By Liz White, UT editor
Nottingham, UK-Leading members of the UK polyurethane and rubber sectors gathered in Nottingham Friday 24 November to celebrate the first anniversary of the formation of the British Rubber and Polyurethane Products Association.
Some 80 participants joined in the evening's dinner and dance festivities, hosted by Alex Celik of Rosehill Polymers, BRPPA chairman, Steve Stone, formerly with Avon Rubber Co. and now BRPPA director, and John Dorken, chief executive of the British Tyre Manufacturers Association, who represents BRPPA at government level.
The association aims to provide a discussion forum for members and to represent the interests of elastomer part manufacturers in the UK. BRPPA says it wants to help member companies compete more effectively on the international scene, as it sees the sector's diverse products being used on an increasingly international basis.
Guidance on better health, safety and environmental performance is one of BRPPA's concerns, as well as helping to ensure the regulatory and legislative framework for the business is competitive on a global level.
The BRPPA and its possibly annual celebration will provide a welcome boost for the UK polyurethanes sector, which last year saw the demise of the annual dinner dance organised by the UK's Urethanes Group within the IOM3, and also saw the Flexible Foams Group move from the BRMA (British Rubber Manufacturers Association) to the BPF (British Plastics Federation), also abandoning its annual social evening. "
