We make cool stuff - K E Plastics

Eric Broderson

Editor’s note: This week, which is also known as Career Week, The Banner will run a guest column each day from a local manufacturer. The columns were an initiative of Bennington County Industrial Corp. and coincide with a host of Career Week activities.

K&E Plastics Inc. is a leader in the manufacturing of plastics and non-metallic materials for the aerospace, medical, automotive, utility, and defense industries. What sets K&E apart is its specialty focus on machining, milling, drilling, routing, sawing, bending, and forming of plastics. The company excels at working with two types of plastics, thermoplastics and thermoset plastics. Thermoplastics are synthetic materials that can be heated and shaped.

Thermoset plastics are synthetic materials that cannot be reheated or reshaped and must be machined.

K&E Plastics only uses state-of-the-art equipment, including advanced CNC machines (Gabbiani panel saw and Haas vertical machines, lathes, and routers) and inspection equipment such as the OGP Smart Scope.

K&E Plastics is on their way to getting their ITAR certification and is recently ISO 9001:2008 certified which covers the Quality Management Systems for custom machining of plastics on a contract basis. K&E hires skilled machinists with exceptional craftsmanship and capabilities and has a strong commitment to their customers with a human voice and rapid turn-around time for delivery to customers around the globe.

As for the road ahead, K&E Plastics aims to focus on new and emerging market opportunities such as renewable energy (solar and wind), aerospace, and automotive industries. These markets will need lighter-weight, anti-corrosive, and durable materials for greater fuel and cost efficiencies. These opportunities are out there and K&E is fully invested in developing trusted relationships with leading primes, sub primes, and government contractorsthrough the Vermont Chamber’s Aerospace and Aviation Association events.

K&E Plastics has outgrown their building in East Arlington and is graduating to a building three times the size in Bennington. They will be moving in early May. If K&E Plastics continues to grow at this rapid speed, they will be looking to hire skilled machinists with the ability to read and understand blueprints, geometric dimensioning and tolerancing, and G-Code programs. The use of calipers, micrometers, and inspection gages is required. K&E is also looking to hire a quality inspector. This position entails inspecting machined parts to customer’s specs/drawings, completing first and final inspection reports to record the dimensional data found while following our Quality Manual & Procedures, and having an understanding or hands on experience with optical inspection equipment or CMM’s. It’s only a matter of time until additional office personnel will be needed to keep up with customer requirements, ISO certification requirements, ITAR certification requirements, and paperwork. K&E Plastics is a small, family owned business with owners who care about their employees which makes it a great place to work!

Eric Broderson is the owner of K&E Plastics.