CLARKSTON, Mich. – Chase Plastic Services, Inc., a leading North American distributor of specialty, engineering and commodity thermoplastics, is celebrating its growth from a husband-and-wife startup 20 years ago to a $165 million enterprise in 2012.

“Our goal has always been to run a company where we could, on a day-to-day basis, help plastic processors achieve their business goals and be a trusted resource and valued partner in their success,” said Kevin Chase, president, Chase Plastics. “We never thought that our little idea of providing ‘outrageous’ customer service to processors with small- to medium-size applications would become what it is today. Our success is proof that through hard work, dedication and a business model built on a foundation of shared core values and mutual respect, anything is possible.”

Kevin and his wife, Carole, started their grassroots company with more sweat equity than capital equity, and in May 1992, Kevin’s longstanding dream of small business ownership was realized through the birth of Chase Plastic Services, Inc. Kevin and Carole built their company from the ground up: Kevin made sales calls during the day, delivering materials from the trunk of his car, and Carole handled administrative tasks into the morning hours so the couple could spend time with their young children in between.

Now headquartered in Clarkston, Mich., Chase Plastics comprises a team of 85 plastic professionals and distributes more than 6,400 specialty, engineering and commodity thermoplastics via its South Bend, Ind., distribution center and 34 strategically placed warehouses. The company grew its revenue 22 percent in 2011 over 2010 and, as a result, added 13 new positions in 2011 and has hired 12 additional employees to date in 2012. Continued revenue and personnel growth are expected this year.

“Our team members are the heart and soul of Chase Plastics,” said Chase. “Carole and I feel a sincere sense of gratitude and obligation to help each and every member of our team excel in their professional lives. This company has given us everything we could want and then some, and we’re committed to giving our team a vehicle to rise to the next level as we grow alongside them.”

ABOUT CHASE PLASTICS

Chase Plastics distributes more than 6,400 varieties of specialty, engineering and commodity thermoplastics from the industry’s leading manufacturers and global suppliers. In addition, Chase delivers engineering expertise, technical service, application development assistance, blending, repacking, inventory management and logistics services via a network of distribution centers, warehouses and sales locations throughout North and Central America.

Chase Plastics is redefining resin distribution with an approach to business that puts customer needs first. Formed in 1992, Chase Plastics has built its business on the ability to respond quickly with all of the flexibility and agility that its customers require. Based in Clarkston, Mich., Chase Plastics was founded by Kevin and Carole Chase, who serve as the company’s president and vice president, respectively. Find more information at ChasePlastics.com.

In his role, Behrendt is responsible for leading Chase Plastics’ commercial and technical applications development management team, whose focus will be to cultivate and negotiate new product distribution agreements with prospective and existing suppliers. He also will work closely with the company’s new business development team to implement solutions and tools designed to streamline the sales process and ensure that customers are informed and equipped with quality, cost-effective material solutions and application/technical service development support.

“As our sales volume continues to grow, it’s critical that we manage increased demand with additional commercial and technical application development support, as well as trusted, veteran leadership,” said Kevin Chase, president, Chase Plastics. “Dean has been part of the Chase Plastics team for more than 13 years and has a deep-rooted knowledge of our company’s mission and core values. He will be an integral part of our aggressive expansion through an unmatched product line that will continue to grow with us.”

Behrendt is a veteran of the United States Air Force and previously held the position of commodity products manager, senior account manager and, most recently, commercial manager at Chase Plastics. He has worked in the thermoplastic industry for more than 18 years.

Doug Goik was promoted to commercial manager and is responsible for managing supplier relations, negotiating material pricing, interfacing with the company’s sales and technical service team, and providing processors with a product that exceeds their expectations at an outstanding value the first time, every time. Doug will join long-time industry veteran John House in this critical role at Chase Plastics.

Goik holds a bachelor’s degree in marketing from Oakland University in Rochester, Mich., and previously served as a senior customer service representative at Chase, where he has worked for more than seven years.

ABOUT CHASE PLASTICS

Chase Plastics distributes more than 6,400 varieties of specialty, engineering and commodity thermoplastics from the industry’s leading manufacturers and global suppliers. In addition, Chase delivers engineering expertise, technical service, application development assistance, blending, repacking, inventory management and logistics services via a network of distribution centers, warehouses and sales locations throughout North and Central America.

Chase Plastics is redefining resin distribution with an approach to business that puts customer needs first. Formed in 1992, Chase Plastics has built its business on the ability to respond quickly with all of the flexibility and agility that its customers require. Based in Clarkston, Mich., Chase Plastics was founded by Kevin and Carole Chase, who serve as the company’s president and vice president, respectively. Find more information at ChasePlastics.com.

Chase Plastics also recently completed the first phase of its Clarkston, Mich. headquarters expansion with the addition of a 2,000-square-foot office space, which will house its application and technical development department. Phase two is expected to begin later this year and will consist of an expanded, state-of-the-art customer service center, as well as an employee training center and conference room.

“Since Chase Plastics was founded in 1992, our objective has remained the same: To help small- to medium-size plastic processors reach their full potential through ‘outrageous customer service’ and an unlimited offering of quality, cost-effective material options,” said Kevin Chase, president, Chase Plastics. “Twenty years later, our sustained growth shows that we’ve remained true to our mission and our customers, and we will continue to add personnel and capabilities in 2012 to support them every step of the way.”

In the past 12 months, Chase Plastics has aggressively reinforced its administrative team with the addition of human resources, credit, IT, customer service, accounting and supplier relations professionals. The additional staff solidifies the company’s internal structure and ensures that adequate support will be available to handle a projected increase in sales volume.

To boost the company’s ability to identify new products and suppliers and to negotiate best-possible customer pricing, Chase Plastics created the position of “new business development manager,” and also hired warehouse, sales and application and technical development team members.

ABOUT CHASE PLASTICS

Chase Plastics distributes more than 6,400 varieties of specialty, engineering and commodity thermoplastics from the industry’s leading manufacturers and global suppliers. In addition, Chase delivers engineering expertise, technical service, application development assistance, blending, repacking, inventory management and logistics services via a network of distribution centers, warehouses and sales locations throughout North and Central America.

Chase Plastics is redefining resin distribution with an approach to business that puts customer needs first. Formed in 1992, Chase Plastics has built its business on the ability to respond quickly with all of the flexibility and agility that its customers require. Based in Clarkston, Mich., Chase Plastics was founded by Kevin and Carole Chase, who serve as the company’s president and vice president, respectively. Find more information at ChasePlastics.com.

“Following recent mergers and acquisitions, the big have gotten bigger, and many of the value-added services that once differentiated independent distributors from mega-corporations have vanished,” said Kevin Chase, president, Chase Plastics. “As one of North America’s largest remaining independents, and a company that is built on providing outrageous customer service, we have a unique ability to provide flexible, value-added services that have become increasingly rare in the shadow of rampant corporate mergers and acquisitions.”

Chase Plastics stocks more than 6,400 materials at its South Bend, Ind., distribution center and has the ability to fulfill orders of any size. The company caters to small- to medium-sized  applications often overlooked by larger distributors and is able to ship orders from 50-pound samples to 40,000-pound truckloads.

Warehouse services include:

• In-house blending – leading edge computerized blending equipment optimizes throughput and the warehouse’s ability to expedite materials on time. Blending services are available for orders of any size.
• Repacking – the ability to repack materials to meet specific quantity needs for a given application, no matter how small or large.
• Labeling – customized labeling solutions provide electronic barcodes and the capability to place them anywhere on boxes, allowing effective inventory management upon arrival.
• Next-day delivery – any order received by 5 p.m. will ship the same day. Chase Plastics boasts a 99.2 percent on-time delivery rate and offers overnight delivery in most areas.

In addition to its growing line of warehouse services, Chase Plastics recently began integrating its front-end sales quoting system with Prophet 21®, the company’s inventory and supply chain management software. The result is a seamless technology solution that allows the sales team to more efficiently manage quotes and to access pricing, order history and real-time inventory data in the field via tablets equipped with high-speed Internet access.

ABOUT CHASE PLASTICS

Chase Plastics distributes more than 6,400 varieties of specialty, engineering and commodity thermoplastics from the industry’s leading manufacturers and global suppliers. In addition, Chase delivers engineering expertise, technical service, application development assistance, blending, repacking, inventory management and logistics services via a network of distribution centers, warehouses and sales locations throughout North and Central America.

Chase Plastics is redefining resin distribution with an approach to business that puts customer needs first. Formed in 1992, Chase Plastics has built its business on the ability to respond quickly with all of the flexibility and agility that its customers require. Based in Clarkston, Mich., Chase Plastics was founded by Kevin and Carole Chase, who serve as the company’s president and vice president, respectively. Find more information at ChasePlastics.com.

Just what the doctor ordered

As many processors have added capabilities in the medical sector to achieve application diversity and profitable, sustainable growth, we’ve fortified our product line to ensure that you have a wide range of material options available to produce quality, cost-effective applications.

FDA-compliant and medical-grade applications can be unfamiliar territory for many entering the medical arena. Through our large offering of high-quality products, we can not only provide solutions to your challenges, but also exceed your expectations.

Increase design flexibility while slashing weight and cost

Looking for an engineered resin to replace metal or die cast for superior performance and savings? We’ve got you covered with alternatives from conductive to antistatic materials and everything in between.

Our recently expanded portfolio of TPEs is constantly evolving and includes products as soft as zero shore A. Let us show you how metal-to-plastic replacement can reduce cost and weight while giving you the design freedom that you need to develop quality applications without sacrificing performance.

Meet Andy Conte, Chase Plastics’ head of technical service

We’re pleased to announce that Andy Conte, Chase Plastics’ head of technical service, will be manning our booth to answer all of your technical and regulatory questions. With more than 30 years of industry experience, Andy and our technically accomplished sales team can provide the knowledge and expertise you need to help your business operate more efficiently.

20 years of outrageous customer service

In 1992, Chase Plastics embarked on a path to change a thermoplastic industry dominated by global resin distributors too big to understand and meet the needs of smaller processors. We’ve since become a leading North American distributor of more than 6,400 engineered, specialty and commodity thermoplastics through a business model built on old-fashioned values, relationships, value-added services and providing unrivaled service and cost competitiveness.

We would like to thank our existing customers for your support over the years, and we look forward to seeing you at PLASTEC West. Additionally, we’re very much looking forward to building new relationships in Anaheim and showing you how leading-edge inventory and order tracking technology; account teams comprising sales, customer service and supply chain management professionals; and on-staff product technical support can help your company reach its full potential.

“We are extremely excited to bring Trevor to the Upper Midwest,” said Doug Wright, Chase Plastics regional sales manager. “His energy and enthusiasm for our business are contagious and he is determined to deliver outrageous customer service to processors in the Twin Cities and Iowa.”

Prior to being appointed to his current role, he worked as a certification administrator for Chase Plastics and built the foundation for a promising career with the company. Additionally, Westbrook’s previous position allowed him to become familiar with Chase Plastics’ growing customer base, ever-expanding product line and internal processes, which will allow him to assist processors in operating more efficiently within their industries.

Westbrook earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Michigan-Flint and served as a legislative assistant at the Michigan Capitol for two years.

“I am very much looking forward to building lasting relationships with the customers in my territory and beyond,” said Westbrook. “The challenge of helping them reach new heights and turn business dreams into reality is what motivates me. Through Chase Plastics’ unmatched product line, technical support and commitment to total customer satisfaction, no goal is too big and no job is too small.”

ABOUT CHASE PLASTICS

Chase Plastics distributes more than 6,400 varieties of specialty, engineering and commodity thermoplastics from the industry’s leading manufacturers and global suppliers. In addition, Chase delivers engineering expertise, blending, repacking, inventory management and logistics services via a network of distribution centers, warehouses and sales locations throughout North and Central America.

Chase Plastics is redefining plastics distribution with an approach to business that puts customer needs first. Formed in 1992, Chase Plastics has built its business on the ability to respond quickly with all of the flexibility and agility that its customers require. Based in Clarkston, Mich., Chase Plastics was founded by Kevin and Carole Chase, who serve as the company’s president and vice president, respectively. Find more information at ChasePlastics.com.

“The Midwest market is key to Chase Plastics’ strategic sales efforts,” said Bill Guenveur, Chase Plastics Southwest district account manager. “Scott’s thermoplastics experience and education in business development will ensure that our customers continue to receive the unmatched customer service and cost-effective material solutions that they have come to expect.”

Dykema earned bachelor’s degrees in marketing and management from Grand Valley State University in Allendale, Mich., and completed his internship at DSM Engineering Plastics in Evansville, Ind. He recently relocated to St. Louis, Mo., after completing Chase Plastics’ rigorous sales-training program.

“I am thrilled to be part of Chase Plastics’ sales team and expansion efforts in the Midwest,” said Dykema. “By offering such a vast product line, we are always able to deliver a material that meets and exceeds our customers’ needs, and that’s exciting. I look forward to getting to know the processors in my market and providing them with the materials and support that they need to operate more efficiently.”

ABOUT CHASE PLASTICS

Chase Plastics distributes more than 6,400 varieties of specialty, engineering and commodity thermoplastics from the industry’s leading manufacturers and global suppliers. In addition, Chase delivers engineering expertise, blending, repacking, inventory management and logistics services via a network of distribution centers, warehouses and sales locations throughout North and Central America.

Chase Plastics is redefining plastics distribution with an approach to business that puts customer needs first. Formed in 1992, Chase Plastics has built its business on the ability to respond quickly with all of the flexibility and agility that its customers require. Based in Clarkston, Mich., Chase Plastics was founded by Kevin and Carole Chase, who serve as the company’s president and vice president, respectively. Find more information at ChasePlastics.com.

Bruno, a 20-year veteran of the thermoplastics industry, will spearhead Chase Plastics’ effort to assist OEMs and processors in developing quality, cost-effective thermoplastic solutions that improve existing manufacturing processes while reducing overhead costs. His vast product knowledge paired with Chase Plastics’ unmatched product line provides customers with unlimited quality, alternative solutions that offer cost-effective options without the exaggerated cost incurred while dealing with major manufacturers.

“Stephen Bruno is an important piece of our continued growth in the Northeast,” said Adam Paulson, Chase Plastics Northeast district manager. “He provides tremendous technical knowledge coupled with a proven track record of exceeding customer expectations. By adding Stephen to our team, we can assume a more active role in helping Chase Plastics customers develop successful application and material solutions.”

Bruno holds an MBA from Temple University and completed his undergraduate work at the University of Delaware, where he majored in business administration. Prior to joining the Chase Plastics team, Bruno worked for Polymer Resources in Stamford, Conn., where he held several positions, including sales manager, account manager and product manager.

Bontrager, a 13-year veteran of warehouse management, will oversee operations at the South Bend distribution center and focus on improving Chase Plastics’ impressive 99.2 percent on-time delivery rate.

“By bringing in Keith to the Chase Plastics team, we added even more muscle to our already-strong warehouse operation,” said Bob Hoff, Chase Plastics operations manager. “First and foremost, we are a distribution company. Keith has the skills essential to help us reach our goals of being the industry leader in on-time delivery performance and providing our customers with the support needed to excel as leaders in their business.”

A former baseball and basketball player at the University of North Alabama, Bontrager most recently served as plant manager at Lippert Components Inc., where he supervised the company’s production departments including shipping and receiving and purchasing. Previously he worked as distribution and operations manager at KGP Telecommunications and was plant manager at New England Classic Inc.

About Chase Plastics

Chase Plastics distributes more than 6,400 varieties of specialty, engineering and commodity thermoplastics from the industry’s leading manufacturers and global suppliers. In addition, Chase delivers engineering expertise, blending, repacking, inventory management, third-party storage capabilities and logistics services via a network of distribution centers, warehouses and sales locations throughout North and Central America.

Chase Plastics is redefining plastics distribution with an approach to business that puts customer needs first. Formed in 1992, Chase Plastics has built its business on the ability to respond quickly with all of the flexibility and agility that its customers require. Based in Clarkston, Mich., Chase Plastics was founded by Kevin and Carole Chase, who serve as the company’s president and vice president, respectively. Find more information at ChasePlastics.com.

Chase Plastics distributes a number of products across America on behalf of Huntsman, including the popular IROGRAN^® range – a portfolio of TPU solutions that are renowned for their adaptability and performance, even in the most extreme environments.

IROGRAN^® TPUs are hard to beat as universally useful ingredients for injection molding and extruding projects. The latest IROGRAN^® innovation is A 92K 5031 DP.

Formulated with the needs of modern elastomer component manufacture in mind, IROGRAN^® A 92K 5031 DP can be used in industrial applications where compromise is not an option.It can be extruded or injection molded to create a range of different products and performs well as a base material for hydraulic seals, pneumatic tubes, spiral hoses and cable jackets that need to offer good hydrolysis and heat resistance properties. Other performance characteristics include:

• Very good hydrolytic stability because of its ether-based chemistry
• High heat resistance
• High crystallinity
• A low compression set at 100°c
• An extensive operating temperature range from -40°c to 130°c.
• Very high strength at room temperature and consistent performance up to 120°c
• Low extrusion affinity up to 140°c (hydraulic seal appl.)
• Low oil absorption, including good resistance against bio hydraulic oils
• Good burst pressure properties even at high temperatures
• Low abrasion at high temperatures
• Good form retention and stability

Joachim Bode, Business Manager for Huntsman Polyurethanes’ TPU business in America, said: “A successful distribution partnership needs to be founded on trust, excellent customer service on both sides and a robust communication channel that gives customers access to information and technical support; as and when they need it. This is exactly the kind of affiliation we have established with Chase Plastics. Receiving this accolade endorses the investment made by both companies and the value attributed to the products and services we provide together.”

For more information, please contact Joachim Bode at joachim_bode@huntsman.com.

While all the information and recommendations in this publication are to the best of our knowledge, information and belief accurate at the date of publication, nothing herein is to be construed as a warranty, express or otherwise. In all cases, it is the responsibility of the user to determine the applicability of such information and recommendations and the suitability of any product for its own particular purpose. The sale of products referred to in this publication is subject to the general terms and conditions of sale of Huntsman International LLC or of its affiliated companies.

IROGRAN^® is a registered trademark of Huntsman LLC or an affiliate thereof in one or more, but not all, countries.

Copyright © 2011 Huntsman International LLC.