Strictly-Extrusion

Dow Corning® HV 1551/55P is a high-voltage graded liquid silicone rubber used in hollow core insulators and cable end termination applications.Formulated for low viscosity and sustained hydrophobicity, HV 1551/55P also features high tear strength, low temperature cure and excellent tracking resistance. The silicone rubber cures rapidly at elevated temperatures and can be easily cleaned up by common hydrocarbon solvents.
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Speciality films manufacturer Klöckner Pentaplast is investing $10.9m (£5.8m) on the expansion of two of its production lines in Rayong, Thailand. Transverse-direction, oriented, shrink-label film production will be increased by 5,000tpa through the addition of a new tentering line, which is expected on stream in early 2007. The investment follows an 8,000t expansion in PVC calendering capacity, announced in December 2005. Polyester film capacity serving the food and electronics packaging markets is being increased by 6,000tpa. The $4.5m line will be commissioned in December. The investments will allow Klöckner Pentaplast customers to source identical films on three continents.

Altuglas International, a business of Arkema and maker of the innovative Plexiglas® brand of acrylic sheet and resin products, announced that the United States Patent and Trademark Office has granted U.S. Patent 7,067,188, entitled ‘Polymeric Articles Having a Textured Surface and Frosted Appearance’. The patent covers the breakthrough technology developed by Arkema that results in an acrylic product having a frosted appearance in its structure. This proprietary acrylic product, which is used to create the company’s Plexiglas® Frosted and Plexiglas® Clear-Edge Frosted acrylic sheet and resin products, also provides a textured finish on exposed surfaces, requiring no secondary finishing.

For lighting applications, the frosted products provide unusually high luminous transmission coupled with excellent hiding power. Tiny beads used to produce the frosted effect scatter the incoming light, primarily in the forward direction, maximizing optical efficiency. Designers get substantially more light with less power, greatly improving energy efficiency as compared to typical lighting white products.
‘With approximately 1,400 scientists in six research centers, product innovation has become a hallmark of Arkema,’ said Randy Miller, Business Manager-Commercial Development for Sheet at Altuglas International. ‘This commitment to R&D continues to result in exciting breakthroughs like Plexiglas® Frosted acrylic technology, which has opened up a world of exciting design possibilities for visual displays, illuminated signage, lighting diffusers and other customer applications. The issuance of this new patent further exemplifies our technical leadership and strengthens our broad, high-quality and valuable intellectual property portfolio of patented technologies, many of which serve as international benchmarks.’

Precision AirConvey (PAC), USA, has entered into a joint venture with plastics recycling equipment maker Plasmac Ltd. of U.K. PAC already offers equipment for reclaiming film edge trim, film waste, and offspec rolls. Now it will also offer Plasmac’s line of 21 film-scrap repelletizing extruders. These systems can reclaim edge trim and roll scrap without prior granulation.

JER Envirotech, a global producer in wood-plastic composite compound and panel boards, has announced its production facility near Kuala Lumpur has started operations.
The Canadian company said that it is able to produce panel boards using polypropylene and rice husk.
Ernie Calica, general manager and vp of Asian Operations, said that JER is the first company to commercially produce 4 feet by 8 feet wood-plastic composite boards.
The production facility is a joint venture with Asia Pacific Microspheres, with 51% owned by JER and the remainder by ASM.
As well as Malaysia, JER is in the process of establishing operations in Canada, the Philippines, and India.

Packaging materials from DuPont provide a range of high-quality surfaces for ‘tottles’ (a combination of the words tube and bottle). Used for the outer-skin, DuPont Surlyn® offers a high-gloss finish, DuPont Elvaloy® AC creates a soft-touch surface, whilst DuPont EntiraAS provides durable antistatic properties. ‘Tottles’ enable the producers of bodycare products to communicate specific marketing messages by means of the packaging, providing a cost effective alternative for product differentiation. This new packaging concept, initially created by DuPont, has been implemented in cooperation with Kautex Textron GmbH & Co. KG, Bonn, Germany.
‘Tottles’ with Surlyn provide a scratch-resistant, high-gloss surface, without the need for additional lacquering – as would be required for other materials such as PE-HD. Furthermore, they are easily printable using all current processes. Thanks to the high transparency of Surlyn®, the overprint provides an appealing ‘depth effect’ on top of the opaque background of the PE-HD inner-skin. Semi-gloss or matte surfaces can be created by using special textures in the moulding tool. The use of Elvaloy® AC acrylate copolymer for the outer-skin creates a softtouch, non-slip silk like and easily printable surface. Its hardness is determined through the selection of the Elvaloy® AC grade. Despite their anti-slip surfaces, the ‘tottles’ can be filled in standard production lines as they do not stick to each other – a common problem with ‘tottles’ made with rubber surfaces.
DuPont EntiraAS (the new brand name for a permanent antistatic additive) is a non-migrating static inhibitor, which is compatible with polyolefins. ‘Tottles’ with a PE-HD outer-skin and EntiraAS exhibit long-term resistance to both dirt and dust attraction, and can be easily printed or adhered to.
The ‘tottles’ are coextrusion blow moulded with PE-HD as the base material. Commonly they consist of 90 to 95 percent PE-HD and 5 to 10 percent Surlyn, Elvaloy® AC or Entira. When using Surlynand Entira AS, the additional use of DuPont Bynel® is required. Possible further developments of the ‘tottle’ concept include the use of transparent polymers for the base material and an outer-skin of Surlyn.

US machinery group Milacron announced at the NPE exhibition in Chicago that it is bringing forward plans to start extruder manufacturing in Europe, following better than expected sales performances. The company said it will begin parts stocking and machine assembly in Italy this autumn on Cincinnati Milacron extruders for plastic and wood plastic composite products. Production will take place at Milacron’s Magenta plant, which is the centre for its blow moulding machine technology. Director of international business development for Milacron Extrusion Technologies, Herb Hutchison, said the company had first planned to start European production during 2007. Milacron resumed sales of extruders outside of the US in January this year following expiry of the non-compete agreement it reached with SMS when the German group acquired the US firm’s international extrusion business in 2000. Since the beginning of the year, 25% of Milacron’s extruder sales have come from outside the US, including recent orders from France, Greece and the Middle East. The company recently delivered its fourth extruder to a Japanese customer, a TC80 conical twin-screw machine for wood plastic composite production.

Colines® has installed and successfully commissioned at one of the major producers in Turkey an extrusion line to produce PE air bubble film model STEC 200 TSE. The line is boasting a width of 2000 mm and is offering the double possibility to produce the third layer both by extrusion and hot lamination. This technique permits to obtain the highest versatility in addition to performances over 350 kg/h with extrusion of the third layer. This is a repeat order, actually the customer has already installed in his factory 3 Colines® lines, thus confirming his confidence and satisfaction. Colines® can truly boast a consolidated and undisputed worldwide leadership in the manufacture of PE air bubble film extrusion lines, with more than 150 lines in production all over the world and 40 years of experience in this field. This negotiation has been successfully concluded with the active support of Colines® agent in Turkey, Mr. Beniamino Schmill.

Davis-Standard, LLC is proud to offer one of the most complete menus of after-sale services for both extrusion and converting equipment. The aftermarket and technical departments of Davis-Standard’s Extrusion Systems Group and the “Advance” program of the Converting Systems Group aim to provide customers with cost-effective options for increasing productivity, reducing waste, improving product quality and adding new capabilities. This includes equipment upgrades, replacement parts, field service, custom engineering, research and technical capabilities, and a 24-7 hotline in North America. Following is a summary of services.

• Equipment Upgrades
Upgrades are available for all Davis-Standard, LLC equipment brands, including equipment from other vendors. The Extrusion Systems Group offers modernization packages that include feedscrew rebuilding and replacement, gearcase retrofits, process control upgrades, L/D conversions, extruder upgrades, air-to-water conversion packages, system overhauls and custom engineering. The Converting Systems Group provides replacements/upgrades for old or obsolete controls and drive systems, new equipment to improve productivity, and custom and confidential modifications for new process and product requirements.
• Replacement Parts
Davis-Standard offers timely spare parts replacement at competitive prices. Both Extrusion and Converting Systems offer replacement parts backed by a warranty as well as a 24-hour, seven day a week emergency breakdown service. The company maintains an in-stock program for key extruder components including barrels, panels, heaters, bearings and gears for immediate
delivery. In-stock parts can be shipped within one day.

Davis-Standard, LLC had an excellent showing at the NPE 2006 international plastics exposition in Chicago, June 19 - 23, due to a large customer turnout and impressive equipment display. More than 1,000 customers visited Davis-Standard’s 9,000 square-foot booth which featured a range of equipment from both the Extrusion Systems and Converting Systems Groups, including new extruder and film technology. Davis-Standard took in more than 1,100 leads and had more than $6 million in sales during the show.
‘This was an exciting NPE for us because it was the first time our Extrusion Systems and Converting Systems Groups have exhibited together,’ said Charlie Buckley, Davis-Standard president and CEO. ‘I think we were able to share the positive dynamics of our organization and our new technology, while meeting with many existing and new customers.’
According to an NPE press release, this year’s show attracted a total of 64,451 registrations and set a new record for international participation. The total registration figure was two percent higher than 2003, with the number of visitor registrations up by nine percent. Even more impressive was the total of international visitor registrations, up 33 percent from NPE 2003. International visitors represented 126 countries with Canada leading the way, followed by visitors from Mexico and China.
The number of international exhibitors was also up from 2003. International exhibitors represented 33 percent of the total, compared with 30 percent in 2003 and 24.5 percent in 2000. Among international exhibitors, 127 came from mainland China and Hong Kong as compared to 27 at NPE 2003. Asian companies in general accounted for 45 percent of all international exhibitors.