PlastChicks Lynzie Nebel and Mercedes Landazuri host Monika Stroeder, PhD, Team Leader, Circular Products R&D at NOVA Chemicals. They review her role in developing new products, her move into technical services, packaging, sustainability and finally into research and development of circular products. They discuss working together with the industry in a value chain, downgauging, mono material packaging, incorporating recycled materials, mechanical and chemical recycling, the challenges for consumers in understanding recycling and reducing the carbon footprint. They delve into the developmen ..read more

PlastChicks Lynzie Nebel and Mercedes Landazuri host Madison Kramer, a Plastics Engineering sophomore at Penn State Behrend and the first PlastChicks Scholarship Winner. They discuss her scholarship, her interest in plastics engineering, how Lynzie and Mercedes created the PlastChicks podcast, plastics mold design, the benefits of internships in addition to academic studies, and innovations in the plastics industry. Watch the PlastChicks podcast on the SPE YouTube Channel. PlastChicks is sponsored by SPE-Inspiring Plastics Professionals. Look for new episodes the first Friday of every month ..read more

PlastChicks Lynzie Nebel and Mercedes Landazuri host Sarah Webber, Sustainable Packaging Engineer for Plastic Ingenuity. They discuss her sustainable plastics industry career journey, encouraging others to explore careers in plastics, the importance of involving packaging engineers early in the process when the design is frozen but not ready to launch to optimize the potential for sustainable packaging, addressing the challenges of recycling, finding end markets for recycled materials, young people entering the plastics industry in sustainability areas, using a data-driven approach to sustaina ..read more

PlastChicks Lynzie Nebel and Mercedes Landazuri host Mitch Rife, Engineering Manager for Additive Manufacturing, Delta TechOps. They discuss transitioning from subtractive to additive manufacturing processes; designing for 3D printing while considering injection molding requirements should production needs increase; producing 3D-printed tools, tool carriers and protectors to support aircraft mechanics; choosing materials for aerospace prototyping; use of 3D-printed parts in aircraft manufacturing; and designing wheelchair-accessible airplane seats. Watch the PlastChicks podcast on the SPE YouT ..read more

PlastChicks Lynzie Nebel and Mercedes Landazuri host Kate Davenport, Co-President of Eureka Recycling, a nonprofit zero waste organization and social enterprise recycler based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. They discuss the economics and opportunities in providing recycling services, including finding sustainable markets that are interested in purchasing recycled materials, considering processes to move responsibility from the municipality to the producer, the difficulty of aggregating materials into one stream, competing with virgin plastics, the volatility of recycling materials pricing, and the ..read more

PlastChicks Lynzie Nebel and Mercedes Landazuri host Nathan Rader-Edkin, Plastics Innovation and Resource Center Program Manager, Pennsylvania College of Technology, a Plastics News Rising Star for 2023, and a co-founder of a new plastics career site, PlasticsPostings.com. They discuss his plastics industry career journey, parenting, injection molding, the importance of industry experience to an academic career, and the role of the Pennsylvania College of Technology's Plastics Innovation and Resource Center. Find out more about the Pennsylvania College of Technology and the PlasticsPostings.co ..read more

PlastChicks Lynzie Nebel and Mercedes Landazuri host Dr. Sherrika Sanders, Senior Technical Engineer, Manner Polymers and member of the SPE DEI Advisory Board. They discuss her career journey, being one of the Hidden Figures of Dallas, developing small molecules to authenticate fuel and consumer goods, the use of PVC in building and construction, SPE Foundation's PlastiVan program, and the importance of STEM programs in developing the next generation of scientists. Find out more about SPE Foundation’s PlastiVan program, designed to excite students about opportunities in science and engineering ..read more

PlastChicks Lynzie Nebel and Mercedes Landazuri host Rashed Islam, Head of Product Integrity at Lyft - Transit, Bikes, and Scooters. They discuss his journey in his product integrity career, working at Google and Lyft, the challenges of implementing recycled plastics in products, sustainable transportation design, eStation strategies, the Lyft Micromobility Lab, and testing for different environments and conditions. Essentials of Management & Leadership in Plastics is a six-month virtual program open to early to mid-level career professionals who would like to be leaders or strengthen thei ..read more

PlastChicks Lynzie Nebel and Mercedes Landazuri host 3Dnatives guests Alexandre Martel, Co-Founder, and Filippos Voulpiotis, Chief Business Officer. They discuss the role of 3Dnatives as a reliable source of information on the latest trends of the Additive Manufacturing market, common misconceptions about additive manufacturing, the careful work that goes into producing content tailored to multiple languages and their audiences, and the synergies between SPE and 3Dnatives that led to SPE's acquisition of 3Dnatives. Essentials of Management & Leadership in Plastics is a six-month virtual pr ..read more

PlastChicks Lynzie Nebel and Mercedes Landazuri host four of the 2022 SPE Foundation Scholarship winners: Rachel LeBlanc, Allen Román, Kelsey Allis, and Wyatt McGraw. The SPE Foundation is an arm of SPE that supports the development of plastics professionals by funding quality educational programs, grants, and scholarships, emphasizing science, engineering, sustainability, and manufacturing to create inclusive opportunities for students around the world. The 2023-2024 Foundation Scholarships deadline is April 1.  Learn more about SPE Foundation Scholarships. Get details on the 2023 Re|Foc ..read more