The late Lew Ferguson, a member of the SPE Blow Molding Division Board of Directors, established the Annual Blow Molded Parts Competition in 2013 to highlight advancements and innovations in blow molding design and applications.

He worked hard to ensure its success and was recognized across the blow molding and plastics industries for his passion to recognize and celebrate new parts designs, and the competition is now named in his memory.

At the 2026 Annual Blow Molding Convention. winners were named in Industrial and Packaging categories.

The Industrial winner was a 50-gallon rain barrel made with 100 percent post-consumer plastic, submitted by Exi-Plast Custom Moulding. The barrel has an extremely wide opening for a filter screen, allowing for higher volumes of debris to accumulate without impeding water flow into the barrel.

Aggressive cross-beams help avoid extreme deformation, allowing the barrel to perform in a manner comparable to traditional rotomolded rain barrels.

The Packaging winner was the ModCan, submitted by Greif. These triangular jerrycans fit perfectly into 55-gallon drums made of plastic, steel or fiber, enhancing storage, shipping and waste disposal efficiency.

They are available in 3.75-gallon and 1.75-gallon sizes; the 3.75-gallon products fit 12 containers to a barrel, and the 1.75-gallon version fits 24 containers.

The 3.75-gallon ModCan units optimize space by allowing 82 percent utilization compared to 36 percent with traditional containers.

Users can simultaneously dispose of multiple waste products within a single drum, minimizing exposure to hazardous materials by reducing the need to dump materials in drums.

Read more about the competition and see past winners at www.blowmoldingdivision.org.

This article appears in the fall 2026 issue of The Journal of Blow Molding. 

© 2026, Society of Plastics Engineers Blow Molding Division