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The capacity of the BASF GE Schwarzeheide PBT plant in Germany has been increased by 30 per cent to 80,000 tonnes through process modification. Output from the plant is split equally between BASF and GE, and then sold independently as Ultradur (BASF) or Valox and Xenoy (GE).
PP plant planned for Egypt June 29, 1999
A 150,000 tonnes polypropylene plant is to be built in Egypt by MAS Co using Targor Novolen gas phase technology. The plant, in Suez, will come on stream in 2002 producing PP homopolymer and will be expandable to 225,000 tonnes with the capability to make impact copolymers. Output will meet domestic demand, although there may be surplus quantities for export.
EVC shuts plant after VCM discharge June 29, 1999
The EVC International VCM and PVC plant at Porto Marghera in Italy is being shut down temporarily on the orders of the Italian Ministry of the Environment.
The shutdown follows an incident on June 8 when a safety vent discharged 900 kg of VCM to the atmosphere. EVC says there was no health hazard to the workers or the local population, and that the local authorities have confirmed that the concentration of VCM at ground level was well below the legal limits. EVC is currently liaising with the local authorities to ensure the safe operation of the plant.
The shortfall in VCM and PVC caused by the shutdown will be made up through substitution from other plants in Europe.
Hard going for Japanese injection machine manufacturers June 28, 1999
The financial crisis in South Eastern Asia last year hit Japanese injection moulding machine manufacturers hard, but the blow was softened by demand from the USA. Figures from the Association of Japan Plastics Machinery showed a 22·7 per cent drop in exports over the previous year to 9,397 machines. Exports to the USA were almost at the level of the previous year, and exports to Taiwan increased 34 per cent because of increased demand for CD machines. Figures for January this year continued the downward trend but the forecast is for exports to climb back through this year to marginally more than 1998.
Exports account for the bulk of Japanese production, but what domestic market there is is offering little solace. Machine production last year was 11,772, 23·7 per cent down on 1997. Production continued to fall in January, and is not expected to rise above last year's level until mid-year.
Toshiba trials plastics from paper June 28, 1999
A plastic material made by liquefying waste paper is being researched in Japan by Toshiba Environmental Technology Laboratory. A report in Japan Industrial News says the company hopes to go into volume production by 2001. The material is said to have equivalent strength and performance to urethanes and expanded polystyrene, and Toshiba is experimenting with applications in personal computer cases, refrigerator insulation, lamp housings, seat cushions, car bumpers and paints and adhesives.
Japanese robot maker gets strategic EC approval June 28, 1999
Harmo Co of Japan, which builds product removal robots, has taken a step to encourage specification by Japanese companies setting up in Europe by obtaining CE marking for one of its major models.
PEEK for medical implants June 28, 1999
A new grade of PEEK polyaryletherketone which can be used in medical implants has been developed by Victrex. PEEK-Optima LT can be tailored to match the stiffness and impact performance of human bone and its inherent lubricity gives it the potential to become the sliding surface component in artificial joints. It is also possible to modify the material's surface by coating or through chemical modification.
Parts made in PEEK-Optima LT can be sterilised by all standard processes, which include autoclaving, radiation and gas sterilisation. The material is naturally radio translucent, which allows clear scanning of the implant area by X-ray and CT scanning, or it can be given X-ray contrast by adding a filler system.
The strength and stiffness of the material minimise the amount of foreign material which has to be implanted, and its processability makes it suitable for large parts or small high precision parts with very thin walls.
Victrex has obtained extensive certification, including FDA Device Master file and Drug Master File, EEC Directive 90/128/EEC and USP Class VI biocompatibility test results. A further biological and toxicological programme is in progress to test the material to more stringent standards than those defined in ISO-10993-1. To safeguard medical supply manufacturers Victrex is guaranteeing long term protection against material specification changes or withdrawal of supply.
Two grades are initially on offer, for injection moulding and extrusion, and stock shapes and compounds are also available.
Aoki wins patents for one-piece handled PET bottle June 28, 1999
Aoki Technical Laboratory has been granted a US patent for a one-piece handled stretch blown PET bottle. The handle is attached at right angles to the bottle just under the neck thread and can bend up and down.
The key to making this handle hinge and yet carry the weight of a full 10 litre bottle is molecular orientation. The handle is fed through a narrow channel at each end, which orientates the material and forms a thin but strong bendable section.
Aoki is currently filing, and being granted, patents around the world.
Expansion at Plastic Engineering June 28, 1999
Second tier automotive supplier Plastic Engineering (Leamington) is building a new factory 50 per cent bigger than its existing site and planning to spend £500,000 on injection moulding machines and services in a bid to widen its product range. About 80 per cent of the company's output is in components for automotive sub assemblies like seat belts, air bags, windscreen wipers and steering columns. The new 62,000 sq ft factory at Spa Park in Leamington will bring the opportunity to move into components for locking mechanisms.
Plastic Engineering, part of the Edgbaston Group, is also negotiating with an East Coast USA company for a joint manufacturing venture: at present only around 2 per cent of the company's output goes to the USA.
The business currently has a turnover of around £9 million, and the expansion allowed by the new factory is expected to increase that to £13 million over the next three years, with an increase in the workforce from 125 to 150.
Metallocene patent row is over June 28, 1999
The long running dispute over metallocene patents between Dow, Exxon and Univation has been halted with a confidential agreement which includes cross party licensing and alternatives to litigation for the resolution of future disputes. The various patent actions over metallocene catalyst systems for polyolefin production were between Exxon and Dow in the USA, Germany, Holland and UK, and Univation and Dow in the USA. Ending the disputes is seen by all parties as taking the brakes off metallocene technology development.
Foam laminates made to order June 28, 1999
Foam fabricators now have extra flexibility - no pun intended - with Envision custom foam laminates from Dow Performance Foams. Envision teams sheet or block in Synergy soft touch foams and Ethafoam PE foams in customised combinations to produce a foam product with properties tailored to the application.
An acrylic resin formulated specially for DVD - high performance optical disc - moulding and offering superior properties over polycarbonate has been introduced by Elf Atochem subsidiary Atoglas.
Compared with polycarbonate Atoglas says its American-made Oroglas VOD 100 has a lower viscosity, giving sub-5 second cycle times and superior optical properties - birefringence is said to be less than 20 nanometres compared with 60 to 80 nm for polycarbonate, and light transmission is 92 per cent.
In addition the material is said to resist scratching and to be rigid and dimensionally stable.
Marketing deal gives Eurotherm web inspection capability June 28, 1999
Eurotherm Gauging Systems has extended its web measurement and control systems through a marketing agreement with Cognex Corporation. Eurotherm's System 21 uses a spectral fingerprint sensor to measure coating thickness on substrates. It is now to incorporate the Cognex SmartView camera-based inspection system for detection of surface flaws, giving Eurotherm an integrated package for coating quality control. Both System 21 and SmartView can run concurrently on the same Windows NT workstation, giving a single user interface and reducing the total hardware requirement.
More spin in the phthalate plasticisers debate June 28, 1999
The controversy over the use of phthalate plasticisers in PVC toys has taken new opposing turns with a proposal for a ban in Denmark, approval in the USA, and competition hotting up over the method of testing.
Denmark's move to ban phthalate plasticisers, originally expected towards the end of last year, has come as part of an anti-PVC package proposing taxes and other methods to reduce PVC usage, stop PVC incineration, and halve phthalate use.
It is the latest in a number of nationally proposed or implemented bans in various forms on soft PVC toys, or the use of phthalates as plasticisers in such toys, across Europe - in Austria, Finland, Greece, Italy, Norway and Sweden.
In the USA an independent panel convened by the American Council on Science and Health reviewed the health risks of DEHP, used as a plasticiser in medical devices, and DINP, the plasticiser used most frequently in toys. It concluded that neither had carcinogenic or other harmful effects at the level to which people are exposed - and commented that withdrawal of DEHP would pose a significant health risk by removing devices on which people depended. On toys the panel took a similar view to that current in the European Commission, that DINP was not harmful in normal use, but that there should be further studies and thorough testing of any alternatives.
While DINP has been given tacit approval by the European Commission - approval in the sense that it has not been banned - the Scientific Committee on Toxicity, Ecotoxicity and the Environment has recommended limits on how much DINP should leach out of toys when they are sucked. How to measure this level of leaching is taxing a number of research bodies around Europe, with the prospect of standardised recommendations being enforced by non-standardised testing.
Towards the end of last month the TNO research institute in Holland gave its backing to a method developed in Holland for assessing the level of plasticiser leaching when toys are sucked by children. The Dutch government has announced that it will not ban phthalate plasticisers, but will draft legislation on release levels with the implication that these levels will be tested by the method endorsed by the TNO.
However, in the UK the Laboratory of the Government Chemist has developed its own test method which it claims as more comprehensive than the Dutch test. In fact it says that its test is 'the only methodology capable of meeting the Commission's expert committee (SCTEE) benchmark release value of 9 microgrammes/min for a specified plasticiser from reference PVC material'. The LGC method was funded by and has won endorsement from the Department of Trade and Industry, which is recommending that it be used as the method of testing in the UK to conform with EU recommendations.
Ballance moves June 22, 1999
Michael Ballance Plastics has moved to Suite 8, 146 Worthington House, High Street, Burton-on-Trent, Staffordshire, DE14 1JE. Telephone and fax numbers are unchanged.
New Rotospeed for Plastech June 22, 1999
T & D Plastech has ordered a Rotospeed RS4-280 HD rotational moulding machine. The machine has a five-station format with one oven capable of 450 degC, a twin cooling station, and two load/unload stations. Its four straight arms can carry up to 2,268 kg, and the machine has a fifth offset arm with a capacity of 1,814 kg. Swing is 2·9 m.
Uponor aims for total control of Unicor June 21, 1999
Finnish pipe manufacturer Uponor has increased its stake in Unicor Holding of Germany, which makes extrusion downstream equipment, notably pipe corrugators. Since early last year Uponor has held 50·1 per cent, and has now increased this to 90·7 per cent, with an offer on the table for the remaining shares, which are held mainly by Unicor workers.
For Polytype read Polytech June 21, 1999
Polytype Italia, which makes film extrusion, extrusion coating, printing and converting machinery, has changed its name to Polytech SpA. The company, originally known as Prandi, is part of the multinational SITI group.
Price increases for PP and masterbatch June 21, 1999
Montell is increasing the price of polypropylene in Europe on July 1 by DM 0·20/kg. The increase reflects the generally tighter market conditions, compounded by increased feedstock costs and continued poor profitability.
Further downstream, Cabot Plastics increased masterbatch prices today by an average of 5 per cent, depending on polymer content.
Elf Atochem and BP Amoco pool PP production June 16, 1999
The European polypropylene business has got smaller by one manufacturer with the pooling of their resources by Elf Atochem and BP Amoco Chemicals. The two companies are to create a 50:50 joint venture incorporating the Appryl (BP-Elf Atochem joint venture) plants at Gonfreville and Lavera in France and Grangemouth in Scotland, and the BP Amoco plants at Geel in Belgium (BP Amoco production outside Europe is not included in the joint venture).
The new joint venture will have more than 1·2 million tonnes of capacity on the completion of current projects and will become Europe's third largest polypropylene manufacturer behind Montell and Targor.
Worldwide the two companies are to pool their research and technology resources.
Colour compound distributor June 16, 1999
Plascolour has appointed Polyadd to distribute its colour compounds, primarily ABS.
NPL plans new look for MFI June 16, 1999
National Physical Laboratory is to attempt to improve the value of melt flow testing. While melt flow index is a widely used polymer classification method, NPL says it does not always provide an ability to differentiate between similar grades of materials, or between different batches of the same material for which differences in processing are apparent.
In a DTI-supported project, NPL hopes to provide additional test methods using standard MFI equipment. This may involve using an additional die to separate the shear and extensional components of the flow behaviour, and a fuller characterisation of materials at different flow rates.
NPL is looking for industry input to this project.
Irish pipe manufacturer expands distribution June 16, 1999
Irish pipe manufacturer Uniplas has invested £0·5 million in developing a new all-Ireland distribution centre in Craigavon. The expansion follows new orders for twinwall piping from Bord Gais and the Dublin Corporation.
German slitter/rewinder manufacture to be switched to British plant June 16, 1999
Valmet Converting Group, which owns slitter/rewinder manufacturer Atlas Converting Group, has bought SITEC of Germany. Manufacture of SITEC slitter/rewinders will be transferred to Atlas Converting's Titan Converting Equipment plant at Biggleswade.
Tinker takes over at TARRC June 16, 1999
Dr Andrew J Tinker has been appointed director of the Tun Abdul Razak Research Centre at Brickendonbury near Hertford following the retirement of Dr Crispin S L Baker. Dr Tinker has been with TARRC since 1974, latterly as administrator of Rubber Consultants, TARRC's consultancy unit.
SABIC announces the next step in its PET expansion June 16, 1999
SABIC's plan to extend its PET production capacity announced last year will come a step closer with the construction of a 200,000 tonnes acetic acid plant at Yanbu Industrial City on the Red Sea coast. Commissioning is expected by 2004.
The new acetic acid capacity would be used in the production of purefied terephthalic acid, and thence PET. This production chain would all be part of the Ibn Rushd (Arabian Industrial Fibres Company) operation. The acetic acid would also be used in the production of polyvinyl acetate.
SABIC's plan is to expand PET production from 140,000 tonnes to 390,000 tonnes over the next two or three years.
£1 million investment in acrylic casting June 16, 1999
Acrylic casting specialist Blanson of Leicester has invested £1 million in new premises and equipment for manufacturing its Acrilite castings. The new factory houses a class 100 cleanroom, and an autoclave described as one of the largest in Europe which is used to make, among other things, medical devices such as hyperbaric chambers, fluidic manifolds as used in heart lung dialysis machines, and chromatography columns for testing drugs.
Blanson, part of BI Group plc, has developed a new method of adhesion, which is used in acrylic encapsulated products ranging from medical components through small promotional encapsulations to big aquatic displays for exhibitions. The company also produces portholes for sub-aqua vehicles and reprographic scanner cylinders.
Targor to increase Spanish PP output June 16, 1999
Targor is to build a new polypropylene plant at its Tarrogona site in Spain, with commissioning scheduled for the second half of 2001. The new plant will have a capacity of 225,000 tonnes. There are currently three PP plants on the Tarrogona site with a combined capacity of 280,000 tonnes.
Group sale for Italian machining equipment June 8, 1999
Several Italian producers of machining equipment for plastics, composites, aluminium and wood have set up a joint UK distributor, Trio Distribution. The principals are: CMS, Gruppo Delmac and its subsidiaries Delmac, Gabbiani, Busellato and SAG, and the Cefla Group, which owns Sorbini and Dimac.
The company, headed by Allen Morley, is at Trio House, Sheffield Airport Business Park, Europa Link, Sheffield, S9 1XU. Telephone 0114 292 4000, fax 0114 292 4019.
Move for pipe winding specialist June 8, 1999
Pipe Coil Technology has moved to new larger premises in Newcastle. The company is now at Carville Works, Off Hadrian Road, Wallsend, Tyne and Wear, NE28 6HF. Telephone 0191 295 9910, fax 0191 295 9911.
Sunrise start for Japanese PP joint venture June 8, 1999
The polypropylene joint venture between Montell, Showa Denko, Nippon Petrochemicals and Taiwan Polypropylene Co which was announced last year has been set up officially as Montell SDK Sunrise (MSS). The initial announcement was of a co-operation between Montell and the two Japanese companies. Taiwan Polypropylene, an associate company of Montell, joined the venture in March of this year.
MSS will make and sell polypropylene and advanced polyolefins in Japan, and anticipates a share of around 10 per cent of the Japane polypropylene market.
The formation of MSS follows the separation by Japan Polyolefins Company of its polyethylene and polypropylene businesses. The PP business includes Showa Denko's three existing lines, one of which uses the Spheripol process, and its PP advanced materials operation at Oita. It also includes purchase arrangements for PP produced at UPP's Kawasaki plant. UPP is now 100 per cent owned by Nippon Petrochemicals since the recent divestiture of shares by Mitsui Chemicals, and this shareholding will eventually be transferred to MSS.
Also incorporated in MSS is Montell-JPO, the joint venture set up by Montell and Japan Polyolefins Company in 1996 to develop the Japanese market, particularly the automotive industry, for advanced polyolefins including materials made by Montell's Cataloy process.
Vita invests further in non-wovens June 6, 1999
British Vita is to expand its non-woven fibres business at Libeltex in Belgium with a £5 million investment in a new plant for hygiene products. The first stage of the hygiene project was started in 1995 at a cost of £4 million, and the new plant is intended to double Libeltex's share of this market over the next five years.
British Vita has spent £15 million on facilities for technical fibre production over the past few years, and recently commissioned a £4 million non-woven line for automotive and filtration applications.
Dow PS capacity to pass 2 million tonnes June 2, 1999
At the end of this month Dow Plastics will open a new polystyrene plant at BSL's Schkopau, Germany, site which will increase its European PS capacity by 130,000 tonnes to 630,000 tonnes. Worldwide this plant, Dow's 19th, will push the company's capacity over 2 million tonnes.
£3 million investment in latex glove plant June 2, 1999
Glove manufacturer PolymerLatex, a joint venture between Hüls and Bayer, is to invest £3 million at its Bromsgrove, Birmingham plant. The investment, which should be complete by September, will bring a new refrigeration plant, production unit and storage tanks, enabling the company to use NBR latex.
Huntsman ICI to get full control of Wilton cracker June 2, 1999
Huntsman Corporation is tidying up its purchase in April of a large slice of ICI's remaining polymer assets. The joint company Huntsman ICI Holdings, set up to facilitate the deal, is to buy the 20 per cent of the Wilton cracker still owned by BP Amoco. The cracker has a total annual capacity of 865,000 tonnes of ethylene and 400,000 tonnes of propylene.
BP Amoco retains ethylene storage and distribution rights on Teesside and has secured long term supply agreements for olefins from HICI. The BP Amoco polyethylene plant at Wilton is unaffected by the deal.
The purchase price is not being disclosed, but the 20 per cent stake in the cracker is said to be less than 0·5 per cent of BP Amoco's total net assets. Conclusion of the sale is expected during the summer, in the same time frame as the HICI purchase of the ICI businesses.
Crompton & Knowles to merge with Witco June 2, 1999
Crompton & Knowles of the USA, the parent company of rubber chemicals specialist Uniroyal Chemicals and extrusion equipment manufacturer Davis-Standard, is planning to merge with another major US chemicals producer Witco Corporation. The combined company, to be called C&K Witco Corporation, will be one of the world's largest speciality chemical companies. Consolidated sales figures will be around $1·3 billion in additives, $1·1 billion in speciality chemicals, and $816 million in polymers and processing equipment. The merger is expected to bring around $60 million a year in savings from increased purchasing power and the deduplication of corporate resources.
BIP adds PP compounds June 1, 1999
BIP is now compounding polypropylene for electrical applications. The company added polycarbonate/ABS alloys to its nylon 6, nylon 66 and thermoplastic polyester compounds last year, and has now developed PP compounds for electrical applications where lower cost materials are required to replace more traditional engineering grades.
The new compounds include Beetle PP120M and 140M, simple mineral filled grades giving a 750 degC glow wire rating coupled with dimensional stability and good surface finish, and suitable for portable electrical accessories such as rewirable and ultrasonically welded 13 amp plugs and trailing sockets.
For higher performance, such as in the manufacture of fixed electrical accessories, Beetle PP800 materials pass the glow wire test at 960 degC and are supplied with either a V0 or V2 flammability rating. Grades are available with both halogen-free and low halogen flame retardant systems, and with or without mineral fillers.
Hanna's holy trinity June 1, 1999
M A Hanna has completed its European restructure in which it has formed three distinct business units.
M A Hanna Engineered Materials Europe produces a range of compounds for engineering applications, based on engineering thermoplastics, polypropylene and thermoplastic elastomers.
M A Hanna Color Europe makes polymer-specific colorant and additive systems, and M A Hanna Wire & Cable Polymer systems is focused on the wire and cable industry with a range of cable sheathing compounds and colour and additive masterbatches.
Dutch phthalate extraction test gets TNO endorsement June 1, 1999
A further step towards agreement on the measurement of plasticiser migration from PVC toys has been taken with completion of trials on a test method developed in the Netherlands.
The test, which simulates the extraction of plasticisers into saliva when toys and childcare items are sucked and chewed by children, has been under evaluation by the TNO research institute to see whether it could be reproduced and its results repeated in different laboratory situations. TNO has now reported to the Dutch Ministry for Health, Welfare and Sports that the test method is suitable for routine enforcement of legislation regarding the allowed migration level of di-isononyl phthalate (DINP) and that it is likely that the method could be extended to measure the release of other phthalates. According to the European Council for Plasticisers and Intermediates (ECPI) DINP is the main plasticiser used in children's toys and the only phthalate used in childcare items intended to be put into the mouth by children under three years old.
The EU Scientific Committee for Toxicity, Ecotoxicity and the Environment has said that phthalate plasticisers can safely be used in soft PVC toys and childcare items provided that migration limits are adhered to. However, absence of a suitable test method has resulted in two EU states (Austria and Denmark) restricting their use, and announcements from other states of their intentions to do so.
Whether the Dutch test method will be adopted by EU member states has still to be decided. The ECPI hopes that the recommendation by TNO will provide some level of stability to stop countries acting unilaterally ahead of eventual EU legislation.
The Dutch test method is not the only method being proposed for assessing phthalate migration, and trials are continuing on other test methods which may yet be adopted as part of European legislation.
Zumbach buys German extrusion monitoring company June 1, 1999
Zumbach Electronic of Switzerland has increased its potential in on-line quality monitoring in extrusion through the takeover of KJM of Germany. Both companies have supplied the same markets for many years, but have concentrated on different market segments. With the takeover, Zumbach says it is now 'one of the biggest suppliers of equipment and systems for all areas of on-line monitoring in the wire and cable, steel and metal and plastics and rubber industries.'
Among the KJM products are a non-contact measuring system which controls profiles on-line and displays the results on a screen, and a measuring process for diameters of 0·01 - 5 mm, designed for measuring ultra-thin wires in the micrometer range.
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