, in terms of volume, AMI says, the largest companies engaged in injection moulding in the UK supply packaging solutions, including RPC Group (Higham Ferrers, Rushden / UK; www.rpc-group.com), Artenius PET Packaging Europe (APPE, Wrexham / UK) and Bericap (Budenheim / Germany; www.bericap.com).

For more information, see “AMI’s Guide to The Injection Moulding Industry in the United Kingdom”, 8th edition, AMI 2010, details: www.amiplastics.com

Contact: Regine Futter, Tel: +44 117 9249442, E-Mail: rfutter@amiplastics.com