Multimaterial on the move

Gram Technology Inc. (Scottsdale, AZ) has tapped Hermann Plank''s experience and knowledge of multimaterial molding to help promote its patented Spin Stack rotating core tool technology as the company''s new VP of sales and marketing. Plank left custom molder/moldmaker The Tech Group (Scottsdale, AZ), a Spin Stack licensee, to join Gram. Prior to joining Tech Group, Plank worked for machinery manufacturer Milacron.

The Spin Stack technology has found applications in a variety of markets by enabling overmolding, inmold assembly, and combinations of molding with secondary operations like painting, welding, and filling. Growth and interest have been sufficient to add Plank, and the company is also planning on hiring several industrial designers to create new products using the technology and provide engineering support to existing customers, which include Nypro and Juno along with Tech.

Norway''s Polymoon goes public; buys blowmolder

In late April, the Oslo, Norway-based processor Polymoon started trading on the Oslo stock exchange, with funds raised likely to help the firm continue its path of acquisitions across Europe. The processor''s latest purchase, in mid-March, was of Italian blowmolder Ciplast.

Polymoon says the purchase is another step in its strategy to build a pan-European package processing network for the consumer, medical, and chemical industries. Ciplast''s 2004 net sales were almost €6 million.

In mid-2004 Polymoon bought a facility in France from Graham Packaging; in 2003 it acquired injection and blowmolder Fibrenyle in England, from Alcan.

Polymoon was formed in 1999 and now, with Ciplast, has twenty sites spread across Europe. Packaging is its primary market but it also processes automotive parts and medical products. Total annual sales for 2003 were €300 million. The firm has more than 315 blowmolding and 200 injection molding machines, plus thermoforming and rotomolding equipment.

Blowmolded seat backs replace steel

Dow Automotive has, with a European OEM partner, developed blowmolded PC/ABS seat backs for rear seats in passenger cars. This application has been of interest in the blow molding community for some years (see March 2002 issue of MPW). These have already passed the ECE 17 luggage retention tests. Replacing steel seat backs, the blowmolded ones save about 2 to 3 kg per sedan rear seat compared to the incumbent material, steel, says Roland Janssen, market manager plastics-Europe. Plastics also offer greater design freedom.

Serial production starts on a 2006 model-year vehicle that will be marketed globally, says Janssen. Subsuppliers to the OEM will include a blowmolder as well as a seat integrator. Notable is that the plastics seats can be inserted directly into a polyurethane foaming tool and foamed directly, impossible with steel seat backs. The application is patented by Dow. A similar application is coming in the U.S. this year, he says, but notes the testing standards for the part there are not as strict.

Targeting medium-volume thermoformed auto parts

Consultancy Lotus Engineering (Norfolk, England) and German processor Jacob Composite GmbH say they are now working on the Ecolite (Efficient Composites-Lightweight and Thermoformed) program, whose goal is the development of a typical medium-volume passenger car with a chassis structure and body panels produced predominantly from composite materials. Composite parts for structural applications typically suffer from high per-unit costs and slow cycle times that confine their use to premium ultralow-volume products.

Steve Swift, head of vehicle engineering at Lotus Engineering, says, "We anticipate the new production techniques will require much less investment than metal stamping tools and also offer cycle times faster than current manufacturing methods for structural composite materials." He expects

The Ecolite project aims to develop a range of composite technologies with polyamide, PBT (polybutylene terephthalate), and polystyrene matrices, all glass-fiber reinforced. The nine-month first phase of the collaborative research program, scheduled for completion this October, concentrates on the crash performance of the front-end module of a family hatchback car.

A composite front end will be subjected to a range of tests to assess the structure''s performance against its steel. The project''s second phase expands the research to the entire car structure and body. The goal is to prove a business case for production volumes in the region of 30,000 to 50,000 units/yr.

Jacob Composite GmbH is a subsidiary of Manfred Jacob Kunststofftechnik GmbH, with both based in Wilhelmsdorf, Germany. Manfred Jacob was profiled in the magazine''s March issue as one of our 25 most notable processors.

Polish packaging demand could stimulate processing sector

Packaging market in Poland, as estimated in tonnes, grew by approximately 9% in 2003, the latest figures available from the Polish Information and Foreign Investment Agency (PAIZ, Warsaw). The continued high rate of growth is attributed to general improvement of consumption. However the country is starting from a small base with per capita packaging consumption not exceeding 90 kg/yr. Western Europe is twice that amount.

Plastics packaging comes in second in terms of value with 28% of the total. Paper and paperboard is first with 31%. Currently Poland has a fairly high amount of imported plastics packaging, 38%, coming mainly from Germany, Italy, Britain, and France, reports PAIZ. In terms of value of all packaging imports in 2003, plastics took the biggest chunk with 48%. Polish processors saw 36% of their packaging output going abroad, mainly to markets in Russia, Lithuania, Czech Republic, and Germany.

Demag working with research centers

Injection molding machinery supplier Demag Plastics Group (Strongsville, OH) has donated machinery to Pennsylvania State University (Erie, PA) and West Georgia Technical College (LaGrange, GA). The 50-ton multi-injection press at Erie and the 110-ton all-electric IntElect at West Georgia will be made available to Demag for mold trials and machine demonstrations when they aren''t in use by the schools.

Demag also has announced its work with the Spanish plastics technology center TCTP (Tein Centro Tecnológico del Plástico S. L., in Valls, about 90 km from Barcelona). TCTP is opening in June with the goal of better matching research efforts with industry needs and demands. The center will be outfitted with four Demag machines, all with automation from Wittmann.

Westland gives Reiloy an outlet in the U.S.

Screw and barrel manufacturer Westland (Wichita, KS) is now cooperating with barrel manufacturer Reiloy. Westland will make bimetallic barrels based on Reiloy cast barrel blanks, and stock these to meet demand. Westland says the cooperation helps it supply bimetallic barrels faster.

Reiloy is a division of extruder manufacturer Reifenhauser Group, located in Troisdorf, Germany. Reiloy barrel blanks are commonly used in Europe and Asia; working with Westland could gain them a U.S. following, reckons Reiloy.

Toray opens Malaysian tech center

Toray Industries has opened a tech center on the Malaysian island of Penang at its ABS resin manufacturing and sales subsidiary, Toray Plastics Malaysia (TPM). Currently the center is operated by a team of 22 staff members. TPM manufactures ABS resin at a 220,000-tonne/yr facility in Penang. TPM will eventually become Toray''s main base for engineering plastic technology development for the ASEAN region.

Toray is currently expanding its range on compounds to include more paintable grades, flame retardant grades, heat-resistant grades and glass-fiber-reinforced grades. It will also start production of PBT resin at a 60,000-tonne/yr joint venture with BASF in Kuantan, Malaysia, in 2006.

Medical parts molder expands

Medical and technical parts device molder SMC Ltd. Molding and Manufacturing (Somerset, WI) in mid-March opened a new facility in Amery, near its headquarters, to boost its capacity. The new 80,000-sq-ft manufacturing facility is supplemented by an additional 20,000-sq-ft warehouse.

SMC says it designed its new plant "using focused factory work cell modules with project specific machine placements." The facility will be highly automated and include cleanroom assembly.

Amcor develops new breed of PET bottle

Bottle blowmolder Amcor (Manchester, MI) now offers a PET bottle with panel-less design and no ribs that can withstand the vacuum created after hot filling at temperatures up to about 105 deg C. After the bottle is capped, the filled liquid cools, creating an internal vacuum that must be dissipated structurally, i.e. via the package.

The newly designed package is called PowerFlex, a reflection of the flexing that takes place following filling. Amcor offers limited details but says PowerFlex bottles feature a proprietary diaphragm in the base of the container. This diaphragm draws upward from the base as the liquid cools, so that vacuum distortion occurs only in the base. Initially the company will be targeting 16- and 20-oz applications, but will look at developing beverage packaging ranging from 8- to 32-oz. Initially, the PowerFlex bottles will be produced at Amcor''s Allentown, PA plant.

Amcor and its competitors, notably Graham Packaging, have raced to eliminate heat panels on the sides of hot-fillable PET bottles. These panels require extra material, driving up package costs. Ribs, the first design feature used to eliminate the panels, make for poor adhesion of labels. Amcor claims its PowerFlex package is the first with a large, completely smooth label panel and no ribbing. The bottles run on filling lines set up for traditional (with panels) hot-filled PET bottles.

Let there be light-in plastics

Konarka Technologies Inc. (Lowell, MA), which develops plastics that convert light to energy, and Evident Technologies (Troy, NY), focused on quantum dot development and applications, announced a collaborative research effort to increase the sensitivity of plastic solar cells to a wider range of the light spectrum. Using Konarka''s proprietary polymers and Evident''s quantum dots, the team is developing novel materials that improve the overall performance of power plastic.

"This collaboration is focused on determining the best materials to capture more light and how to manufacture them outside the lab environment," said Russell Gaudiana, Ph.D., VP of Konarka''s R&D. Evident''s proprietary EviDotsT, which are high-performance semiconductor nanocrystals active throughout the visible spectrum and into the near-infrared, are being combined with Konarka''s conductive polymers to create ultrahigh-performance solar cells that exceed the capabilities of today''s best silicon-based technologies.

Kifco boosts buckle production

Korea Industrial Fastener Corp. (Kifco; Chonan City), a subsidiary of Japan''s Nifco Inc., Tokyo, plans to set up a plant near Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, for molding plastic buckles, closures, and other plastic items used in the clothing industry. Kifco Vietnam will be 100% owned by Kifco and all its output will be used in clothing for export. Sales of around $1.5 million are targeted for 2008.

SPI recognizes thermoformed innovations

The Society of the Plastics Industry (SPI) announced the winners of its Thermoforming Institute National Awards (TINA) for 2005. Top winner was Gage Industries of Lake Oswego, OR, which entered a one-way, front-opening shipping box into the heavy-gauge electronics category. Gage uses twin-sheet thermoforming and cleanroom assembly for the box, which is used for transporting silicon wafers.

The only competition of its kind for custom thermoformers in the nation, SPI''s TINA program is open to members of SPI''s Thermoforming Institute. The entries must be a production item-not a prototype-and must be a custom design.

The other 2005 "TINA" winners are:

Heavy Gauge Categories:

Medical: Comfort Scan Covers, Kintz Plastics Inc. (Howes Cave, NY)

Consumer: Replicated Rock, The Fabri-Form Co. (New Concord, OH)

Electronics: 1-Way Front Opening Shipping Box, Gage Industries, Inc. (Lake Oswego, OR)

Industrial: Pie Plate Plenum, Kintz Plastics Inc. (Howes Cave, NY)

Light Gauge Categories:

Food Packaging: Ten Inch Wedge Clamshell with Vents, Plastic Ingenuity Inc. (Cross Plains, WI)

Industrial: 70 Cavity Injector Tray, Innovative Plastech Inc. (Batavia, IL)

Consumer: State Quarter Clamshell, Plastic Ingenuity Inc. (Cross Plains, WI)

Medical: Resting Heart System Package, Prent Corp. (Janesville, WI)

Electronics: Microsoft for Mac, Transparent Container Co. (Berkeley, IL)

The awards were announced during the Institute''s annual winter meeting, held March 13 to 16 in Naples, FL.

New grade of thermoformable nylon

Ensinger/PennFibre, the thin-gauge extrusion division of Ensinger Industries and maker of high-performance forming materials, has broadened its thermoformable nylon offerings with the addition of Pennite 4512, a 12% glass-fiber-reinforced PA6. It is thermally and impact modified, and black pigmented for service applications. According to the supplier, Pennite 4512 also exhibits improved strength, stiffness, and creep resistance compared to other nylons used in thermoforming and fabrication. It comes in sheet and roll form, in thicknesses of .010 inch (.25 mm) to .250 inch (6.35 mm) in standard and custom widths up to 50 inches (1250 mm).

Mice clicks help build African water project

The European polymer producers association PlasticsEurope (Brussels) together with the charity WaterAir are hoping processors and others in the plastics community will click the Aquaplastics 2005 website (www.aquaplastics.org) through June 22. Each mouse click results in a €.10 donation toward installing a potable and wastewater system as well as health education for one of the poorest regions of Ethiopia. PlasticsEurope is hoping for 1.5 million clicks, which would result in €150,000 for building the water project. WaterAid reports more than 1 billion people, or every sixth person in the world, lack adequate clean water.

California legislature considers bisphenol A ban

Politicians in California are considering a bill that would eliminate bisphenol A, common to polycarbonate baby bottles, epoxy canned food liners, and some water containers. If passed, the state would be the first to limit its use. Politicians are reacting to recent research that found that bisphenol A levels at or below federal safety guidelines can disrupt the hormone systems of lab animals. The result is disruption of the working of the brain, says Thomas Zoeller, a scientist at University of Massachusetts, one of the authors of the research.

Assembly woman Wilma Chan of Oakland introduced the bill in February which would prohibit the production or sale of any product intended for use by children three years or younger if it contains bisphenol A. The same bill would also ban toys with certain phthalate plasticizers. Chan two years ago pushed a ban on two types of fire retardants through the legislature. The American Plastics Council maintains the amount of bisphenol A leaching from such children''s products is negligible and opposes her bill.

Extruma extrusion show off to limited start

The attempt to begin an extrusion show in Frankfurt in February by Demat, organizers of EuroMold, saw far fewer than the hoped for 150 exhibitors at the first Extruma. Demat reports that 70 showed up, but those included technical colleges and other institutions not marketing extrusion equipment. Only one internationally sold brand of film extrusion equipment, Gruppo Colines (Nibbia, Italy), participated. Others included auxiliaries manufacturers and specialties companies.

Reportedly 1200 visitors attended the show on the three days. Admittedly some exhibitors told MPW they were satisfied with the turnout and felt they were less lost than participation at large international shows such as the K in Düsseldorf or Plast in Milan, Italy. The organizers did not give a confirmation that the show will take place in 2006. Demat reports, "[Holding] the show [again], despite its success, needs to be critically considered."

Another new show the extrusion sector won''t need to rush to is, or was, Xtrusa, which was planned for June 14 to 16 in Nuremberg, Germany. Organizers fairXperts (Neuffen, Germany) who had planned to create an extrusion show for more than plastics now have junked the idea and cancelled the event due to lack of interest. "The most important group for an event of this sort, namely the extrusion equipment manufacturers, is plainly unwilling to support a new trade fair," reports Hartmut Herdin from fairXperts, citing his visit to Extruma as evidence.

SPI, OSHA, and processor work on safety film

The Society of the Plastics Industry (SPI) and the Occupational Health Administration (OSHA) Alliance Implementation Team met on February 7 and 8 at Buckell Plastics Co. Inc. (Lewistown, PA) for a two-day workshop that included filming by Paul Murphy from OSHA/Cipher Systems, Salt Lake City, UT.

The Virtual Tour of a Thermoforming Machine is a 360-degree interactive multimedia tour of Buckell''s thermoforming equipment for use as a training tool for the plastics industry. It will be featured on OSHA''s website with their machine guarding eTools. The Virtual Tour includes best practices developed by Buckell for Machine Guarding and Lockout-Tagout training. The Team met again at the OSHA Office of Training and Education in Chicago to edit and finalize this alliance product on February 16 and 17.

SPI and OSHA entered into an alliance in 2002 to promote a safe and healthy work environment in plastics facilities by providing employers in the plastics industry with information and guidance that will help them protect employees, specifically identifying and eliminating hazards in their work environment. Buckell has worked with the Alliance in developing machine safety training courses for roll-fed thermoforming.

More information is available online at www.plasticsindustry.org/public/worksafe/alliance.htm.

New Zealand firm to develop CBT rotomolding market

New Zealand''s ICO Courtenay, Auckland, has entered into an agreement with Cyclics Corp. (Schenectady, NY) to be the distributor for CBT resin for rotational molding applications in New Zealand, Australia, and Malaysia. Cyclics'' CBT resins are a line of PBT resin systems that polymerize reactively like thermosets but have the material properties of thermoplastics. ICO Courtenay sees potential for CBT resin in a variety of rotationally molded products including electrical enclosures, swimming pool filter housings, spa tubs, and kayaks. Cyclics already has agreements in other regions for developing its materials for the rotomolding market.

Compared to polyethylene, CBT resin shows significant improvements in strength, stiffness, hardness, temperature capabilities, and surface finish. CBT resin can be filled with various materials like fiberglass and colored quartz to extend the range of physical properties and visual effects. The ability to paint and bond parts using adhesives are also promising areas under development.

Report: large-diameter pipe

The Freedonia Group Inc., a market research firm based in Cleveland, OH, released its new study on U.S. Large Diameter Pipe. The study shows that large-diameter pipe demand in the U.S. is forecast to increase 2.4% yearly to nearly 208 million feet in 2009, valued at $8 billion. Advances will be stimulated by population growth, an aging pipe infrastructure, clean water and other regulations, and concerns over the safety of drinking water. Although concrete pipe will remain dominant due to material advantages such as structural integrity, durability, and high compression and pressure resistance in demanding underground applications, plastic pipe will present the best opportunities, based on performance improvements and cost and installation advantages over other materials, the report states. To obtain the 203-page report ($4,100), see www.freedoniagroup.com.

Plastics by the bushel

BP''s newly separate Olefins & Derivatives petrochemicals unit has entered into a two-year joint-development program with biotechnology company Metabolix Inc. (Cambridge, MA) to further develop that company''s crop-based polymer, PHA Natural Plastics. The material is derived from grasses with high levels of naturally grown polymers, and the biomass by-product left over from polymer production is converted to energy. The biodegradable resin has been used in films, fibers, adhesives, coatings, and molded goods.

BP continues to weigh options for unloading its petrochemicals business with an initial public offering remaining alternative. BP reports that the spun-off unit would be a $15 billion business and one of the five largest petrochemical companies in the world.

In Brief

BASF (Ludwigshafen, Germany) is boosting North American plasticizer output with a $60 million investment at its Pasadena, TX site. When completed in the second half of next year the company will end its tolling agreement at Sunoco''s Neville Island, PA facility.

Sumitomo Chemical plans to set up an operation in Southern China to produce polypropylene (PP) compounds for automotive applications. Sumika Polymer Compounds (Zhuhai) Co. will be a joint venture of Sumitomo Chemical (55%) and Toyo Ink Manufacturing (45%) that will start up in mid-2006 with 10,000 tonne/yr of capacity in Zhuhai, Guangdong Province. Capacity will later be boosted to 20,000 tonne/yr.

DuPont Packaging & Industrial Polymers (P&IP; Wilmington, DE) has acquired an equity stake and marketing agreement with identif GmbH of Erlangen, Germany, which develops security and anti-counterfeiting solutions for plastics packaging.

Polyolefins producer Basell (Hoofddorp, Netherlands) has acquired 50% ownership of Argentina''s Petroken Petroquimica, which is currently held by its joint-venture partner, Repsol-YPF. Petroken operates a 180,000-tonne/yr-capacity polypropylene facility in Ensenada, Argentina.

Munchy, the U.K''s largest manufacturer of plastic recycling machinery, has added Alan Ward as sales manager and James Langford as senior design engineer. Ward is responsible for Munchy sales for the U.K, Europe, and other key markets, plus running the firm''s global network of sales agents.

Machinery manufacturer Totani Corp. (Kyoto, Japan) has established Totani America Inc. for the sales and service of Totani machinery and replacement parts. The wholly owned subsidiary of Totani Corp. will be directed by Michael Greely, senior VP/sales manager, at its Green Bay, WI, headquarters. Totani is a major supplier of pouch- and bag-making machines for the flexible-packaging industry.

A new national association of polymer producers, PlasticsEurope Polska, has been founded in Poland. The start is part of PlasticsEurope''s (formerly APME) push to organize and represent the interests of newly joined members to the EU from Eastern Europe.

People

Packaging processor Klöckner Pentaplast (Montabaur, Germany) has a new president and chief operating officer for Europe and Asia, Joachim Kreuzburg.

Gert Kain has been appointed managing director of processing equipment manufacturer Maplan (Ternitz, Austria). He replaces Richard Müssler who moves to the parent company Starlinger & Co./Austria. Kain was previously division manager of the company''s rubber injection molding machine business.

Linpac Group has named Andrew Creese, managing director of Linpac Plastics, to the Group board. Creese has been with Linpac for over five years. Last year former Linpac group CEO David Williams left over a disagreement about future plans under Montagu Private Equity (London), which acquired Linpac in 2003.

Korbinian Kiesel, formerly head of extruder maker Berstorff''s operations in North America, is now running injection molding machine manufacturer Billion (Oyonnax, France). Both machine makers are part of the MPM Group that also includes Demag Plastics Group, Netstal and Krauss-Maffei. Charles Chevant, Billion''s previous director, is now the firm''s sales director.

Michael Evitts, formerly GM of John Deere''s US$1.3 billion tractor operation in GA, has joined Husky Injection Molding System (Bolton, ON) as VP, machines, responsible for Husky''s complete portfolio of injection molding machines