The British Plastics Federation’s (BPF) Expanded Polystyrene (EPS) Group has appointed a new chairman, Tim Wilson.
Wilson is the CEO of Engineered Foam Products, a manufacturer of moulded foam and polystyrene solutions which is a subsidiary of packaging giant DS Smith. Wilson joined the industry in 2001 working at Tuscarora, also part of DS Smith. He has spent 23 years in the company, where he accumulated wide experience of design, sales, and plant management before being appointed Operations Director and later CEO of Engineered Foam Products.
“I am passionate about promoting the benefits of EPS materials and products as enablers to a sustainable future in a wide range of markets, not just construction, and for the EPS industry to be sustainable itself, working towards a net zero future,” Wilson said.
The BPF’s EPS Group is one of the longest established groups within the organisation and has a strong record in promoting the sustainability benefits of EPS to users and government departments.
Some of the sustainability aspects of EPS include its composition – it is made of only 2% polystyrene and 98% air, which makes it resource efficient and helps to save energy and reduce greenhouse gas emissions during transportation. However, its end of life can be challenging. Although it is recycable, a lot of recyclers do not accept it. Food residues and odours are difficult to remove from used polystyrene and transporting the waste can be expensive because of its volume to weight ratio.