Gunther Hoyt Associates is pleased to announce Gunther Hoyt’s induction into the Plastics Hall of Fame. The Plastics Hall of Fame was founded in 1972 to honor individuals whose extraordinary accomplishments contributed to the growth of the plastics industry and is administered by The Plastics Academy. New living inductees are elected every three years by a majority vote of the living members of the Hall of Fame and are honored at the triennial NPE. Ten pioneers who achieved advances in plastics technology and business development will be inducted into the Plastics Hall of Fame at a gala banquet during NPE2012. Produced by SPI: The Plastics Industry Trade Association, NPE2012 will take place April 1-5 at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, FL.
Gunther Hoyt has played important roles in the internationalization of the plastics industry and in the progress of SPI. In addition, he has been a technological leader in the field of machine components. His contributions to SPI’s NPE exposition extend beyond his chairmanship of the 2003 show.
Born in Germany, Gunther Hoyt came to the U.S. in 1959 and grew up in Newburgh, New York. He holds an undergraduate degree from Rutgers University and has taught there and at New York University.
His association with screw and barrel manufacturer Xaloy Inc. extended from 1977 to 2009, by which time he was executive vice president. During this period Xaloy grew from a one-factory company focused on the U.S. market to a global supplier of plastification systems to the world’s leading machinery OEMs. Mr. Hoyt spearheaded the establishment of distribution networks and direct sales operations in North America, Europe, China, Japan, and other Asian countries. He also played key roles in setting up sales and service operations in Japan and manufacturing and customer service facilities in Thailand.
While at Xaloy, Mr. Hoyt participated in the development and successful introduction of the first tungsten carbide-based bimetallic barrel alloy, now the industry standard; micro-alloy backing steels for bimetallic cylinders, making possible increased processing pressures; and tungsten carbide-coated twin-screw barrel and screw sets, now the standard system for processing lead-free PVC.
Mr. Hoyt left Xaloy to form Gunther Hoyt Associates, an international business consultancy specializing in plastics equipment and machine components. Currently his company leads the exhibit sales program for the NPE2012 plastics exposition in Europe, Japan, and Korea.
In 1985, Gunther Hoyt was a leader in establishing the Components Division of SPI, a development that brought more than 50 new member companies into the organization. When the Divisions subsequently merged with SPI’s Machinery Division, Mr. Hoyt served as chairman. He led in the creation of the market statistics section for machine components, which has been cited as an outstanding leading indicator for machinery sales in North America.
His involvement with SPI trade shows has been extensive. He was chairman of the Plastics USA show in 1998, chaired the Operations Committee for NPE2000, and served as chairman of the NPE2003 exposition. When the Great Recession caused many major Japanese machinery OEMs to cancel participation in NPE2009, Mr. Hoyt organized and led a delegation of SPI officials, including president William Carteaux, to visit these companies in Japan. As a result, every one of the OEMs that were visited decided to exhibit in the show.
