Consulting Services in Plastics Extrusion

Over the last 50+ years, I have served as a technical consultant in many ways. I don’t represent any makers of materials or equipment, so my work is unbiased and independent. I’ve done some equipment development, such as screw and die design, but mostly I work with existing equipment, helping their users understand them better, to get the most quality and output from them. Some examples, in addition to training personnel, include:

Direct problem solving — raise production rate, improve strength or appearance, reduce thickness variation or scrap factor, find out why the product failed in service.
Materials management — suggest quality tests for incoming resins and additives, scrap reduction and more economical re-use, propose additives to improve product performance.
New product development — product testing, analysis of competition, suggesting appropriate raw materials and equipment.
Legal Services — This is often called “expert witness” work, but we rarely go to court as witnesses because most cases are settled privately without a full trial. I do not charge for initial phone conversations. Sometimes, I am asked to read materials or visit a location on a fee-for-service basis. In other cases, we sign an agreement: the lawyers can name me as an expert and I agree to keep everything confidential and not work for the other side. From then on, the work varies as all cases are different. Most of my legal work has been for defendants in patent infringement, accidents with extrusion machinery, and failure of extruded products.

All of these can be combined in my “On-Call Service,” whereby I am on call at all times to my subscribers, who can ask questions or discuss problems by email or telephone, supported by digital pictures or process data where useful. This is covered by a flat quarterly fee, so no hours need be counted, and the callers don’t have to worry that more time means more money (the lawyer-on-the-clock syndrome). There is no long-term contract needed, either; the agreement can be canceled by either party at any time, or the terms altered to match activity levels. In other words, if I am asked to do very little, the client can cancel or return to an hourly basis. If asked to put in an unusually large amount of time (and if that time is available), I’ll ask for a higher rate.

A payment of $1500 for the first quarter starts the relationship. Thereafter, it can be maintained at $1500/quarter or $600/month, all prepaid. If travel is requested, charges are $200/hr for working time and $75/hr for travel from/to wherever I happen to be at the time. The charge covers contacts with any full-time employee of the client company if so identified by my primary contact person.

I’ve done this with many companies in my years of independent consulting, but I am promoting this service more now that long-distance communication is so easy and effective. My web seminars reach a much wider audience than my in-person sessions did in the past, so I can expect inquiries from people in far-away places whom I can serve far better now.

Please call 301-758-7788 or email me at if you are interested in this service, or any of the others noted above.