If you were like most, you had to “hunker down” at home, learn how to work in a temporary office off your kitchen, deal with the sounds of TV’s and family activities in the background, eat a bit too much and exercise a bit less. BUT…you were also able to catch up with your loved ones, get up to speed with your favorite streaming shows and dive head first into an endless list of home projects. Procrastination took a back seat!
Speaking of procrastination, many users of core materials in the composites industry who were also putting off looking at new products and technologies due to their work load, suddenly became more focused on ways to limit their dependence on imported core materials, this especially came true as they experienced delays in getting what they needed. Product offerings that can be manufactured domestically have become even more attractive than before. As an example, U.S .manufactured PET based core with coatings to limit resin uptake has taken a big bite out of imported PVC and SAN usage and has grown by almost 200% at our company since COVID first showed up! Perhaps the biggest surprise of all was that manufacturer saw a significant cost savings in doing so! Check with your distributor or give your core supplier a call. The core world is changing and it’s changing in a good way.
Richard is the Sales Director at Baltek/3A Composites and board member of the ACMA