ABSTRACT
While the plastics industry has witnessed a spectacular growth over the last six decades, the acceleration
in consumption rates of plastics has taken place in several phases since World War II. Much of the use of
plastics just after the war was as a cheap substitute for traditional materials (in other cases, the material
was used for its novelty value), and in many instances the result was detrimental to the industry. It
required several years of painstaking work by the technical service departments of major plastics
manufacturers before confidence was regained in the use of plastics. Even today the public image of
plastics is not entirely positive, and the important role of plastics in contributing to raising the standard
of living and quality of life is not fully appreciated.
