May 2011 Issue
April 2011
Features
Featured articles from the latest issue of Plastics Technology
Cyclic Olefin Copolymer Enhances Polyolefin Blends for Film Packaging
Cyclic olefin copolymer (COC ) is an amorphous thermoplastic that is finding increased utility as a blending agent in polyolefin packaging films for medical, consumer, and industrial markets.
Read MoreCustom Molding Still Recovering
Custom injection molders continued their recovery from the Great Recession of 2008-2009 in the second half of 2010, though at a slower rate than in the first half.
Read MoreSolvay Agrees to Buy Rhodia, Combines Its Plastics Units
Solvay of Brussels, Belgium, signed an agreement last month to offer a friendly cash offer for Rhodia of Paris, France.
Read MoreMulti-Layer Injection Molded Tubs Take on Thermoforming & Metal Cans
Kortec Inc., Ipswich, Mass., a supplier of multi-layer injection molding technology, is launching an altogether new system for making rigid barrier containers.
Read MoreREPI Plans U.S. Liquid Color Plant
Italy’s REPI S.p.A., a producer of liquid color and additive concentrates, plans to build a facility in Gastonia, N.C.
Read MoreStyron to Become Trinseo
Styron LLC, Berwin, Pa., the company formed last June from the former Styron Div. of Dow Chemical Co., has decided to change its name.
Read MoreDow Forms New Plastics Div.
Dow Chemical Co., Midland, Mich., has combined its remaining plastics businesses into its new Performance Plastics Div.
Read MoreFDA Gives OK to Novel RPET Extrusion System
German equipment supplier Gneuss (U.S. office in Matthews, N.C.) last month received an unrestricted non-objection letter from the U.S.
Read MoreEastman Discontinues Two Plasticizers
Eastman Chemical Co., Kingsport, Tenn., will no longer offer diethyl phthlalate (DEP) and dibutyl phthalate (DBP) plasticizers as of the end of this year.
Read MoreHPM Nameplate Revived
Yizumi Precision Machinery Co. of Hong Kong paid $325,000 in late March to win the rights to HPM’s name, designs, and customer lists during a two-day auction at the Mt.
Read MoreSustainability Is Not a Buzzword For Thin-Gauge Thermoformer
At a time when many processors either pay lip service to environmental concerns or hope the “greenwashing” zealots will grow weary and turn their attention elsewhere, Dordan Manufacturing Co. Inc. leaves no stone unturned in an effort to get the truth out about plastics and the environment.
Read More‘Easy-Molding’ Nylon Compound Targets Metal in Cars
Metal-replacement opportunities continue to emerge as fuel economies become more critical.
Read MoreFollow These Tips to Select the Right Pelletizer
Start by assessing the status quo, as well as defining future needs. Develop a five-year projection of materials and required capacities. Short-term solutions very often prove to be more expensive and less satisfactory after a period of time. Most of all, know your options.
Read MoreThe Rotomolded Boat that Crossed the Channel
A rotomolded polyethylene boat set a Guinness World Record for the fastest pedal-powered crossing of the English Channel—7 hr, 6 min—in May 2002.
Read MoreOverfeeding Can Cause Surges, Too
Surging can be caused by feed restrictions, as covered in another column, and also by over-feeding or under-melting, discussed here.
Read MorePepsi Develops First 100% Biobased PET Bottle
WEB EXCLUSIVE: PepsiCo, Purchase, N.Y., says it has developed the world’s first PET bottle made entirely from plant-based, renewable resources.
Read MoreCan RA Surface Finish Standards Be Applied to an Injection Molded Part?
What options are available if traditional roughness average (RA) surface-finish can't be measured or met for a molded part?
Read MoreMore Compounding Expansions
In addition to three compounding expansions reported in March, three more have emerged:•Lanxess Corp., Pittsburgh, recently broke ground on a new compounding facility in Gastonia, N.C.
Read MoreExtrusion Vet Guthrie Supplies Recycling Equipment
Long-time extrusion industry executive Sandy Guthrie has started his own recycling equipment company.
Read MoreCoke & Heinz Cosponsor Bioplastics Conference
WEB EXCLUSIVE: In a somewhat unusual move, two major consumer brands will cosponsor next month’s BioPlastek 2011 Forum on Bioplastics in N.Y.C.
Read MoreMicro Molder & Mold Maker Succeeds by Specializing
How small is small? How small is micro? How about parts weighing as little as 0.00012 g and measuring no more than 0.038 in. (1 mm) long?
Read MoreFilm Insert Molding Adds Antennas to Cell Phones
WEB EXCLUSIVE: One of two recent developments in polycarbonate films allows cost-effective integration of antennas into cell phones via printed electronics and film insert molding (FIM), also known as in-mold decorating (IMD). Bayer MateriaScience AG in Germany (U.S. office in Pittsburgh) has applied for a patent on a method of using printed electronics on PC films, which are then back-molded into cell-phone housings.
Read MoreToray Produces Biax, Metalized PLA Film
Oriented films producer Toray Plastics (America), Inc., N.
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