Alberta extruder named CPSC Employer of Choice

Sheet extruder Orion Plastics Inc., of Edmonton Alta., has been named as the second-ever Employer of Choice by the Canadian Plastics Sector Council (CPSC).

The Employer of Choice award program was created in 2008 to recognize plastics companies who take steps to have their workers earn the CPSC’s Certified Plastics Practitioner (or Cert.PP) designation.

Almost 40 per cent of the positions at Orion Plastics that are eligible for certification are held by Cert.PPs, company president Laird Kulak said, with more still to come. “Orion Plastics has grown rapidly over the past 10 years in business with 12-fold growth,” Kulak said. “With capacity being added that will allow us to double in size, this training is integral to our growth plans.”

With sales in Canada, the U.S. and Europe, Orion Plastics extrudes engineered resins into a diverse range of sheet products including SolarKote, Acrylic, Korad, ABS, ASA, TPO, HMWPE and HDPE. These products are used in a wide variety of products including automotive, heavy truck, recreational vehicles, marine, agricultural equipment and recreational facilities.

Orangeville, Ont.-based manufacturer IMBC Blowmolding became the first company to receive the Employer of Choice designation in December 2009.

Headquartered in Ottawa, the CPSC is a national not-for-profit association created to explore and address emerging human resources issues in the plastics processing industry.