Floor coverings, drainage pipes, cable insulation, window frames, shower curtains, rubber boots - many everyday items are made from polyvinyl chloride (PVC). The study traces the career of the first fully synthetic thermoplastic material, developed by IG Farbenindustrie AG in the 1930s, which ushered in the plastic age in the 1950s and has faced criticism as a health and environmental issue since the mid-1960s. The tumultuous history of PVC is used as a case study to explore the relationship between the techno-economic and socio-political modernization of West Germany. The book addresses a problem in the research of the Federal Republic from a history of technology perspective and identifies a systematic intertwining: post-war society relied heavily on PVC.