Plastics & Polymers

Nick Vafiadis Vice President, Global Plastics & Polymers Team Lead

Nick Vafiadis is the Vice President of the Plastics & Polymers business at Chemical Market Analytics.

Nick is a 30-year veteran of the chemical industry and manages Chemical Market Analytics’s global plastics practice. His daily responsibilities encompassed analysis, consulting, and reporting on the global polyolefins market, as well as managing the operations associated with producing and developing the report. Concurrently, he contributed to single-client projects and studies related to the polyolefins industry. In his earlier assignments, he was responsible for consulting duties associated with the Chlor-alkali and vinyl product chain. He contributed to the Monomers Market Report, the Chlor-Alkali Market Report, and the Global Plastics & Polymers Market Report.

Nick has been with IHS Markit base chemical business (now known as Chemical Market Analytics), and its predecessor CMAI since 2002. Before joining CMAI, he had spent twelve years with Vista Chemical Company (now Condea Vista Chemical Company), where he held assignments in marketing, product management, and sales management in both the vinyl and surfactant business areas. Mr. Vafiadis holds a Management BBA from The University of Texas at Austin, United States.

Anthony Palmer Vice President, Global Circular Plastic Sustainability

Anthony J. Palmer is Vice President of Chemical Market Analytics (by OPIS, a Dow Jones Company).

Mr. Palmer is responsible for the Circular Plastics & Chemicals Sustainability business for the Base Chemicals & Plastics group. In this role, he coordinates the Research & Insight activities associated with carbon emissions and plastics reuse, reduction, and recycling. Special focus involves mechanical and chemical recycling technology & economics, plastic waste supply & logistics, company ESG initiatives and strategic responses to sustainability, and macro-industry implications.

Before his current position, Mr. Palmer managed the Chemical Consulting Group at IHS Markit where he directed engagements for clients with interests in the business, technical, and financial aspects of the energy, chemicals, and related process industries. His areas of interest included strategic business management, financial and acquisition analysis, technology assessment, capital project planning, manufacturing strategy, international project development, expert witness/litigation support, and material supply strategy.

Mr. Palmer’s consulting activities focused on helping companies plan and implement business and corporate development programs worldwide. He managed numerous assignments in Asia and Latin America relating to natural gas utilization and petrochemical complex planning. His experience also comprises business valuation, debt coverage, and due diligence assignments associated with financial transactions in the process industries, and has provided support in several commercial litigation matters involving process industry participants.

In addition to his current activities, Mr. Palmer is an Adjunct Professor of Management at Connecticut State University’s Ancell School of Business Administration where he teaches courses in Strategic Management using the case analysis approach.

Mr. Palmer was a Founding Director at CPI Consulting Associates, at which time the firm’s operations were merged into Chemical Market Associates (CMAI). In 2011, IHS Markit Inc. (NYSE: INFO) acquired CMAI and formed IHS Chemical, it’s third-largest industry vertical behind Energy and Transportation.

Previously, Mr. Palmer was a Principal at Chem Systems (Nexant) and started his career at Exxon Corporation. He holds both Bachelor’s and Master’s Degrees in Chemical Engineering from Manhattan College, and an MBA in Finance and International Business from Fordham University.

Robin Waters Executive Director, Global Circular Plastics Sustainability

Robin Waters serves as Executive Director of Chemical Market Analytics focused on planning and analysis for the advisory services that cover polyethylene and polypropylene.

Mr. Waters brings more than three decades of industry experience to his role as Director of plastics planning and analysis. His responsibilities at Chemical Market Analytics cover polyethylene and polypropylene, including support for both market advisory services as well as single client projects and studies related to polyolefins. He served as project lead for “Plastics Pathway to Sustainability”, the multiclient study on plastics sustainability issued in November 2018 and is project lead for “Changing Course: Plastics, carbon and the transition to circularity” an expanded multi-client study on plastics sustainability to be issued in 2020. Mr. Waters joined Chemical Market Analytics in 2012 as Director of Polyolefins-North America. Previously, he was with LyondellBasell in commercial management roles in polyethylene and polypropylene for 15 years, including new business startups and third-party marketing agreements, regional sales management, strategic planning, and contract management. He began his career at DuPont, initially as a business analyst for supporting the global elastomers business followed by technical, sales, and business management assignments for a variety of films and resins in packaging markets. Mr. Waters holds a Bachelor of Science in chemistry from the University of Georgia and an MBA from the University of Miami, both in the United States.

Brendan Dooley Executive Director, Global Engineering Plastics

Brendan Dooley is the Executive Director of the Engineering Plastics service at Chemical Market Analytics

He has 30 years of industry experience in mostly commercial roles including business leadership roles across Europe and North America for global-scale producers of polycarbonate, ABS, nylon, PBT, and other engineering polymers. Brendan is a chemical engineer with graduate studies in economics and finance; he joined IHS Markit base chemicals business (now known as Chemical Market Analytics) in 2015 and has provided content for publications to Chemical Engineering News, Plastics Engineering, Chemical Week, and contributes to private client consulting projects about engineering plastics markets.

Joel Morales Vice President, Global Plastics & Polymers | North America Polyethylene & Polypropylene

Joel Morales is the Vice President at Chemical Market Analytics by OPIS, a Dow Jones company.

Joel joined the IHS Markit base chemicals business (now known as Chemical Market Analytics), in March 2013, covering Polyethylene (PE) and Polypropylene (PP) in North America. He is currently the service leader of three market advisory subscription services: The Global Plastics and Polymers Report, the North American PE Report, and the North American PP report. He has brought a wealth of industry knowledge to IHS Markit through multiple stints along the plastics value chain.

He began his career with polyolefins manufacturer, Solvay Polymers, which later became Ineos, in technical services and product development before he moved into field sales. After five years at Solvay Polymers, Joel moved into resin distribution sales for both Muehlstein and then United Polychem as a Product Manager, where he managed and sold polyethylene and polypropylene resins into various customer segments. In his most recent role prior to joining IHS Markit, Joel was a purchasing manager for Silgan Plastics, a major blow-molding, and injection molding plastics converter. Joel graduated from The Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1999 with a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering and a minor in psychology.

Utpal Sheth Executive Director, Asia Plastics & Polymer

Utpal Sheth serves as the Executive Director for Research and Analysis at Chemical Market Analytics

Mr. Sheth led the regional Plastics Team in Singapore. He brings with him extensive industry experience and knowledge of 28 years in Asia and the Middle East. As a part of his current assignment, apart from leading the Weekly Regional Plastics Service, he contributes to various Market Advisory services as well as supports various consulting activities as an expert in the Polyolefins business.

He joined CMAI (now division of Chemical Market Analytics) as Director of Polyolefins / PVC for the Middle East and Indian Subcontinent at our Dubai office in October 2007. In July 2014, he has relocated to Singapore to lead the Plastics Service in Asia – Middle East. Prior to joining CMAI, Utpal had worked in the Sales and Marketing functions at Petrochemical Companies in India and the Middle East.

He is a Plastics Engineer and Master in Business Administration (Marketing). Apart from English, he can communicate in Hindi and Gujarati.

Alan Wei Executive Director, China Polyolefins (Mandarin)

Alan Wei is the Executive Director for China Polyolefins at Chemical Market Analytics.

Alan joined IHS Markit base chemicals business (now known as Chemical Market Analytics) in 2021 as China Polyolefins’ Research and Analysis Director.

He has more than 14 years of experience in the plastics industry, working in leading producers and distribution companies, and holding a variety of responsibilities including sales, marketing, and technical management.

Martin Wiesweg Executive Director, EMEA Plastics

Mr. Wiesweg is the Executive Director for EMEA Plastics at Chemical Market Analytics

Mr. Wiesweg contributed to various consultancy projects since joining the IHS Markit base chemicals business (now known as Chemical Market Analytics). Several projects consisted of a thorough and extensive market analysis of European polymer markets for potential suppliers. Also, Martin contributed to projects assessing competitive positions of polymers for associations of polymers.

In 1989 Martin joined Huels AG as Product Developing Manager for flame retardant polystyrene and became Technical Service Manager in 1992. In 1998 Martin joined BP Chemicals as a result of the acquisition of Huels styrenics activities by BP. Within BP Chemicals he has had many different responsibilities in the commercial departments, e.g. as European Sales Manager for Polystyrene, Distribution & Export Manager, and Marketing Manager for polystyrene and EPS.

In 2005 Martin moved into the polymer JV Ineos Nova and became the commercial director for polystyrene specialties, responsible for the purchase, sales, technical service, and product development.