GW Plastics, Inc., is pleased to announce it has been selected as Plastics News’ Processor of the Year. The prestigious award honoring excellence in well-rounded plastic processing companies was announced March 9th at the Plastics News Executive Forum in Tampa, FL.

   

   

GW Plastics officials accept Plastics News' Processor of the Year Award. From left are Arthur Bennett, vice president of operations; Brenan Riehl, president and CEO; and Thomas Johansen, vice president and chief financial officer. (Photo by Robert Richards, Gallery Studios)

Nominated by Bill Carteaux - President and CEO of the Society of Plastics Industry, GW Plastics was selected from an impressive list of plastics processors located throughout the United States. An extensive vetting process conducted by Plastics News officials, and other industry experts narrowed down the field of nominees to four finalists, The finalists for the award were judged in seven different categories, including financial performance, technological innovation, quality, customer relations, employee relations, environmental record and public service. The judging process included a detailed application review, a thorough customer and industry reference verification, a financial health assessment by Deloitte Corporate Finance LLC and an on-site visit conducted by Plastics News officials.

Brenan Riehl, GW Plastics President and CEO attributes ,GW’s success to consistent ownership, an impressive Board of Directors, professional leadership and a high quality, long-tenured workforce. “This has permitted us to build a successful business based on consistent performance, long-term customer relationships and an experienced and engaged workforce. We are very proud of our associates and are grateful to our customers who have helped to make GW Plastics the successful company it is today.”

GW’s focus is on injection molding, tooling, and contract manufacturing of medium-to-high volume precision thermoplastic and silicone components and assemblies for the healthcare, automotive and consumer electronics markets. GW excels at close-tolerance mold building, molding, and contract manufacturing within a matrix of competencies geared toward innovative problem solving, Six Sigma quality, and speed-to-market.

GW Plastics was founded over a half-century ago when two early plastics pioneers, John R. Galvin and Odin A. Westgaard decided to combine their extensive business and materials engineering experience – and their initials – to start a plastics injection molding firm. After building GW into one of North America’s premier precision injection molders, they sold the company to Carborundum in 1973. After a series of large-company M&A transactions in the 1980s, GW ultimately found itself owned by Standard Oil of Ohio (Sohio). In 1983, a group of company managers and investors led by Frederic Riehl, purchased GW Plastics from Sohio. GW has remained closely-held, under the same ownership, to this day.

The 1990s ushered in a period of rapid growth for GW, driving significant expansion of the company’s manufacturing capabilities and its geographic reach across the United States. In 1990, GW relocated and expanded its Mold Making facility to a new Technical Campus in Royalton, Vermont. In 1992, GW expanded into the southwest United States, setting-up a new facility in San Antonio, Texas, followed in 1996 by a another plant in Tucson, Arizona. GW further expanded its Royalton Technical Campus by opening a Technology Center dedicated to statistical mold validation and new technology development, in 1997, and by establishing its Royalton, Vermont, Medical Molding facility in 1999. In 2005, GW expanded globally – simultaneously, in two hemispheres – by adding facilities in both Mexico and China. GW operates six ISO class 8 clean room molding and assembly areas company-wide. With six locations and nine facilities worldwide, GW has grown to a combined 300,000 square feet of environmentally- controlled manufacturing with over 170 molding machines.

Today, GW is a financially strong, diversified, global company that ranks among the top 100 injection molders in North America, with a prestigious customer base consisting of market-leading companies located in Asia, Europe, the United States and Latin America.