The Plastics Consultancy Network: Accessing Specialised Expertise

Today successful manufacturers are strategically shedding peripheral activities to focus on their core expertise. When specialised knowledge and help is needed, particularly in the complex and multi-layered world of polymers, The Plastics Consultancy Network (PCN) provides access to world-class expertise without the burden of permanent overhead costs.

What Is the PCN?
The PCN represents a carefully curated network of the finest independent polymer consultants globally. Membership is strictly controlled and limited to proven professionals with extensive industry experience. This rigorous selection process ensures clients receive truly expert guidance backed by decades of practical knowledge.

This model addresses a key challenge in the plastics industry: the need for highly specialised knowledge that may only be required occasionally.
Instead of hiring permanent staff for intermittent expertise, companies can tap into proven professionals when specific challenges arise.

Tailored Expertise When You Need It
PCN consultants function as an extension of your management team, providing specialised knowledge precisely when required:

• Immediate expertise – Access specialised knowledge instantly.
• Enhanced efficiency – Streamline operations and boost productivity.
• Industry-specific solutions – Tailored to the manufacturing and plastics industry.
• Whether working individually or as part of carefully assembled project teams, these experts deliver:
• Materials and design expertise (additives, property modification, materials selection)
• Processing knowledge across all major methods (injection, blow moulding, extrusion)
• Secondary operations guidance (finishing, decorating, testing)
• Commercial support (expert witness, regulatory compliance, strategic planning)
• Sustainability solutions (environmental concerns, recycling, circular economy)
• Market-specific insights (automotive, medical, packaging, electrical/electronic)

How It Works
Individual consultants can work independently on focused projects or collaborate as teams for larger initiatives. This flexibility allows companies to scale expertise precisely to their needs, whether addressing a specific technical challenge or managing comprehensive development programmes.

The international scope provides both global perspective and local market knowledge. Consultants can leverage collective expertise while delivering solutions tailored to regional requirements.

The Business Benefits
For many companies, this model offers compelling advantages. Variable costs replace fixed overhead, allowing businesses to maintain lean operations whilst accessing top-tier expertise when needed.

This approach particularly benefits companies with unpredictable business cycles, where maintaining full-time specialists may not be economically viable. It also suits organisations working on innovation projects requiring expertise outside their current capabilities.

When External Help Makes Sense
The decision to engage external consultants often depends on specific circumstances: new product development requiring unfamiliar materials, regulatory compliance in new markets, specialised testing requirements, or unique technical challenges that exceed internal capabilities.
Start-ups and smaller companies can also gain access to senior-level expertise that would otherwise be financially prohibitive.

Looking Ahead
As manufacturing continues to evolve rapidly, demand for flexible, specialised expertise grows. The consultancy network model represents a practical response to this trend, offering companies access to world-class knowledge without permanent overhead commitments.

For the plastics industry, where technical complexity increases alongside regulatory requirements and sustainability demands, having access to specialised expertise on demand may become less of a luxury and more of a competitive necessity.

The PCN demonstrates how professional networks can create value by connecting expertise with need, benefiting both consultants and clients while advancing overall industry capabilities.

Our Consultants

• Richard Bladon – Health and safety for plastics processors
• Eric Boinard – Value-added consumer-centred innovation within a regulatory framework
• John Bovis – Polymer product consultant, design/development to production-cell, lightweighting, process, tool and energy optimisation
• Scott Brannan – Cost estimating to set targets, sourcing and reducing costs
• Graham Chetwood – Cost reduction from improved purchasing
• Christophe Convert – Concept to reality: product design and development
• Terence Cooper – Bioplastics, sustainable packaging, recycling and recovery
• Peter Cracknell – High-quality on-site polymer training and consultancy
• Gerhard Crossman – Turnaround and process improvements, change management
• John Duncan – Thermal, dynamic, mechanical and dielectric analysis
• Jesus Fernandez – Energy efficiency improvement and sustainability management
• Sarah Greenwood – Sustainable packaging
• Trevor Hutley – Global polymer industry consultant, research and innovation advisor
• Andy Jewell – Industry 4.0, Global MES, ERP and IoT
• Robin Kent – Energy surveys and energy management, sustainability management
• Nikolas Kokel – Strategic business opportunities, processing, converting and applications, recycling and sustainability
• Brian Lodge – Sustainable packaging design, assessment and training
• Pravin S. Mistry – Global mergers and acquisitions, recruitment, chair roles, polymer consultancy
• Jeremy Pingstone – Injection moulding, education, skills and apprenticeships
• Eric Reddock – Composites and reinforced polymers expertise
• Fabrizzio Rizzato / Petra Mickova – Thermoset polyurethanes from chemistry to equipment
• Colin Sarson – Helping companies grow, maximise profits and develop their workforce
• Eddie Sheridan – Market research, materials, packaging and improvement
• John Taylor – All aspects of extrusion technology from materials to machinery
• Deon de Wet – Managing large-scale projects safely, economic and financial analysis, technical polymer expertise

www.pcn.org