(Beyond the opportunity to check out the latest equipment and services in person, PTXPO 2026 has gathered an impressive array of subject matter experts to lead its educational programming. Join attendees at the March 17-19 event at the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont, Illinois, for the opportunity to gain invaluable knowledge and networking all in one place. Knowledge leaders will share insights across injection molding, tooling, additive manufacturing, materials and more.
In-booth demonstrations are just one way to learn at PTXPO 2026. Source (all): Plastics Technology
Every booth at PTXPO also holds educational and networking potential with leading suppliers of goods and services for plastics molding filling the aisles at the convention center. Explore the latest technologies during in-booth demonstrations and take a deep dive into advances across the industry at the show floor’s TechTalk Theater.
New to PTXPO 2026 are two focused, multiday “events-within-an-event,” as well as a unique knowledge and networking opportunity — The Materials Symposium, Integrating Additive Manufacturing: A New Era of Pellet-to-Part Production and the Women in Plastics Breakfast.
Materials Matter
Acknowledging the incredibly important but often misunderstood role of materials in injection molding, PTXPO has created the Materials Symposium for 2026. Featuring 12 presentations from 11 speakers over the three days of the show, each of the symposium’s four sessions will conclude with a panel discussion and Q&A segment among those expert presenters led by a Plastics Technology editor.
From choosing a material for a wholly new project to shepherding the switch to a different polymer, the symposium will help plastics professionals move beyond the vagaries of resin suppliers’ datasheets to more concrete material strategies.
Subject-matter experts from leading suppliers will be on hand to education PTXPO attendees.
The presenters, who include five Ph.D.s (four in materials one in mechanical engineering) as well as CEOs, founders, CTOs and more, hail from leading injection molders, material labs and consultancies, as well academia, resin compounding, a molding machine supplier and an AI startup. Plastics institutions represented include Beaumont Advanced Processing, Penn State Behrend, The Madison Group, Trelleborg, Allegheny Performance Plastics and more.
Individual presentations cover everything from material selection and characterization, to data sheets, the potential role of simulation, and effective collaboration among OEMs, molders, moldmakers and material suppliers. In terms of material changes, planned or unplanned, speakers will address the impact these can have on the tool, machine and process, as well as product design. In compounding, how formulation decisions can impact structure–property relationships and how agentic AI systems can be used to analyze materials, including modeling physical properties and identifying equivalents. In addition, presenters will address the challenges and opportunities of high-performance plastics; data-driven processing using controlled viscosity molding, and how to properly set up and fully utilize a materials analysis lab.
Additive Manufacturing Meets Injection Molding
How does additive manufacturing figure into your injection molding and tooling operations? In recent years that answer has changed for many in the molding industry following advances in printing and materials, as well as greater acceptance and understanding of the technology in the field. In four separate sessions over the three days of the show, including lunch-and-learn slots during the noon hour, a new workshop will explore how additive manufacturing and 3D printing are reshaping moldmaking and molding.
Free educational opportunities are available to hear from subject matter experts.
Led by Rich Oles, president and CEO of Alba Enterprises, and building off a series of articles he collaborated with MoldMaking Technology on, Integrating Additive Manufacturing: A New Era of Pellet-to-Part Production will feature speakers from leading suppliers of plastic and metal additive manufacturing equipment and injection molding machines, as well as automotive suppliers, including Carbon, Merit3D, X2F, Xact Metal, Sodick Plustech and more. In these presentations, you’ll discover how to apply additive technologies to improve tooling performance, speed production and expand design possibilities, from printed cavity inserts to surface treatments that extend tool life.
Women’s Place in Plastics
In 2025, EVCO Plastics earned national certification as a Women’s Business Enterprise. Source: EVCO Plastics
The plastics industry, particularly at the executive level, is a male-dominated field, but more women are blazing a new trail to female leadership roles. Over breakfast, this moderated panel discussion will bring together five women who are leading companies in plastics, sharing their insights and experiences in heading injection molding companies and a research and development consultancy. (Separate registration required.)
Meet the Panelists
Gretchen Hoffer Farb and Charlotte Hoffer Canning, Hoffer Plastics. In 2023, Hoffer Plastics’ board of directors promoted Gretchen Hoffer Farb, Charlotte Hoffer Canning and Alex Hoffer to co-CEOs, following their successful sharing of the company’s leadership after taking the helm in January 2020. Sisters Gretchen and Charlotte will share their insights and experiences from their careers at the longstanding molder started by their grandfather Robert Hoffer in 1953.
Hoffer Plastics today employs more than 350 people at its 365,000-ft2 facility situated on 24 acres in South Elgin, Illinois. In its third generation of family ownership, the custom injection molder operates 113 presses, molding proprietary packaging products as well as components for the food and beverage, medical, automotive, lawn and garden, home care, health and beauty markets.
Kate Bashir and Anna Evans Bartz, EVCO Plastics. In 2024, following board approval, Kate Bashir was named CEO, succeeding her father and grandfather, Dale and Don Evans, respectively, to become EVCO’s first female leader and third-generation proprietor. As CEO, Bashir joined EVCO’s board, along with Anna Evans Bartz, vice president of communications, and Emily Evans, purchasing agent. Currently, EVCO is majority female-owned and certified as a Women’s Business Enterprise (WBE) by the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC).
EVCO Plastics is a leading plastics manufacturing company with 13 manufacturing facilities strategically located throughout the world. Founded in 1964, EVCO employs more than 2,000 people and operates 270 injection molding machines, ranging in clamp force from 28 to 4,400 tons.
Carolyn Carta, CArtLab Solutions. With a Ph.D. in materials science and engineering from UCLA, a master’s in chemistry from The College of William and Mary, and experience at the Getty Conservation Institute, Carolyn Carta blends interdisciplinary technical expertise with a passion for plastics. Started in 2023, CArtLab Solutions, Chicago, offers a trio of services: additive manufacturing solutions, technical consulting expertise and interdisciplinary project strategy.
