production, manufacturing and
marketing of plastics products in New Zealand"
Plastics Centre of Excellence - Industry Education and Training
What is the "Plastics Centre of Excellence"?
The Government awarded up to $5 million in funding to the Plastics Centre of Excellence, an initiative of The University of Auckland in collaboration with Plastics New Zealand.
The project, which aims to advance New Zealand’s plastics industry, provides a world class innovation centre for developing advanced polymeric materials, industry specific research, graduate and industry training, and application of leading-edge technologies in plastics processing and manufacturing.
The funding will be provided under the Government’s Partnerships for Excellence scheme, with the Government matching dollar-for-dollar up to $5 million in funds raised by the Plastics Industry.
The combined turnover of the New Zealand Plastics Industry and the polymer composites sector exceeds $3 billion. While this is significant, the plastics business globally exceeded $800 billion at the end of 2002.
Plastics New Zealand has developed a framework for advancing the sector over the next 8-15 years to make it more competitive internationally by growing turnover to $4 billion, increasing exports, initiating training and establishing a ‘Centre of Excellence’. The Centre of Plastics Excellence will play a pivotal role and the Plastics Industry has committed $5 million of funding to the Centre.
Plastics New Zealand Chief Executive Robin Martin says the centre’s formation is probably the biggest event in the Plastics Industry’s recent history. “We are really excited at the opportunities the Centre will create for our Industry, which supplies a range of finished products and components to agriculture, horticulture, fishing, IT, home appliances, food and beverage, and construction, just under half of which is exported, either directly or indirectly.
The ability to direct and co-ordinate research into new products and processes is critical to our growth strategy. Our Industry needs to assist in developing tertiary education opportunities in polymer science and process engineering to support the technical and managerial skills of graduates. The creation of a hub for this activity at the Tamaki Campus will focus the resources we are now able to apply, not only for the benefit of our Industry, but for the New Zealand economy as a whole.
Located at the University’s Tamaki Campus and working in association with the Centre for Advanced Composite Materials, the Plastics Centre will feature close collaboration between academics and Industry. The Centre would house not only University of Auckland researchers, but also involve collaboration with researchers from other tertiary institutions, Crown Research Institutes (CRIs) and Industry, making it an invaluable national resource.
The Centre’s research will focus on development and application of leading-edge technologies (polymers and processes) to grow Industry capability. The Centre’s education and training roles will focus on up-skilling technicians, chemists and engineers to support the changing requirements of the Industry, and also provide a central place for the development of management and entrepreneurial expertise.
For more information contact:
Len Harvey
Director of the Centre of Excellence
Phone +64 9 373-7599 ext 82527
Email l.harvey@auckland.ac.nz
Website www.pcoe.org.nz
Plastics Centre of Excellence
University of Auckland, Tamaki Campus
Building 740, 125 Morrin Road
Glenn Innes, Auckland, New Zealand
C/- The University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019
AMC, Auckland 1142, New Zealand
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