Thomas J. Long
Formed Plastics
Inducted 2011
A pioneer in the field of plastics processing, Thomas J. Long (1915 – 2004) founded the Thomas J. Long Corporation in 1946. Located on Long Island, New York, the firm was renamed Formed Plastics Corporation in 1975. From the beginning, Long championed the early adoption of new technology for the business. In 1959, the company added blow molding and thermoforming to its specialties and became one of the first companies to adopt Computer Numerical Control (CNC) machining of plastics.
In the early 1960s, Formed Plastics became the first company to develop a vandal-resistant plastic globe for the lighting industry when its local utility, Long Island Lighting Company, sought help with rampant vandalism of its system’s more than 20,000 glass “acorn” globes. Formed Plastics developed a two-piece globe made of butyrate material that involved a thermoformed canopy and a transfer blow-molded bottom. The utility was thrilled with the performance of the new plastic globe and made it the standard for their entire system. Utilities nationwide soon demanded Formed Plastics’ proprietary line of plastic light globes.
Long purchased the first rotational molding machine for his company in 1961. It was the second carousel-type rotational molding machine built by the McNeil Company. This enabled Formed Plastics to produce plastic globes in one piece. The company introduced a line of rotationally molded plastic spheres and acorn globes produced from butyrate, polycarbonate, and polyethylene. Formed Plastics was also the first company to rotateally mold polycarbonate light bulbs. Formed Plastics became the longest-running rotational molding company in the world.
Long was one of the founders of the Association of Rotational Molders and attended the formational meeting in 1976. His company was one of 14 that contributed seed money to start up the association – an organization that gave the fledgling process of rotational molding some much-needed credibility.
As a testament to his dedication, generosity in sharing his knowledge, and his contributions to the rotational molding industry, Long was inducted into the first class of the Association of Rotational Molders Hall of Fame in 1997. In addition, in October of that year, Formed Plastics received the association’s first Organizational Service Award for its “generous support and contributions to the Association of Rotational Molders.”
Areas of Expertise:
Plastics processing, Business management