Reducing Costs for ABC Manufacturing
See how BlackBridge helped ABC Manufacturing cut recycling costs by 30% while improving material quality and logistics efficiency.
BlackBridge’s transparent and efficient transactions have enhanced our material turnaround and strengthened our market position.
The Client
Earlier this month, I had the pleasure of attending the 2016 Plastics Recycling Conference in New Orleans with my company, BlackBridge Investments. Leading up to the conference, my supervisors held several discussions with my fellow colleagues and I to ensure we were adequately prepared to maximize our experience. Developing a plan of action at a conference or networking event is not overly complicated. But absolutely necessary to maximize your return on the company’s investment in the costs of travel and attending the conference. It’s important to know in advance what you want to get out of the conference, and set some clear goals to make sure you see everything you want to see and meet everyone you want to meet.
With that in mind, we’d like to offer a few of the biggest lessons and key takeaways that the BlackBridge team learned from the 2016 Plastics Recycling Conference:
The Challenge
The Plastics Recycling Conference was a large-scale event with nearly 200 exhibitors and over 1,600 attendees, and such a big event can be a bit overwhelming or intimidating, especially if it’s your first time to attend a conference of this size. However, the first takeaway I would like to share that was most helpful to me was the importance of focus. If you’re going to be wandering the aisles at a big conference like this, it’s crucial to be able to break down each of your meetings and seminar experiences into one key point.
The Result
A conference or networking event can be instrumental in building your book of business, as well as growing existing relationships. With that being said, be sure to set meetings with existing business partners, as well as with new prospects. This can be 15 minutes over coffee, or a two-hour dinner at the fanciest restaurant in town – it all depends on the schedule and on how much time each of you is able to invest in the meeting – not every relationship is at the same stage of development, so use your best judgment. Just be sure you make time for both kinds of meetings, and maximize your time.
However, don’t forget that even though you are discussing business, you should avoid gripping the bat too tightly and let your personality shine through. This is a rare opportunity to connect with people on a more personal level – you might have only exchanged phone calls or emails with many of these people, but an industry conference is a great chance to cement these relationships with in-person contact.
Lastly, though it is important to have a plan and set meetings, do not become overly obsessive with structure. Instead of planning every single minute of your day, be open to exploring. Leave some blocks of free time. Sit in on lectures. Grab a drink at the cocktail hour. In short, explore your surroundings and be open to possibilities. You may make your most meaningful connection while riding in the elevator.
This will allow you to keep a clear head and when you return to the office, pick up just where you left off with that person you met at the conference, or implement that new idea you learned, seamlessly.
These high-quality, closed-loop plastics are being used to manufacture new products, which will have a Green Label to identify them as being manufactured with post-consumer, closed-loop recycled content.
Benefits from advanced material recovery;
- Improved financial returns from recycled waste streams
- Reduced cost of material acquisition
- Reduced environmental impact of products
- Reduced need for raw material extraction
- Reduced suppliers and supplier management
- Helped HP customers reduce their environmental impact
However, don’t forget that even though you are discussing business, you should avoid gripping the bat too tightly and let your personality shine through. This is a rare opportunity to connect with people on a more personal level – you might have only exchanged phone calls or emails with many of these people, but an industry conference is a great chance to cement these relationships with in-person contact.
