Quality and superior products are the future targets of the Egyptian plastics processing industry. This became clear at the second large-scale fair for the plastics processing industry, the "Plastex II", which took place in Cairo from 19 to 22 February. The fair itself has also improved in quality and was able to keep pace with the success of the first "Plastex" in 1993.

This development is attributable to a sector which is mainly dominated by private companies and which quickly reacts to customers who are increasingly hard to please. The first producers of plastic parts have been certified under ISO 9000 and thus have made themselves more attractive for export. The first attempts of a networking of parts producers with local customers in order to develop a kind of "production on demand" are indicators of this new trend. A liberalisation of the import regulations has been crucial for this overall advantageous development.

"Plastex II" was used by the almost exclusively foreign machine manufacturers as well as by the Egyptian processors for the presentation of their products. Foreign companies found a forum to directly address customers and potential buyers. Local processors were able to form a picture of the state-of-the-art processing technologies.

The fair had a considerable impact beyond the region. In addition to the West Europeans, the strong presence of the Taiwanese machine manufacturers was striking. They were represented by more than ten companies, the majority of which presented large blow moulding and injection moulding machines. Taiwanese machines are offered in Egypt at prices distinctly lower than those of European manufacturers. Indian companies and a company from Hong Kong also exhibited their machines. Even an Ukrainian company, Thermoplast Automat, presented an injection moulding machine.

In contrast to the clear qualitative growth of established processors, new areas of application for plastic products can be opened up only slowly. This can be clearly seen from the young Egyptian motorvehicle assembly industry. Although nine assembly companies exist and new ones, owned by Mercedes-Benz among others, will be set up, the hoped-for market for motor-vehicle parts made of plastics has not developed yet. The small volumes of the motorvehicles assembly plants of several thousand vehicles/year each do not justify high investment in expensive injection and blow moulding machines. Only such parts which can be used for different types or which have a high replacement demand have been produced up to now.

Additional demand is being created by the change over of existing production from other materials to plastics. The Egyptian effervescent tablet producers, for example, plan to replace some of the aluminium tubes used up to now with plastic tubes. In late 1994, a company for the production of PVC windows was formed. Eye drops bottles of a special brand, of which 50m units are produced per year by injection blow moulding, are an example that in Egypt interesting production quantities can also be achieved.

While injection and blow moulding processing is widespread in Egypt, there is still hardly any of the more complicated injection blow moulding. According to data about the sector, only two companies use this type of machinery, mostly in the pharmaceutical industry. The producers of cosmetics could be new customers for this type of processing, as also in Egypt high demands are placed on quality packaging materials.

Egypt will continue to be an interesting market for the manufacturers of plastic processing machines. The tendency towards more quality should be of advantage for German suppliers. A general overview of the development of the Egyptian plastic processing industry can be had at the "Plastex III" which will take place in Cairo from 29 February to 3 March 1996.