Account Executive

Connected packaging specialist adds to senior team. 26 August 2026 POLYTAG has appointed data-led platform and consumer engagement expert Suzie Dekker as business development manager, as the business continues its growth in the connected packaging space. The move follows the recent arrival of chief strategy officer Alex Webster, with both additions described as strengthening the company's capabilities across data, platforms, strategy and commercial development. The expansion comes at a critical moment, as regulations such as Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) and Digital Product Passports (DPP) are driving brands to adopt connected packaging solutions. As part of this change, Polytag said many companies are looking beyond compliance, seeking technologies that can also deliver commercial value through real-time consumer insight, engagement and measurable marketing return on investment. Polytag's Smart QR codes are designed to help brands bridge these two needs, connecting packaging data with consumer engagement. During an activation around a major sporting event, a UK soft drinks brand used Polytag's Smart QR codes to engage consumers. The campaign generated more than 1,000 minutes of direct consumer engagement with the brand in just 18 days, with an average dwell time of 28.1 seconds - almost four times the 7.4-second industry benchmark. Suzie Dekker joins from EcoVadis, the ESG ratings platform, where she worked with organisations using data and digital platforms to assess, manage and improve their sustainability performance. "What attracted me to Polytag is the opportunity to work with a technology that creates a direct connection between brands, their packaging and their consumers," she said. "We're seeing a shift in how businesses think about data - from something they collect to something they can actively use to understand customers and improve their marketing. I'm excited to help brands explore what connected packaging can do for them." Alice Rackley, CEO, Polytag, added, "We're at an exciting stage of Polytag's growth. We're seeing more brands recognise the potential of connected packaging and, as that market develops, we're building the capabilities to support them at scale. Suzie brings a wealth of experience in data-led platforms and customer engagement, which will be invaluable as we help brands turn packaging from a static product touchpoint into a source of data, insight and consumer engagement."

Eurobites: Vodafone, Tech Mahindra team up to help businesses lost in digital maze. Also in today's EMEA regional roundup: ad-supported streaming hits primetime in Finland; BICS renews with EcoVadis; Swisscom targets twentysomethings. Paul Rainford, Assistant Editor, Europe, Light Reading August 26, 2026 Vodafone has hooked up with India's Tech Mahindra to help create "propositions" (move over, "solutions") intended to help UK businesses grappling with the digital complexity created by AI, the cloud and all that carry-on. According to Vodafone, the collaboration - or "framework," as the two companies style it - will help both companies identify opportunities where their complementary capabilities could help befuddled customers simplify their operations, modernize their technology and deliver quantifiable results. (See Vodafone hones skill of 'failing fast' to identify viable AI use cases.) Ad-supported streaming hits primetime in Finland. Ad-supported streaming is making its presence felt in cost-conscious Finland, according to a report on Finnish news website YLE. Citing a study by Mediavision, the report says that market share of so-called hybrid subscriptions to streaming services in Finland rose from 15% last year to 21% this year. Consumers in Finland now spend an average of €62 (US$72) per month on media services which, says YLE, is significantly less than what is spent on such things by their Nordic neighbors. BICS renews with EcoVadis. BICS, the international services arm of Belgium's Proximus, has extended its contract with EcoVadis, a provider of business sustainability ratings. Part of BICS' role is to provide the connectivity for a whistleblowing hotlines which the employees of those businesses being assessed for sustainability - or ESG - ratings can use to report corporate misconduct without fearing repercussions. BICS first landed its contract with EcoVadis three years ago. Swisscom targets twentysomethings. Swisscom is targeting the under-28s with 50% off certain standard mobile tariffs. The Young Benefit discount, as it is called, applies to Swisscom's Blue Mobile range of tariffs and is aimed at people under the age of 28 who live independently or have their own mobile phone contract. Those who haven't fled the nest or still aren't paying their own way, connectivity-wise, may be able to take advantage of the Light Reading is Family offer. Copper switch-off still a turn-off in UK. Despite a fair bit of coverage of the issue in the media, Brits are still very confused about what to do in the face of the imminent demise of traditional landlines. This is according to a survey of 2,000 adults by Community Fibre, a UK alternative network provider (altnet), which found that 45% of those asked do not fully understand what they need to do ahead of the big switch-off of the old analog phone system in January 2027. Before responding to the survey, 48% were unaware that the switch-off of the service, known as the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN), could affect devices in the home other than phones, such as personal emergency pendants and security alarms. (See Get off the PSTN! - Openreach set to pull plug on ancient tech and Eurobites: Connect Europe suggests EU is overreaching on copper shutdown.) Assistant Editor, Europe, Light Reading Paul is based on the Isle of Wight, a rocky outcrop off the English coast that is home only to a colony of technology journalists and several thousand puffins. He has worked as a writer and copy editor since the age of William Caxton, covering the design industry, D-list celebs, tourism and much, much more. During the noughties Paul took time out from his page proofs and marker pens to run a small hotel with his other half in the wilds of Exmoor. There he developed a range of skills including carrying cooked breakfasts, lying to unwanted guests and stopping leaks with old towels. Now back, slightly befuddled, in the world of online journalism, Paul is thoroughly engaged with the modern world, regularly firing up his VHS video recorder and accidentally sending text messages to strangers using a chipped Nokia feature phone. Want more Light Reading stories in your Google search results? Join 62,000+ members. Yes it's completely free.

Why true sustainability is winning UK injection moulding contracts. * George Nowill * August 25, 2026 * 6 minutes read For Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) sourcing injection moulded components in the UK, the procurement landscape has fundamentally shifted. Driven by rigorous UK net-zero mandates, consumer pushback on environmental waste, and escalating carbon penalties, manufacturers are realising a critical truth: your product's environmental footprint is dictated by the carbon footprint of your supply chain. Sustainability is no longer a localised marketing initiative or a simple tick-box exercise on a tender document. It has matured into an aggressive, board-level technical requirement. When sourcing plastic components, a technical purchasing team cannot simply look at the unit cost of the part; they must account for the material lifecycle, Scope 3 supply chain emissions and the operational footprint of the moulder itself. Why 'basic' sustainability is no longer enough. For years, the plastic injection moulding sector viewed sustainability through a very narrow lens - primarily focusing on regrinding factory floor scrap or offering standard biodegradable additives. While those practices are helpful, they represent the absolute bare minimum. A modern manufacturer seeking long-term supply chain resilience needs data-driven assurance. They must report exactly where materials originate, prove that the manufacturing process minimised energy usage, and guarantee that their components do not carry hidden Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) risks. In a competitive landscape, the injection moulders thriving today are those who look beyond the immediate boundaries of the moulding machine and treat eco-efficiency as a holistic engineering discipline. How TEX Plastics goes beyond the basics: the wider picture. Under the leadership of Managing Director Guy Sentance, TEX Plastics has fundamentally redesigned how a UK injection moulder handles environmental and social governance. Rather than tackling sustainability as a standalone policy, TEX Plastics embeds it directly into its overarching production strategy. Their operational framework showcases exactly what it means to look at the 'big picture' of manufacturing sustainability through several distinct, verified milestones. 1. Independent ESG validation: the EcoVadis Bronze Medal. Greenwashing is a major legal and commercial risk for UK manufacturing brands. To give clients undeniable proof of their compliance, TEX Plastics partnered with EcoVadis to rigorously track, audit and report their corporate social responsibility. By securing the EcoVadis Bronze Medal, TEX Plastics places in the top 35% of all rated companies globally. This rating does not just look at the carbon footprint of a plastic part; it comprehensively audits four critical pillars: * Environment: Direct machine energy optimisation and waste control * Labour & Human Rights: Safe, ethical working environments across both the Derby and Barnstaple sites * Ethics: Complete transparency in corporate governance * Sustainable Procurement: Ensuring the upstream chemical and material suppliers they use adhere to the exact same high standards For major OEMs - especially in highly regulated spaces like medical devices, electronics, and automotive tech - this third-party verification provides the crucial data needed to confidently map and report their Scope 3 indirect supply chain emissions. 2. Setting new feedstock benchmarks: 29% recycled polymer integration. While many moulders talk about utilising recycled material, processing post-consumer or post-industrial recycled (PIR/PCR) resins at scale is technically difficult. Recycled feedstocks frequently suffer from volatile flow rates and material inconsistencies that can ruin precision tools or cause high defect rates. TEX Plastics directly addressed this engineering hurdle, setting a distinctive industry benchmark by achieving 29% recycled polymer usage across its active moulding operations. To achieve this without reducing the mechanical performance or aesthetic quality of the final component, the company invested heavily in advanced central granulation systems. This technology allows them to execute closed-loop material reprocessing, instantly capturing, grinding, and blending production offcuts back into live production lines with zero degradation. 3. Energy optimisation via real-time Monitoring. The greenest unit of energy is the one you never use. In an environment where UK industrial energy inflation squeezes margins, reducing the cycle time and kilowatt consumption of an injection moulding run is both an environmental victory and a commercial necessity. As part of their One Plastics, One Company unified strategy, TEX Plastics rolled out advanced Real-Time Production Monitoring Systems across both their Derby and Barnstaple facilities. Rather than evaluating efficiency retrospectively at the end of a weekly shift, plant managers track production metrics live on the factory floor. If a machine experiences a minor variance in cavity pressure or heating efficiency, the system flags it instantly. This level of process control minimises energy draw, optimises cycle times, and keeps part scrap rates near absolute zero. 4. Systemic standards: ISO 14001 and value-add onshoring. A holistic approach to sustainability requires international structural compliance. To ensure environmental controls are standardised group-wide, TEX Plastics has achieved formal ISO 14001 accreditation at its Barnstaple facility, mirroring the high operational frameworks utilised at their Derby site. Furthermore, they look at the broader logistical picture by providing in-house, value-added downstream processes (such as specialised assembly, ultrasonic welding, and surface finishing). By executing these secondary operations directly at the moulding source, TEX Plastics completely eliminates the need to transport half-finished components between multiple external suppliers. This compressed footprint slashes localised freight emissions, minimises transport packaging waste, and drastically simplifies the OEM's logistics chain. The takeaway for UK product designers. Sustainability in British manufacturing is no longer defined by simply choosing a bio-plastic from a catalogue. True environmental stewardship means partnering with a moulder whose internal culture, machinery investment, and third-party certifications are geared toward eliminating waste at every step of the lifecycle. By combining rigorous independent governance like EcoVadis with highly practical manufacturing advancements - like real-time power tracking and high-tier recycled polymer integration - TEX Plastics demonstrates that a greener future for plastics isn't just possible; it's already running on the production floor.