PLASTIC TECHNOLOGIES HELPS OHIO COMPANY
LAUNCH TRACING, CUTTING TOOLS
FOR SPECIAL-NEEDS CHILDREN

Holland, Ohio (October 14, 2009) - Learning how to trace and cut shapes can be a challenge for many preschoolers-even more so for those with developmental and physical impairments.

Patent-pending Traceables and Cuttables from Createable Learning Concepts, LLC, Toledo, OH, now offer a colorful and easy-to-use path for success.

Traceables enable kids to trace an entire shape without having to pause to go around their wrist. Cuttables secure the paper for cutting via two matching shapes held together by magnets.

The color-coded, injection-molded polypropylene (PP) learning tools, manufactured by Plastic Technologies, Inc., (PTI) open doors of creativity and accomplishment which were formerly closed to many of these children.

The products are the brainchild of Liz and Randy Wharton who dreamed up the idea in their living room. Having spent more than 20 years as an occupational therapist for special needs children, Liz saw firsthand how challenging and frustrating it could be for them to master these tasks.

She brought the issue to her husband Randy's attention. He is a retired U.S. Air Force nuclear engineer, who is currently a department chair at a Toledo community college. With neither of them having any business start up experience, they were uncertain as to what path to take to commercialize their idea.

"Then in early 2008, a person from the Regional Growth Partnership gave a speech at the community college where I work. They discussed funding opportunities and professional assistance for ideas that had potential. We approached them with our idea and they put us in touch with the Toledo Chamber of Commerce. In turn, they helped us write our business plan and put us in touch with another Ohio company, Plastic Technologies," explains Randy.

Plastic Technologies has a global reputation as an engineering and design company for a variety of plastic-based materials, bottles, containers, etc. The company typically works with well-known brand-owners to design, develop, test, etc. a variety of plastic-based containers. These ultimately end up mass produced in large quantities by other manufacturers and end up in consumer's homes as packaging for beverages, food, personal care products, household chemicals, etc.

"Although most of the projects we work on are for large-volume packaging products, PTI also believes in giving back to the community. When Liz and Randy's project came to our attention, we wanted to do everything possible to help them commercialize their idea in a way that made economic sense. We also wanted to be part of helping these special-needs children," says Chris White, engineer, PTI.

At a starting point, Randy showed PTI the acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) samples he had created via the rapid prototype capability at his community college.

"Randy brought us his design concept for 13 different tools. Each one was made from between two [Traceables] and four [Cuttables] parts which made them costprohibitive to manufacture. We needed to figure out how to make them in one and two parts, to help minimize production costs and downstream assembly. These were key aspects to keeping retail pricing affordable for schools and parents," White says.

One of the key design elements of both learning tool types is a knob(s) that acts as a positioning and stabilizing handle. In the original design the tool base and the handle were two separate pieces.

"To help decrease manufacturing costs, we optimized the part designs so that the handle and base were one piece. We also designed a single cavity injection mold that utilizes 13 sets of interchangeable inserts to produce all the learning tools with a minimal initial investment for the Whartons. The design of this mold was very complex to accommodate multiple gate locations and numerous ejector pin patterns while still providing efficient cooling and manageable changeovers," White says.

To help give Createable Learning Concepts its first batch of products to bring to market, PTI manufactured 5,000 pieces of each part on an Arburg injection-molding machine. Traceables and Cuttables each come in two sizes (4- and 6-inches) and three color-coded shapes (triangles are yellow, circles are red and squares are green). Additionally, a blue 8-inch rectangular Cuttables completes the line for a total of 13 learning tools.

After molding takes place a manual step is needed to finish the part. The underside of each Traceable corner has been molded with a small well into which a silicone pad is inserted to minimize slippage. Cuttables require the addition of magnets, which are also manually inserted, followed by an ultrasonic staking operation to partially encapsulate the magnets with PP to keep them in place.

Special needs children in northern Ohio have already reaped the benefits. Feedback from students, parents and teachers has been encouraging.

Bonnie Corder, a teacher who does community outreach as part of the Toledo Public Schools' early childhood program, has firsthand experience with the tools.

"Special needs kids oftentimes have problems with fine motor skills. They can easily get frustrated and cry when they are unable to complete a task. When a child looks at you and says 'I did it' with pride in their voice, you can see the impact. It really helps them develop confidence and build their muscle memory," Corder says.

Evelyn Mylander, a teacher with East Toledo Preschool has had similar experience. She oversees a classroom of 3-, 4- and 5-year olds who function at an infant/toddler level.

"Because the tools are safe, durable and portable, the kids can explore with their hands, as well as carry or look through them. They develop a level of comfort that makes them more willing to try a fine motor activity," Mylander says.

Six-piece Traceables retail for $25 and the seven-tool Cuttables are $35. Combined sets are available for $55. Currently, the Whartons are fulfilling orders out of their home. However, they are in communication with various catalog houses and school systems to help expand their distribution.

"We were very proud to be able to work on a product that was going to be used to help a child grow and improve their skills," White says.

About Createable Learning Concepts

Createable Learning Concepts LLC was formed to manufacture and market rehabilitation and educational products. For more info: www.createablelearningconcepts.com.

About Plastic Technologies

Plastic Technologies, Inc. (PTI) is recognized worldwide as the preferred source for preform and package design, package development, rapid prototyping, pre-production prototyping, and material evaluation engineering for the plastic packaging industry. For more info: www.plastictechnologies.com.

Please forward sales inquiries to:
Pam Douglas, Marketing Coordinator
Plastic Technologies, Inc.
1440 Timberwolf Drive, P.O. Box 964
Holland, OH 43528-0964
Phone: (419)725-5620
Email: info@plastictechnologies.com