Plastics & Rubber World - July/August 2019 - 19

plastics ireland

in Madrid. They'd seen our cabinets at another company and wanted the same. We
went down with 3D scanners to record
the equipment. We're down to an accuracy of 30 microns."
The virgin HDPE board used to build
the cabinets is sourced from a German
supplier. In addition, the company uses a
lot of polycarbonate for clear applications.
Both materials are FDA approved which,
in a nutshell, means that the cabinets offer favourable biocompatibility for storage
of USP Class VI devices.
"We're the only company to use the
material, the Arctic white HDPE. It even
comes down to aesthetics, they really do
look the business," he says.
Joining of the CNC-finished boards is
completed using a butt-fusion technique.
"It's quite a skill, we've perfected it over
the years. It heats the sheet in advance
of joining and then automatically debeads
the finished seam. The result is a perfectly
smooth join."
Barry says the company has further developed a range of unique solutions, such
as embedding magnets into the plastic
board so the cabinets, which are generally
on wheels, remain fixed to the metal clean
room walls.

Labour and growth

Dave Barry says that he has had some issues with sourcing labour, but has lever-

aged related skill sets to build his staff.
"I've people here who were mechanics,
vehicle bodywork repairers, carpenters.
All of these professions have a similar
attention to detail to what we require."
With the prevalence of the pharmaceutical business in Ireland, Dave Barry
is bullish on future company performance: "I think our niche position will
allow us to grow the business." But he
does not think there's any short-term
value in extending into a second location.
"I could open a branch in the UK, no
problem. But if there was an issue there,
I can't be in both places. I'd need to have
two teams which I could trust and it can
be very hard to do that." He adds that as
it stands, the company is of a size where
he can still be hands on.
"Because the industry is so tightly
knit, you're only as good as your last
job. I want to check everything that goes
out of the door. If I can spot [a defect],
the customer can spot it." It might be
something simple, maybe an edge not
perfectly deburred, but that's enough to
require some rework.
"As I tell the lads, spend five minutes
passing your hands over the cabinet to
feel for imperfections. I can afford to pay
for five minutes of your time more than
the consequences of poor finishing,"
says Barry.

Future proofing
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Example of a tool board produced by
dave barry Plastics

Enhancing
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First Polymer Training Skillnet is co-funded by
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through the Department of Education and Skills.

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