Key Highlights
- U.S. manufacturing needs significant improvement, especially in plastics processing equipment, to remain competitive globally.
- The automotive industry's decline in domestic market share shifts focus to construction and medical sectors for plastics demand.
- Workforce development through trade schools and colleges is essential to rebuild manufacturing expertise and technological leadership.
- Tariff stability is critical; unpredictable policies hinder investment, but targeted relief can mitigate negative impacts.
- A comprehensive national plastics recycling plan and recycled content laws are necessary to combat environmental challenges and anti-plastics rhetoric.
By Ron Shinn
It is January and the perfect time to look ahead at what the plastics industry needs in 2026. Last year, much like 2024 and 2023, was not easy, and 2026 is starting off tough.
Your job might make your list look different, but here is what I think:
Significant improvement in the U.S. manufacturing sector. In the past, we could depend on the automotive industry to rebound and drag the plastics industry along. Not anymore. The U.S. automotive industry has lost significant domestic market share to Japanese and South Korean manufacturers, and it is only a matter of time before Chinese manufacturers — who are already making big strides in Europe and Asia — have an impact on U.S. nameplates.
It is unfortunate that our government policy has caused U.S. automakers to scale back development of electric vehicles, which are selling well in much of the rest of the world. We might be trading short-term gain for long-term pain.
One of the best hopes for the plastics industry is a big bump in the residential and commercial construction sector along with continued strong growth in the medical sector. Construction needs result in a good deal of plastics manufacturing.
Training and workforce development. At the K Show in October, the owner of a major European processing machinery manufacturer told me that American manufacturing has fallen behind. “In the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s, we all looked to America for the best technology and production, but you don’t make things anymore,” he said.
I have known this industry leader for more than 30 years and value his opinion, but I bristled when he said that. Then I realized there is plenty of truth in it, particularly as it pertains to plastics processing equipment.
How do we fix it? The answer lies in our extensive network of trade schools, community colleges and engineering schools. Any program that trains young people for manufacturing careers needs to be supported, and some organization such as the National Association of Manufacturers needs to be tasked and resourced to develop and run a comprehensive program that ties it all together.
This is too important to be left up to community college presidents to decide what technical skills they will teach, and too important to be left up to politicians to decide which training programs to support.
Stabilization of U.S. tariff policy. Tariffs that change frequently make it difficult for business leaders to plan. When they cannot plan, they do not invest. The Plastics Machinery & Manufacturing 2026 machinery and equipment buying survey detailed in this issue shows some signs that business leaders are starting to adjust to higher prices caused by tariffs. That’s great, but it is not yet widespread.
But that is not the complete answer. When plastics processors need a particular piece of mission-essential equipment that must be imported because it is not made here, there needs to be a mechanism that provides relief from an expensive tariff. Why cause a processor to lose business because of an onerous tax? Nothing is gained.
Overhaul of the plastics recycling system. There was a possibility that the international Plastics Treaty would have provided a framework for the entire recycling value chain, from the bin on your curb to the recycled resin going back into a useful product. But the treaty did not happen.
Instead, we are left with a hodge-podge of local regulations and non-regulations, no roadmap to guide investment and uncertainty about what comes next.
Meanwhile, the anti-plastics drumbeat is getting louder and louder.
Everyone in the plastics industry would benefit from a comprehensive, national plan that lays out goals, steps to get there and funding to make it happen. Recyclers have shown they can do their part, but the rest of the system is broken.
A good plan could go a long way to quiet the anti-plastics rhetoric.
Recycled content laws. This is actually part of the overhaul of the plastics recycling system, but I wanted to separate it because I think it is critical.
A major problem with the plastics recycling value chain is that prices for virgin resins are low. Processors and OEMs are reluctant to voluntarily use recycled material when it adds cost. Resin manufacturers have become very efficient at making huge amounts of resin at low prices, so the price penalty for recycled resin is not going to fix itself.
Minimum recycled resin content policies — on a national level — would help significantly.
About the Author
Ron Shinn
Editor
Editor Ron Shinn is a co-founder of Plastics Machinery & Manufacturing and has been covering the plastics industry for more than 35 years. He leads the editorial team, directs coverage and sets the editorial calendar. He also writes features, including the Talking Points column and On the Factory Floor, and covers recycling and sustainability for PMM and Plastics Recycling.