Friday, January 14, 2011

Plastic Sheet Price Increases for 2011

The only thing about PLASTICS being made from OIL and Natural Gas is that the price of making the plastic rises and falls along with the costs of these resources.

But wait - that's not all.

Demand from India, China and other markets have put pressure on the supply chain. That means whoever wants the resins will pay dearly for the privilege of that purchase.

As of Feb 2011, we're seeing price increase os 6-7% on acrylics, polycarbonates and PETG plastic materials. We're also seeing 10% increases on polyolefins such as HDPE, LDPE, Polypropylene. This is on top of price increases in Q3 of 2010 that hit these materials as well as ABS & Styrene.

What's made from all this?
Acrylic: Plexiglas, Lucite, Optix, Acrylite (sheet, tube, medical devices, drinkware)
Polycarbonate: Lexan, Makrolon (sheet, tube, glazing, cycle windshields, drinkware)
PETG: clear plastic beverage bottles (water, 2L soda)
ABS: Auto industry, toys
Styrene: toys
HDPE: milk jugs
Polypropylene: orthotics, braces

Saving grace? The fact that these products play a part in making our lives better. Theses materials are not a "want" - they are a "need".


  1. DO you have any info on covering a pool with plexi glass for a wedding???

  2. We buy a few different materials from, and the prices have been going up a lot lately. I think we are on our 3rd increase of about 7% in the last 6 months. Is this normal in the plastic business. We have bought from some others, and their prices have gone up as well and we thought our supplier was the most reasonable, but now we aren't sure. Can you shed some light on the industry?