Pn april 2015 issue by aipma

SAY YES TO PLASTICS Volume No. 89

PRN: - MCN/200/2015-2017

Issue No. 04

Pages 66

April 2015

Rs. 75.00

Plastics News • April 2015 • 2

3 • April 2015 • Plastics News

Plastics News • April 2015 • 4

Contents

Plastics News MCN/200/2015-2017 Volume 89

April 2015 No. 4

Chairman - Editorial Board Mr. Rituraj Gupta Hon. Editor Mr. Ajay Desai

Report on NPE 2015 Anti-dumping investigations AIPMA Delegation to CSIR-NCL The National Green Tribunal case

Editorial Co-ordination: Padmesh Prabhune, Dhruv Communications, Mumbai, Tel No: 022 2868 5198 / 5049 Fax No : 022-28685495 email: dhruvpr@vsnl.net Published by Ms. Umaa Gupta on behalf of the owners, The All India Plastics Manufacturers’ Association Plot No. A-52, Road No. 1, M.I.D.C., Andheri (E), Mumbai-400 093. Tel: 67778899 • Fax : 00-22-2821 6390 E-mail : office@aipma.net • Website : http://www.aipma.net Printed by her at : Dhote Offset Technokrafts Pvt. Ltd., Goregaon (E), Mumbai-400 063. Rs. 1,000/Rs. 75/-

Views/Reports/Extracts etc. published in Plastics News are those of the authors and not necessarily of the Editor. Furthermore except for copies of formal AIPMA communications no other matter in this journal should be interpreted as views of The All India Plastics Mfgrs. Association. Office Bearers Mr. Rituraj Gupta Mr. R. K. Aggarwal Mr. Meela Jayadev Mr. Sanju Desai Mr. Ashok Agarwal Mr. Haren Sanghavi Mr. Manoj R. Shah Mr. Jagat Killawala

I S I TH

13...... AIPMA At Work

Members Mr. A. E. Ladhaboy Dr. Y. B. Vasudeo Ms. Poorvi Desai

Annual Subscription Single issue

. . . E SSU

21...... Interview 22...... Company News 26...... Features NPE makes big bang Plastic Additives Market to reach $45.5 billion Plastic mulching China Injection Molding Machine Industry grows Count down begins for CHINAPLAS Brückner Maschinenbau at Chinaplas 2015

44 International News 46...... Business News 51...... Product News 56...... Technology 60...... In the News

President Vice President (North Zone) Vice President (South Zone) Vice President (West Zone) Vice President (East Zone) Hon. Secretary Hon. Jt. Secretary Hon. Treasurer

5 • April 2015 • Plastics News

Plastics News • April 2015 • 6

3968 8000 (30 Lines)

7 • April 2015 • Plastics News

Plastics News • April 2015 • 8

THE PRESIDENT SAYS

The Communications Gap

he NPE 2015, was held in Orange County Convention Centre, Orlando, USA between 23rd to 27th March 2015. Our team from AIPMA did make it to NPE 2015. The exhibition attracted over 2,000 exhibitors and we had the opportunity to interact with many of the delegates. As part of its continuing push to promote the collection and use of recycled plastics, the Society of the Plastics Industry Inc. was provided an unprecedented amount of educational space called as Zero waste Zone and perhaps it served its purpose. Back home we have had some causes that were paramount for the industry. First, Public Hearing held on 08.04.2015 in respect of Anti-dumping investigations concerning import of Plastic Processing Machines or Injection Moulding machines from Chinese Taipei, Philippines, Malaysia and Vietnam. The All India Plastics Manufacturers’ Association (AIPMA) along with other parties from the Producer / Exporter made its representation raising concerns of the domestic industry. Second is the cause of National Green Tribunal (NGT) wherein National Green Tribunal wants curbs imposed on plastic packaging. AIPMA has also pursued this cause. DCPC has now been made a party to the NGT case. For information the NGT notice stated that "Prima facie, we are of the view that there has to be restriction placed upon such packaging and generation of municipal plastic waste". AIPMA has opposed this as banning such packaging would saddle the industry with crippling costs,. Plastic sachets, PET bottles and Tetra Pak cartons are used for almost everything that households buy for daily use--shampoo, hair oil, beverages and

cereal besides packaged foods such as biscuits and snacks. Moreoever the Directorate General of Health Services is of the view that "multilayered/ PET bottles packaging can cause injuries to health due to leaching and other chemical reaction of the content of the plastic". AIPMA in its endeavor, have met the secretary Mr. Surjit Kumar Chaudhary, Secretary and Mr Avinash Joshi Joint Secretary and Mr S.K Nayak Director General CIPET. They had their share of the views. PET collection and recycling is fine but there isn't enough awareness to showcase the complete cycle. Also the Lycheeing data needs to be scientifically proven with test from CIPET. Industry should take responsibility of the waste it is creating and provide solutions on recycling and solid waste management. I think it’s high time we have done campaigns for creating awareness across the sections of the society. Industry should get together and deliberately work on Image building and communications program. Let us not forget the fact that Plastics is helping India tackle poverty with the recycling industry and scavengers getting a regular income. Let’s communicate to the world.. Plastic is the wonder material.. Rituraj Gupta president@aipma.net

9 • April 2015 • Plastics News

PlasticsNews News •April February 2015 • 12 Plastics 2015 • 10 •

FROM THE EDITOR's PEN

Innovation is the key to success

his year NPE did seem to make a buzz around not only for the products that were displayed but it also had an innovation in the form of promoting recycling efforts with Zero waste zone.

To speak about innovations we had first , Husky Injection Molding Systems announcing of its revolutionary new self-cleaning mold technology for the HyPET(R) HPP5 preform manufacturing system.

I think this definitely sets the stage for people who do want to learn about the Zero Waste Zone and learn more about the recycled materials and processes as it has a lot of potential ( i.e use of recycled materials to create new products.)

The new mold feature is part of the reduced maintenance package for the HyPET® HPP5 system and can extend cleaning and greasing requirements to approximately every 500,000 cycles.

Back home Agriculture has important role to play in Indian economy, however to produce more per unit area is always a herculean task for Indians (farmers) with limited resources and ever changing climate.

Second, Inoex LLC debuted with pipe technologies in North America that drastically cut downtime in pipe-diameter changeovers, and that simplify precise pipe diameter measurement.

India has adopted use of newer techniques where plastics play a significant role

The Advantage system, completely automates changes in pipe exterior diameter while the line is running, allowing diameter changes very easily. Not only does the system save on scrap, it also eliminates downtime.

and to what we call as "Plasticulture"- use of plastics in agriculture. Looking to this very significant role and usage of different polymers in agriculture and horticulture, we have introduced a regular feature for the year in our magazine for the readers to have an insight of various plasticulture technologies.

Third the Zero waste zone. The Zero Waste Zone featured recycled plastics with a variety of companies including recycled-based flooring to electronics, personal care items, building and construction products and toys.

I am sure that this very series on the subject would benefit the readers in understanding the diversified usage of agro polymers and may provide enhanced scope for capacities installed of these polymers in the country.

Moreover, One could easily find trade consultants hanging around and it was good to understand about how people from various countries, including India, bought scraps.

Hon.Editor Ajay Desai

One of the important things is that recycled plastics are not necessarily an inferior material. The idea of trying to expose attendees from recycling through end use at the Zero Waste Zone was designed perhaps to give people a broad picture of what recycled plastics are all about.

11 • April 2015 • Plastics News

Plastics News • April 2015 • 12

Aipma at work

Report on NPE 2015

he International Plastics Showcase- NPE 2015, was held in Orange County Convention Centre, Orlando, USA between 23rd to 27th March 2015.Mr.Rituraj Gupta, President AIPMA and Mr.Sanjubhai Desai, Mr.Bharat Vyas and Ms.Sanjeevani Kothare (PLASTIVISION INDIA-2017 ) attended and participated in the exhibition. The exhibition was spread across west and south hall of convention centre and the net floor area of 93,000 sq.mtrs was occupied by 1600 local and international exhibitors. As per data available the exhibition was attended by more than 60000 business & professional visitors from around the globe. There were country pavilions from India, China, Korea, Taiwan, Germany, Italy, Switzerland etc.

AIPMA Stall

India and proper presentation was made with required promotional material of AIPMA, PVI & PVA.

Pre Visit Preparations: With a view to plan visit in a focused manner our AIPMA team had done its homework to know and identify number of associations, agents, exhibitors from US, Canada, Mexico and Latin America region.Stall decoration work was assigned to M/s B&F who supplied foldable standees and roll-up banners with back drop design. Universal adaptor was ordered from M/s B&F as Gifts to stall visitors, exhibitors of NPE.

Meetings and Visits: Following a schedule , our AIPMA team had had meetings with consultants, individuals, exhibitors from US, Canada plastic industry. Meetings were held for the marketing of space booking as well as for visitors promotions at various levels. A Provisional MoU was signed with Brazilian media house for a minimum 200 sq.mtrs from Brazil territory with commitment of promotional expenditure against assured and confirmed collection of space booking. Presence of AIPMA and PVI team members was recognized at special tri-annual meet of ‘Indo-American cultural Organization’ wing of SPE. President Mr.Rituraj Gupta was honored to address the gathering.

AIPMA-PVI was offered barter stall of 100 sq.ft.bearing No.S/15162 in south hall by the organizer M/s SPI. Stall was decorated with foldable aluminum fixtures taken from

One-o-one informal and spot meeting were held with Indian students and plastic professionals representing MNC in USA.

Anti-dumping investigations

Public Hearing was held on 08.04.2015 in respect of Anti-dumping investigations concerning import of Plastic Processing Machines or Injection Moulding machines from Chinese Taipei, Philippines, Malaysia and Vietnam.

The Public Hearing was chaired by Mr. J.K. Dadoo, Designated Authority, DGAD, Government of India, Anti-dumping, along with concerned officers Mr. S.S.

Das, Director (FT) and Mr. I.P. Singh, Advisor (Cost). Representatives of the interested parties i.e. Domestic Industry, Producer/Exporter and Representative from Government of Taiwan made submissions The All India Plastics Manufacturers’ Association (AIPMA) along with other parties from the Producer / Exporter part raised the following issues: • As Domestic Industry has not followed the norms of

13 • April 2015 • Plastics News

Aipma at work confidentiality laid down under the Law and prescribed by DGAD. Section-VI of the Petition, which relate to cost information they kept complete blank and the same Domestic Industry expects exporters to disclose each and every thing. • Clamping force of machine decides tonnage of the machine and on that basis the Domestic Industry has calculated its dumping and injury. Product under consideration is Plastic Processing Machines also termed as Injection Moulding Machines imported under HS Code 84771000. Under this HS Code number of other products like used Injection Moulding Machines, spare parts etc. are also imported. The Domestic Industry has done some filtering and come out with import data from the Transaction wise information obtained from DGCIS. As per normal practice Domestic Industry should provide Raw data obtained from DGCIS along with filtered data. They should also provide a note or explanation as to how they have filtered the raw data. No such information has been provided by the Domestic Industry in its petition. We urge the Authority to instruct the Domestic Industry to provide this information. • Domestic Industry is suffering due their enhanced capacity not because of imports from Taiwan. There are other factors also which causing Domestic Industry injury and injury on account of those factors cannot be attributed to imports. • The Domestic Industry has enhanced its capacities capacity despite decline in demand and has made 35 % investment in PPM. This shows that there is no injury to the Domestic Industry.

• Number of employees have increased and even their wages have increased. Stocks with the Domestic Industry is lowest during the POI even though they have enhanced their capacity. • Import from Taiwan has gone down from the base year. The Import data as given by the Domestic Industry shows that used and second hand machines constitute more than 40% of total imports of Plastic Processing Machines. These used machines are imported at a very low price and are the main reason for lowering the prices in India. If the Domestic industry has suffered injury at all, Rule 3(b) (iii) of the Anti-Dumping Rules requires that the Designated Authority must examine known factors other than imports, which are causing injury to the Domestic industry. Petition filed by the DI is completely silent on this issue. Imposition of Anti-Dumping measures would not be in favour of downstream industries. It was requested to verify the Data/ information submitted by producers/exporters by conducting an on-site verification.

Representative from Government of Taiwan raised the following issues: • It is said that the PUC exported from Taiwan to India is high quality and reasonable price. • Domestic Industry is not suffering any injury • There are other factors which are causing them injury. The Designated Authority concluded the Public Hearing and advised all the participating Interested Parties to file Written Submissions by 15th April and Rejoinder Submissions on 22nd April, 2015.

AIPMA Delegation to CSIR-NCL The AIPMA delegation had visited the CSIR-National Chemical Laboratory (CSIR-NCL), Polymers & Advanced Materials Laboratory at Pune on April 11, 2015, Saturday. While the CSIR-NCL Team consisted of Dr. Vivek Ranade, Dr. Ashish Lele, Dr. V. Premnath, Dr. Harshawardhan Pol & Dr. K. Shanmuganathan, the AIPMA Team consisted of Mr. Rituraj Gupta – President, Mr. Sanju Desai – Vice President (West Zone), Mr. Meela Jayadev – Vice President (South

Plastics News • April 2015 • 14

Zone), Mr. Haren Sanghavi – Hon. Secretary, Mr. Kishore Sampat – Chairman Job & Career Fairs, Mr. Subba Bangera – Member Managing Committee, Ms. Uma Gupta – Secretary General. The visit was a bit casual with the possibility of exploreing opportunities of mutual benefit for collaborations between CSIR-NCL and AIPMA.

Aipma at work Dr. Ashish Lele welcomed the AIPMA members to CSIRNCL, Pune. Dr. Lele gave a brief overview of the history, achievements and current capabilities of CSIR-NCL

Following suggestions were made by other AIPMA members on how Indian polymer processors could benefit from NCL’s help: o Tweaking materials to suit locally available plastics processing hardware & vive-versa. o Innovative product development. For example, nanomaterials could be used with plastics to develop smart materials for specific applications. Here,technology is held by a few companies and opening of know-how is required. o Developing high strength PVC pipes. Especially, help is required in the area of development of PVC or

followed by an overview of the Polymer Sci. &Engg. (PSE) division of CSIR-NCL. Mr. Rituraj Gupta, President AIPMA, gave a brief outline about AIPMA and in particular about the recent challenges faced by AIPMA. He mentioned that AIPMA is an organization of about 25,000 associated members who all either process or trade or recycle plastics. Most of the members (~ 80%) belong to micro and small enterprises. Mr. Gupta indicated that AIPMA needs CSIR-NCL’s help immediately in the problem that AIPMA members face with National Green Tribunal (NGT). NGT is hearing a case from NGO activists wherein a national ban on all forms of plastics is proposed. If this happens in reality, the AIPMA members will face huge business reversals. In this context, Dr. Lele mentioned about an open lecture by Dr. V. Habbu (from RIL, Mumbai) on benefits of plastics, which will be held on April 21 at CSIR-NCL. He proposed that AIPMA members could gain from this talk if it is widely publicized and documented for submission to NGT. Mr. Rituraj Gupta asked if NCL could contribute to building favorable opinion about plastics based entirely on scientific arguments. Dr. Premnath indicated that AIPMA might want to think of initiating a long term India centric policy level research activity in collaboration with NCL so that the plastics industry and academia are better prepared to deal with similar situations that might arise in the future.

alternative plastics pipes that can replace duct iron pipes. Another requirement of the industry is in development of silent pipes. o Development of biomedical products. o Efforts on recycling technology Dr. V. Premnath suggested that AIPMA should consider funding consortium activities that are beneficial to several members in a given industrial sector. Mr. Rituraj Gupta indicated that while AIPMA has never funded any consortium activities, it might be worth contemplating on this effort. Dr. Premnath pointed out that a consortium based effort can mitigate risk to certain extent, and might be useful if Indian plastic processors wish to get into markets that dominated by large multinational players. Dr. Premnath mentioned that AIPMA-NCL collaborative efforts could focus on several fronts such as:

15 • April 2015 • Plastics News

Aipma at work 1. Product development 2. Process improvements 3. Training - higher end training 4. Analytical characterization 5. Start-ups with a focus on high-value products 6. Policy research 7. Generating awareness and popularization of plastics 8. White papers on subjects related to plastics

processes such as a interest section on extrusion, thermoforming, molding, etc. Mr. Rituraj Gupta suggested that NCL could also participate in development of Indian standards for plastics materials, products and processes. He also requested NCL’s help in showcasing innovations and technical advances to AIPMA’s student-members. Dr. H. V. Pol escorted AIPMA members to lab tours in CSIRNCL and in particular showed the members the analytical and processing facilities of the PSE division.

9. Soc. of Plastics Engineers (SPE) like groups on thematic

The National Green Tribunal case

PIL was filed by an NGO “Him Jagriti Uttaranchal Welfare Society” on which the court directed the National Green Tribunal (NGT), Principle Bench, New Delhi to study impact of plastics on the environment and human health. There were prayers in the petition which namely focused on the responsibilities of the end users in controlling the solid waste management and putting the onus of collection and recycling of waste of the products on the seller.

• To take steps on implementation of recommendations of Khwaja Committee Report.

The NGT called forward five respondents in the case: (a) Union of India (MOeF), (b) Central Pollution Control Board, (c) Directorate General of Health Services, (d) Food, Safety and Standards Authority of India, (e) The All India Plastics Manufacturers’ Association of India (AIPMA). During the hearing Tetra Pak Association impleaded their stand on the ban on use of Plastics. The prayers in the petition stated the following:• To restrict the use of plastic bottle and multi layered plastic package by imposing a ban on packaging of carbonated soft drink and liquor immediately and to gradually phase out the use of plastic packaging for all other non-essential items. • To consider and make appropriate changes in Plastic Waste (Management and Handling) Rules, 2011. • To restrict the use of plastic for packaging purpose of various other non essential consumer items.

Plastics News • April 2015 • 16

Mr. Haren Sanghavi, Hon. Secretary, (L to R) Mr. Arvind Mehta, Chairman, AIPMA Governing Council, Mr. Rituraj Gupta, Hon. President, • Effective measures are taken to make responsible the seller of products using plastic material for packaging to recycle and/or dispose of the packaging material in an authorized and approved manner. • To adopt the principle of “Extended Producer’s Liability” and ensure that commercial entities using of such non biodegradable plastic packaging internalize the health and environmental costs of using such packing.

Aipma at work The main issue raised by the applicant is ‘Plastic is used indiscriminately and products such as drinking water, pharmaceuticals, food, beverages and non-essential items like shampoos, cosmetics etc., packed in PET bottles, tetra packs and other laminated packages are unsafe and health hazard’. Besides, the plastic is creating problems and letting out toxic chemicals, monomers and heavy metals such as antimony, lead, mercury and chromium. The applicant pleaded to ban the use of plastics and in particular PET bottles, tetra packs, laminated pouches and other packaging forms. AIPMA appointed Dr. D. D. Kale – Ex. UDCT Professor as the Technical expert for the NGT Case to prepare a fitting, technically support reply to the applicant’s plea. ICPE and Polymer producers also supported us tremendously in this huge task of collection of technical and valid data to provide to the court for further study. Worldwide technical lab reports were provided to the court. Subsequently on 15 April’2014, we held an All Association and FMCG’s Meet at AIPMA house to discuss further deeply on the applicant’s plea. There were various discussions on financial & technical support from the industry to propose solution to the government, courts, local authorities and support effective waste management system to be established in India and how to frame a common strategy where AIPMA in co-ordination of the various associations like ICPE, other stakeholders / brands / effected parties will help the Government agencies in formulation of the policy. AIPMA can form a committee along with the other respondents in line with the earlier Khwaja Committee suggestions. Logistic of combining various agencies involved in waste collection, segregation and disposal needs to be included in the activities of committee to look into waste disposal problems. We proposed that the Government should include persons familiar with Plastics, paper, glass, additives and also the environment in the committee. Dr. D. D. Kale – Technical Expert, AIPMA, ICPE and Advocate Mr. Kundan Mishra presented their inputs with technical and commercial methods to tackle the various issues raised in the petition.

Prof. (Dr.) D. D. Kale discussing how to frame a common strategy. AIPMA and other respondents filed their reply and the matter was adjourned for further proceedings. AIPMA have engaged Advocate Mr. Kundan K. Mishra for this case.On 1st August, 2014 the matter was held for hearing in the NGT Court but the rejoinder filed by the Petitioner to the reply of the Respondents and the matter was further listed for the proceedings on 18th September, 2014. The matter was listed for the final disposal on 31st October, 2014, but one of the respondent The Union of India sought some time for further instructions and hence the matter was adjourned for the further hearing on 19th November, 2014, where direction was issued to the Ministry of Environment &Forest (MoEF), Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) and Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MHFM), to seek instructions and participate in the proceeding to take some positive decisions. Whereas, the hearing was postponed to 12th February, 2015 as Union of India took some time to file their reply affidavit.On12th February, 2015 Union of India filed all the necessary documents i.e. research papers and materials on record supporting the case consisting of various test reports guidelines, etc. MoEF, CPCB, DGHS, CDSO, FSSAI have taken the stand that the multi layered/pet bottle packaging can be injurious to human health. It also causes serious environmental hazards. It is in fact one of the largest sources of plastic municip al solid waste. As of now, nobody has been able to completely handle the issue of handling, collection and disposal of such waste successfully so that there has to be

17 • April 2015 • Plastics News

Aipma at work restriction placed upon such packaging and generation of municipal plastic waste. However, before any order, NGT were considering it appropriate that all the stake holders should also be heard. AIPMA sought for time to argue in this matter and the matter was held for hearing on 8th April, 2015. NGT issued Public Notice to the Manufacturers and Users of multi-layered/ PET bottles packaging, and asked if anybody wishes to address on the question or rejoin in the case. AIPMA had called a Stakeholders Meet on 23rd March, 2015 at AIPMA House, to apprise all on the aforesaid order and re-activate all to implead, so that this will strengthen the whole case during NGT hearing on 08.04.2015.

Mr. Haren Sanghavi – Hon. Secretary, AIPMA chaired this meeting and welcomed everyone. He invited Mr. Akhilesh Bhargava – Chairman Environment Committee to start the meeting by giving his valuable inputs on this NGT Issues. There was a presentation made by Mr. Akhilesh Bhargava, where he briefed about the current scenario and possible forward path in the NGT Case. Our Governing Council Chairman Mr. Arvind Mehta also spoke to take positive steps to improve Plastic Waste Management. All the while our President Mr. Rituraj Gupta has been pushing the environment team to work positively to serve the industry. He always proposed to share more and more technical inputs with the industry so that we can have a collective data bank which can lead Plastics to a positive future.

Stakeholders at the Meeting

There were discussions regarding sharing the data related to Plastics which can be helpful in this case. Tetra Pak informed that they have started an initiative of collecting and reclaiming the Tetra Pack with help of an NGO and recycle it in Pune. It was suggested that Cadbury, Heinz, and others to see possibilities to form respective associations in near future and in the meanwhile, Confectionery Association were studying to implead in this petition. All the brand owners are once again requested to internally sell the idea of impleading within their respective organizations & to consider possibility of press releases too.Dabur requested to possibly implead through ‘All India Ayurvedic Association’, where Dabur and Hamdard are quite active apart from 40 other members.

Plastics News • April 2015 • 18

M/s Indian Beauty and Hygiene Association (IBHA) suggested having a column in the newspaper containing details of advantages plastics and importance of recycling Plastics, they have already impleaded in this case. There was a question raised on the steps taken on recycling and waste management of Plastics. Majority of the members present emphasized that there should be active participation from the Recyclers Association as they are the body who are directly connected with the Corporation. Till now Organisation of Plastic Processors in India (OPPI), Tetra Pak, Indian Beauty and Hygiene Association (IBHA), PET Container Manufacturers Association (PCMA) have impleaded in the case.

Aipma at work Recyclers Association, Beverage Association and Confectionery Association have planned to implead in this petition. The Notice issued by NGT was published on 31st March, 2015 in the National Newspaper and circulated to all its members and affiliates by email.

President, ICMA suggested that kindly request the court to give us time to present argues. Mr. O. P. Ratra has also filed an application to the court to join the case as an individual. He said that it is not

AIPMA had organized an All Association and Stakeholders Meet on 7th April, 2015 at New Delhi under the chairmanship of Mr. Rituraj Gupta - President, AIPMA.

necessary to implement an intervener. He gave one example, i.e. Railway stations and tracks etc. are dirty. He was the only person who had filed the intervener in the court. Nobody had come from the industry. One of the association “Waste Management Green Planet”, MD, said that all Infrastructures should be provided by

Mr. Kundan Mishra, Advocate said that Court is not targeting any product made with polyethylene, but targeting plastic as harmful to the environment. In Himachal Pradesh, High court imposed ban of plastic pet bottle and various packaging items. Some coordination was lacked earlier. He also discussed that everybody should come together

(L to R): Shri Avinash Joshi – Jt. Secretary, DCPC, Dr. S. K. Nayak – DG CIPET, Mr. Rituraj Gupta – President AIPMA, Mr. Arvind Mehta – Chairman AIPMA Governing Council

Dr. D. D. Kale – Technical Expert on NGT Case sharing his inputs .

to framed solid scientific material to pursuit them. Indian Confectionery Manufacturers Association (ICMA) has filed an application to the Court to join the case as respondent.

Municipals under EPR. Facilities should be funded by the producers. Plastic littering waste is a huge problem and so collection of waste is the biggest problem faced by everybody. Collection of plastic waste is much more than the processing.Plastic littering should be collected by Municipals and process by Industry. This is the only solution. Mr. Arvind Mehta, Chairman Governing Council said that AIPMA is catalyst for the growth of plastic industry. With regards to environment issues, this is

19 • April 2015 • Plastics News

Aipma at work happening in the development country also. In US also, PET and all this environment issues came before 15 years, and it was addressed by SOPI on over the period of time. On 8th April, 2015 the NGT gave 3 weeks of time to file/ submit additional documents. NGT has also impleaded DCPC as one of the respondent. The final hearing of the case is scheduled

one of the respondents in the case by NGT . The final hearing for this case is likely to be held on 7-8 May 2015. The Secretary DCPC had requested all the associations to prepare a short brief on this issue mentionkng their thoughts ,suggesstion and / or stand they are taking on this issue.Our President was of the view that a committee of 5-6 members should be formed and this committee should meet the various ministers, DCPC, MoEF Minister Shri Prakash Javdekar.

Dr. S. K. Nayak – DG CIPET addressing the audience with his views

on 7th ,8th May, 2015. Earlier the Meeting was scheduled on April 16, 2015 at AIPMA House with the Stakeholders along with Shri Surjit Kumar Chaudhary, Secretary DCPC. Shri Avinash Joshi , Joint Secretary, DCPC and Dr. S. K. Nayak – DG Cipet. At the meeeting Mr. Rituraj Gupta appraised 4月-LM.pdf 1 2015/3/20 下午 04:13:44 the audience about the meeting and how DCPC was made

CMY

Plastics News • April 2015 • 20

Shri Avinash Joshi – Jt. Secretary DCPC addressing the audience with his views

It was decided to give technical data, clarifications and available test reports from certified laboratory in this regards to this case in NGT.

interview

Zambello grows with the world and serves the industry

stablished in 1950s, Zambello Riduttori company serves the extrusion sector for more than five decades from 20th to 21st century.

Mr. Zambello began his innovative w a y o f manufacture and venture, giving the Mr. Manish Sanandiya world new CEO of Zambello India standard and serving the sector with advancedproducts. Mr. Manish Sanandiya, CEO of Zambello India, was interviewed to talk about company perspective in the market.

What are the products of Zambello Group? Mr. Sanandiya: Zambello is a specialist in gearboxes for the past decades. We produce gearboxes for singlescrew extruders, gearboxes for co-rotating twin-screw extruders, gearboxes for counter-rotating twinscrewextruders (parallel and conical ones), gearboxes and geared motors for electric injection presses, and special gearboxes.

What are the latest new products? Mr. Sanandiya: As a completion of the range of gearboxes for counter rotating extruders, Zambello proposes the new ZC3 gearboxes for conical twin-screw extruders. At the moment, the new gearboxes are available in

three sizes, which are suitable for extruders having screwdiameters of 55 mm, 65 mm and 80 mm.The essential feature of these gearboxes consists ofground conical gears according to AGMA 11 - DIN 3.Like the entire range of Zambello, also the gearboxes ZC3 enable an extremely high transmissible torque. Here I give you examples of our applications:Civil building items, PVC products (doors, windows, pipes), granulates, and petrochemical products.

What is the strength of Zambello in terms of operations and employee structure? Mr. Sanandiya: The headquarters of the Zambello group are located at Magnago, in the Milano province as Zambello 1,near the Milano-Malpensa airport, and site at Magnago covers a surface of approximately 16,000 sqm, of which over 5,000 sqmare roofed. Zambello 2 is located at Lendinara in Rovigo, and site at Lendinara covers a surface of approximately 125,000 sqm, of which over 16,000 sqm are roofed. The Magnago factory produces gearboxes for single-screw and double-screw extruders of big dimensions(i.e. for extruders having a screw diameter from 120 mm on) and furthermore gearboxes for injection presses of large dimensions. The Lendinara factory produces gearboxes for both single-screw and twin-screw gearboxes in middle and small dimensions in regular and mass productions. Now in Zambello two factories,we are about 115 employees in total.

Does the company have presence in any other country? Mr.Sanandiya: Of course. Since our products are widely accepted in the world market, Zambello Group sales organization with seats in Switzerland (Germany, Austria, Switzerland), Great Britain, USA, Canada, Brazil, Taiwan, China, Korea, Japan, Turkey, Russia, and South Africa. As an international company, Zambello Group focuses on only extruder market only for now. We have received great recognitions in PLASTINDIA 2015 and PLASTVISION 2013. Mr.Sanandiya:Indian plastics industry is poised for a substantial growth in investment in new technologies with the increasing demand from various sectors such as agriculture, automobile, engineering, packaging, infrastructure and healthcare. India has reported export of plastics and articles thereof of $2.75 billion (Rs. 16,607 crore) in Q2, which reflects over 100% growth as compared to India’s plastics exports of $1.38 billion (Rs. 8,269 crore) in first quarter of 2014-15. According to a latest study by Research and Markets, the global engineering plastics market is expected to touch $79.02 billion mark by 2018, and we looking forward to it. Between 2013 and 2020, Plastics consumption in India is set to increase from 12 MMTA to 20 MMTA.Exports will rise from US$ 6 billion to US$ 8 billion as well as direct and indirect employment will grow from 1.2 million to 2 million.

21 • April 2015 • Plastics News

COMPANY NEWS

4,40,000 tpa Polypropylene plant at ONGC Mangalore

nion Minister Dharmendra Pradhan inaugurated 4,40,000 tpa Polypropylene plant at ONGC Mangalore Refinery as part of its phase-III expansion of the refinery. The estimated cost of this project is 1,803 crore Mangalure will see a World Class Skill Development Centre (SDC) to cater the growing needs of hydrocarbon sector, said Union Minister of State (Independent charge) for Petroleum and Natural Gas Dharmendra Pradhan. After inaugurating the new Polypropylene unit at Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Limited (MRPL), Pradhan said the SDC of international standard will train youth in 136 skills identified in hydrocarbon sector. "The new government has set up skill development and entrepreneurship ministry. All the infrastructure and employment generation related

departments are formulating their own strategies in their respective fields through the ministry. In hydrocarbon sector, we have identified 136 skills. In Mangaluru there is huge presence of hydrocarbon based industries. The city has all many infrastructures like port, airport and railway connectivity. We have MRPL, OMPL, petrochemical complex, strategic petroleum reserve, special economic zone, New Mangalore Port, fishery network, Kudremukh steel plant here. Looking into all these sides of potential, MRPL will be the anchor of the SDC. It will be coordinating with all other departments and the cooperation of state government will also be sought for this initiative," he said. The ministry will appoint a consultant to look into the areas and submit a report, Pradhan said adding that a

Milacron India bags National Award

ontinuing on the path of achieving excellence, Milacron India won 5th National Award along with cash prize of INR 1 Lac for “Innovation Of Polymer Processing Machinery & Equipments” for All Electric machine ELEKTRON®450 Ton. The award was presented by Hon’ble Minister of Chemicals & Fertilizers, Shri Ananth Kumar, Government of India in the presence of Shri Hansraj Gangaram Ahir, Hon’ble Minister of State for Chemicals & Fertilizers, Government of India to Jigish Shah and Kaushik Bhuva during the function

Plastics News • April 2015 • 22

organized at Bangalore. ELEKTRON® is a “Green” machine best suitable for Automotive, Packaging and other clean room applications as it provides excellent Accuracy, Repeatability and Consistency resulting in Higher Part Quality. Energy consumption in this machine is 30 – 50% lower as compared to hydraulic machines. The National Award for Technology Innovation are presented to organisations to encourage innovation and move with the time to meet the fast changing requirements of Petrochemical Industry.

timeframe has not been fixed for the setting up of centre. "We have not fixed deadline as of now. However, we are committed to set up a World Class SDC in Mangaluru," he said.

Reliance commissions PTA and PET plant at Dahej

eliance has commissioned a 1.15 mln tpa purified terephthalic acid (PTA) plant and a 650,000 tpa PET (Polyethylene Terephthalate) plant at its petrochemical manufacturing site near Bharuch, Gujarat. The company has been investing in Gujrat in a systematic phase manner.

The site also includes an ethanepropane recovery unit, gas cracker, caustic chlorine plant, and four downstream plants for the production of polymers and fiber intermediates. Equipped with process technology f r o m I N V I S TA Pe r f o r m a n c e Technologies, the plant will use paraxylene feedstock from RIL’s nearby 1.24 mln bpd Jamnagar refinery. This will boost the company’s total PTA capacity to 3.2 million tpa, and will help bridge the current 1.5 mln tpa deficit in India’s PTA market.

COMPANY NEWS

Inteplast buys Canadian film maker Haremar

nteplast Group has increased its business in Canada with the acquisition of a specialty polyethylene blown film coextruder. Inteplast bought Haremar Plastic Manufacturing Ltd. earlier in March 2015 for undisclosed terms. Haremar, based in the Toronto suburb of Vaughan, Ontario, produces film for specialty food packaging, shrink wrap, mail and security applications, industrial packaging and liquid packaging. Its products include compostable films. Inteplast at the same time acquired El-En Packaging Co., a Vaughan-based sister company to Haremar that produces garbage bags. Inteplast of Livingston, N.J., already had eight film, sheet and bag plants in Canada. Spokesperson Brenda Wilson noted that Haremar and El-En will fit

Inteplast’s production of institutional and retail garbage bags in Canada. Haremar and El-En are located near several of Canada’s prominent film extrusion machinery companies in the Toronto area.Mark Lichtbau, former corporate vice president of Haremar, will continue to lead the Haremar business. His father and mother, Saul and Fela Lichtbau, founded the company in 1965 as a plastic film importer. Mark Lichtbau won the Plastics Innovator Award in 2014 given by the Canadian Plastics Industry Association. “The sale to Inteplast will enable El-En and Haremar’s legacy to continue and grow,” Mark Lichtbau said. The acquired companies are now operating as the Haremar Plastic Manufacturing Division of Inteplast Bags and Films Corp., and are being headed by Joe Chen, president

Chevron Phillips commences maintenance at Cedar Bayou PE plant

hevron Phillips Chemical has embarked upon maintenance activities at its Cedar Bayou, Texas polyethylene plant, according to a filing with the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. According to the company the Tank 1804 will be de-inventoried, degassed, cleaned and taken out of service for planned maintenance, resulting in emissions through 16 April. The Cedar Bayou facility can produce approximately 281,000 tpa of low

density polyethylene (LDPE), 220,000 tpa of high density polyethylene (HDPE), and 191,000 tpa of linear low density polyethylene-high density polyethylene (LLDPE-HDPE). SurfaceTech, in 2007 but the Pune plant is larger, Reber said. Pune is a key auto making hub in Western India. Family-controlled Acton, based in Coventry, engages in metal finishing solutions and manufactures various vibratory and high energy centrifugal finishing machines.

of Inteplast’s Integrated Bagging Systems. Inteplast, founded in 1991, is the third largest film and sheet manufacturer in North America with 2013 estimated sales of $2.22 billion, according to Plastics News’ recent survey of the sector. It runs 50 plants, seven offices and 14 warehouses in North America and employs more than 6,500.

BASF to use Air Liquide technology for new Texas unit

ASF will use Air Liquide's proprietary Lurgi MegaMethanol and methanol-topropylene (MTP) technologies. BASF has contracted Air Liquide to provide basic engineering services at its planned world-scale methane-to-propylene complex at Freeport, Texas The plant is planned to have a production capacity of approximately 475,000 tpa of propylene. This project would be BASF's largest single-plant investment to date and is subject to final approval in 2016 by the BASF executive board. The Freeport site was founded in 1958 as the first BASF manufacturing facility outside of Europe, and is one of two BASF Verbund sites in North America and uses propylene in its manufacturing processes

23 • April 2015 • Plastics News

COMPANY NEWS

Siluria Technologies starts world’s first demo plant for OCM

iluria Technologies has announced the successful start-up of its demonstration plant located in La Porte, Texas. The plant is wholly owned by Siluria, and co-located at a plant operated by Braskem America, Inc. This milestone marks the world’s first large-scale production of ethylene directly from natural gas through Oxidative Coupling of Methane (OCM). The demonstration plant is the final scale-up of the OCM process technology and paves the way for Siluria to deploy commercial-scale plants in the 2017/2018 timeframe. Siluria’s OCM technology is the first commercially viable process to directly convert natural gas to ethylene, a key building block for the global petrochemicals industry and a new basis from which to produce transportation fuels. The

company’s breakthrough innovations enable natural gas to supplement petroleum as the world-wide basis for commodity fuels, chemicals and plastics. “Today marks the culmination of years of effort by our remarkable scientific and engineering teams. This revolutionary breakthrough has the potential to shift the foundation of the hydrocarbon economy by using abundant natural gas, to produce high-value chemicals and fuels,” said Ed Dineen, Siluria’s CEO. “This demo plant was brought in on time, under budget, and safely and successfully started up last December,” said Dineen. “The initial campaigns have already replicated our pilot scale performance.”The conversion of methane to ethylene using OCM has been a sought-after goal of the chemical industry for more than 30

years because of its promise to add value to natural gas resources and reduce the costs of chemical, plastics and fuels production. Siluria’s highly efficient catalytic process is more scalable, more environmentally friendly and more cost-effective in many settings than current methods of production. Siluria has developed a second process package for converting ethylene to liquids (ETL) to produce tailored products such as gasoline and other high-value hydrocarbon liquids. Siluria has been using the ETL technology to produce gasoline at its pilot facility in Hayward, Calif., since November 2013. The combination of Siluria’s OCM and ETL technologies provide an entirely new platform for energy companies to add significant value uplift to their lowest value products (methane and ethane.

Italy`s first PHAs bioplastic plant

io-on S.p.A., the leader in eco-sustainable chemical technologies, and Pizzoli S.p.A., Italy`s largest operator in the potato sector, will collaborate to build Italy`s first PHAs bioplastic production plant using waste product from the potato agro-industrial process. The collaboration, signed by the two companies, arises from Bio-on`s laboratory research and Pizzoli`s experience in potato transformation, and aims to build a plant producing 2,000 tpa of PHAs, expanding to 4,000 tpa in the future. PHAs, or polyhydroxyalkanoates, are

Plastics News • April 2015 • 24

bioplastics that can replace a number of traditional plastics currently made with petrochemical processes using hydrocarbons. PHAs guarantee the same thermomechanical properties with the advantage of being completely naturally biodegradable. Following an initial study phase to optimise the integration with existing structures and check economic compatibility, the project is set to be completed within approximately two years. The new plants will start production in 2017. "We will begin with a €220,000 investment for the

feasibility study" explains Pizzoli, "but the real challenge will lie with future investments in an integrated industrial facility, serving the food sector and with zero environmental impact." "The collaboration between Bio-on and Pizzoli adds a new "ingredient" to the construction of the Italian green chemical industry," says Astorri, "and it also enables us to broaden the number of raw materials from which PHAs can be made using Bioon technology. Our bioplastic can already be produced from sugar beet and sugar cane production waste."

COMPANY NEWS

A. Schulman to establish masterbatch production plant In Turkey

Schulman, Inc., a leading international supplier of highperformance plastic compounds, powders and resins, has announced plans to establish a new Masterbatch production plant in Turkey. This new facility will produce, when fully operational, approximately 40 million lbs of the Company's premium additive,

white, and breathable masterbatches for food and industrial packaging customers in Turkey and other fastgrowing countries in the Middle East and North Africa. The Company plans to lease existing industrial facilities in the greater Istanbul area, which it will convert into a state-of-the-art production plant at a cost projected to

be in the EUR5 million to EUR7 million range. This new facility is expected to be in production by the end of fiscal 2016. "By establishing this production plant in Turkey, we simultaneously achieve several strategic priorities," said Heinrich Lingnau, vice president and general manager - Europe/Middle East/Africa (EMEA).

Yizumi to open India assembly plant

uangdong Yizumi Precision Machinery Co. Ltd., one of the largest Chinese injection molding machine makers, is officially moving ahead with direct investment in India for a production plant to assemble injection presses. The move is in response to India’s continued antidumping duties on Chinese injection molding machines. The company first floated the idea of opening a factory in India in 2013 but was holding off to see if the Indian

government would renew the tariffs. The company is in the process of site selection and is considering locations near Delhi. In 2009 India started levying tariffs of up to 223 percent on Chinese-made molding machines from 40-1,000 metric tons of clamping force. Despite protest from Chinese machinery exporters as well as Indian injection molders, India renewed the punitive duties in 2012, when the first threeyear term expired.

P&G joins film recycling group

rocter & Gamble Co. is joining the American Chemistry Council’s Flexible Film Recycling Group, a self-funded effort to help increase the recovery of flexible polyethylene film, wraps and bags. “Our aim is to reduce our environmental footprint as a company and that of the consumers who chose our products,” said Steve Sikra, P&G research and development manager.“Working with the FFGR and our value chain partners to expand film collection and recycling is a

focused priority as we work toward that goal,” he said. Post-consumer plastic film recycling totaled 1.14 billion pounds in 2013, an 11-percent increase from the previous year, said a recent report from the American Chemistry Council, which created FFRG. “National efforts to educate consumers about the recyclability of bags and wraps are already paying off, and having P&G on board will help extend our reach even further,” said FFRG Director Shari Jackson.

And another renewal is expected this year. “Industry representatives and the China Plastics Machinery Industry Association went to India to attend hearings, but India made up its mind to continue the trade barrier, not just on Chinese machines but also expanding to machines from other Asian countries,” Yan said. Yizumi has been running a tech center in Pune since late 2013, primarily for Yizumi’s die casting machine business.

Maintenance shutdown at Sahara Petrochem

wo affiliates of Sahara Petrochemicals plan to shut down petrochemical plants for scheduled maintenance in April. The Al Waha Petrochemical plans to shut its propylene and polypropylene plant in Jubail for 30 days from Apr. 1. Sahara & Ma'aden Petrochemicals Co (SAMAPCO) will also be shut for scheduled maintenance from April 01,2015 for the next 25 days.

25 • April 2015 • Plastics News

FEATURES

NPE makes big bang

he crowds of attendees and the clamor of working equipment that filled the giant exhibit halls at NPE2015 told the story better than numbers, but now there are statistics to make it official NPE2015 was the largest show in NPE history. SPI, the Plastics Industry Trade Association, founder and producer of NPE: The International Plastics Showcase, has released final data for NPE2015, which took place March 23-27 in Orlando, Florida. The data

shows NPE2015 attracted 2,029 exhibitors over 1,128,200 net square feet (104,813 sq.m) of exhibit space exceeding the previous records of 2,009 exhibitors and 1,041,000 net square feet (96,712 sq.m) set in 2000. In addition, registered attendance for NPE2015 was 65,810, 19% greater than three years ago. These registrants came from 23,396 unique companies, 22% more than the 19,198 companies at NPE2012, representing a substantial increase in buying potential. International participation also set new NPE records. Nearly 44% of exhibiting companies and 26% of registrants came from outside the United States. Nearly 5,000 registrants were from Latin America alone. Exhibitors came from 37 nations in all. In descending

Plastics News • April 2015 • 26

order of number of exhibitors, the ten largest participating countries are China, Taiwan, Canada, Italy, Germany, India, Turkey, France, Switzerland, and South Korea. These figures don’t include many companies that arebased in other countries but exhibited through their US subsidiaries.

Recycling efforts at Zero Waste Zone at NPE

s part of its continuing push to promote the collection and use of recycled plastics, the Society of the Plastics Industry Inc. was provided an unprecedented amount of educational space to the topic at NPE 2015.The Zero Waste Zone

SPI president and CEO William R. (Bill) Carteaux acclaimed NPE2015 as the most successful NPE by many measures. “What made NPE2015 a milestone in the 69-year history of NPE was not only its size and international diversity, but also the richness of its offerings to attendees,” said Mr. Carteaux. featured recycled plastics from head to toe as SPI recruited a variety of companies to show off the viability of recyclables at the event in Orlando last month.

“The hundreds of machines operating on the show floor, the customer service centers provided by material suppliers, the pavilions and programs on current issues and emerging technologies, the extensive agenda of co-located conferences this wealth of content surpassed our previous shows and now provides a guideline for making future NPEs even more attractive to participants. The plastics industry should be truly proud of its show”

That includes recycled-based flooring donated by EcoStrate and Interface as well as a variety of products — electronics, personal care items, building and construction products and toys, for example — that all feature recycled content. SPI said One of the important things to educate the industry about is that recycled plastics are not necessarily an inferior material. The idea of trying to expose attendees from recycling through end use at the Zero Waste Zone was designed perhaps to give people a broad picture of what recycled plastics are all about.

FEATURES Innovative Technologies at NPE Husky Injection Molding Systems:

one push-button mold cleaning in eight seconds instead of four hours, and ten times fewer cleaning interventions on a machine: Husky Injection Molding Systems providex live demonstrations of its revolutionary new self-cleaning mold technology for the HyPET(R) HPP5 preform manufacturing system. The new mold feature is part of the reduced maintenance package for the HyPET® HPP5 system and can extend cleaning and greasing requirements to approximately every 500,000 cycles. This represents a dramatic improvement over conventional technology in the industry. “With cycle times getting faster, one could expect shorter maintenance intervals, more maintenance, and shorter mold life.

Instead, HyPET® HPP5 overcomes the contradiction between cycle time and mold maintenance. Selfcleaning can eliminate up to 400 hours of maintenance time per year, which results in 5% more production time,” said Nicolas Rivollet, Husky’s Director of Business Development. Self-cleaning is a push-button that uses controlled flash of the tool to collect and remove dust built up in the vents. Completely automated, totally reliable, and consistent, selfcleaning does not require an operator to go inside the machine, and can be performed as often as needed as there is virtually zero time penalty on production. The system at NPE was also equipped

with Husky’s enhanced mold alignment technology that enables time to first refurbishment to be extended three times, while improving cycle times and part quality. Using six sensors to detect the position of the core plate with respect to the cavity plate,the HyPET® HPP5 mold alignment is a real-time, 3D measurement of the

high quality preforms in customer facilities across the globe. The HyPET® HPP5 system at NPE will run a lightweight carbonated water preform application with a 10.89 gram part weight on a 96cav 50x140 pitch mold at a very aggressive 5.5 second cycle time. With this preform, HyPET® HPP5 is approximately 50% faster than the industry averages for the same type of applications

“

We continue to make significant investments to better understand the production issues our customers face so that we can offer new technologies to respond to these challenges. This is what we will demonstrate at NPE 2015,” said Robert Domodossola, Vice President of Engineering and Business Development at Husky. “With our latest innovations we have paid particular attention to improving availability, as producing better parts at a lower cost for longer production intervals ensures customers can be more competitive.”

HyPET-HPP5-Barrier-MultilayerTechnology alignment displayed as constant feedback on the HMI. If misalignment occurs, the HMI provides specific instructions to resolve it. By simply turning a positioning device, the operator can re-align the tool with a resolution of a few microns, before the offset can cause excessive wear and impact quality. Since its launch in late 2013, the HyPET® HPP5 system has had a very strong response from customers. In a short sixteen months the company has sold over seventy systems, with nearly forty installed and producing

Husky is offering the self-cleaning feature as part of its reducedmaintenance package for the HyPET HPP5 PET preform injection molding system. At the push of a button, the system uses a controlled flash to the tool to collect and remove dust built up in vents.At NPE 2015, Husky focused on hot runner systems. Husky is investing in hot runner manufacturing around the world. The company recently expanded hot runner production in Shanghai, to directly support customers in the consumer electronics market. Morton said Shanghai can build hot runners in six or seven days.Husky has expanded its Chennai, India,

27 • April 2015 • Plastics News

FEATURES operation and added hot runner manifold production. In Luxembourg, Husky has added a fully automated manifold line. In hot runner controls, Husky is promoting its new Altanium

Servo Control that enables servo motors to replace mold hydraulics or pneumatics. The Altanium H-series card packs more features in a smaller package — the hot runner control

version of a smartphone.

down the outside diameter from 24 inches to about 14 inches but it will handle smaller and larger diameters. Productivity is high because of the absence of investment in dimensional equipment for calibration, pipe

due to frequency-controlled vacuum pumps.

Husky also showed two medical molds — a 64-cavity syringe barrel and a 192-cavity medical hub mold.

Inoex on-the-fly pipe changes

noex LLC debuted pipe technologies in North America that drastically cut downtime in pipe-diameter changeovers, and that simplify precise pipe diameter measurement. John Mann, Inoex vice president

of sales and marketing, said the Advantage system, new to North America, completely automates changes in pipe exterior diameter while the line is running, allowing diameter changes “on the fly.” Not only does the system save on scrap, it can eliminate frustrating downtime. “Typically, to change pipe diameter, the line is shut down and then restarted, It can take hours or even a few days for the changeover.” An Advantage system was on display at the Inoex booth. Advantage is designed for polyolefin pipe, Mann said. In early installations outside the U.S. it is often used to scale

Plastics News • April 2015 • 28

support and seals. The heart of the Advantage is the calibration sleeve, which offers an unusually high setting range that spans diameter ratios of up to 1:1.8 in infinitely adjustable increments. Settings can be as high as 36 inches. Pipe can be extruded using the same extrusion die for the changed diameter. The Advantage pipe support is flexible and does not have to be changed when pipe dimensions are changed. The support can handle very high loads. The iVT vacuum tank is modular, provides optimal cooling and the seals hold vacuum well. Vacuum generation generates little noise

Mann also showed Inoex’s Quantum non-destructive pipe wall thickness measurement system. It is based on tetrahertz frequencies, which are near infrared frequencies on the optical spectrum. Tetrahertz frequencies are used in airport personal scanners because they are harmless to humans. A well-known use of tetrahertz scanners was checking quality of plastic foam insulation on the Space Shuttle. Quantum can check wall thickness of smooth pipe, foam pipe and corrugated pipe. Measurements are independent of temperature and no calibration is required. Mann said Quantum’s tetrahertz technology is unique for pipe measurement and is highly accurate. The unit’s scanner circles the pipe precisely, giving 360 degrees of measurement.

Conair simulating clean room environment Conair Grou displayed a simulated clean room environment at NPE 2015 to show off its reinvented MedLinebrand line encompassing 170 models of medical-market equipment in five product platforms. “We see an opportunity for a new approach to medical processors,” Larry Doyle, Conair president, said.

FEATURES We have been working on this initiative

Conair assembled the NPE clean room depiction in Orlando on March 18 utilizing fiberglass-reinforcedplastic wall and ceiling materials from Northwest Floor and Wall Co. of Peoria, Ariz. The simulated environment occupies 150 square feet and provides attendees with accessibility to view MedLine and other equipment in four different levels of contamination control for ISO Class 7 and 8 clean rooms, white rooms and hybrid rooms. Examples exist of high-efficiency particulate air filtration and ductwork. Inside the room are a mock verticalclamp injection molding machine with an attached MicroWheel-brand desiccant-wheel dryer, a FLX-brand material handling control system, a compact K Loader vacuum material receiver in 1- and 2-pound versions, a premium Thermolator TW water temperature control unit and a manikin in protective attire, known as a bunny suit, for use in ISO 7 applications. A MicroReceiver feeds material to the MicroWheel dryer. Through-the-wall connections link to ResinWorks resin drying hoppers and a simulated extruder. Extruded product exiting the die enters the clean room and passes into a cooling tank and puller/cutter unit.

for quite a while.” According to Doyle the aim is to better serve customers with particular operating and compliance requirements for medical processing. Across all lines, Conair has more than 450 products including resin drying systems, blenders, feeders and material-conveying systems, temperature-control units, granulators and upstream and downstream extrusion equipment. In its focused development of new products for the medical market, Conair used its in-house application expertise and the extensive hands-on processing and operational knowledge of a recent recruit, Matt Zelkovich.

Other MedLine equipment includes:

Starting in 2006, Conair used the MedLine brand for downstream extrusion equipment producing precision tubing often for multilumen heart and brain catheters. Now, Conair has extended the registered MedLine trademark to include its full range of medical market auxiliaries.

• R-PRO slow-speed conveying system: The patent-pending resinprotection conveying system moves resin at a slow speed to virtually eliminate pellet fracturing, socalled angel hair and pipe wear that high-speed vacuum conveying can cause. Conair began redesign

of the system in October after learning earlier that an automotive customer wanted a system that could go to zero for 100 percent verification. Conair fine-tuned the idea and, at NPE, is showing the latest version for multiple end markets including medical. • Material Vision Proofing system: The next-generation MVP uses a camera to provide automatic 100-percent validation that the correct material is being conveyed to the right destination. The system is set up to distribute resin from the ResinWorks system to all three of the simulated processing machines in the display. • TB-45 TrueBlend-brand gravimetric blender: This unit is mounted on a floor stand. Operationally, Conair has its headquarters and technology center in Cranberry Township, Pa., and is a brand of privately held IPEG Inc., also based in Cranberry Township. Regarding Conair sales, Doyle said, “we are ahead of where we were last year, and we are bullish about the remainder of 2015.” Manufacturing occurs at plants in Franklin, Pa., and Pinconning, Mich. The Franklin facility occupies about 180,000 square feet for manufacturing and assembly functions. A strategic supplier leases approximately one third of Conair’s space and provides extensive fabrication and painting services. The 50,000-square-foot Pinconning location makes larger-sized and custom downstream extrusion equipment. Conair purchased Michigan Plastics Machinery Co. of Kawkawlin, Mich., in

29 • April 2015 • Plastics News

FEATURES 2007 and relocated the operation to Pinconning in 2011 after constructing a purpose-built factory, extrusion laboratory and training facility. Conair sales and service sites are in Shanghai; Ahmedabad, India; New Taipei City, Taiwan; Singapore; and Guadalupe, México.

Wheel dryer upgraded Conair Group suggests it has “the smallest wheel dryer available” as an alternative to compressed-air dryers and small twin-tower units. A user can mount the compact MicroWheel-brand desiccant-wheel dryer on the feed throat of a molding

machine or extruder. Jamie Jamison, Conair drying product manager, said the introduction of Conair’s Carousel Plus wheel dryer nearly 10 years ago advanced the technology but even its smallest units were too big for machine mounting. Processors found it necessary to use other less-efficient drying technologies. NPE 2015 marks Conair’s launch of its upgraded version. The new basic models — MW1 and MW2 — use brushless blowers with speed control built in and can be programmed to deliver exactly the right amount of process air flow to dry the different resin volumes.The speed-controlled blower with an intelligent control facilitates fine-

tuning of drying parameters. The control comes pre-programmed with 30 different recipes for various resins. Standard control features include a material protection management system that can automatically reduce process air temperatures when returnair temperature exceeds set-point and real-time energy consumption monitoring for tracking power use and calculating power need for a given quantity of parts.Conair says the MicroWheel dryers are usually priced lower than compressed-air dryers and are comparable in price to twin-tower dryers. The Conair dryers use 220-volt singlephase power and operate without a need for compressed air.

Plastic Additives Market to reach $45.5 billion

he Plastic Additives Market is projected to register a CAGR of 5.0% between 2014 and 2019 to reach $45.5 billion by 2019 according to a New Research. The research study is carried by RnR Market Research Additives are added in plastics to improve its impact strength, chemical and heat resistance, clarity, weather resistance and color preservation properties. Plastic additives are used to add volume in order to control costs, modify the physical or chemical properties of the polymer, or reinforcing the polymer's mechanical properties to make it stronger and better for end-use applications. Plastics Additives are used in a variety of applications ranging from construction, packaging containers to consumer & electronics appliances, business machines and automotive parts. The market for plastic additives is estimated to grow on account of increasing disposable income especially inAsia-Pacific region and growing plastic consumption. The flourishing packaging application in

Plastics News • April 2015 • 30

emerging economies and increasing use of additives for agricultural and medical applications are expected to act as budding opportunities for this market. The report analyzes the plastic additives market trends and forecasts till 2019. The market size has been provided in terms of market volume (kilotons) and value ($million). The report also identifies prominent players and provides analysis for each player in terms of company overview, financials, product portfolio, recent developments, and company strategy. The plastic additives industry is moving towards new product developments to expand their product portfolio to meet the different requirements of the end-use industries. The companies involved in this market are extensively engrossed into new product developments and facility expansions. The company profiled in this report includes Albemarle Corporation (U.S.), AkzoNobel N.V. (The Netherlands), BASF SE (Germany), Bayer AG (Germany),

Chemtura Corporation (U.S.), Clariant AG (Switzerland), The Dow Chemical Co. (U.S.), Evonik Industries AG (Germany), Kaneka Corporation (Japan), Lanxess AG (Germany), and Songwon Industrial Co. Ltd. (South Korea) among others. According to the study growth in AsiaPacific is led by the rising demand for plastics due to increasing population and improving standard of living of the people in the region. North America is estimated to be the second largest market for plastic additives and is projected to have a steady growth rate between 2014 and 2019. Packaging application is projected to have the biggest market of plastic additives as a result of rapid urbanization and increasing demand for packaging materials from consumer goods and food packaging industries. Commodity plastics segment is anticipated to have the largest market size in 2013 and will continue to dominate till 2019 on account of its economic commercial availability and widespread applications in several end-use industries.

FEATURES

Plastic Mulching

ulching is covering the soil around the plant with plastic film to prevent the loss of moisture and acts as a barrier between the soil and atmosphere. It also helps in moderating the soil temperature. Mulching has been an age old practice among the agriprenuers to conserve moisture, aid temperature moderation and hence have better yield with good quality of crop by creating favourable conditions for crop cultivation. Plastic mulches directly affect the microclimate around the plant by modifying the radiation budget (absorptivity vs.

The soil temperature under a plastic mulch depends on the thermal properties (reflectivity, absorptivity or transmittance) of a particular material in relation to incoming solar radiation.

Advantages of plastic mulch  Conserves soil moisture, Controls weed growth with reduced soil erosion  Moderates soil temperature by insulating the soil surface Prevents leaching of fertilisers

is preferred. Today the vast majority of plastic mulch is based on LLDPE because it is more economic in use.

Following are the type of mulches used a) Black plastic mulch b) Clear or transparent mulch c) Two-sided coloured mulches: yellow/black, silver/black, white/ black & Red/black d) Degradable mulches: Biodegradable & Photo-degradable

 Improves seed germination with early maturity  Reduces incidence of disease and pests  Improved quality of produce

Areas of Application Mulching is mainly used for a) Moisture conservation in rainfed areas b) Soil temperature moderation in greenhouse cultivation c) Reduce the rain impact, prevent soil erosion and maintain soil structure d) Reduction in irrigation frequency e) Control soil borne diseases

Selection of Mulch films Selection of mulch depend upon the specific purpose to be achieved such as weed control, raising of soil temperature or cooling it down or disease control or enhanced plant growth etc.

Type of Mulch Films reflectivity) of the surface and decreasing the soil water loss. Now-a-days Linear Density Polyethylene (LDPE) and Linear LowDensity Polyethylene (LLDPE) plastic films are commonly used as mulching.

A wide range of plastic films based on different type of polymers have all been evaluated for mulching at various periods in the 1960s. Owing to greater permeability to long wave radiation which can increase the temperature around the plants during night, polyethylene mulch film

31 • April 2015 • Plastics News

FEATURES The width of the plastic film should be such that the crop agronomic

Thickness of Mulch film In plastic mulching the thickness of mulch film should be in accordance with the type and age of crop. Economics suggest that the film thickness should be the minimum possible desired life & strength. The suggested thickness for different crops are as follows: Thickness (microns)

practices could be conveniently carried out. The width of 90 cm and

Suggested Crops Groundnut

20-25

Annual-short duration crops

40-50

Biennial- medium duration crops

50-100

Perennial- long duration crops

Extent of surface to be covered under plastic mulching Percent Coverage Suggested Crops 20-25

All creeper crops

120 cm are more common. The aim is make use of available width of mulch

40-50

Initial stage of orchard crops

40-60

Fruit crops

film in most effective manner.

70-80

Vegetables

Technical Specification for plastic mulch: Thickness (microns)

Wt / unit area / kg of Suggested Crops film (sq.m)

7 10 25 50 100 200

0.007 0.01 0.025 0.05 0.1 0.2

Grams / sq.m 5 10 23 46 93 186

250

0.25

233

Microns mm

Groundnut 153 107 48 21 11 5.4 4.29

Short duration crops (3 to 4 months) Medium duration - up to 1 year Long duration more than one year

Indian Standard Presently the Bureau of Indian Standards has formulated Code of Practice under IS: 15177-2002: Surface Covered Cultivation- Plastic Mulching which need be complied the mulch film manufacturers in the country.

Financial Assistance Being capital intensive Government of India is providing 50% of the total cost limited to 2 ha per beneficiary under the flagship scheme of Mission for Integrated Development of Horticulture (MIDH). Introduction of LLDPE as plastic mulch has brought a revolution in agricultural water management.

ZAMBELLO Single-Screw Extruder Gearbox Growing Market in India

he ZPE series for single-screw extruders places Zambello at higher level with the transmissible torque as referred to weight and dimension of the gearbox.

The series of this range are very complete and are available from the smallest gearbox of size 90 (for extruders with 25 to 30mm screw diameter) up to gearboxes of size 630 (for big extruders with 300 to 400 mm screw diameter).The high level of this range regards designing

Plastics News â&#x20AC;˘ April 2015 â&#x20AC;˘ 32

and manufacturing of toothed gears, which are completely built and tested at the Zambello factory. Zambello is able to ensure best punctuality. The ZPE range offers 3 different series: ZPE1 for high revolutions (reduction ratio from i=2 to i=6.3) ZPE2 for medium revolutions (reduction ratio from i=6.3 to i=28) and ZPE3 for medium and low revolutions (reduction ratio from i=6.3 to i=125). It's application includes

in Rubber (tyres, seals, profiles ) Blow-film (shopper bags and films, foils for farming),Blowing of hollow bodies (bottles, cans, reservoirs),Cast film for thermoforming (foodstuff bowls),Cable coating (electric cables, optical fiber cables),Pipes, hoses and profile les for civil buildings.Recycling of plastics,Foodstuff packages (pasta, croquettes),Textiles and chemical fibers,Chemical products.

FEATURES

China Injection Molding Machine Industry grows

njection molding machine is the most crucial plastic processing machinery, accounting for 60%-85% in developed countries, and it finds application mainly in fields like automobile, household appliances, food & beverage packaging, plastic building materials, and electronic communications China’s injection molding machine industry has grown bigger and stronger along with rapid development of downstream sectors, becoming the world's largest producer and consumer of injection molding machine. According to a recent Global Market survey China's injection molding machine Industry is worth RMB30 billion. This research says In 2010 China's injection molding machine sales exceeded RMB20 billion for the first time and approximated RMB25.5 billion in 2013, the best since financial crisis, and it is expected to reach RMB30 billion or so in 2016. Major Global Injection Molding Machine Manufacturers include: Arburg, Sumitomo (SHI) Demag, Engel, Husky Injection Molding Systems, NISSEI Plastic Industrial, TOYO Machinery & Metal, Milacron, Meiki, Krauss-Maffei Major Chinese Injection Molding Machine Manufacturers include:Haitian International Holdings Limited, Chen Hsong Holdings, L.K. Technology Holdings Limited, Cosmos Machinery Ltd., FU CHUN SHIN Machinery Manufacture Co., Ltd., Guangdong Yizumi Precision Machinery Co., Ltd., Borch Machinery Co., Ltd., Ningbo Haida Plastic Machinery Co., Ltd.,

Zhejiang Sound Machinery Manufacture Co., Ltd., Tederic Machinery Co., Ltd, Ningbo Shuangma Machinery Industry Co., Ltd., Ningbo Jingqiong Machinery Manufacturing Co., Ltd., Guangdong Kaiming Engineering Co., Ltd., Ningbo Haixing Plastic Machinery Manufacturing Co., Ltd., Ningbo Xiongxin Plastic Machinery Co., Ltd. At present, nearly 30% of Chinamade injections molding machines are exported. Customs data show that, China exported 25,082 injection molding machines in 2014, a year-onyear rise of 9.2%, generating export value of USD1.01 billion, up 9.1% from a year earlier. In recent years, driven by demands from energy conservation and environmental protection, all-electric injection molding machine, electrohydraulic injection molding machine, and two-platen injection molding machine have gradually become R&D and promotion priorities. It is noteworthy that more and more injection molding machines are twoplate ones. By early 2014, Chen Hsong Holdings, Haitian International Holdings, and Guangzhou Borch Machinery all had independently developed twoplaten ultra-large injection molding machines with clamping force of 6,500 tons and above. The Global and China Injection Molding Machine Industry Report, 2014-2016 focuses on the following: • S i z e , s t r u c t u r e , a n d m a j o r manufacturers of global injection molding machine market;

• Policy environment and industry environment for injection molding machine in China; • Production, sales, import & export, and competitive landscape of injection molding machine in China; • Development of product segments, including all-electric injection molding machine, all-hydraulic injection molding machine, twoplaten injection molding machine; • Development of injection molding machine in major provinces and cities, covering Zhejiang, Shenzhen, and Jiangsu; • Operation, injection molding machine business, and development strategy of 9 global and 15 Chinese injection molding machine manufacturers. Haitian International Holdings: the largest injection molding machine manufacturer in China and even in the world; with a output of 27,000 injection molding machines in 2013, making over 30% of China's total output. Chen Hsong Holdings: the second largest injection molding machine manufacturer in China; focuses on large and medium-sized injection molding machines, which take up more than 50% of the company's revenue; developed supermaster 6,500-ton servo drive two-platen injection molding machine in 2014 after the launching of 4,500-ton ultra large two-platen injection molding machine in 2013.

33 • April 2015 • Plastics News

FEATURES Engel: a major injection molding machine manufacturer in Europe, with injection molding machine production bases in Australia, Czech Republic, Germany, China, and South Korea; established second injection molding machine plant in Changzhou (China) in Mar. 2013, branded as "Wintec", which started production in Jul. 2014, with annual capacity of 300 units.Sumitomo (SHI) Demag: formed by the injection molding activities of Sumitomo Heavy Industries (SHI) and those of Demag Plastics Group; has wholly-owned subsidiary in Ningbo, China, mainly producing precision injection molding machines; with the aim of expanding capacities in China, it invested EUR7 million to build new plants, which saw foundationlaying ceremony in Apr. 2014 and is scheduled to go into operation in Jul. 2015, with annual capacity of 1,000 injection molding machines then. Milacron: a major injection molding machine manufacturer in America; has production bases in Jiangyin (China), manufacturing mainly ELEKTRON all-electric injection molding machine and MAXIMA large two-platen injection press; invested USD4 million-USD5 million in 2014 for capacity expansion, with current capacity lifted from 200-300 units to 950 units. The 'Global and Chinese Injection Molding Machines Industry, 20092019 Market Research Report' is a professional and in-depth study on the current state of the global Injection Molding Machines industry with a focus on the Chinese market. The report provides key statistics on the market status of the Injection

Plastics News â&#x20AC;˘ April 2015 â&#x20AC;˘ 34

Molding Machines manufacturers and is a valuable source of guidance and direction for companies and individuals interested in the industry. First, the report provides a basic overview of the industry including its definition, applications and manufacturing technology. Then, the report explores the international and Chinese major industry players in detail. In this part, the report presents the company profile, product specifications, capacity, production value, and 2009-2014 market shares for each company. Through the statistical analysis, the report depicts the global and Chinese total market of Injection Molding Machines industry including capacity, production, production value, cost/ profit, supply/demand and Chinese import/export. The total market is further divided by company, by country, and by application/type for the competitive landscape analysis. The report then estimates 20142019 market development trends of Injection Molding Machines industry. Analysis of upstream raw materials, downstream demand, and current market dynamics is also carried out. In the end, the report makes some important proposals for a new project of Injection Molding Machines Industry before evaluating its feasibility. Overall, the report provides an in-depth insight of 20092019 global and Chinese Injection Molding Machines industry covering all important parameters.

Chemical & Raw Materials In recent years, local manufactures in China are ramping up their research

and development efforts in a bid to enter to the high-end plastics market, which has long been monopolized by foreign companies. Among them are some rising stars. Polyrocks will display its environmentally friendly flame retardant Polypropylene 5000(+) HFFR V0PP. Its flammability can reach UL94-V0 (0.75m), and meet the glow-wire test GWIT:775.c/3.0mm and GWFI:850.c/3.0m. Chongqing Polycomp's gross CPIC thermoplastic fiberglass not only enhances the tensile and impact strength of its kind, but also improves the gross and reduces the warpage of the finish surface. Malion New Materials will also debut its self-developed highend black masterbatch to compete in high-end market dominated by overseas suppliers. This product has excellent dispersion property and can be widely applied in high speed production of cast film and thin film for packaging, construction, cables and pipes industries, etc. Bioplastics is another rapidly expanding segment of the plastics in China. JinHui ZhaoLong will bring its completely biodegradable PBAT to the exhibition. These high performance film features 120% tear resistance and 130% impact strength compared to polyethylene. Zhejiang Hisun Biomaterials will showcase its sustainable plantbased polylactic acid (PLA). PLA has excellent biodegradable property while maintains basic characteristics of general macromolecule materials and its mechanical property.

High-Performance Materials The stiffer competition, lower energy cost and falling materials price in local

FEATURES market has made many Chinese firms face the perils of overcapacity. Rather than blindly increase the production capacity to meet the bottom line, many plastics manufacturers today eye at more profitable and promising areas such as modified plastics, composite and high-performance materials. In response to the trend,

a new theme zone called Composite & High Performance Materials Zone will be set up, at which Korean Hyosung will present its self-invented carbons based engineering plastic Hyosung Polyketone. PPG and Taishan Fiberglass will feature their long fiber glass thermoplastics and Japan's Kaneka will bring in the synthetic fiber

and thermal conductivity engineering plastics compound to the fairground. The highlights above are just a fraction of the exhibits in over 3,200 sets of machinery and a board range of chemicals and raw materials of the show. There is plenty of room to explore more.

Count down begins for CHINAPLAS

HINAPLAS 2015,the 29th International Exhibition on Plastics and Rubber Industries, will be held on 20-23 May 2015 in China Import & Export Fair Complex, Pazhou, Guangzhou. Over the years CHINAPLAS has grown and has now ascended to one amongst Asia's largest plastics and rubber trade fair.

Battenfeld, automation technology leaders Honeywell and Rockwell from the US, Siemens from Germany, Mitsubishi Electrics and Shini from Japan and Taiwan respectively.

This year, CHINAPLAS has exhibiting area reaching 240,000sqm and around 3,200 exhibitors are expected. CHINAPLAS this year will spotlight several areas that the market is muchneeded such as industrial automation, new manufacturing technologies and a board range of materials with special functionality.

CHINAPLAS will bring together the world's leading suppliers of hot runner systems, including Mold-Masters, HASCO, SYNVENTIVE, YUDO, SINO and MOULD-TIP. The booming automotive industry in China also pushes up the demand on high-end molds and molding tools. In order to better serve the downstream market of automotive sector, SYNVENTIVE and Mold-Masters have established new factories in Suzhou and Kunshan, China, respectively. With the rapid development of the packaging industry, film technology has caught the limelight. Multilayer film-forming technology has become increasingly popular as this technology not only can effectively save energy, extend the product's shelf life but also appeals to consumers' aesthetic sense.

Plastics and Rubber Machinery Currently, the automation level of manufacturing in many Chinese firms is still low. Cutting edge automation technology that can provide more s t a ble work force and proven production efficiency caught the attention of many Chinese enterprises, as well as companies around the world. In this light, CHINAPLAS has set up a new zone - Industrial Automation Zone, designed to showcase the latest robotics and automated solutions from global leading companies such as top robot makers, ABB and Wittmann

such as shorter molding cycle, less raw materials and energy consumption, higher efficiency and fewer subsequent processes.

Plastics mold is also one of the important branches from automated machinery. Hot runner system is now in fame because it has many advantages over the traditional cold runner molds,

In response to the market needs, Han King launches its FFS three layout coextrusion heavy duty bag machine. Austrian SML will present its new 1.5 meter wide stretch film production line - MiniCast, which suites the smallest space requirement while delivers the excellence in winding process and film quality even in small batch production.

35 â&#x20AC;˘ April 2015 â&#x20AC;˘ Plastics News

FEATURES

Brückner Maschinenbau at Chinaplas 2015

t Chinaplas 2015 in Guangzhou(Booth 5.1B63) German manufacturerBrückner Maschinenbauwill mainly focus on two areas of a modern plastics film production: reduced energy consumption and raw material usage as well the manufacture of special functional plastic films.

Reduced energy consumption and raw material usage In all lines, Brückner Maschinenbau continues to optimize the possibilities for energy savings and thus to also reduce CO2 emissions. Based on already incorporated features such as: • Low energy twin screw and high speed single screw coextrusion systems • Direct fluff feedback system • Heat recovery system • Direct drives for all line drives • Regenerating energy for line drive systems The highlight of Chinaplas 2015 will be the “Intelligent Line Management” (ILM) including an energy monitor for measuring and analysing the energy consumption of the film production process based on the international standard ISO 50001. ILM will support the operator to optimize the energy consumption of each product to achieve highest film quality on lowest energy input. Additionally Brückner presents more solutions for a sustainable film production of biobased resin, either as new investment or as modification of existing lines for

Plastics News • April 2015 • 36

bio-plastics processing, downgauging of films to reduce raw materials usage or the development of ultra-high barrier films to reduce subsequent process steps. A decisive factor for film production’s energy and raw material efficiency is the efficiency of the production line. Brückner’s film stretching lines offer working widths up to 10.4m with production speeds above 500 m/min resulting in output and efficiency unrivaled within the industry. Visitors at the Brückner booth will see the latest solutions for improved operating stability and high line uptime.Added value technical films for various industries The demand for innovative oriented specialty films in technical applications is rising. For the production of added value specialty films in such areas Brückner will present latest technological developments that will help Chinese film producers to diversify and enlarge their portfolio and enter into high quality technical film areas. Battery • Advanced battery separator film production lines with the patented EVAPORE® process for consistent quality, efficiency and high output for 3C and EV applications serving the fast growing electrical vehicle, power storage and appliance markets

• Lines for the efficient production of high quality, ultra-thin capacitor films • Stretching technologies for printed electronics, membranes, high temperature films, thermal transfer printing ribbons (TTR films) Solar • Dedicated, high efficiency line layouts serving the growth market of photovoltaic applications Optical • Sequential technology for efficient production of high value optical films • Simultaneous LISIM technology for highest value optical films At the joint Brückner Group booth,besides Brückner Maschinenbau visitors will also meet Brückner Servtec with their solutions for the profitable operation of film stretching lines, Kiefel, showing the latest developments for the packaging, automotive, medical & appliance i n d u s t r y, a n d Pa c k S y s G l o b a l , presenting advanced packaging equipment.

Electronic

Brückner Maschinenbau, the world market leader for film stretching lines, and Brückner Servtec are members of the Brückner Group, Germany, a worldwide leading supplier of tailormade engineering solutions and services for the plastics and packaging industry, with 2,000 employees.

• Tailor made layouts for films in the printed electronic industry

Other members of the group include Kiefel. PackSys Global.

FEATURES

BASF's new plant in nellore

ASF India Limited unveiled its largest construction chemicals plant in India at Nellore in Andhra Pradesh. This is also BASF’s fifth construction chemicals plant in India. With its state-of-the-art technology. the plant will enable BASF to respond in a timely way to customers’ needs in the Southern part of India and to support them with high performance solutions in the highly competitive market. At the new plant, BASF is now producing standard and custommade performance based concrete admixtures –Master Glenium, Master Polyheed and Master Rheobuild range. In addition, construction systems, such as Master Tile, Master Seal,

Master Top, and Master Emaco series are being manufactured, with the potential to expand to higher versions of Master Tile and Master Protect series of products. Mr. Ralf Spettmann, President, Construction Chemicals, BASF said, “With the new plant at Nellore, BASF offers a comprehensive range of solutions to help construct buildings that can be more energy efficient, durable and require fewer resources for maintenance.” Raman Ramachandran, Chairman and Managing Director, BASF India Limited and Head, BASF South Asia said, “India is a strategic market for BASF and it’s important to be able to respond to the local market in a timely manner.”

He further elaborated, “The Nellore site, an addition to our existing four construction chemicals plants in India. enables us to stay close to the customers and offer them customized solutions to meet the growing demands for multi-story buildings, long-lasting infrastructure constructions and more energy efficient construction techniques.” The production plant is strategically located in the Naidupet area of N e l l o r e , A n d h r a Pr a d e s h w i t h access to the road network and the Krishnapatnam Port.

The new “D-LFT System"

he development and commenced worldwide marketing of the "D-LFT System," a kneading/injection molding machine capable of forming high-strength long-fiber-reinforced thermoplastic (LFT) products from glass fibers and polypropylene (PP) resin, all in one process has been completed by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Plastic Technology Co., Ltd., a group company of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. (MHI), has completed. A unique screw shape, glass fiber feed method and other proprietary innovations eliminate the need for kneaded pellets (compound), enabling significant reductions in manufacturing costs. The new

system will be marketed with an eye on promoting its adoption in new applications, especially for creating items to supersede conventional metal parts in order to achieve lighter vehicles, etc. The newly developed D-LFT System integrates a variety of hardware innovations - a dedicated screw, automatic resin and glass fiber feed mechanisms, etc. - with proprietary innovations in software, including technology that controls the glass fiber feed according to the amount of melted resin and a new control system that disperses the glass fibers into the melted resin with outstanding uniformity. Together these innovations enable injection molding in which

resin and glass fibers are introduced into the system in their material state, resulting in LFT molded products of superlative strength and rigidity. Compared to injection molding that requires the purchase of compound material, the D-LFT System can be expected to trim material costs by roughly 25%. Simultaneously, the integration of the kneading and injection molding processes translates to a more compact production line. User support will be enhanced through the introduction of a new service whereby users will be provided with material mixing recipes for use with glass fibers manufactured by Nippon Electric Glass Co., Ltd.

37 • April 2015 • Plastics News

On Industry demand EBD of Rs. 300/sq. mtr. extended upto 30th April, 2015

Avail this opprtunity & Book your stall immediately online at www.indplas.in

INDIAN PLASTICS FEDERATION

8B, Royd Street, Kolkata 700016, India | Ph.: +91 33 2217-5699 / 5700 / 6004 Fax: +91 33 2217-6005 | E-mail: office@ipfindia.org | Website: www.indplas.in / www.ipfindia.org Chairman - Indplas’15 Organising Committee | Call: +91 98310 90756 | E: ashok.jajodia@indplas.in

Plastics News • April 2015 • 38

: www.facebook.com/indianplasticsfederation : @ipf_india : www.youtube.com/IPFINDIA

39 • April 2015 • Plastics News

www.polytech.net.cn

Expertise in Co-extrusion WPC Foam Board Extrusion Line

Hangzhou Polytech Plastic Machinery Co. Ltd.,China is a national high-tech enterprise, having own R&D team and manufacturing centers. With developing technology of polymer extrusion from Europe, Polytech business scopes include manufacturing of full sets of extrusion machines for PVC.

ASA / PVC Virgin PVC Foam / Recycled Material

Models Offered : WPC Foamed Board Type

Free foamed board

Skinning foamed board

ABA foamed sheet

Model

SJZS 80/92 Twin Screw Extruder

SJZS 80/92 + SJZS65 Twin Screw Extruder

Product Width

1220mm / 915mm

Product Thickness

3-25mm

Polytech offers: Ø Ø Ø Ø Ø Ø Ø

Applications:-

Robust machines Provides Turnkey Project Assists in formulation and process setup Excellent After Sales Service Competitive pricing All the components from reputed brands Worldwide successful installations including India

Modular Kitchen

Furniture

Marketed by Construction Boards

Plastech Marketing Pvt. Ltd., Mumbai (India)

sales@e3plastech.com Tel. No. : +91 22 26867230

Plastics News • April 2015 • 40

41 • April 2015 • Plastics News

Plastics News • April 2015 • 42

43 • April 2015 • Plastics News

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

German plastics group criticizes resin suppliers in Europe

he German trade association for plastics packaging converters has added its voice to the growing criticism of polymer suppliers declaring force majeure on supplies.

manufacturers are predicting a continued upswing in their business for the second quarter of 2015.

The IK Industrievereinigung Kunststoffverpackungen trade body said: “In recent weeks, the number of cases of force majeure registered by raw materials producers in Europe has reached epidemic proportions. Such reports have so far contained no detailed information and consequently make it difficult to ascertain whether the criteria for force majeure have actually been met.”

“This positive development is under threat, however, due to the fact that major raw material suppliers currently consider themselves no longer able to meet their contractual obligations towards packaging manufacturers. Deliveries that have already been accepted are being cancelled. When deliveries are made, they are coupled with significant price hikes, despite the continuing moderate cost of crude oil. An end to this price spiral is not in sight.

The Bad Homburg-based IK made its critical remarks in a statement connected with its regular update in which it said German plastic packaging

“Cases of force majeure presuppose an ‘act of God,’ that is, an influence from outside which is completely unrelated to operational circumstances. Merely

claiming the occurrence of ‘incidents’ or ‘technical problems’ is generally not sufficient.” It highlighted the difficulties that current polymer shortages and rising prices present have on small to medium-sized manufacturers of plastic packaging. “Since raw materials account for a large proportion of costs — up to 70 percent — margin losses represent a potential existential threat,” said IK. The statement follows similar concerns from Brussels-based European Plastics Converters Association (EuPC) and the British Plastics Federation, both warning that polymer processors and compounders could be damaged by the current material shortages.

Boom for European refiners

efiners in Europe are likely to flourish with production of naphtha for the first time in over four years due to exports to Asia and demand for gasoline blending in Europe, according to reporty from Bloomberg. Naphtha crack, which shows the amount of money that can be made when refining the product from Brent crude, flipped to a profit of 7 cents a barrel from a loss of 75 cents early this month, according to data from PVM Oil Associates. It was last profitable in Europe to make naphtha, which is used in the manufacture of petrochemicals, in January 2011. According to trading

Plastics News • April 2015 • 44

sources in Platts, sentiment in the Northwest Europe naphtha market was boosted by tight supply in the prompt, strong petrochemical endusers demand, decent blending demand and arbitrage opportunities.

at the moment.As per Bloomberg, refineries in Europe have struggled to be profitable in recent years, with about 15 plants having closed since 2008, according to the International Energy Agency.

According to a Europe-based industry source, the NWE naphtha market was mainly supported by demand from petrochemical end-users who were running at very high rates, by demand from gasoline blenders and by the arbitrages to Brazil and to Asia.

Naphtha is typically unprofitable for refiners, who rely on products such as diesel and jet fuel to make money. Sources say that the refining margins in Europe are at their highest in three years .

According to another market participant, demand for naphtha is reasonably good, whatever has been offered has been bought quickly and there was not much on offer

It is also expected to rise further as high as upto 4.6 mln bpd of global refining capacity that is likely to go offline for maintenance until June this year.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

Brazil's São Paulo launches plastic bag restrictions and fines

razil’s mega-city of São Paulo initiated a ban on petroleumbased plastic grocery bags on April 5, following a multi-year dispute between plastic industry trade groups and city government. Accordingly, Supermarkets can now only offer bags made from plant-based plastics, and those bags must be color-coded green or gray for use with recycling or trash. Citizens who don’t use the bags properly face potential fines. São Paulo aims to increase recycling by requiring that only the green bags be used for recyclables, an unusual provision in a bag law. But critics are skeptical, saying the new regulation alone — without major investment in collection services — won’t greatly boost recycling. São Paulo’s initial effort to ban plastic grocery bags in early 2012 was quickly halted by industry legal action and vocal consumers, who complained they were being cheated when grocers stopped providing plastic bags, which Brazilians rely on as liners for small trash cans at home. Grocers can now offer only biodegradable plastic bags colored green and gray, or any type of plant-based packaging such as cardboard boxes, at no cost or for a few cents. The law says bags must have at least 51 percent plant-based content. Stores that continue distributing non-biodegradable plastic bags will face fines of up to 2 million real ($644,000). Citizens must use green bags at home just for recyclables, or face fines of 50 to 500 real ($16 to $161). “It’s not all about applying

fines, it’s about creating a movement in the city for recycling,” said Simão Pedro, secretary of public services in São Paulo the city will adapt slowly and rely on the efforts of citizens and businesses in this educational process.” São Paulo’s biggest retailers — Carrefour and Grupo Pão de Açúcar have reportedly said they will charge 0.08 real ($0.03) per bag. Most major grocers already sell reusable cloth bags. Latin America’s second most populous city, with 11.9 million people, generates 12,500 tons of residential waste daily, but recycles just 3 percent of it, according to local figures.Officials want to increase the recycling rate to 10 percent by 2016.Municipal garbage collection is available for 68 percent of residents, or 86 out of 96 districts. The city says neighborhoods that don’t have public recycling collection won’t be inspected for proper bag use.But since public recycling is far from city-wide, the law alone — without investment in broader collection and education — carries little weight, said Renata Amaral, researcher at the Brazilian Institute for Consumer Defense. “The consumer in these districts [without municipal collection] … will continue to have those [green] bags taken to landfills,” she said. Plastic bags are considered by some to be a major contributor to flooding problems in São Paulo. Large black and old plastic grocery bags can still be used for garbage under the new law. "To invest in creating a new [green] plastic bag means generating one more piece of waste that is not

necessary for the functionality of recycling,” she said. “This reinserts plastic into the conversation, even though there is a replacement: the permanent reusable bag.”

BPF warns of materials shortages

he British Plastics Federation (BPF) has warned the whole plastics supply chain that plastics processors are currently facing shortages of certain key materials. The BPF's Director-General Philip Law, speaking on behalf of the BPF's large processor community, said that he was hearing increasingly that processors are being compromised through not being able to secure the polymer they need. “There has been a spate of forcemajeure declarations, reminiscent of 2010,” he said. “It certainly appears that some processors, of particularly [low density polyethylene, low linear density PE and high density PE] are on allocation. This threatens their ability to fulfill contracts. It is important for their customers to recognize that they have genuine difficulties. This is not just a UK issue it certainly affects France, Germany and Italy in addition to the UK. “Plastics materials are essential components of crucial food supply, mobility, healthcare and defense applications. Plastics materials are a prized national resource which should be nurtured and fostered.”

45 • April 2015 • Plastics News

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

Recycling of plastic packaging across Canada increases by 9%

ecycling effort by Canadians have increased the amount of postconsumer plastic packaging being recycled across Canada, according to a report by The Canadian Plastics Industry Association (CPIA). An additional 9% of plastic packaging was recycled in 2013 compared to 2012 as reported by Moore Recycling Associates Inc. In total, over 311 million kks of postconsumer plastic packaging were collected in Canada for recycling. The results are derived from a voluntary survey of more than 500 companies that handle recycled plastics in North America. These companies are made up of reclaimers, exporters, brokers, material recovery facilities etc. "We

are proud to report that over 80% of the plastic material reported was reclaimed in Canada or the USA. This amounts to more than 240 million kgs. It is evident the plastics recycling industry in North America is an important element in the circular economy." says Carol Hochu, President and CEO of the CPIA. This year's data, along with that of previous years, consistently indicates that material collected in Canada routinely remains in North America rather than moving to overseas markets. The reported quantities of plastic recycled in 2013, compared to 2012, represent an increase of 13 million kgs for bottles and an increase of 10 million kgs for

plastic film, such as bags and outer wrap. Of particular note, there was a 23% increase in plastic film and bags recycling attributed to both an increase in collection and strengthened participation. Canadian plastics recyclers want more supply; they have underutilized capacity creating ample opportunity for consumers and businesses to supply our recyclers with more plastics. It is estimated that the film and bag recycling capacity in Canada is at a 44% utilization rate and non-bottle rigid recycling capacity is at a 72% utilization rate. "Given the extensive recycling infrastructure, the impact of China's Green Fence on Canadian businesses was minimized.

PS market in Asia-Pacific,North America to grow at over 5% CAG

he Asia-Pacific Polystyrene market is expected to reach a value of US$11,255.4 mln by 2018 at a CAGR of 5.6% during the forecast period of 2013 to 2018, as per Micro Market Monitor. The growth of the AsiaPacific Polystyrene Market is driven by the increasing applications in the electronics and appliances industries in the region. The main industries that use polystyrene as a raw material are consumer goods, packaging, electronics parts, electronics & electrical appliances, construction, insulation, and food, among others. Polystyrene is demanded by industries in various compositions and varied properties. Polystyrene manufacturing companies, with extensive R&D,

Plastics News â&#x20AC;˘ April 2015 â&#x20AC;˘ 46

develop various new applications f o r p o l y s t y r e n e . Po l y s t y r e n e manufacturers are adversely affected by the fluctuating global crude oil prices, as these fluctuations have direct impacts on their manufacturing costs. Asia-Pacific holds the largest share of the global market, owing to the huge demand from the packaging and electronics industries of the region.

Kumho Petrochemical Co. Ltd. (South Korea), PS Japan (Japan), Styrolution (Germany), and Chi Mei Corp (Taiwan), among others.The North America Polystyrene Market is witnessing a high growth due to overall economic growth; polystyrene is used in a variety of applications. The report estimates the size the North America Polystyrene Market both, in terms of volume and value.

China holds the leading position in the Asia-Pacific market, both in terms of revenue as well as volume. The major players in the Asia-Pacific market include Total Petrochemicals (France), Formosa Chemicals & Fibre Corporation (Taiwan), Toyo Styrene Co. Ltd. (Japan), Jiangsu Laidun Baofu Plastifying Co. (China), Korea

The report provides a comprehensive overview of the key market drivers, challenges and issues. North America Polystyrene Market is projected to reach US$6,202.24 mln by 2019, at a CAGR of around 5.2% from 2014 to 2019. The key driver of the market is the growing end-user industries especially the packaging sector.

Business NEWS

INEOS and Solvay agree for divestment

NEOS and Solvay have reached an agreement with International Chemical Investors Group (ICIG) to acquire the assets being divested by INEOS. This agreement, which follows extensive discussions with the European Commission in the context of the merger control review of INOVYN, is a key step towards completion of the INOVYN project. ICIG is a privately held industrial company (headquartered in Luxembourg and Germany) that specialises in chemicals and pharmaceuticals, with 23 manufacturing sites across Europe and the United States. It is anticipated that the formation of INOVYN will take place in Q2-2015, upon receipt of all required regulatory approvals and completion of consultation with relevant INEOS employees in scope

of the proposed divestment. The assets being divested ("the remedy business") consist of: Chlorine plants and EDC/ VCM plants at Tessenderlo, Belgium (excluding the chlorotoluenes business that will remain with INEOS);PVC plant at Mazingarbe, France;PVC plant at Beek, the Netherlands, PVC and VCM plants at Wilhelmshaven, Germany, EDC plants at Runcorn, UK. The membrane chlorine plant at Runcorn is to be placed in a 50:50 Joint Venture between INOVYN and ICIG. The divestment will also include a portion of the potassium hydroxide (KOH) business at Tessenderlo, with ICIG supplying INOVYN under a toll manufacturing arrangement for the proportion of the KOH business that INOVYN will retain.

Total acquires 68% in Polyblend

otal has acquired a majority 68% interest in Germany's Polyblend. Polyblend produces compounds, which are blends of polymers (polyethylene and polypropylene) and other ingredients such as mineral fillers, glass fibres, elastomers and additives, formulated to customer specifications.

The transaction is aligned with the Group's strategy of developing higher value added polymers and differentiating itself in markets away from commodity plastics. Total recently began building two polypropylene compounding lines at

the Carling Platform as part of its project to secure the French site's future. The lines are scheduled to start up in mid 2016. Philippe Sauquet, President of Total’s Refining & Chemicals said that the acquisition allows Total to consolidate its position in the fast growing market for polymers for automotive solutions. Accentuated efforts to lighten vehicles to improve their efficiency mean that this type of product, whose technology is constantly evolving, enjoys a strong growth outlook. The Polyblend acquisition complements the current investment in new production lines.

Recycled cup maker MicroGreen shuts down

n Arlington, Wash.-based cup maker, which used recycled PET and attracted millions and millions of outside investment, has “ceased operations.” MicroGreen Polymers Inc., only a year ago, indicated it was ramping up production of its cups from 400,000 to 2 million per day. Now the maker of InCycle brand cups has closed its doors. “InCycle cups were made from a minimum of 50 percent recycled PET, typically used soda and water bottles. Those bottles were grinded, melted and formed into sheets and then infused with micro-bubbles. The bubbles expand the volume of material and allows for the production of four cups for every plastic bottle that is recycled. MicroGreen, when announcing its production increase last year, said its cups were big in the airline industry where they are used for hot beverage service. The company, at the time, said it was receiving investments from two different Native America tribes to fund the expansion. The company had raised more than $40 million from outside investors and had more than 100 workers at one time. The company dates back to 2002 and was co-founded by Krishna Nadella, who was serving as CEO, line at the time. The company, at that time, had 45 employees with a goal employing 200 to 300.

47 • April 2015 • Plastics News

Business NEWS

Kuraray completes acquisition of Plantic Technologies

uraray has completed acquisition of all of the shares in Plantic Technologies Limited based in Australia, which is engaged in the bio-based barrier film business. With this, Kuraray expands into bio-based barrier materials. Kuraray was the first to commercialize the highperformance barrier resin, EVAL (ethylene vinyl alcohol copolymer), which it launched in 1972.

Kuraray to provide barrier materials which meets the increasing global demand of bio-based food packaging materials. This is in line with Kuraray’s corporate mission "we in the Kuraray Group are committed to opening new fields of business using pioneering technology and contributing to an improved natural environment and quality of life". PLANTIC is a global leader in bio-based barrier materials.

EVAL boasts the highest level of gas barrier properties of all plastics and is the market leading barrier resin used in food packaging and industrial barrier applications. In addition Kuraray has developed and launched KURARISTER a transparent barrier film for retort applications. The acquisition of PLANTIC enables

PLANTIC film is used in a broad range of products in the barrier packaging sector and is supplying major supermarkets and brand owners on three continents (Australia, North America and Europe) in applications such as fresh case ready beef, pork, lamb and veal, smoked and processed meats, chicken, and fresh seafood.

Amec Foster bags awarded technical services agreement contract

mec Foster Wheeler has announced that it has been awarded technical services agreement contract by Oman Oil Refineries and Petroleum Industries Company SAOC (Orpic) for the Mina Al Fahal Refinery and Sohar Refinery, Aromatics and Polypropylene plants, Oman.

support, process safety improvement and maintenance programme support for the refineries and chemical plants. It includes an expert helpdesk service to trouble-shoot plant processes, optimise production, reduce energy and utilities costs and improve plant reliability, safety and environmental performance.

Amec Foster Wheeler designs, delivers and maintains strategic and complex assets for its customers across the global energy and related sectors. Under the contract Amec Foster Wheeler will provide specialist process and technology engineering

The contract will be executed using skills from the company’s Reading, UK, hub of expertise along with local skills in Oman and covers a wide range of its capabilities including increasing optimisation.

Plastics News • April 2015 • 48

Adidas phasing out plastic bag use

porting goods company Adidas AG is phasing out the use of plastic bags in its own retail stores as part of a larger effort raise awareness about ocean plastic pollution. The Herzogenaurach, Germany-based company has struck a partnership with an initiative called Parley for the Oceans. “The partnership with Parley for the Oceans has already led us to reassess some of our business practices. Stopping the use of plastic bags in our stores is a primary example of this and the right thing to do,” said Frank Henke, Adidas group vice president for global social and environmental affairs, in a news release. Adidas described the phase out of plastics bags at its own stores as “a first action” in the partnership with New York-based Parley for the Oceans. The collaboration, the company said, will strengthen ties with customers by allowing them to be part of “the solution via retail and future activations.” “By partnering with Parley for the Oceans we are contributing to a great environmental cause. We co-create fabrics made from ocean plastics waste which will integrate into our product,” said Eric Liedtke, Adidas executive board member responsible for global brands.The collaboration will accelerate creation of products and the integration of materials using plastic ocean waste under the Adidas brand “as of 2016.”

Business NEWS

BioAmber signs technology license with JM Davy

ontreal based BioAmber Inc., an industrial biotechnology company producing sustainable chemicals, has entered into a technology license with Johnson Matthey Davy Technologies (JM Davy).

deployment of its BDO/THF facility, which it plans to commission in 2018. BioAmber has already signed a 15 year take-or-pay agreement with Vinmar International for 100% of the output from the plant's 100,000 tpa BDO and THF capacity.

The licensing package will enable BioAmber to construct and operate a 100,000 tpa capacity plant that uses bio-succinic acid as the feedstock to produce 70,000 tons of 1,4-butanediol (BDO) and 30,000 tons of tetrahydrofuran (THF). BioAmber has also secured the right to license the JM Davy technology for two additional BDO/THF plants. The JM Davy license is a major milestone for BioAmber's next commercial plant and will help the Company to accelerate

JM Davy is the global leader in BDO and THF technology, with 14 licenses deployed representing approximately 800,000 tons per year of installed BDO and THF capacity, or 25% of worldwide capacity. JM Davy's technology currently uses maleic anhydride, a petrochemical derived from benzene or n-butane, as the feedstock for making BDO and THF. The BioAmber agreement is JM Davy's first North American BDO/THF license and first plant to utilize bio-succinic acid.

IOC plans Rs 45,000 cr investment

ndian Oil Corporation, is set to spend about Rs 45,000 crore over three years to build petrochemicals plants and LNG terminal, lay pipelines and upgrade its refineries. The staterun firm is also likely to benefit from a rise in crude oil prices since January without much price fluctuations. According to officials, the deregulation of fuel sales and oil price crash have helped IOC slash its debt AK The company entered the petrochemicals business just a few years ago but the performance so far has made the company confident of pursuing this segment "aggressively.”

MRPL plans to take over OMPL petrochemical plant

he board of Mangalore Refinery a n d Pe t r o c h e m i c a l s L t d (MRPL) has set up a committee of directors to explore the possibility of taking over OMPL's Rs.1 billion petrochemical plant adjacent to its refinery. According to reports it is learnt that ONGC Mangalore Petrochemicals Ltd (OMPL), where MRPL recently raised its stake to 51%, is setting up an aromatic complex adjacent to the Mangalore Refinery at a cost of Rs.6,400 crore.

Furtherd the unit is to use naphtha produced at the Mangalore Refinery to make raw material for manufacture of Polyester. The company has

stated that at the recently held board meeting, its board had in a meeting “approved the formation of an Empowered Committee of Directors, consisting of (company) Managing Director H. Kumar, Director (Finance) Vishnu Agrawal and Director (Refinery) M. Venkatesh, to explore and evaluate various options available for the restructuring/ integration of the company and OMPL. The objective behind the exercise is to “primarily bring about better synergy across the group, and to ensure that the businesses of these entities are operated in the most efficient and cost effective manner”, MRPL said.

Upon completion of evaluation of the possible restructuring options, the ECoD is to submit recommendations to the Board. OMPL is jointly promoted by ONGC and MRPL for manufacturing 0.9 mln tpa of paraxylene and 0.3 mln tpa of benzene from the aromatic streams of MRPL. ONGC also holds 71.63% stake in MRPL, Hindustan Petroleum Corp Ltd (HPCL) has 16.96% while the rest is with public. ONGC holds 49% stake in OMPL which is building a Rs.6,400-crore Aromatic Complex in Mangalore Special Economic Zone.

49 • April 2015 • Plastics News

Business NEWS

Shell to buy BG group for US$70 bln

oyal Dutch Shell PLC has inked an agreement to buy B G Group for US$70 bln, in a deal that marks the most aggressive step yet in the competition to be the world’s dominant supplier of liquefied natural gas. The collaboration draws from potential demand from countries like China, India and others in the developing world will move toward cleaner burning fuels like natural gas instead of coal amid growing pressure to curb emissions. Jorma Ollila, Chairman of Shell said, "This is an important transaction for Shell, accelerating the delivery of our strategy for shareholders. The result will be a more competitive, stronger

company for both sets of shareholders in today’s volatile oil price world. BG shareholders will receive significant value through the premium being offered for their shares. They will become shareholders in Shell, accessing an attractive dividend policy, a share in the significant synergies and the compelling upside and enhanced operating capability of the combined group. We believe that the combination is in the interests of both our companies and their shareholders. Commenting on the Combination, Andrew Gould, Chairman of BG said, "This offer represents an attractive return for BG shareholders. BG has

A. Schulman's sales, production up 36%

ecent acquisitions led to a big gain in A. Schulman Inc.’s U.S./ Canadian sales in the first half of the firm’s 2015 fiscal year. According to the company Schulman’s sales in the six months ended February 28, 2015, were $73.5 million, up almost 36 percent as compared to the same period in fiscal 2014.

Operating income for all segments grew almost 9 percent to more than $63 million. Foreign currency translation had a negative effect on Schulman’s first-half sales, which were down more than 1 percent to $1.16 billion. Schulman’s recent $800 million purchase of Citadel Plastics is not yet reflected in its results.

Officials cited the acquisitions of Prime Colorants Inc. and of the plastics business of Ferro Corp. as a main reason for the bump-up in sales. Schulman acquired Franklin, Tenn.-based Prime Colorants for $15 million in January 2014. It then added the Ferro business for $91 million in June 2014. Schulman’s U.S./Canadian sales volume in pounds also grew 19 percent in the first half of fiscal 2015.

Schulman now has made 11 acquisitions in less than six years, but the Citadel deal, announced in March, was larger than the previous 10 put together. On Wall Street, Schulman’s per-share stock price began the 2015 calendar year under $40, but was near $47 in early trading April 10. Schulman ranks as one of the largest compounders and concentrate makers in both North America and Europe.

Plastics News • April 2015 • 50

a strong portfolio of operations including growth assets in Australia and Brazil and a highly competitive LNG business, as well as an enviable track record of exploration success. The BG Board remains confident in BG’s long-term prospects under the leadership of Helge Lund. Shell’s offer, however, allows us to accelerate and de-risk the delivery of this value. The structure of the offer will provide BG shareholders with an attractive premium and a substantial cash return as well as enabling them, if they wish, to participate in the benefits of the combination through the share component. For these reasons, the BG Board recommends the offer.”

Reifenhäuser buys Enka Tecnica Germany-based Reifenhäuser GmbH & Co. KG, a major manufacturer of extrusion equipment, has announced that it is acquiring Enka Tecnica GmbH, a German spinneret manufacturer and its longstanding supplier. The company states that it will keep Uwe Gaedike as the CEO of Enka Tecnica, which will operate as an independent business unit within the Reifenhäuser Group. “However, our goal is to achieve growth in all of Enka Tecnica's business areas: As a result, all of the existing business relations will be left unchanged, and all of the existing product segments will continue to be further developed. Enka Tecnica will be relocated to Halle in of 2015.

Product NEWS

STEER announces the launch of Melt Formation Element

TEER has announced the launch of Melt Formation Element (MFE) at NPE for use in its Fatigue Free technology. This is in line with its endeavor to make continuous improvements to its Mega and Omega co-rotating twin-screw platforms for delivering exceptional functionality and superior processing capability for plastics compounding. The MFE is for improved reliability, reduced wear and increased uniformity of melting and mixing. The MFE addresses key problems faced by the compounders of masterbatch, engineering plastics and difficult to process materials: High wear, Degradation during melting, Uncontrolled breakdown in the process and transmission section

, Improper material flow causing pressure peaks, which in turn leads to shear peaks which leads to torque instability and re-agglomeration. With this announcement, the Conventional Kneading blocks (Right handed, Left handed or Neutral) known for their ability to disperse, but too harsh for many applications, the kneading blocks present a perpendicular face to the flow causing melt stagnation and large pressure and shear peaks during melting is replaced by the MFE. Dr Babu Padmanabhan, Managing Director & Chief Knowledge Officer, STEER, said, “The Melt Formation elements are designed to create turbulence to the melt flow without stagnation. They can replace conventional kneading blocks that

suffer from lack of shear uniformity completely removing any right angled face to the melt flow.” According to the STEER Application Development Center, which works with customers to improve polymer compounding process using STEER technology found, a range of specific mechanical energy input at sub-enthalpy values for partial to complete melting was possible with polyolefins, polyamides and polycarbonates. The MFE adds to the lineup of STEER special EPZ elements of SFV, RFV, FKB, OSE, DSE, EME, FME, 3KB as part of ongoing program to continuously evolve STEER Extruder platforms and make them more functional, efficient and address specific customer problems.

Teknor’s High-heat and -impact PLA for 3D printing

ew compounds in the awardwinning Terraloy® high-impact, high-heat polylactic acid (PLA) range of products provide enhanced properties and tight tolerance control in 3D printing, while permitting oven drying of filament to prevent defects caused by residual moisture, it was announced by Teknor Apex Company. The Bioplastics Division of Teknor Apex introduced the Terraloy® 3D-40040 Series compounds at the company’s NPE2015 exhibit. In addition, Edwin Tam, manager of new strategic initiatives, presented a technical paper on the compounds during the Society of Plastics Engineers (SPE) ANTEC Orlando 2015. Formulated for extrusion into filament for use

in 3D printers, Terraloy® 3D-40040 compounds have improved heat deflection temperature and impact strength compared with standard PLA and make possible tighter tolerance control after annealing. Because of its heat resistance, filaments made from the compounds can be easily dried in an oven before processing an important advantage because of the hygroscopic nature of the standard PLA polymer. “ O u r n e w Te r r a l o y c o m p o u n d combines two technologies in which today’s plastics industry has an intense interest 3D printing and bioplastics,” said Mr. Tam. “Teknor Apex has developed formulation and compounding methods that enhance

the toughness and heat-resistance of PLA by eliminating certain property tradeoffs normally encountered with standard grades of this resin.” Terraloy high-heat, high-impact PLA compounds are based on innovations by Teknor Apex that have overcome an inverse relationship in standard PLA between heat distortion temperature (HDT) and Izod impact strength. The new products exhibit up to two times the HDT and more than four times the impact strength of standard PLA resins. Previous work to enhance PLA performance beyond standard levels had generated resins with either higher HDT or greater impact strength but not both in the same grade.

51 • April 2015 • Plastics News

Product NEWS

Dynisco’s Online rheometer with new control unit

nline rheometry is being expanded by Dynisco- offering to include a new simplified ViscoSensor configuration that has a more compact rheometer control unit (dubbed e-RCU). The new system uses exactly the same sensor head as the original ViscoSensor so, although Dynisco has simplified the control package, the critical sensing component is exactly the same. This new configuration gives users a compact and cost-effective solution for continuous, zero-waste monitoring of melt flow rate, apparent viscosity, and other key test parameters directly within the thermoplastic manufacturing process. With quality control in demand more than ever, today’s processors can no longer afford the risk of shipping substandard products, the expense associated with producing scrap, or the productivity losses incurred due to materials

specification variance. Dynisco’s complete online capillary rheometer product series provides a window into the extrusion process, not otherwise available, ensuring process linearity and enabling in-process adjustments where required to ensure consistent batch-to-batch quality. The ViscoSensor system consists of two parts. First is the ViscoSensor sensor head that connects directly to the process and samples, conditions, and measures the properties of the resin. Second is the ViscoSensor RCU that remotely manages the ViscoSensor test parameters and provides measured and computed material properties. Additionally, the control unit communicates with external distributed control systems if desired. Dynisco’s newest addition to its online product family, the e-RCU combines the rheological properties of a Laboratory Capillary

Toray introduces Torayfan® PWX5 Toray has introduced A metallized

BOPP film that is designed for use as a high-performance inner moistureand oxygen-barrier web in gas-flushed applications called - Torayfan® PWX5. One side of PWX5 film is vacuumdeposited aluminum on Toray's proprietary ultra-barrier layer, which produces a packaging film that has superior metal adhesion and a shiny appearance. The other side of the film has a stable coefficient of friction (COF) and is heat-sealable. Overall, PWX5 offers superior moisture-, aroma- and flavor-barrier protection.

Plastics News • April 2015 • 52

In addition, its excellent barrier durability makes it the preferred choice for applications requiring an extended shelf life. New Torayfan PWX5 is ideally suited for the packaging of salty, flavorful snacks, cookies, crackers, biscuits, and confectionery items. The ongoing expansion of global distribution channels makes shelf life a primary concern of the CPG," says Kerri Boyens, Product Manager of the Torayfan Division. "PWX5 metallized BOPP film, with its barrier-protection capabilities, is the solution.

Rheometer with the MFI readings delivered by a Melt Flow Indexer. These values are delivered in “real time”, and continuously, throughout the extrusion process. The results let the user know, with certainty if adjustment is required to bring into specification or is linear and ready to make on-spec product. Among other features, the new e-RCU offers a simplified PLC with the digital and analog I/O that most plants would need. A smaller cabinet enclosure optimizes workspace with 40% less volume than standard RCU. All of which create a cost-effective system that reduces the risk of failure to an acceptable level. If conditions change and the system is needed in a hazardous and/or classified location, compatibility with the standard RCU allows for an easy upgrade.

Mamata to launch Win Series Bag Pouch Making Machines After a Huge success of Mamata's Win Series Bag and Pouch Making machines in India and Central American markets, the company will show case these machines at CHINAPLAS 2015. The company is working on WIN Series machines over last 3 Years and have officially launched in India in December 2013 and then at Plastimagen Show, Mexico in Oct-2014. Till date installed base has crossed 125 machines in very short span. it includes WIN 305 CP 350 PM. WIN 750 P, WIN 500 PM.

Product NEWS

Sekisui Plastics intorduces PiocelanT

ekisui Plastics has introduced a new grade of mouldable foam Piocelan T. The new grade of Piocelan mouldable foam resin; a hybrid of styrenic and olefin components is composed of a higher heat olefin component than previous grades, offering increased elevated temperature stability along with higher compressive, flexural and tensile strength. It is engineered to meet the stringent flammability requirements for automotive interior parts. "Existing hybrid foam materials provide insufficient heat resistance for certain automotive interior applications," said Thomas Pontiff, Vice President of Sekisui Plastics USA. "This new hybrid composition uses a different olefin which provides heat resistance and improved physical and flammability properties over other hybrid foam grades and materials used for automotive and industrial foam parts." Developed after extensive

research efforts using its proprietary polystyrene/polyolefin hybrid foam technology, Sekisui explains that Piocelan T uses a polyolefin type that is difficult to expand together with polystyrene because of drastically different viscosities at molten temperatures. "We use a unique processing technique to produce and expand the hybrid composition," said Pontiff. "This technique yields foam beads that are easily moulded into foam parts that have an exceptional combination of properties." Foam parts designed and moulded using Piocelan T, such as trunk spacers and insert cushions, are said to offer a number of advantages over parts made with existing hybrid foam materials. "For example," said Pontiff, "part weight can be reduced by approximately 20-40% resulting in lower vehicular mass, which contributes to fuel economy and the environment. Part size can

also be reduced because of the higher strength properties, which contribute to a more spacious interior in the automobile. And, because a lower mass of foam material is needed, due to lower foam density and reduced part size, part cost can be reduced."Because the production of Piocelan T requires a slightly different processing technique than previous Piocelan grades, Sekisui recently completed the necessary process upgrades and improvements at its resin production facility in Tennessee. "Since Piocelan will be manufactured in the US, turnaround time will be significantly reduced," said Pontiff. Sekisui also installed moulding capability for Piocelan T at its Tennessee moulding facility and is planning to install the same capability at its new Kenton, Ohio plant, set to begin operations in the spring of 2015.

Polyone launches Geon™ BIO Flexible Solutions

olyOne Corporation has launched Geon™ BIO Flexible Solutions, formulated with a bio-derived plasticizer and in compliance with phthalate-restrictive regulations, such as California's Prop 65 and the Consumer Product Safety Initiative Act of 2008 (CPSIA). Consumer, healthcare, transportation and building products manufacturers will now have a high-performance material that offers excellent performance and sustainability in one, cost-effective, vinyl-based

material package. Geon BIO materials are formulated with PolyOne's plantbased reFlex™ 300 plasticizer, which has been tested and certified by the United States Department of Agriculture's BioPreferred® Program to be 99 percent bio-based. In addition, specific Geon BIO healthcare formulations are precertified to meet biocompatibility requirements for United States Pharmacopeia (USP) Class VI protocols. Compared to other flexible vinyls, Geon BIO materials feature a wider

processing window and enhanced thermal stability, which may improve manufacturing efficiency to deliver reduced production costs."At last, customers can avoid compromising performance to meet regulatory and sustainability objectives," said Michael Garratt, president, Performance Products and Solutions, PolyOne Corporation. "Customers benefit as this performs at levels equal to or better than materials containing traditional petroleum-based plasticizers."

53 • April 2015 • Plastics News

Product NEWS

STRUKTOL launches new additives STRUKTOL® TR 063A, TR 044W

truktol Company of America's expanded product line for engineered plastics have been designed to provide greater processing and performance capabilities for compounders, processors, and end users.STRUKTOL® TR 063A is a highlyefficient lubricant and viscosity reducer for nylon 6 and nylon 6,6 compounds. The product boasts a novel chemistry which makes it highly compatible with polyamides and is superior in performance to alternative lubricants such as Montan ester waxes. TR 063A provides compounders and processors with a cost-effective, versatile process additive that can significantly improve throughput and efficiency.STRUKTOL® TR 063A can be added directly at the compounding

stage or by the processor during part manufacturing. In pellet form, it can be easily added to extrusion or injection molding machines. STRUKTOL® TR 044W provides a combination of viscosity reduction and mold release characteristics for polycarbonate resins and compounds. Loading levels as low as 0.2% result in increased melt flow and allow for significant improvements in mold filling and release. Processors using STRUKTOL® TR 044W in clear applications will see minimal haze development even at higher loading levels. The improved processability can result in lower molded-in stress in injection molding applications that often will mean better part performance. The product is also effective in highly-

filled polycarbonate compounds, providing improved dispersion and lower viscosities. For added metal release, processors of nylon 6 and 6,6 will find STRUKTOL® TR 077 to provide additional benefit. It exhibits added external lubricity for both extrusion and molding applications. It is an excellent replacement product for applications where traditional powder zinc stearate is currently being used, offering superior processing, as well as better handling due to pastille product form. It also works well in many other polymer systems including polystyrene, concentrates, thermosets, and many olefins. It also meets the requirements of many FDA applications

Erema introduces INTAREMA® RegrindPro®

n its Discovery Day 2015, Erema globally launched a new product innovation INTAREMA® RegrindPro® for the highly efficient recycling of regrind materials. The trend in plastics recycling is characterised on the one hand by the fact that the quality of the input material is decreasing whereas, on the other hand, the requirements for existing applications (e.g. in the production of blown film) and the demand for exactly specified raw materials from recyclate are increasing. In addition to this the quantities of heavily contaminated post consumer materials are growing and this development calls for new

Plastics News • April 2015 • 54

markets and, in particular, new, innovative end products with a high portion or consisting entirely of recyclate. This represents ever growing challenges in terms of recycling solutions, especially in the post consumer area. The key factors of this innovation lie above all in the extremely gentle processing and the highly efficient filtration.The thick-walled regrind particles are warmed through perfectly in the preconditioning unit thanks to the slower turning of the patented rotor disc and a longer dwell time. This means that the material can melt in the extruder with minimum shearing forces while

at the same time the impurities in the melt remain large enough to be filtered out extremely efficiently by the high-performance filter. Additionally, through the combination of the optimised preconditioning unit with a new, particularly gentle universal screw, the new INTAREMA® RegrindPro® offers you a remarkably high degree of flexibility which enables multipurpose regrind processing. This allows you, for example, to process regrind despite varying viscosity, as in the case of materials such as HDPE and PP, using the same system with full output and in a gentle way.

Product NEWS

Nano-coated mesh with near invisible oil-repelling coating

n unassuming piece of stainless steel mesh made in a lab at The Ohio State University could make a big difference for future environmental cleanups- Water passes through the mesh but oil does not, thanks to a nearly invisible oil-repelling coating on its surface.

In tests, researchers mixed water with oil and poured the mixture onto the mesh. The water filtered through the mesh to land in a beaker below. The oil collected on top of the mesh, and rolled off easily into a separate beaker when the mesh was tilted. The mesh coating is among a suite of nature-inspired nanotechnologies under development at Ohio State and described in two papers in the journal Nature Scientific Reports. Potential applications range from cleaning oil spills to tracking oil deposits underground. “If you scale

this up, you could potentially catch an oil spill with a net,” says Bharat Bhushan, Ohio Eminent Scholar and Howard D. Winbigler Professor of mechanical engineering at Ohio State.The work was partly inspired by lotus leaves, whose bumpy surfaces naturally repel water but not oil. To create a coating that did the opposite, Bhushan and postdoctoral researcher Philip Brown chose to cover a bumpy surface with a polymer embedded with molecules of surfactant—the stuff that gives cleaning power to soap and detergent. They sprayed a fine dusting of silica nanoparticles onto the stainless steel mesh to create a randomly bumpy surface and layered the polymer and surfactant on top. The silica, surfactant, polymer, and stainless steel are all non-toxic and relatively inexpensive, says Brown. He estimates that a larger mesh net could be created for less than a dollar

per square foot. Because the coating is only a few hundred nanometers (billionths of a meter) thick, it is mostly undetectable. To the touch, the coated mesh doesn’t feel any bumpier than uncoated mesh. The coated mesh is a little less shiny, though, because the coating is only 70 percent transparent. The researchers chose silica in part because it is an ingredient in glass, and they wanted to explore this technology’s potential for creating smudge-free glass coatings. At 70% transparency, the coating could work for certain automotive glass applications, such as mirrors, but not most windows or smartphone surfaces. “Our goal is to reach a transparency in the 90% range,” Bhushan says. “In all our coatings, different combinations of ingredients in the layers yield different properties. The trick is to select the right layers.

New solutions for concrete placement and waterproofing

o optimize waterproofing performance in wet areas’ construction, BASF is introducing a holistic system from its Master Builders Solutions range consisting of MasterSeal®waterproofing and MasterTile tiling systems.

These new solutions cater to the challenging conditions during and post-construction of wet areas and provide watertight lining for wet areas such as bathrooms and shower areas. “We are excited to bring these new solutions to the ever growing construction industry in India,” said

Nilotpol Kar, Business Director of BASF Construction Chemicals in India. Under the Master Builders Solutions® brand, BASF bundles its advanced chemical solutions for new construction, maintenance, repair and renovation of structures. Master Builders Solutions is built on the experience gained from more than 100 years in the construction industry. The comprehensive portfolio under the brand encompasses concrete admixtures, form release agents, cement additives, chemical solutions for underground construction,

waterproofing solutions, sealants, repair & protection solutions, performance grouts, and performance flooring solutions. Master Builders Solutions is backed by a global community of BASF construction experts. Nilotpol Kar, further adds, "To solve our customers’ specific construction challenges, we combine the suitable elements of our portfolio, our knowhow across areas of expertise and regions, and draw on the experience gained in countless construction projects worldwide."

55 • April 2015 • Plastics News

Technology

Twisted nanofibers create structures tougher than Kevlar

ew structures that exploit the electromechanical properties of specific nanofibers to stretch to up to 7 times their length, while remaining tougher than Kevlar have been created by Researchers at the University of Texas at Dallas. These structures absorb up to 98 joules per gram, vs Kevlar, that absorb up to 80 joules per gram. The material can reinforce itself at points of high stress and could potentially be used in military airplanes or other defense applications. In a study published by ACS Applied Materials and Interfaces, researchers twisted nanofiber into yarns and coils. The electricity generated by stretching the twisted nanofiber formed an attraction 10 times stronger than a hydrogen bond, which is considered

one of the strongest forces formed between molecules. Researchers sought to mimic their earlier work on the piezoelectric action (how pressure forms electric charges) of collagen fibers found inside bone in hopes of creating high-performance materials that can reinforce itself, said Dr. Majid Minary, an assistant professor of mechanical engineering in UT Dallas' Erik Jonsson School of Engineering and Computer Science and senior author of the study. "We reproduced this process in nanofibers by manipulating the creation of electric charges to result in a lightweight, flexible, yet strong material," said Minary, who is also a member of the Alan G. MacDiarmid NanoTech Institute. "Our country needs such materials on a large scale for

industrial and defense applications." The team took inspiration from the piezoelectric action—where pressure is converted into electrical charges—observed in collagen fibers within human bone. The researchers recreated the collagan fibers by spinning polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) and polyvinvylidene fluoride trifluoroethylene (PVDF-TrFE)— themselves piezoelectric materials— into nanofibers. They then twisted these strands into yarns. When stretched, these polymer-based yarns create an electrical charge which acts to attracts the polymer strands back in on themselves—an attraction found to be 10 times stronger than a hydrogen bond.

Combination of abrasion-resistant screw and barrel materials

orlay has offered combination of abrasion-resistant screw and barrel materials based on Nordson’s metallurgical expertise extends the working life of plasticizing units for injection molding and extrusion by substantially reducing wear from filled compounds.

The new plasticizing unit package takes advantage of the high resistance to abrasion of two Nordson Xaloy alloys: ● X8000™ Screw Encapsulation. Nordson applies this nickel-based alloy with high tungsten carbide content to the entire screw geometry in a high-velocity oxy-fuel (HVOF) coating process; it then fuses the

Plastics News • April 2015 • 56

alloy to the parent metal of the screw in a two-step method that forms a metallurgical bond, rather than the purely mechanical bond formed by standard HVOF coatings. In addition, X8000 coating is double the thickness of other HVOF-applied coatings—0.50 mm versus 0.25 mm. The high nickel content provides enhanced corrosion resistance. ● X800® Barrel Inlay. Also a nickelbased alloy with tungsten carbide, the X800 inlay is more wear-resistant than iron-based, iron-chromium, and nickelcobalt alloys, providing exceptional abrasion and corrosion resistance with highly filled materials and hightemperature engineering polymers.

Nordson offers the abrasion-resistant package as a way for processors to meet the challenge posed by growing demand for highly filled compounds. In automotive manufacturing, carbon fiber-reinforced composites are in growing demand as light-weighting alternatives to metals. In under-hood auto applications, compounds heavily filled with glass and minerals are now widely used. A similar challenge is posed by the growing demand for highly filled halogen-free flame retardant (HFFR) compounds for wire and cable. Processors are commonly using calcium carbonate filler at 50% loadings with metal injection molding posing abrasion challenge.

Technology

Wrapping carbon nanotubes in polymers enhances their performance

ccording to a study Wrapping carbon nanotubes in polymers enhances their performance .Carbon nanotubes, first developed in the early 1990s are tiny cylinders have been part of the quest to reduce the size of technological devices and their components. Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have very desirable properties- they are 100 times stronger than steel and one-sixth its weight. They have several times the electrical and thermal conductivity of copper. And they have almost none of the environmental or physical degradation issues common to most metals, such as thermal contraction and expansion or erosion. However, CNTs have a tendency to aggregate, forming "clumps" of tubes. To utilize their outstanding properties in applications, they need to be dispersed. But they are insoluble in many liquids, making their even dispersion difficult. Scientists at Japan's Kyushu University developed a technique that "exfoliates" aggregated

clumps of CNTs and disperses them in solvents. It involves wrapping the tubes in a polymer using a bond that does not involve the sharing of electrons. The technique is called noncovalent polymer wrapping. Whereas sharing electrons through covalent polymer wrapping leads to a more stable bond, it also changes the intrinsic desirable properties of the carbon nanotubes. Non-covalent wrapping is thus considered superior in most cases because it causes minimum damage to the tubes. The scientists, Dr. Tsuyohiko Fujigaya and Dr. Naotoshi Nakashima, conducted a research review to analyze the various approaches of polymer wrapping and to summarize the applications in which polymer-wrapped carbon nanotubes can be used. Their review has been published in STAM 16-2 p24802, 2015.They found that a wide variety of polymers can be used for the non-covalent wrapping of carbon nanotubes. Recently, many

polymer dispersants have indeed been developed that not only disperse the CNTs but also add new functions to them. These polymer dispersants are now widely recognized and utilized in many fields, including biotechnology and energy applications. CNTs that are stably wrapped with biocompatible materials are very attractive in biomedicine, for example, due to their incredible ability to pass biological barriers without generating an immune response. There is thus high potential for polymer-wrapped CNTs in the area of drug delivery. Also, wrapping carbon nanotubes in polymers improves their photovoltaic functions in solar cells, for example, when the polymers function like a light-receiving pigment. Because the designs of polymers can be readily tailored, it is expected that the functionality of polymer-wrapped CNTs will be further expanded and that novel applications using them will be developed.

Evonik develops hybrid polymer composites

erman chemicals and materials group Evonik Industries foresees strong growth in its composites business based on existing products and a hybrid polymer system that it is developing after a breakthrough in R&D. Since late 2014, Evonik has been demonstrating in pilot plants at its Marl site new hybrid polymer systems, which it says combine the mechanical properties of thermosetting polymers with the faster processing and lower

costs of thermoplastics. Potential customers have received samples for testing. Evonik expects the first hybrid polymer systems to be ready for the market in 2018.

hybrid polymer systems “are able to crosslink without using catalysts in a completely reversible process. Heating causes de-crosslinking and allows the system to be reshaped.

Its optimism is based on a breakthrough in a joint project with the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology in which polymer chains can be switched between cross-linking and nonlinking. In regular thermoset-based composites, the chemical crosslinking process is irreversible.Evonik said the

During the cooling phase, the crosslink is created again and its shape becomes stable. “A special Diels-Alder reaction causes this phenomenon where the crosslink is almost chemically switched on and off. Material properties are maintained even with repeated heating and cooling.”

57 • April 2015 • Plastics News

Technology

Implantable polymer fibers could revolutionize neural prosthetics

ew polymer fibers that are capable of transmitting multiple brain signals simultaneously, delivering drugs, and wirelessly recording brain functions have been developed by scientists at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). The new technology improves on many of the drawbacks encountered in traditional neural prosthetic devices. The fiberfabrication technology was pioneered by Yoel Fink and re-adapted for neural indications by a team lead by Polina Anikeeva. The fibers are composed of a number of different channels, including optical waveguides to carry light, hollow tubes to carry drugs, and electrodes that can carry electrical signals. The completed fiber is approximately the width of a human hair, according to MIT News reports. Sarah Felix, lead research engineer at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and member of ASME, said: “Among the engineering challenges associated with neural prosthetics is the biocompatibility of the implant. Research suggests that polymer is more compatible with the human body than the silicon in conventional neural probes used in neuroscience studies.” Anikeeva explained that because conventional methods have used harder and stiffer materials, ordinary movement could cause tearing and damage to surrounding neural tissue. In comparison, this new material will not trigger an immune response, break down, or release toxic chemicals into the body. Subsequently, the materials can remain in the body much longer. “We’re building neural interfaces that will interact with tissues in a more

Plastics News • April 2015 • 58

organic way than devices that have been used previously,” said Anikeeva in the most recent MIT News article. Furthermore, the multi-functional capabilities of the fiber could enable scientists to get a much clearer picture of brain functions and pharmaceutical efficacy than any single-function neural probe can provide.John Rogers, a professor of materials science and engineering at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, was not connected with the research but took a look at the study’s findings. “These authors describe a fascinating, diverse collection of multi-functional fibers, tailored for insertion into the brain where they can stimulate and record

neural behaviors through electrical, optical and fluidic means. The results significantly expand the toolkit of techniques that will be essential to our development of a basic understanding of brain function,” Rogers told MIT News this year. Neural prosthetic research is a growing and promising field with innumerable applications including the study and treatment of many neurological disorders. ASME reports that the National Institute of Health spends $6.5 million on neural prosthetic research each year. Anikeeva and Fink’s co-authored study was published in Nature Biotechnology.

Sustainable high performance recycling plant from waste

technologically advanced plastics recycling plant named Urban Polymers has been commissioning by Canada Fibers Ltd. (Canada Fibers). The new venture will focus on creation of pure, homogeneous plastic materials from post-consumer and post-industrial waste, using state-of-the art equipment and additive formulations sourced globally. Urban Polymers will commence operations at a 160,000 sq ft facility located in North Toronto. During its initial phases of development, Urban Polymers will focus on production of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) flake material, as well as production of compounded polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP) in pellet

form. PET is the primary source of material for beverage bottles and single serving food containers, with PE and PP utilized to produce packaging for other liquids including household detergents. Urban Polymers is configuring its operations to provide unrivaled purity and consistency for plastic processing customers, with capacity to produce 25 mln lbs pa of PET and 11 mln lbs pa of PP/PE during its initial phases of development, representing a significant increment to recycling infrastructure in the country. "We simply aim to provide plastics processors with a sustainable complement to prime materials," noted Mark Badger who is leading Urban Polymers.

Plastics News • February 2015 • 64

59 • April 2015 • Plastics News

in the NEWS

India drops anti-dumping against China PTA

ndia has cancelled an anti-dumping investigation against PTA from China and the European Union. Shipments of purified terephthalic acid (PTA) from China to India have thus resumed, according to Platts, with at least 25,000-30,000 mt of PTA booked from China for April headed towards . Chinese PTA producers Zhejiang Yisheng Petrochemical and Hengli Petrochemical have shipped some 15,000-20,000 mt to India for April, and export volumes are anticipated to be increased for May, according to trading sources. Provisional antidumping duties on imports from China, the European Union, South

Korea and Thailand were imposed by India in July 2014 following allegations of dumping of PTA.However, as the imported amounts of PTA from China and the EU were less than 3% of total imports, the investigation against these countries was automatically terminated, according to a document published on April 7 by India's Ministry of Commerce and Industry. Duties on Chinese companies prior to April 7 were US$62.82/mt, while duties on South Korean and Thai companies were imposed, ranging from US$23.61/mt to US$78.28/mt for South Korean companies, and ranging from US$45.43/mt to US$62.55/mt for Thai companies.

PE prices at par with ethylene in China

ccording to reports China’s import PE prices are currently trading almost at par with ethylene in the spot market.Tight supply stemming from cracker turnarounds continues to push up spot ethylene prices while players report that PE sellers are facing resistance to their efforts to bring polymer prices into line with the prevailing monomer costs.

According to data from ChemOrbis Price Index, import HDPE film prices on a CFR China basis are currently carrying a premium of only around US$10-15/ton relative to spot prices for ethylene on a CFR Northeast Asia basis. HDPE’s premium over ethylene has been steadily declining since late January, when the premium stood at almost US$250/ton. HDPE

Plastics News • April 2015 • 60

and ethylene prices had last traded this close to par back in October of 2014. There are reports from traders that some integrated producers have recently shifted to selling ethylene rather producing PE given the more attractive margins available on ethylene production. “Sellers are facing difficulties concluding deals for import PE cargoes in China as demand growth has been disappointing while competitive prices for domestic material are also limiting sellers’ scope to raise their import offers,” a trader based in Xiamen stated. Another trader reported that they managed to conclude a deal for Southeast Asian LLDPE film after agreeing to a discount. PE prices should remain firm based on stronger spot ethylene costs.

Petrochem companies expand in South Korea

outh Korea's petrochemical companies, which depend on oil as a traditional energy resource, are expanding their non-oil based chemical businesses. According to reports Petrochemical makers have expanded with non-oil based chemical plants, using natural gas, shale gas, and condensate and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) from naphtha-based plants, as feedstock. Domestic petrochemical companies are diversifying raw materials in a bid to overcome competitive disadvantages with oil-producing countries that have cost competitiveness like the Middle East and the U.S. Also, it is a structural change, considering the stabilization of the supply and demand of raw materials and business diversification. Hyosung is expected to complete the extension of its Yongyeon plant in Ulsan to produce propylene, which was an investment of 280 billion won (US$253.97 mln) in 2013, by Q3-2015, increasing propylene production capacity from 200,000 tons to 500,000 tons through the extension. Lotte Chemical is preparing to build natural gas-based chemical plants in Surgil, Uzbekistan. The company invested US$338 mln (372.65 bln won) in a project in which the Uzbek government also participated. Upon completion, Lotte Chemical will produce 390,000 tons HDPE and 80,000 tons (PP) based on locallyproduced natural gas.

in the NEWS

CPMTA sends memorandum to Finance Ministry First fluoropolymers up-cycling facility in he Canara Plastic Manufacturers duties will be death blow to units Germany

a n d Tr a d e r s A s s o c i a t i o n (CPMTA), has expressed concern over a proposal in the union budget 2015-16 to enhance excise duty for plastic bags of Poly ethylene from 12.5% to 15% in notification no 12/2015-Central Excise dated March 01, 2015. According to CPMTA this move is totally against the spirit of the budget. PP bags and all other plastic products of PP and PE have been excluded from this category. As per the association, this unqualified and indiscriminate increase of excise

in organized sector registered with central excise department and who pay excise duty. Above move of increasing duty will discourage this sector further and promote tax evasion. Plastic bags industry in MSME sector is reeling under pressure on account of high prices of raw materials and competition from cheap products from China. B A Nazeer, president, CPMTA urged Jaitley to restore central excise duty to earlier level and save the plastic bags processing units from closure.

Indian Oil Corp plans to set up plant in USA

n a bid to take advantage of the shale gas and oil boom in USA, Indian Oil Corporation Ltd (IOCL) is reportedly mulling an entry into petrochemical manufacturing there. According to a report in Business Standard the company is interested in downstream petrochemical plant in the US and is holding exploratory talks with companies who are in process of setting up crackers or petrochemical units. It is learnt that IOCL is keen on having a stake in an upcoming project, which is still in the planning or is yet to reach financial closure stage. The finalisation of the deal is still a long way and will mostly fructify only after the 2016 presidential election in the US, where gas exports policy has divided the industry. While energy companies want no control on the exports of shale gas, the chemical

& petrochemicals companies (which can use gas to make petrochemical products) have urged the government to put some curb on the exports. Indian Oil already has a presence in the US shale market through its 10% stake in Carrizo’s liquid rich shale assets in the Niobrara basin in Colorado. IOCL’s plan (to set up a petrochemical plant) will signify a major shift in the Indian hydrocarbon sector, where most of the companies have been scouting for procuring low-cost shale gas from the US rather than setting up downstream unit in the US. If IOCL finalises its US petrochemical unit plans, it will join a list of overseas companies who have announced huge investments in downstream petrochemical industry in the US due to the availability of low-cost feedstock (or starting material) ie shale oil & gas.

he first ever fluoropolymers upcycling facility has been opened, as part of a partnership formed between 3M subsidiary Dyneon, the University of Bayreuth and the InVerTec institute. The up cycling plant in Burgkirchen, Gremany, was created to reuse waste that had been created from the manufacturing of perfluorinated polymers. It is hoped that the plant is able to up cycle around 500 tpa of fluoropolymer waste and was made possible by a US$1.1 mln grant from the German Federal Environment Ministry (BMU). The up cycling facility will become part of the closed loop manufacturing plant at Dyneon, as fluoropolymers that are unnecessarily created will undertake a pyrolysis process, which turns them into gaseous monomers. They are then cleaned and re-entered into the production process, so the total amount of waste is reduced. Dyneon will not only be eliminating waste with the facility, but the company will also save considerable energy as part of this new manufacturing setup. "The up-cycling facility and process will abruptly change the way all of us think and do things. Now, what was once regarded as a useless waste stream or at best a by-product with little utility is a valuable material," according to the idea owner and 3M corporate scientist Klaus Hintzer. "The up-cycling possibility means the monomer can be recovered, which in turn aids the environment since less mining activities are required. The process also affords energy savings

61 • April 2015 • Plastics News

in the NEWS

National Green Tribunal mulls baning plastics packaging

he National Green Tribunal is of the view that curbs should be imposed on plastic packaging and will begin hearings in less than a month on a matter that could determine how consumer goods companies do business in India. At stake is their ability to use "multi-layered/plastic packaging" and PET bottles, which covers virtually every item of daily use, other than those that come in tins and glass bottles.

The tribunal had listed the matter for April 8."Prima facie, we are of the view that there has to be restriction placed upon such packaging and generation of municipal plastic waste," said the NGT notice that was issued on March 3 but has escaped widespread attention. "However, before we pass any order, we consider it appropriate that all the stake holders should also be heard." Banning such packaging would saddle the industry with crippling costs, industry said. On the other hand, the NGO that filed the petition, the Him Jagriti Uttaranchal Welfare Society, said the proliferation of such packaging is choking the environment and called on companies to use biodegradable material only. Plastic sachets, PET bottles and Tetra Pak cartons are used for almost everything that households buy for daily use--shampoo, hair oil, beverages and cereal besides packaged foods such as biscuits and snacks.The NGT notice noted that the environment ministry was of the opinion that further scientific study was required, while the stand of

Plastics News â&#x20AC;˘ April 2015 â&#x20AC;˘ 62

the Directorate General of Health Services is that "multi-layered/ PET bottles packaging can cause injuries to health due to leaching and other chemical reaction of the content of the plastic".

sachets. The Rs 1,500 crore fruit juice category relies entirely on Tetra Pak cartons. As for the Rs 14,000-crore soft drinks industry, 60% of products, amounting to Rs 8,500 crore, is sold in PET packs.

The tribunal backed up its stand by taking note of similar views by the Central Pollution Control Board and the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSO), which has sought a ban on using polyethylene terephthalate or plastic containers in liquid oral formulations for primary packing.

While every major shampoo maker including Hindustan Unilever, Procter & Gamble, CavinKare and Garnier operates heavily in the sachet segment, firms such as Coca-Cola, PepsiCo and Dabur sell close to 60% of their juice brands and colas in either Tetra Pak cartons or PET bottles. Coca-Cola and PepsiCo sell their fizzy drinks in returnable glass bottles as well, but the market has been increasingly shifting towards PET bottles, which are convenient and offer flexibility in size, apart from being unbreakable. Mass products such as the Rs 25,000-crore biscuits category are also heavily dependent on sales in sachets.

"There appears to be commonality on the stand of the various learned counsel appearing for the government and authorities that plastic multilayered packaging /PET bottles would be injurious to human health," the NGT said. "It also causes serious environmental hazards. It is in fact one of the largest sources of plastic municipal solid waste." Senior executives said an outright ban without a feasible alternative wasn't the answer to the problem of managing plastic waste. Such a move would increase costs steeply, they said. "Banning of plastic packaging would not be the solution," Britannia managing director Varun Berry said. "What is required is industry coming together to look for a grassroots solution to manage plastic packaging waste." While the shampoo market is estimated at Rs 4,100 crore, up to 70%, or sales worth Rs 3,000 crore, comes from

"Industry should ideally have a threefive year window to come up with alternate and feasible packaging solutions," said Sunil Duggal, CEO of Dabur, which makes and sells Vatika shampoo in sachets and Real juices in Tetra Pak cartons. "Affordable and hygienic packaging is the right of the consumer." Industry officials say biodegradable packaging, made of material that breaks down quickly in nature, is prohibitively expensive and would more than double packaging costs. Biscuits in low-unit packs of Rs 5, sachets priced at Re 1, 2 and 5, juices in cartons upwards of Rs 18 form the backbone of the FMCG industry.

advertiser's index R R Plast..................................................................................................................................cover Madhu Machines & Systems............................................................................................ Front Inside Cover Anupam Heaters and Controls............................................................................... ............................. 3 Reliance Polymers............................................................................................................................4 Kabra Extrusiontechnik Ltd..................................................................................................................6 Ferromatik Milacron .........................................................................................................................7 Neejtech India ..................................................................................................................................8 Millturn CNC India Pvt. Ltd................................................................................................................10 C&G Extrusion Machines.....................................................................................................................12 chuan Lih Fa Machinery Works Co., Ltd. ................................................................................................20 Indplas'15 .....................................................................................................................................38 PlastiVision Arabia 2016 ....................................................................................................................39 E3 Plastech ...................................................................................................................................40 Plastic Park ...................................................................................................................................41 Vodafone ......................................................................................................................................42 Toshiba Machines ............................................................................................................................43 Carbon India................... .............................................................................................................59 Vijaydeep Moulds & Accessories Pvt. Ltd. .. ...........................................................................................63 Zambello Riduttori Group.. ............................................................................................Inside back cover Rajoo Engineers.. ................................................................................................................Back cover

63 â&#x20AC;˘ April 2015 â&#x20AC;˘ Plastics News

Plastics News • April 2015 • 64

65 • April 2015 • Plastics News

Registered with Registrar of Newspapers under RNI No. 22731/72

Posted at Patrika Channel Sorting Office, Mumbai 400 001

Postal Registration No. MCN/200/2015-2017

Posting date : 25th - 26th of every month

Date of Publication: 25 of every month (as per declaration in Affidavit form) th

Plastics News â&#x20AC;˘ April 2015 â&#x20AC;˘ 66