*** Please note, each row and course# listed below is a separate, complete course. ***
Polymer Science Based Product Development for Engineers and Scientists
| Course# | Date | Time | Location |
|---|---|---|---|
| 172-1168 | 04/02/2025 - 04/04/2025 | 9:00 AM - 4:00 PM | Microsoft Teams |
| 172-1169 | 06/18/2025 - 06/20/2025 | 9:00 AM - 4:00 PM | Microsoft Teams |
| 172-1170 | 09/17/2025 - 09/19/2025 | 9:00 AM - 4:00 PM | Microsoft Teams |
Online Registration
CEU's: 2.5
Instructor: Paul Nash, Ph.D.
Course Overview
Feel envious of those successful STEM engineers at your consumer goods company? Your technical degree transitioned into employment where you realized a strong polymer science acumen is part of your job function. Some have it and are most successful and you want that knowledge to bring job success, job security, and a well-deserved promotion. This survey course bridges the gap between academics and real world product development of consumer goods for engineers and scientists who lack polymer breadth.
Polymers can be divided into specific types such as rigid and flexible thermoplastics and thermosets which are more commonly called plastics, elastomers, thermoplastic elastomers (TPEs) and thermoset plastics (TSPs). The course highlights differences between plastics and elastomers, similarities and differences between elastomers and TPEs, and between plastics and TSPs all with a product centric focus. Sustainable practices will be presented as well as polymer materials, processing, design, and testing strategies. Upon course completion, STEM engineers will have the polymer breadth required to communicate and be successful in the numerous industries that depend on polymer science based product development of consumer goods.
The course content breakdown is shown below:
Engineering (50%) and Science (50%)
Plastics (40%), Elastomers (30%), TPEs (20%) and TSPs (10%)
Materials (40%), Processing (20%), Design (20%) and Testing (20%)
Online Course Requirements
We want you to have a great experience participating in our remote (online) courses, and for that, you’ll need the right equipment and internet connection.
Minimum needs are:
- A broadband internet connection that has at least a 2 Mbps upload and download speed.
- A computer (PC or Mac) that can support the latest web browser versions.
- At least 4 GB of RAM and adequate hard drive space.
- A microphone and a speaker.
- International Students: For virtual (online) courses, an additional fee will be assessed to cover the cost of shipping the professional binder (presentation slides), to your address. The cost of international shipping can be significant.
For more information, visit our Online Course Requirements webpage.
Instructor Biography:
Paul Nash, (paul.nash@hp.com, 541-905-4182) has degrees in Chemistry and Biological Science from UC Irvine, and a PhD from the University of Akron in Polymer Science and Polymer Engineering. He worked six years as a polymer engineer in the appliance industry for Frigidaire Company, and 26+ years for HP, Inc Supply Chain (current employer) in Corvallis, OR specializing in polymer selection and supplier development for inkjet printer and cartridge applications. His work centers around selection and qualification of plastics, elastomers, thermoplastic elastomers, and thermoset plastics. Product sustainability has been a strong focus during his career and he co-founded EcNow Tech in 2008 which provides green products through wholesale, manufacturing, and retail businesses. In 2016, he started teaching polymers within HP which eventually morphed into leading the HP worldwide Polymers and Technologies Affinity Group (PTAG) so HP employees can learn, teach, guide, and solve polymer related work challenges. He also teaches the class Polymer Engineering and Science (ChE 445/545) since 2019 at OSU and UO in Oregon which focuses on the intertwined relationships between materials, processing, design and polymer testing. His latest start-up, Polymer eClub bridges the gap between academics and real world product development of consumer goods for early career STEM engineers who lack polymer breadth. Paul has six patents and six trade secrets to his credit.
Day 1 (6 lectures, 9-12 noon & 1-4 pm EST):
9-10 am Polymers - Introduction.
10-11 am Plastics – Commodity Materials & Testing I.
11-12 noon Plastics – Commodity Materials & Testing II.
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1-2 pm Plastics – Recycling.
2-3 pm Elastomers – Materials & Testing.
3-4 pm Elastomers – Compounding & Design.
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Day 2 (6 lectures, 9-12 noon & 1-4 pm EST):
9-10 am Elastomers – Processing & Procurement.
10-11 am Thermoplastic Elastomers (TPEs) - Materials & Testing I.
11-12 noon Thermoplastic Elastomers (TPEs) - Materials & Testing II.
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1-2 pm Processing – Thermoplastic Injection Molding & Extrusion.
2-3 pm Design - Thermoplastic Injection Molding Tooling & Parts.
3-4 pm Design - Thermoplastic Injection Molding Simulation.
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Day 3 (6 lectures, 9-12 noon & 1-4 pm EST):
9-10 am Processing – Thermoplastics Blow Molding.
10-11 am Processing – Thermoplastics Thermoforming, Rotomolding, 3D Printing.
11-12 noon Testing – Polymers Laboratory Characterization.
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1-2 pm Testing – Polymers Analytical Characterization.
2-3 pm Thermoset Plastics (TSPs) – Materials & Processing.
3-4 pm Thermoset Plastics (TSPs) - Design & Testing.