The History of North American Plastic Piping Distributors

Plastic Piping Distributors Grew Industries

Large distributor warehouse

Needing a channel of distribution, the manufacturing companies turned to “metal houses,” whose role up to that time had been to stock, promote, and sell standard and alloy steel piping products. “Metal houses” began selling a small amount of TIPS. That these distributors inventoried and sold TIPS products at all was a direct result of the efforts of CPS and other direct factory sales forces that had specified TIPS products to the engineering community.

TIP industry momentum picked up in the late l960s and early 1970s with a more focused strategy, as several enterprising associates at CPS saw an opportunity to get involved in distributing thermoplastic piping systems, mostly with core CPS products, in geographical territories they were familiar with. More than a dozen individuals left Cabot within a three- to five-year span to spearhead the movement to increase market share. See Table 2 for a listing of these and other PPDs.

By the end of the 1970s existing and newly formed PPDs had garnered approximately 85% of American TIPS sales. By 1980 sales were more than $150 million dollars yearly, with the CPS incubator distributors accounting for almost 60% percent of the total. Their success resulted from a PPD sales strategy of dealing in plastic piping systems only.  To facilitate growth, PPD owners undertook many of the typical manufacturer’s functions, such as assisting in writing specifications, giving technical seminars, being available for job start-ups and acting as the plastic authority in their geographical areas.

Also contributing to growth in the sales and use of TIPS was that nascent industries were receptive to new piping materials. Welcoming new cost-effective piping solutions were the semiconductor, electronic, photographic, metal finishing, waste and water treatment, water theme parks, aquariums, fish farms, and other high-tech and high-growth sectors.

Another boost to the TIPS industry came from the influx of innovative manufacturers, many foreign, that added a variety of new products to complete a full distributor offering of thermoplastic pipe, fittings, valves, tanks, pumps, and other products as well many different plastic piping materials.

The beginning of the 21st century has revealed a new look to the TIPS industry, with consolidations in both manufacturing and distribution. Today many of the pre-1975 manufacturers and brands are gone. Of the 31 manufacturing companies listed in Table 1, over two-thirds of them have been acquired, gone out of business or no longer offer TIPS products. A select few companies still remain as significant TIPS players each with well over 3 decades of history such as Asahi-American, George Fischer, Harvel, Hayward, LASCO, Plastinetics, Plast-O-matic and Spears. Other companies have entered the TIPS market, however, and have made an impact in the market place. Companies such as Charlotte, Cresline, Dura, George Fischer Sloane, IPEX, JM Eagle, NIBCO, Performance Pipe, Silver-Line, Saint Gobain and others have become significant TIPS players over the last three decades.

Consolidation has also changed the distributor field. Today there are approximately two dozen PPDs in the USA, with over 100 branches and with combined sales exceeding several hundred millions of dollars, but the PPD market share of TIPS (especially vinyl products), has dwindled. In 2008 the PPD estimated North American market share was down to 55% percent (30 points lower of what it was during the glory days of the 1970s and 1980s). Two dominant PPDs, Harrington Industrial Plastics and Ryan Herco Products, have grown both internally and from the acquisition of several independent PPDs, and together can claim an estimated 40% of the current yearly TIP sales in North America. In spite of being the shaping force of the TIPS market, the PPDs must contend with their market share being diminished significantly by the encroachment of large do-it-yourself home retailers, plumbing supply wholesalers and other market channels that complement their plastic piping with non-plastic piping materials in order to offer a more complete package to buyers.

In the history of the development of industrial manufactured goods, there are few stories that compare to that of the original third-party visionaries. Their foresight and energy resulted in creating and growing the sales of an entire industry. The presence and creativity of the Plastic Piping Distributors, as well, have provided vital momentum to the TIPS industry in helping it attain its significant standing in the industrial marketplace today.

David A. Chasis

Chasis Consulting Inc.

Table 1
TIPS PVF Manufacturers in North America Pre-1975

Manufacturers	Products
Alpha Plastics*	Pipe
Asahi-American	Pipe/Fittings/Valves
B.F. Goodrich*	Pipe
Borg Warner*	Pipe
Carlon	Pipe/Fittings
Celanese Piping Systems**	Pipe/Fittings/Valves
Colonial Engineering	Pipe/Fittings/Valves
E.I.DuPont*	Pipe
George Fischer	Valves
Grinnell-Saunders*	Valves
Harvel Plastics	Pipe
Hayward Plastics	Valves
Hills McCanna*	Valves
Interpace*	Valves
Jamesbury*	Valves
Johns Manville*	Pipe
Labline-Enfield*	Acid Waste Drianage Systems
LASCO	Fittings
National Pipe&Tube*	Pipe
Phillips-Driscopipe*	Pipe
Plastiline*	Fittings/Valves
Plastinetics	Fabricated Fittings
Plast-O-Matic Valves	Valves
Precision Polymers*	Pipe
Robintech*	Pipe
Ryerson*	Pipe
R&G Sloane*	Pipe/Fittings/Valves
Scepter Manufacturing*	Pipe
Spears Manufacturing	Fittings
Vulcathene*	Acid Waste Drainage Systems
Walworth Valves*	Valves

Notes for Table 1:

* Companies have been purchased by or merged into others, went out of business, or eliminated TIPS products from their offerings

**Celanese acquired CPS in 1974. NIBCO acquired the division from Celanese in 1981

Table 2
Pre-1975 Plastic Piping Specialist Distributors

Notes for Table 2:

*Distributors no longer in business

**Ex-Cabot Piping Systems associates Jim Bradley and Ralph Melvin are ex-CPS associates not shown who had critical roles in working for PPD’s