February 2014 Issue
January 2014
Features
Featured articles from the latest issue of Plastics Technology
AC Drives Take Hold
With progress in electronics and the introduction of the flux vector drive using complex control algorithms, AC drives are now equal to or better than DC drives for most applications.
Read MoreNews in Hot Runners & Tooling at K 2013
Molds that break speed records for specific applications; hot runners for medical, packaging, and automotive parts; temperature and valve-gate controllers; and standardized mold components constitute a large grab-bag of news in the tooling category for injection molding at the Dusseldorf show.
Read MoreRecycling News at K 2013
New developments combine recycling and compounding in one step. Plenty of news at K in size reduction and de-labeling.
Read MoreMold Simulation: Get Best Results With Good Materials Data
Want the best results from your flow analysis software? Of course you do. But you stand a better chance for success if you pay particular attention to the material data used by the software.
Read MoreAPPLICATIONS: High-Heat PLA in World's First Bioplastic Touchscreen Computer
The high-heat-resistant PLA compound used for the housing of the first bioplastic touchscreen computer is based on lactides from Corbion Purac.
Read MorePlastics Color Expands
Plastics Color is expanding its headquarters plant by 40%, which will boost capacity for color concentrates, compounds, and custom functional masterbatches before year's end.
Read MoreMaterials News at K 2013
There was no shortage of interesting materials developments at K 2013, in particular high-performance engineering thermoplastics and thermoplastic composites—much of them geared to automotive/transportation.
Read MoreINJECTION MOLDING: Arburg Builds New U.S. Offices
Arburg Inc., the U.S. branch of the German injection machinery manufacturer, has started construction of a new U.S. headquarters building in Rocky Hill, Conn., six miles from its current location in Newington, Conn.
Read MoreAPPLICATIONS: First Ultra-High Barrier Renewable and Recyclable Packaging Makes Inroads
Plantic's high-barrier renewable and recyclable packaging is ideally suited for fresh food products and will soon make its large-scale commercial debut.
Read MoreNews in Robots from K 2013
Injection molding Cartesian robots are being made lighter and faster, but with greater payload capacity and vibration resistance. Six-axis articulated robots are being made easier to program.
Read MoreMATERIALS: Invista Starts Pilot Nylon 12 Production
A new producer with its own unique precursor adds security to nylon 12 supply.
Read MorePlastics Color Expands
Plastics Color is expanding its headquarters plant by 40% which will boost capacity for color concentrates, compounds, and functional masterbatches before year's end.
Read MoreBlow Molding News at K 2013
All-electric machines of all types were the stars of the show, but there were a number of other noteworthy developments.
Read MoreAdditives News at K 2013
More economical, higher performing, sustainable, and more finely tailored to specific applications—those features summarize the key advantages claimed for new additives showcased at K 2013.
Read MoreADDITIVE MANUFACTURING: Slew of New Developments in Materials, Equipment
Three companies unveiled new developments in additive manufacturing and prototyping as 2013 came to a close, a testament to this technology's vibrant growth.
Read MoreTESTING/MEASURING: Laser Design Distributes Tomelleri Portable CMMs
Laser Design is now the master North American distributor for the Space Arm coordinating measuring machines from Italy's Tomelleri Engineering.
Read MoreFrom Printer to High-End Extruder: Colormasters Sets Sights on Collation Film
When long-established printing and converting company Colormasters was putting together a strategic plan for growth, it added blown film processing to the mix.
Read MoreHow to Set Barrel Zone Temps in Injection Molding
Start by picking a target melt temperature, and double-check data sheets for the resin supplier’s recommendations. Now for the rest...
Read MoreBLOW MOLDING: Lighter PET Water Bottle Doesn’t Squish
New PET preform and bottle designs are said to create a super-lightweight 0.5-liter bottle for still water that not only weighs 34% less than the average commercial bottle of this size, but also achieves 32% more topload strength than the lightest commercial bottle.
Read MoreAPPLICATIONS: Ultra-High-Flow TPV Enables Thinner Instrument Panels
TPV with an exceptional high melt flow rate simplified the deployment of soft, injection moldable instrument panel skins across global platforms for the 2014 Nissan Sentra.
Read MoreCommodity Resin Prices Rising
Prices of PP and PS moved up in December and were poised to move up again last month. Price hikes also were on the table for PVC and PE.
Read MoreDon’t Overlook Gate Location
Molders take heed: Gate location is the root cause of many molding difficulties. You’ll be doing yourself a big favor by spending some time and thought in determining the best gate location. Here’s what to look for.
Read MoreUltra-High-Flow TPV Enables Thinner Instrument Panels
Asahi Kasei's ultra-high-flow TPV simplified the deployment of soft, injection moldable instrument panel skins across global platforms for the 2014 Nissan Sentra.
Read MoreINJECTION MOLDING: Bosch Rexroth Takes ‘Tech Tips’ to Social Media
Bosch Rexroth a major supplier of hydraulics, pneumatics, and electric drives and controls, has taken to social media to connect its engineers with users of its technology.
Read MoreThermoforming News at K 2013
New machinery and tooling developments for thermoformers debut at K.
Read MoreMATERIALS HANDLING: Mac Process Merges with Schenck AccuRate
Two majors in dry bulk handling combine forces.
Read MoreMRPC Takes ‘Holistic’ Approach To Scientific Molding
Last year this family-owned molder made a major commitment to Scientific Molding by starting a training process involving all employees.
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