The Society of Plastics Engineers

The Society of Plastics Engineers was founded in Detroit back in the Dark Ages (just after WW II). It is a world-wide organization of polymer industry professionals that seeks to educate and advance the state of the art. The SPE is currently negotiating to buy out the assets of the Plastics Institute of America, a 32-year-old organization with similar goals but without the local organizations scattered throughout the world that haven proven to be SPE's strength. In addition to publishing a monthly magazine, Plastics Engineering, the national-level organization sponsors an Annual Technical Conference (ANTEC) every year (next will be in San Francisco in May of 1994). There is another organization, the Society of the Plastics Industry (SPI), which consists of companies involved in plastics and complements SPE. SPE and SPI work to together to put on the National Plastics Exposition (NPE) every three years, a huge show of plastics technology and equipment rivalled only by Kunststoffe in Germany.

The local representative of SPE is the Central Texas Section, which meets here in Austin on the third Thursday of every month except the summer months. Our newsletter is the Central Texas SPEcifier, and our President is Scott Kelley, (210) 629-6204. In addition to our monthly dinner presentations we are working to support the plastics education program at the Texas State Technical College (TSTC) in Waco. The only member of the board or officers available on the net are yours truly and Dr. George Gray of TSTC. We may be reached at:

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