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January
2010 - news page |
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Polymer Industry
News | January
2010 |
Issue 186 |
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NEWS INDEX
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 First
Order for 2010
On 04 January 2010 Colortronic received what is believed to be the
first order for a material handling system in 2010.
The substantial order includes vacuum conveying, gravimetric blending and
granulators for closed loop recycling of regrind into the system.
“2009 saw continued investment and improvement to ensure Colortronic
customers receive the best possible service – including system design,
installation and support – and we are delighted to commence our 36th year
in business with this Order” stated Karl Miller, Managing Director,
Colortronic (UK) Limited.
Website:
www.colortronic.co.uk
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BNL New Technology Centre focuses on new capability development
 BNL
is multiplying its capability portfolio with the support of the British
Gear Association and the foundation of a New Technology Centre for
tribological research.
The recently formed New Technology Centre (NTC) at BNL is spearheading the
research, development and understanding of polymer tribology and its
application to plastic bearings and related components.
The initial focus of the NTC will be the expansion of laboratory
facilities and the development of BNL’s current capabilities, not only in
plastic bearings but also plastic shafts and polymer gears.
BNL is well known for its plastic bearing designs and products, but its
ongoing development of other technologies, such as polymer gears, is less
publicised.
BNL has worked within the field of geared products and polymer gears for a
number of years and has provided geared bearing products for customers in
markets as diverse as motor sports to security cameras, photocopiers to
window blinds.
BNL recently became a full member of the British Gear Association (BGA)
and BNL & the BGA plan to work closely together, along with other
authorities in the field, to enhance the understanding of polymer gear
engineering quality and accuracy and its application in product design.
"We were absolutely delighted when BNL decided to join the BGA this
summer", said Andy Harry, BGA Technical Executive. "We have a strong
technical relationship with BNL going back some 7 years. We look forward
to further developing this already strong relationship to work with BNL in
a number of key areas such as R&D, knowledge transfer seminars and ISO
Standards.”
Kevin Smith, New Technology Manager and BNL’s specialist in polymer gear
technology, is heading up the NTC programme.
“The support of the BGA in our development of polymer gearing is
gratefully received,” stated Kevin. “The work undertaken by the New
Technology Centre will expand BNL’s capabilities to allow us to provide
more added-value solutions per product, reducing component count and
related part, assembly and maintenance costs for our customers.”
BNL’s unique assemblies utilise the freedom of design available through
thermoplastic injection moulding techniques, to integrate features such as
bearings, clips, brackets, gears and shafts into their products.
Website:
www.bnl-bearings.com
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Foams for automotive
applications
 Toraypef®
masters the science of form and feel and re-engineers interiors with the
next generation of foams. Superior performance, luxurious soft feel, and
eco-friendly light weight deliver greater value and enhance
automakers’ brands.
Toray Plastics (America), Inc. PEF Division announces the introduction of
new ToraSoft™ closed-cell foams for all automotive interior trim
applications requiring a soft, luxurious feel, precise edges, and
exceptional rebound. New ToraSoft™ foams are up to 70 percent softer than
previous generations of Toray cross-linked olefin foams. Made with Toray’s
proprietary polyolefin resin system, the applications include armrests,
instrument panels, sun visors, glove box covers, door bolsters, door
panels, and other interior trim components. Auto industry OEMs, parts
molders, and laminators now have available to them a technologically
advanced cross-linked composite foam that offers Toray’s renowned
thermoforming capabilities along with unprecedented haptics. Never before
have Toray’s foams delivered such a plush, soft feel. Also, the
lightweight nature of ToraSoft™ foams helps manufacturers reduce the
weight of vehicles, thereby lowering fuel consumption and reducing
emissions along with costs, so vehicles will be more environment-friendly.
“The industry now has an exceptional new standard of softness and value
for automotive interior trim components,” says Jeff Lippy, General
Manager, Toray Plastics (America), Inc. PEF Division. ““An ultra-soft
feel, light weight, superior molding capabilities, and excellent
production efficiencies make ToraSoft™ foams the ideal choice for vehicle
manufacturers who seek a durable elegant cost-effective finished product
that will uphold their brand’s value and secure its customers’ perception
of quality.”
Trim component processors and Tier 1 suppliers utilizing low-pressure
molding, vacuum-forming, (including in-mold grain technology), and
compression molding processes will benefit from ToraSoft™ foams’ high
tensile properties, tear strength, thermal stability, and compression set
resistance, all of which enable processing flexibility, increased
production efficiencies, and overall lower systems costs.
When compared with urethane materials’, powder slush, and spray molding
processes, Toray’s composite materials minimize processing, which reduces
labour, lowers capital investment, and consumes less energy. ToraSoft™
foams, which can be used with existing equipment, can be delivered to
market more quickly than alternative products. There is no need to invest
in new molding technologies. In addition, ToraSoft™ foams produce lower
skin scrap during production and enable a cleaner manufacturing
environment—no release agents are needed for demolding. Overall,
ToraSoft’s™ extremely desirable haptics are matched by significantly
improved manufacturing value.
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 CeDo
leads the way in energy efficiency
Europe's leader in second-life household disposables, CeDo, has just
completed a programme of energy saving measures that are set to save the
company some 10% in energy costs at its Telford manufacturing site.
CeDo Telford is one of the largest film blowing operations in the UK: The
company deploys a total of 43 film extrusion machines and each one has
been subject to an intensive review of its energy consumption and
performance.
CeDo’s new Group Chief Executive, David Pearce says that ‘energy-saving is
a routine part of our performance now across the CeDo Group. Not only is
it good for the environment we also need it for the bottom line. The
measures which have been successfully modelled and implemented in Telford
will now be available for use in other CeDo manufacturing sites across the
world. It will be a part of my remit to assess where this work will how
happen next.’
CeDo Telford first made an ‘energy map’ of its business activities and
identified the main areas of energy consumption. Firstly, attention was
paid to the incoming materials used in processing. Utilisation of lower
energy materials enabled CeDo to reduce the corresponding processing cost.
Lower energy calcium carbonate materials feature strongly in CeDo's EcoMin
range of bin liners, David Brookes Technical Manager says "calcium
carbonate has a thermal conductivity five times greater than the
polyethylene CeDo displaces, similarly the calcium carbonate doesn't melt
at polyethylene processing temperatures, these two factors have been found
to reduce the processing energy/T of product produced by up to 10%".
Paul Merricks, CeDo Telford Project Coordinator says that ‘these alternate
materials, such as chalk additives for polymers, allowed us to run our
machines at a slow speed but whilst maintaining outputs. Slower running
naturally consumes less energy.’
CeDo Telford also paid a good deal of attention to motor selection which,
says Merricks, ‘is a critical part in any energy reduction programme. On
our extruders, for example, we are currently trialling state of the art
drive systems which deliver both an energy saving and a maintenance
saving.
CeDo Telford’s film conversion equipment have also been retrofitted with
the latest high efficiency drive motors in order to deliver a further
energy saving and a similar approach has been taken with the company’s
chillers, compressors and gas supply. Merricks says that ‘we have reduced
the amount of compressed air operated equipment, reduced the size of the
system and also perform regular air leak audits. We have also installed
high efficiency chillers to reduce chilled water energy demands.
Water-usage has also come under the CeDo Telford spotlight. By
experimenting with various elements of process control we have been able
to significantly increase the operating temperature of our water supply
within the factory yielding additional savings from reduced levels of
cooling required. Lighting at CeDo Telford has also been reviewed,
maximisation of ambient light, use of energy efficient lighting and the
installation of mix and match controllers optimises the required lighting.
CeDo is targeting a saving of some £150,000 per year based on the energy
saving measures under way. These savings feature under the continuous
improvement framework for operational efficiency of the CeDo UK facility.
Website:
www.cedo.com
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Automotive manufacturers have new source of vinyl ‘microbeads’ for
improving thin-skin interior components
Tek-Spheres™ from
Teknor Apex Offer Processing and Performance Advantages over Conventional
Vinyls Used on Instrument Panels, Headrests, and Trim Parts.
Vinyl “microbeads” now available from Teknor Apex Company provide
manufacturers of automotive instrument panels, airbag covers, and interior
trim with brilliant molded-in colour and appealing tactile properties
while being simpler to process and less energy-intensive than powder
blends and plastisols, according to Teknor Apex.
Only 0.004 in. (0.1 mm) in diameter, microbeads flow freely over the
inside of hollow molds in processes like slush molding and rotomolding.
After years of producing beads with this micro particle-size distribution
for non-automotive markets, Teknor Apex has acquired the rights to market
the beads internationally to the automotive industry through an agreement
with Bayer MaterialScience AG. Teknor Apex will supply the microbeads
under the trade name Tek-Spheres™ and can produce them in Shore A
durometers from 55 to 90.
Teknor Apex manufactures microbeads by melt compounding PVC resin with
color, plasticizer, and other additives, producing a completely
homogeneous material that melts rapidly in contact with a heated mold.
 “Molding
with Tek-Spheres microbeads is less time-consuming and energy-intensive
than with plastisols or powder blends, both of which must be fused in the
mold to be converted into fully integral solid parts,” said Steve
McCormack, manager of Teknor Apex’s Automotive Group. “The melt
compounding process for microbeads also ensures a more uniform dispersion
of color and additives, makes possible a broader range of durometers, and
provides greater scope for incorporating new ingredients, including solid
plasticizers.”
Tek-Spheres™ Provide Advantages in Molding and End Use
Of the various hollow-mold processes available for thin-skin applications
on automotive components such as instrument panels and headrests, one of
the most commonly used is slush molding, in which a partially open mold
rotates on a single axis. Another method, rotational molding, uses a
closed mold in a two-axis system. To meet the requirements of these
processes, Teknor Apex supplies Tek-Spheres products at different size
levels.
The direct product of the melt compounding method used for making Tek-Spheres
is actually minibeads, with diameters in the 0.020 to 0.060 in. (0.5 to
1.5 mm) range. This is already considerably smaller than the standard
0.125-in. (3.2 mm) pellet compound used in injection molding and
extrusion, and it is suitable for various open-mold processes, including
slush molding. In a subsequent step, Teknor Apex produces microbeads with
a particle size of 0.004 in. This smaller particle-size distribution is
more suitable for rotomolding and for slush molding applications involving
deep draw areas, severe undercuts, or fine detailing.
In contrast to these solid materials, plastisols are liquid formulations
of PVC resin in a carrier consisting primarily of plasticizer. “Microbeads
avoid a range of problems posed by plastisols,” said McCormack.
“Plastisols vary in viscosity in accordance with ambient temperature and
other mixing conditions, may contain entrapped air that causes pinholes or
voids in finished products, may undergo separation of components during
storage, can require up to three times longer for colour changeovers, and
entail use of volatile organic solvents for cleanup after spills.”
Another type of conventional vinyl material used in slush molding is that
of powder blends, highly plasticized mixtures of PVC and other additives.
“The high plasticizer content of powder blends places a limit on low-durometer
formulation, since this would require adding even more plasticizer,
preventing the material from acting as a free-flowing powder,” McCormack
said. “By comparison, achieving Shore A durometers as low as 55 is no
problem in Tek-Spheres manufacture, and our melt compounding process
leaves the door open to using alternative ingredients, such as high
molecular weight plasticizers to reduce windshield fogging.”
Website:
www.teknorapex.com
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 TOPAS
Advanced Polymers' New COC Film Grade Boasts the Industry's Lowest Glass
Transition Temperature
TOPAS® 9903D-10
COC Delivers Unique Combination of Low-Temperature Shrinkage and High
Stiffness for Film Packaging Applications
A new film extrusion grade of cyclic olefin copolymer (COC) from TOPAS
Advanced Polymers, Inc. extends the commercial glass transition
temperature range down to 33° C. TOPAS 9903D-10 is the company’s latest
film extrusion resin which delivers a unique combination of
low-temperature shrinkage, sealing, and high stiffness for a range of
shrink films and sealant films for the consumer packaging industry.
“We’ve developed a new solution for converters and packagers that
eliminates typical tradeoffs and provides low-temperature shrinkage with
high modulus,” said Timothy Kneale, president of TOPAS Advanced Polymers.
The new material is used to enhance polyolefin formulations for a range of
monolayer and multilayer packaging film applications including shrink
film, shrink sleeves and shrink labels for bottles and other consumer
packaging, and in improved sealant films for stand-up pouches.
In polyolefin blends containing 5% to 50% of the new COC, low-temperature
shrinkage and stiffness were improved significantly, resulting in better
downstream processing. In multilayer sealant films, the new material
provides excellent low-temperature sealing and high stiffness for stand-up
pouches.
TOPAS 9903D-10 boosts the performance of ultra linear-low-density PE which
is typically used in applications that require low-temperature shrinkage.
Higher stiffness is a key benefit, resulting in improved web handling and
printing operations. Shrinkage is also enhanced, but unlike most stiff
polymers, shrink force is actually reduced by the COC resin so packages
are less likely to distort or crush when wrapped.
TOPAS 9903D-10 COC resin has a melt flow index of 0.9 which is similar to
that of LLDPE grades that are used for shrink films. The material’s
tensile modulus of 100,000 psi increases when the film is oriented. TOPAS
COCs are amorphous polymers that offer high transparency, outstanding
moisture barrier, high rigidity and strength, excellent biocompatibility,
and good electrical insulation properties. This unique combination of
properties has led to TOPAS COC applications in such areas as medical
devices, food and pharmaceutical packaging, optics, and electronics.
Website:
www.topas.com
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