Our Team
Lou Tacito, CEO and Founder of Plastics Forming Enterprises
Since 1984, Lou Tacito didn’t know that a Plastics Engineering Degree from University of Lowell (Formerly Lowell Technological Institute) would lead to a pioneering effort to the ever-changing Plastics Recycling Industry. Lou is the son of immigrant parents from Italy who had a corner store in the Boston area and was raised as a butcher’s son and was taught to be a responsibility addict and have great respect for others. They didn’t know what an education would actually consist of or lead to but they knew to survive and be successful “you need an education”.
The 42 year career path started in 1975 working for the largest chemical and packaging companies of Monsanto, ICI (Imperial Chemical) and Continental Can Company in the R and D he became part of the team that discovered and developed the PET Bottle for the new carbonated soft drink bottles for Coke and Pepsi. Then Continental Can Company’s PET Technology Division developed and commercialized 10 plants in 18 months and the PET Packaging Industry was born. The rest is history.
Plastics Forming was started in 1984, with the mission to develop the plastics recycling industry for PET bottles. Today PFE has evolved into the development of other plastics to be recycled such as but not limited to PE, PP and films. As time has passed and experiences gained, the baton is being handed to the next generation of the family business.
Kristi Tacito-Hansen, President of Plastics Forming Enterprises
Kristi Tacito, daughter of Louis, is an integral part of the future developments of the Plastics Recycling Industry. She leads a number of committees involved with the design for recycling and testing protocols in (APR) North America, (ECOCE) South America and (EPBP and Recyclass) Europe. She provides package designers with good business recyclability decisions due to the mentoring form Louis and his team of advisors, but also her Industrial Design degree from Wentworth Institute of Technology. She admits her success has only been possible with the support of the plastics recycling leaders and friends of the business over 30 plus years. “Recycling is a big industry but a small world!”