British Plastics & Rubber articles from February 2008

British Plastics & Rubber archives from February 2008

Conferences & exhibitions.(Calendar)
February 1, 2008... Applications--automotive May 14-18 Plastics-In-Motion. Conference in Prague, Czech Republic. Executive Conference Management, +1 734 73737 0507 (fax +1 734 737 0508). [e-mail] ecm@executiveconference.com [website]...

Energy savings and efficiency: how different drying technologies compare.(materials handling)
February 1, 2008... ENERGY costs are a drain on profitability for any plastics processor who dries material using conventional equipment. High levels of power consumption are required not only for drying the polymer but also for regenerating the desiccant. In the...

Basic dryers from Colortronic.(materials handling)
February 1, 2008... DRY FLEX dryers from Colortronic are now built to the company's "EFR" concept which eliminates the non value-added items to reduce costs. The modular design also allows the units to be tailored to suit a range of applications. Features of...

Bigger dryers for high volume processing.(materials handling)
February 1, 2008... LUXOR dryers from Motan have been increased in size to handle the throughputs of large injection moulding machines or extrusion lines. The new Luxor 1800 and 2400 give 1,800 and 2,400 [m.sup.3]/h of dry air, doubling the performance of this...

Plast-Control adds stand-alone blenders.(materials handling)
February 1, 2008... PLAST-CONTROL is perhaps best-known for its blown film extrusion control systems with integrated material throughput control. But it is now supplying stand-alone batch blending systems, and has recently sold two of them to Nelson Packaging. ...

Disc dosing 'best for small quantities'.(materials handling)
February 1, 2008... COLORTRONIC has introduced a loss-in-weight gravimetric masterbatch doser. The Colorblend G uses the company's established synchronous disc dosing unit which Colortronic says comes into its own when dosing 1-2 additives, in particular when...

Blender designed with fluff in mind.(materials handling)
February 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] A GRAVIMETRIC blender able to dispense up to 12 components with special provision for low bulk density regrind has been introduced by Moretto. The DGM Gravix 1080 can have eight double-lid hoppers and four...

Materials handling on show.(materials handling)
February 1, 2008... AN exhibition focusing on solids handling will be running at the NEC in Birmingham from March 11 to 12. easyFairs Solids will have a learnShop seminar programme which will include topics on designs for good hopper discharge, bulk solid level...

Gravimetric masterbatch dosing means no calibration.(materials handling)
February 1, 2008... PIOVAN has extended its MDP masterbatch doser line with a loss-in-weight gravimetric doser, the MDP2-G. As the dosing station is now installed on a load cell the user no longer has to perform a precalibration test: the feedback from the...

Hopper loader redesign is more than skin is more than skin deep.(materials handling)
February 1, 2008... THE Wittmann Feedmax hopper loader, which has been in the range for 30 years, has been redesigned. The slanted centre section makes it look very different, but Wittmann says it also increases functionality. By slanting the cylindrical part...

Load-managing power controller cuts electricity cost.(energy efficiency)
February 1, 2008... EUROTHERM's new EPower power controller incorporates an innovative predictive load management function (PLM) which the company says makes EPower highly effective in managing power demand. Applications that have traditionally used resistive...

RoHS compliant extruder pressure transmitters.(process control)
February 1, 2008... GEFRAN's new impact series pressure transmitters use a silicon-on-insulator (SOI) sensing element that allows the process-contact membrane to be up to 15 times thicker than conventional melt pressure sensors. The company used...

Fibre lasers offer new potential for plastics welding and marking.(finishing)
February 1, 2008... FIBRE lasers are making their mark, both figuratively and literally, on plastics. The fibre laser uses the same photon-pumping principle as other lasers but has some special and useful advantages. It is based on what is essentially a...

Marking specialist adds laser technologies.(finishing)
February 1, 2008... PRODUCT Marking Solutions of Slough has added laser marking to its range of hot foil and pad printing equipment. The company has also expanded into programming for automation and controls for in-line integration to enable it to provide turn key...

New paint technology enables application line size to be reduced.(finishing)
February 1, 2008... DANISH painting system specialist JHM-Moldow has developed what it says is probably the smallest stand-alone compact paint line on the market, and will introduce it at PaintExpo in Karlsruhe, Germany, from March 11-14. The painting booth...

KM claims greater precision for air bag scoring.(finishing)
February 1, 2008... ROBOTIC system to improve the accuracy and repeatability of the scoring process for the air bag compartment of vehicle dashboards has been developed by KraussMaffei. The scoring process weakens the wall thickness of the surface skin--usually a...

New large part trimming options from KMT.(finishing)
February 1, 2008... NEW water jet and CNC trimming systems have been introduced by KMT Robotic Solutions. The Cutting Box Original V becomes the company's top-of-the-range system for three-dimensional, pure water jet cutting applications. It is a turnkey...

Ink jet printing enables product personalisation.(finishing)
February 1, 2008... A LONGSIDE its traditional business of making pad printing machines, and more latterly laser writing and engraving machines, Tampoprint is now also building ink jet systems, and it has combined two machines from its DMD EP series to form what...

Pressurised ionised air keeps HUM bumpers clean for painting.(finishing)
February 1, 2008... JETSTREAM from Meech International is an ionising air knife system designed primarily for contamination removal. It is used widely in the automotive industry to improve paint quality on plastic components and increase first time pass rates. One...

New wood-effect process for uPVC profiles.(finishing)
February 1, 2008... ITALIAN company Decoral System, a supplier of plants for applying wood finishes to aluminium extrusions by its sublimation process, has developed new technology for uPVC extrusions. Its Horizon process uses a special paint to apply UV resistant...

Paint photoluminescence lasts all night.(finishing)
February 1, 2008... A COMPANY in Turkey has developed a water-based photoluminescent paint that it says will glow all night with the energy it absorbs and stores from ambient light during the day. The paints comply with or exceed the photoluminescent paint...

Print pads move around the moulding.(finishing)
February 1, 2008... PAD printing machines for marking surfaces at different angles on large components have been introduced by Kent International of Canada (UK agent Tampo). The PPD series machine is intended for large moulded parts such as lawn mower covers,...

Thermal marking machine can apply variable data.(finishing)
February 1, 2008... A HOT foiling machine that can apply variable data is now available from PBE Marking Systems. The Coditherm machine, built by Eidos in Italy, has four methods of applying an image depending on the product to be marked, which can range from...

In-machine cliche production makes pad printing more flexible.(finishing)
February 1, 2008... A PAD printing machine which has built-in laser-writing of the cliches for rapid job change has been developed by Tampoprint. In the Hybrid 90-2 the Alfalas laser burns the cliche images on to a plastic belt which then indexes into position...

UK lags behind as recovery of Europe's plastics waste reaches 50 per cent.(reclamation & recycling)
February 1, 2008... BRITAIN has a long way to go in meeting the potential of energy recovery from plastics according to a new European report. The Compelling Facts about Plastics is the 17th annual report on trends in production, demand and recovery of plastics...

Servo-drive upgrade for large pad printer.(finishing)
February 1, 2008... TAMPOPRINT has upgraded its TSQ 130-1 pad printer, the biggest of a series intended for printing large, long components using a hermetically sealed ink system rather than the open system that was used previously. There are three TSQ machines...

Degradables not the answer to the bag problem--or are they?(film & sheet conversion)
February 1, 2008... THE plastics films sector of the European Plastics Converters trade body has added its voice against the relentless pressure to ban disposable plastics shopping bags. A statement from EuPF--European Plastic Films--makes the argument for re-use...

Customised twin wall sheet enables more ambitious construction.(film & sheet conversion)
February 1, 2008... A "SECOND-generation" of twin-wall sheet from Simona of Germany is pitched at the construction of rectangular tanks bigger than 5 [m.sup.3], which until now have required steel reinforcements. Simona says it can eliminate the steel, potentially...

BPI focuses on savings with new film ranges.(film & sheet conversion)
February 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] COST- and environment-saving films have been added by BPI Films. Astragloss and Astraglossplus are intended for external retail packaging such as in peat and compost sacks. They have a lacquered high gloss finish...

Barrier OPP plant planned for Europe.(film & sheet production)
February 1, 2008... A EUROPEAN plant to make biaxially oriented metallised polypropylene barrier film is to be set up by Toray Industries of Japan. It is planning to set up Toray Films Europe at its Toray Plastics Europe site at St Maurice de Beynost in Meribel...

New source of Indian film lines.(film & sheet production)
February 1, 2008... UK sales of blown film and sheet extrusion lines built by Rajoo Engineers of India have been taken on by Merlion of Thame in Oxfordshire. Rajoo builds mono- and multi-layer blown film lines up to seven layers, sheet lines up to five layers...

Sumitomo names the day for Demag acquisition.(injection moulding)
February 1, 2008... SUMITOMO Heavy Industries has named the day for acquiring Demag Plastics Group, including the Van Dorn business in the USA. It plans for stock transfer to take place on March 3. The company says "SHI has positioned the injection moulding...

K-M and Toshiba to co-operate in machine development.(injection moulding)
February 1, 2008... KRAUSS Maffei and Toshiba are to co-operate in the development of "leading edge machinery for plastics processing". No more detail than that has been revealed, but the two companies say they are already working together and the first results of...

Engel to consolidate US machine building.(injection moulding)
February 1, 2008... ENGEL is to cease making injection moulding machines at Guelph in Canada--the plant where in May last year it said it would invest $4 million over the next three years. Guelph is one of two plants in North America building machines in the same...

Hot runners now from Sandretto.(injection moulding)
February 1, 2008... HOT RUNNER systems from the Swedish Ewebe Group are now available in Britain through Sandretto UK. The MasterFIow series uses a proprietary plugging technique to produce leak-proof manifolds with smoothly radiused corners for the melt channels...

CoMo system gains more channels.(injection moulding)
February 1, 2008... KISTLER has developed 12- and 24-channel versions of its CoMo Injection process monitoring system for injection moulding. The new models complement the existing 8-channel unit. At the same time, the user interface has been redesigned to improve...

Needle valve has universal application.(injection moulding)
February 1, 2008... PROBLEMS including splitting of the melt and producing weld lines are claimed to have been removed by Hasco twith its new Z10710 universal needle valve. It is available in two standard sizes and can be combined with Techni Shot and Valve Shot...

Single motor on servo robots.(injection moulding)
February 1, 2008... SERVO-driven sprue pickers and simple take out robots with an unusual crank operation have been introduced by Ferromatik UK, the now-independent Ferromatik Milacron distributor in Chesterfield. The devices are part of the Wemo range of robots...

Determination of the thermal conductivity of polymer melts.(testing & inspection)
February 1, 2008... The thermal conductivity of a polymer melt is an important material property as it influences the temperature distribution during the process and the cooling behaviour. It is also needed for high-end process simulation of extrusion and...

NPL is working to determine heat transfer properties.(testing & inspection)
February 1, 2008... ALSO working on improving heat transfer data is the National Physical Laboratory which has developed a technique for measuring the thermal contact resistance (or heat transfer coefficient) of polymer-metal interfaces. The instrument has also...

Pipe jig simplifies and secures compression testing.(testing & inspection)
February 1, 2008... A SELF-aligning pipe compression jig has been developed by Lloyd Instruments' Australian distributor to evaluate the resistance to collapse of smooth-walled or corrugated pipes in PVC, PP and HDPE, it can accommodate pipes from 20 to 300 mm...

Video measuring on a single display.(testing & inspection)
February 1, 2008... THE latest video measuring system from Marcel Aubert of Switzerland is combined with a programmable calculator to combine read-out, high-resolution colour touch screen video monitor and cross-hair generator on a single display with live video...

Weathering for the motor industry.(testing & inspection)
February 1, 2008... WEATHERING conference focused on the automotive industry will be held by Atlas Material Testing Technology in Oxford on September 15-16. Speakers will present papers on weathering tests for interior and exterior materials, testing...

High speed QA of material consistency.(testing & inspection)
February 1, 2008... A POLYMER quality assurance device using rapid thermal analysis has been introduced by Triton Technology after development with the Chemometrics Department at Bristol University. The identiPol QA relies on "a variant methodology based on...

Things to think of when using an external testing laboratory: David Ingles, business development manager at the polymers division of independent testing laboratory Bodycote Materials Testing gives his view on the benefits of outsourcing a testing laboratory.(testing & inspection)
February 1, 2008... WHILE many companies will have their own in-house laboratories, the in-house function is in decline as manufacturers turn to independent laboratories for testing and validation. Outsourcing is now accepted practice in many industries but is...

Demo site for Reologica rheometers.(testing & inspection)
February 1, 2008... "A NEW alliance between Gammadot Rheology and Infra Scientific, the UK distributor of Reologica's rotational rheometer range, makes Gammadot the new demonstration location for Reologica rheometry equipment. Infra Scientific remains the primary...

Smithers Rapra pools independent consulting.(testing & inspection)
February 1, 2008... A POLYMER consulting centre with the emphasis on independent advice from cradle to grave has been set up by Smithers Rapra. The company says that while there are many technical service providers offering various testing, analytical and...

Understanding elastomer technical data sheets: hardness, tensile strength, elongation ... you know what all these mean. Or do you? Mike Cook, Enplast TPE consultant at Ultrapolymers, offers a potted guide to those commonly used and perhaps abused definitions.(testing & inspection)
February 1, 2008... Hardness This means a material's ability to resist indentation under specific conditions. There are two flavours: inherent hardness and processed hardness. The chemical structure of each elastomer gives it its own inherent hardness....

NPL aims to overcome failings in MFR testing.(testing & inspection)
February 1, 2008... MEASURING the melt flow rate properties of some commonly-used plastics is not possible using the standard method specified by ISO 1133, according to the National Physical Laboratory. It is not suitable, for example, for materials that are...

Simulation suite enables extrusion line efficiency check.(testing & inspection)
February 1, 2008... THE efficiency of an extrusion line can be optimised with The Virtual Extrusion Laboratory suite of programmes from Compuplast via Fleming PTC. The check uses the extruder and profile cooling modules to analyse existing line performance....

Testing sports cap seals at 20,000/hour.(testing & inspection)
February 1, 2008... PCE Automation has has made pressure decay leak testers for blow moulded containers for many years and currently builds equipment that can work with containers from 20 ml to 200 litre capacities at speeds to 14,000 bottles per hour. But...

Single head leak tester tests 'on the move'.(testing & inspection)
February 1, 2008... A NEW bottle leak tester has been added to the range built by Delta Engineering of Belgium (UK agent Farrow Machinery Sales). The UDK 350 is based on the larger UDK 400 series but uses a single head (the bigger machines have two, three or...

Biodegradable compostable plastic for frozen food use.(packaging materials)
February 1, 2008... BIO-based sustainable plastics manufacturer Cereplast, has introduced a claimed first-ever freeze-tolerant biodegradable compostable material. It was developed as direct result of customer demand for freeze-capable bioplastic products. ...

How green is your packaging?(packaging materials)
February 1, 2008... TWO plastics consultancies have joined together to devise ways for packaging companies to develop "green" plastics packaging designs. RM Alderton Designs and Yew Tree Consultants will aim to provide packaging users in the food and beverage,...

PUR replaces cast iron in pump housings.(design)
February 1, 2008... A GERMAN industrial pump manufacturer has replaced cast iron housings with polyurethane in its latest product line. Its pumps are used to convey a wide range of different fluids and mixed media. Accordingly, there are high demands on the...

Would you mould hubcaps from PEEK? Boeing does.(engineering materials)
February 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] AEROSPACE systems supplier Crane Aerospace & Electronics is using Victrex PEEK polyether etherketone for the hubcaps containing its new tyre pressure monitoring system. The system was developed for the landing gear...

Bayer buys-in thermoplastic polyurethane technology.(engineering materials)
February 1, 2008... POLYURETHANES technology from fragmenting US automotive parts moulder Collins & Aikman has been bought by Bayer MaterialScience. The technology focuses on the use of TPU skins for dashboards and includes TPU formulations and patents. The...

Thermoplastics can have variable X-ray opacity.(engineering materials)
February 1, 2008... ITALIAN compounding specialist LATI has developed radiopaque thermoplastic compounds intended to replace lead and heavy metals in X-ray shielding application. Its Latigray injection moulding compounds are produced by filling a thermoplastic...

High-purity polycarbonate for LCD monitors.(engineering materials)
February 1, 2008... BAYER MaterialScience has developed a high-purity grade of Makrolon polycarbonate that makes it possible to manufacture flat-screen televisions in "unprecedented sizes". The diffuser sheets now in use have a tendency to warp in large...

PBT is designed for white goods connectors.(engineering materials)
February 1, 2008... A NEW halogen-free PBT from DSM Engineering Plastics meets IEC 60335-1 requirements and has been specifically designed for unattended white goods appliances. The IEC standard describes the requirements for unattended household appliances...

Food-use Delrin can be seen by metal detectors.(engineering materials)
February 1, 2008... A NEW acetal grade from DuPont opens up more applications in food processing conveyors. Delrin 400MTD contains a proprietary metal filler, so it can be detected by most metal-sensing equipment should any fragment enter into the food process...

New Santoprenes and data to held in using them.(engineering materials)
February 1, 2008... NEW grades of Santoprene thermoplastic vulcanisates and a new tool for designers working with Santoprene have been added by ExxonMobil Chemical. The first new grade is an exterior weatherseal material for automotive and construction corner...

Fuel-resistant elastomer withstands high temperatures.(engineering materials)
February 1, 2008... DOW Coming has introduced a fully fluorinated two-part injection mouldable elastomer designed to meet increasingly stringent automotive requirements for temperature, fuel and oil resistance, while at the same time improving environmental...

Tooled up for film: Clive Maier tries a film calculator that calculates all the things you've ever wanted to know in film extrusion, and a lot of things you didn't know you wanted to know.(software)
February 1, 2008... ACCORDING to Wikipedia, that not always reliable on-line encyclopaedia, the term "Swiss Army knife" is sometimes used metaphorically to describe usefulness, such as a software package that is a collection of special-purpose tools. The term was...

Data collection and SPC 'off the shelf'.(software)
February 1, 2008... NORTHWEST Analytical's Quality Monitor 2.4 is configurable software for shop-floor data collection and SPC charting in an off-the-shelf package. The system offers a uniform solution throughout the plant because all workstations can use the same...

Assembly monitoring system from PlantStar.(software)
February 1, 2008... SYSCON-PlantStar, which supplies real-time production and process monitoring systems, has launched a shop-floor assembly tracking system. The move reflects the accelerating trend for moulders to produce assemblies rather than components. The...

Materials teaching resource is revised.(software)
February 1, 2008... GRANTA Design has released CES EduPack 2008, a new version of its teaching resource for materials in engineering, science, processing, and design. Guided by user feedback, EduPack 2008 extends support for the different ways in which this...

View and translate CAD files.(software)
February 1, 2008... ACTIFY CAD viewer software and Datakit CAD data translators are available from French value-added reseller Cadlink. The latest version 8.2 of Actify SpinFire Pro is a CAD viewer that allows anyone to access and annotate CAD files from all...

Software directory.(software)(Directory)
February 1, 2008... composites design CoDA (Composite Component Design Analysis) National Physical Laboratory (NPL) Contact: Anaglyph Ltd Tel: 020 8987 6056 E-mail: sales@anaglyph.co.uk Web site: www.anaglyph.co.uk CoDA assists...

bottle2bottle.(what's new on the web)
February 1, 2008... Nampak Plastics has created a consumer website to provide information on the environmental benefits of HDPE bottles and the merits of closed loop recycling. The new site is the latest in a series of environmental initiatives by the company. It...

Eastman Medical Technical Center.(what's new on the web)
February 1, 2008... Eastman Chemical Company has launched an on-line Medical Technical Center. The site provides medical OEMs, processors, and designers with access to product and processing information. By providing fitness-for-use polymer information, including...

TEPPFA.(what's new on the web)
February 1, 2008... The European Plastic Pipes and Fittings Association (TEPPFA) has revised and upgraded its website, which now integrates all the content of the former Plastic Pipes website. The new site provides a mix of professional and more general...

Interplas 08.(PMMDA update)
February 1, 2008... INTERPLAS 08 is taking shape and promises to provide an industry-wide showcase of working machinery, equipment and materials. With support from the PMMDA, The British Plastics Federation, GTMA and [IOM.sup.3] it will deliver an event worth...

European standards for plastics and rubber machinery reviewed.(PMMDA update)
February 1, 2008... THE European Committee for Standardisation of Plastics and Rubber Machinery is currently undertaking a review of standards for plastics and rubber machinery to bring them in line with the new Machinery Directive. On behalf of the PMMDA,...

Avon sells aerosol seals business.(update)
February 1, 2008... THE Aerosol Gasket division of Avon Rubber has been sold as part of the company's policy of divesting non-niche businesses that are not profitable. It has been bought by Crosslinks of Corsham and the 70 staff are expected to transfer from...

New name for Resin Express.(update)
February 1, 2008... RESIN EXPRESS, a long-established name in materials distribution in Britain, becomes Resinex UK on March 1. The name change brings commonality with its Resinex sister companies in the Ravago group across Europe. Other than the name,...

LinPac sheds plastics name to emphasise packaging.(update)
February 1, 2008... LINPAC Plastics, the largest division in LinPac, has been renamed LinPac Packaging to "better represent the products and services offered by this division". The division has sales of approximately 940 million [euro], with 37 sites in 19...

Ofsted reports improvements at PTL.(update)
February 1, 2008... IMPROVED financial stability at Polymer Training in Telford since being bought by recycling machinery manufacturer Next-tec is recognised in the latest report by Ofsted--the Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills. The...

BPA leaching from polycarbonate increased by hot water exposure.(update)
February 1, 2008... A REPORT from an American university syndicated to news media worldwide caused another wave of "dangers of plastic bottles" stories over the past month. The research, at the University of Cincinnati, showed that bottles made from polycarbonate...

In the USA glass packaging manufacturer--and until recently plastics packaging manufacturer-Owens-Illinois has taken the concern about polycarbonate baby feeders.(update)
February 1, 2008... In the USA glass packaging manufacturer--and until recently plastics packaging manufacturer-Owens-Illinois has taken the concern about polycarbonate baby feeders to heart to the extent that it has reopened a glass feeding bottle line that it...

Patent win and financial injection for Cinpres.(update)
February 1, 2008... GAS injection pioneer Cinpres has come out on top after 16 years in the courts fighting a patent battle--the longest in the history of the English patent courts. At least, it is on top providing the loser, Melea of Gibraltar, doesn't appeal to...

Cinpres has just received an injection of $11.8 million from its ultimate parent company NI Group of Kuwait (Cinpres is owned by NI Group subsidiary BI Group of Sutton Coldfield).(update)
February 1, 2008... Cinpres has just received an injection of $11.8 million from its ultimate parent company NI Group of Kuwait (Cinpres is owned by NI Group subsidiary BI Group of Sutton Coldfield). The cash will be used to "help the company to retain its global...

Welsh fabricator bought out.(update)
February 1, 2008... SOUTH Wales-based plastics fabricator Dipec Plastics has been bought-out by its senior manager, Jason Callow, with a 140,000 [pounds sterling] investment from Finance Wales. The company was established in 1981 and has 13 employees in Ely,...

Recent price increases.(update)
February 1, 2008... recent price increases Effective Material Manufacturer Increase date Thermoplastic moulding materials EVA DuPont $0.09/lb...