The consumption of mLLDPE will grow more than 30 per cent yearly in the five next years and has already captured approx. 7 per cent of the global LLDPE market since it was introduced in 1995. Accorrding to ´Metallocene Polyethylene - 2000: An Update of Advancements, Players and Market Impact` released by TownsendTarnell Inc. (TTI), USA the largest consumer of metallocene polyethylene will remain North America.
Pliant Corp., USA, plans to close a blown film operation in Palmer that it acquired as part of its recent purchase of Uniplast Industries Inc. The operation consists of two facilities that focus on converter and specialty films. It did US$20 million in sales last year and employs about 100. Pliant began phasing out operations July 30 and will cease all production in Palmer by 1st of October.
A weak market for additives is forcing Great Lakes Chemical, USA, to close its Persan, France, production plant by the end of the year. The facility produces antioxidants and UV stabilizers. Production will be transferred to Korea and Italy, where manufacturing costs are said to be lower.
A company spokesman says high energy costs and increased polymer prices have caused sales of both additive types to decrease. The restructuring will cut 133 employees. Other closures are expected because the company has announced a total reduction of 390 jobs, or 8 per cent of its workforce, over the next 12 months.
PolyOne Corp. will close four color compound plants in the second half of 2002, while spending US$18 million to improve its eight remaining color sites. Plants in Broadview Heights, Ohio; Florence, Ky.; Gastonia, N.C.; and Somerset, N.J. are closing, in moves that will eliminate 180 jobs. Improvements to the remaining sites will create 30 new jobs.
In an effort to increase youth interest in plastics processing, the German Plastics Processors Association (GKV) has just awarded prizes totaling DM10,000 (approximately US$4500) to ten plastics apprentices. The winners, deemed by the GKV as the country’s ten top apprentices, have just finished training to become operators or process technicians.
Top prize went to Hans-Jürgen Hafner, Windberg, Germany, who has just completed his apprenticeship with Thyssen Polymer, Bogen, Germany. Last year, the country’s plastics processing sector signed up 1,969 young people to be trained as operators and process technicians, a 23 per cent jump over 1999 figures.
The modern automation system, which KIEFEL Extrusion GmbH, Germany, has developed under the brand KIRION® C, is a guarantee for optimum, reproducible film quality, combined with the shortest changeover times. The system is fully integrated into every line. A fault-proof CAN-Bus links up the individual automation components, such as resin metering and gauge profile control, to form a complete system. All the modules are controlled centrally via a touch-screen. This means that the machine operator has all the relevant process parameters in view all the time, minimizing the risk of deviations from set production specifications. Additional keyboards make it possible to alter the primary machine parameters directly. Various Windows-like user interfaces permit simple user-prompted application, giving an insight into production-relevant data as well as online assistance with questions. There is also an integrated alarm system for safety, and the customer can retrace any faults via the alarm history: he can eliminate them himself with the aid of “alarm texts”. In addition, KIEFEL provides an online remote diagnosis via modem.
Davis-Standard Corp., USA, announced it will close the former Betol Machinery Ltd. factory in Luton, England, which makes extrusion systems for tubing, pipe and profiles and manual insert molding machines. Davis-Standard, which bought Betol in mid-1998, will move the operations into its factory in Erkrath, Germany.
Verpa Verpackungswerke GmbH, Germany, has installed a new three-layer coextrusion line for the production of technical film („verpalin“) at its facility in Weidhausen. The film take-off unit has a height of 16metres and the winder are capable to handle a width of up to 1.700mm. The line has an output of 350 kg/h.
Thermo Haake has acquired Prism Consultants in the U.K., a maker of small twin-screw extruders for lab, pilot-plant and quality- control applications. The U.K. company, now called Thermo Prism, is introducing its USALAB model with 0.6-in.-diam., horizontally split barrel that can be extended up to 40:1 L/D. Thermo Prism will be part of Thermo Haake’s polymer technology business unit. Thermo Haake makes laboratory and test equipment including rheometers, viscometers and temperature-control and thermal-analysis units.
Kraiburg TPE GmbH, Germany, will begin manufacturing TPEs in the U.S. at its Kraiburg Corp. subsidiary in Duluth this July. The company has two main product lines: Thermolast K are TPEs based on SEBS. More than 600 custom formulations have been developed for standard molding and extrusion, as well compounds optimized for uv stability, compression set, FDA approval, medical applications, adhesion to other resins in overmolding (e.g., PP, nylon, PC, ABS, acrylic, and acetal) or easy printability, paintability or glueability. Pacrel K grades are new TPVs based on an acrylate rubber that confers good oil resistance. Kraiburg Corp. can be reached at (678) 584-5020.