Sa plastics '013 10 for web by SA POLYMER TECHNOLOGY

TO INFINITY & BEYOND VICTREX® PEEK withstands high temperature performance - HDT up to 335ºC

VICTREX® PEEK POLYMER: Long term creep & fatigue resistance Good chemical resistance Hydrolysis resistance Inherently resistant to combustion WRAS & FDA Approved

Plastichem (Pty) Ltd is the appointed Distributor for polymer grades from VICTREX plc, including VICTREX ® PEEK, VICTREX ® HT™, VICTREX ® ST™, APTIV ® Films and VICOTE® Coatings For more info call 0800 006772 or visit www.plastichem.co.za

BY THE WAY ...

Publisher: Martin Wells (martin@summitpub.co.za) Editor: Tessa O’Hara (tessa@summitpub.co.za) Editorial assistant: Heather Peplow (heather@summitpub.co.za) Financial manager: Lisa Mulligan (lisa@summitpub.co.za) Designer: Bronwen Moys Blinc Design (bronwen.clarke@gmail.com) Summit Publishing cc t: +27 (21) 712 1408 f: 086 519 6089 c: +27 (82) 822 8115 e: saplastics@iafrica.com Postnet Suite 42, Private Bag X16, Constantia 7848, Cape Town, South Africa 70 Newton Drive, Meadowridge, Cape Town

www.saplastics.co.za

GAUTENG Lowrie Sharp t: (011) 793 4691 f: (011) 791 0544 c: 082 344 7870 e: lowrieplasticsmedia@absamail.co.za KZN Lynne Askew t: (031) 764 2494 f: (031) 764 0676 e: lynne@leafpublishing.co.za Printed by: Tandym Print, Maitland, Cape Town SA Plastics Composites + Rubber Technology is published six times a year and focuses on these industries in South and southern Africa. We welcome news, articles, technical reports, information in general and photographs about events and developments related to the plastics industry. The views expressed in the magazine are not necessarily those of the publisher. Views expressed are not necessarily those of the Plastics Converters Association, Institute of Materials or Association of Rotational Moulders either. Copyright: All rights reserved. ISSN number: 1684-2855 (ISDS Centre, Paris) Summit Publishing: CK 9863581/23 VAT reg: 4600187902

Plastics Institute

Association of Rotational Moulders of South Africa

of Southern Africa

Plastics Converters Association

PET Plastic Recycling

Plastics Federation

South Africa

of SA

Institute of Materials

Operation Dugong – Kayaker Des Pollock has embarked on a 2500km trip up the coast of Mozambique in aid of the dugong, a rare and unusual herbivorous marine mammal. The dugongs live at least partly in fresh water in river estuaries and it is believed only a few hundred survive, making it one of the rarest mammals in Africa. Des will be reporting back from time to time on sightings and other observations. If you are interested in contributing to the cause, contact Douw Steyn at Plastics|SA: douw.steyn@plasticssa.co.za

Material suppliers victims of First Tech fallout T APPEARS that material suppliers were the main victims of the ﬁnancial fallout that resulted in the collapse of the converting companies in the liquidated First Tech group. Losses of over R200million have been run up, we hear, with several of South Africa’s leading polymer suppliers being affected. Some of these losses may not have been covered by insurance either. Quite how deceit on the scale of the First Tech ‘operation’ took place is hard to grasp, but the problem for the industry overall is that the corruption is likely to effect polymer prices – since the insurers are most likely to increase premiums.

‘Spike’ in ear buds YEP, you heard – err, read – correctly: there has been a spike in the incidence of ear buds washing up as litter on beaches and river banks around southern Africa. We’re talking about a notable increase. If you know anything about the cause of the problem, please advise the Sustainability team at Plastics|SA.

Puzzling and impossible aspirations YOU’RE in trouble when you’re wage increase offer of 4% is met with demands of 150% from the workforce … but that’s the reality in some areas of the mining sector at present. Faced by a decline in bullion prices and the simple fact that the global trend is for increased mechanization in mines, South Africa’s mines now face the dilemma of employing far too many people. That’s not a scenario you want to or need to be faced with. Plastics, composites and rubber component manufacture is relatively skilled work, and in many cases highly skilled, and we need to achieve an environment where production and sales staff are motivated and organised. METHING HAVE SO … IF YOU TO SAY de: if you e bright si Look at th wisdom to of m ge e have som to us at ease write impart, pl com a. ic fr ia s@ saplastic

Volume 11 No 5

OCTOBER – NOVEMBER 2013

Contents Find out more at www.saplastics.co.za

INDUSTRY NEWS Evonik Acrylics Africa puts giant sheet extrusion plant into operation

Carlin Medical moves to bigger site

Formation of industry’s negotiating structure on cards

SAPRO’s best recycled product 2013

Hestico celebrates 20 yrs as Arburg agent

Convertacor celebrates 30 yrs

ASSOCIATION NEWS Rotation 2013

SAPPMA Pipes VII

PVC celebrates 100 years of innovation

IOM : Exciting research at NMMU

K2013 Bioplastics: an alternative with a future?

WORLD Plexiglas supports search for giant squid

SPORTS Stretchy as rubber

ON THE COVER SAFRIPOL has further improved the properties of a number of its polypropylene grades and rebranded them under its new Advance™ range. The fractional melt random copolymer polypropylene previously known as Safron® R103-01NU – a widely accepted grade used primarily in the toiletries and cosmetics industry for many years – is now being marketed under the brand name Advance™ 130. See page 14 for more.

www.safripol.co.za

‘r’ becomes a winner Brand owners were the winners at Recycled Product event NILEVER and Woolworths were the big winners of the recent SAPRO ‘Best Recycled Product’ competition – and justiﬁably so: both groups have committed to increasing their usage of recycled material in products which until recently didn’t use ‘r’ material at all.

COMMENT

SAPRO, the South African Plastic Recyclers Organisation, has been instrumental in building up support for the competition, which has the goal of developing new applications for recycled material. Recyclers around the country have a vested interest in this, obviously. And some novel solutions have emerged, but the crux of the matter is to develop products which have the opportunity to consume significant volumes of recycled material. Suppliers of virgin material won’t necessarily be that enthralled with this initiative, but it does improve the perceived value of plastic materials. You know your material has high value when people are stealing it (such as with copper piping), which has up till now not been the case in our industry. Other brand owners such as Tuffy, Genius, Gold Sun Industries and Lasher entered products, but it was Unilever and Woolies – which entered containers in the ‘Percentage post-consumer recycled content’ – who were most successful on this occasion. The development by Unilever has been achieved over a period of 18 months and is the second stage in an ongoing project to create a suitable market-friendly bottle that is 100% rPET by 2016. It has taken courage, technical expertise and financial commitment from this global group to change the landscape. A deeper concern for the environment is being reflected in their marketing. See our story on pages 22-27. Elsewhere in the publication we carry a farewell interview with Andrew Marthinusen, the out-going chairman of the Packaging Council of South Africa, in which he says that plastics packaging recycling rates in South Africa are the lowest of all the four packaging materials. This is not satisfying, and one has to believe

THIS ISSUE SAPRO winner – The humble Sunlight dishwasher ﬂuid container from Unilever group was the winner of the SAPRO ‘Best Recycled Product’ competition in September, with the judges being swayed by the comprehensive motivation by the Unilever team and realistic forecasts for the amount of recycled polymer which can be used in these containers in future

that the programmes being run by Annabé Pretorius and SAPRO will begin to bear more fruit. Being last isn’t fun. Competition price issues YOU’RE not hearing much from Sasol Polymers at present, as a Competition Tribunal investigation into a complaint from Brazil continues. Sasol is accused of ‘dumping’ Novel product polypropylene in Brazil and solutions have thus destabilizing the patch of emerged the dominant material supplier, Braskem, in that country. The authorities over at the Competition HQ in Pretoria take these complaints very seriously and the Sasol Polymers pricing team are as a result on the carpet. Now you have to ask: hasn’t this happened to us before? It’s virtually inevitable that any polymer manufacturer will end up with excess material from time to time, such are the complexities of running a large petrochemical plant. Now what does the Competition Complaints … err, Tribunal, suggest be done? Warehouse the stuff? But that costs money too. So why not get rid of the material at an acceptable price? It’s practically impossible for a manufacturer to guarantee that its local and export selling prices are the same, due to various factors such as exchange rate and fuel cost changes. All we’re hearing from the Competition Tribunal is that the prices are too high or too low, and we’re not convinced that it is assisting in achieving continuity. Many visiting K MANY in the industry will be at the K show in Düsseldorf from 16-23 October and it looks like their time will be well spent, based on some of the technology advances which we report on here too, from pages 60-80.

Martin Wells

OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013

, Publisher

NOW AVAILABLE IN SOUTH AFRICA

KAWAGUCHI injection moulding machines are well known for their reliability and longevity. This world-renowned brand is available in a variety of models. KMB3 – servo and hydraulic KMB4 – servo and hydraulic KME – full electric machines All of these models use the KAWAGUCHI EZ8000 Hitachi controller with touch screen.

For more information contact Dave Moore on 083 675 8325 CALL NOW FOR YOUR QUOTATION, PRICES ARE COMPETITIVE! 90

INDUSTRY NEWS

Evonik Acrylics Africa puts

giant sheet extrusion plant into operation Joint venture with Ampaglas Plastics Group

JUST BRIEFLY

EVONIK Acrylics Africa (EEA) began producing extruded Plexiglas® sheets in Elandsfontein, Johannesburg, in August. With an initial 20 employees and a new extrusion facility, some several thousand metric tons of semi-ﬁnished material will be produced per year for the African market. The products, which are manufactured in accordance with international quality standards, include standard formats as well as special sizes. “Over the past years we have continuously expanded the visibility of the Plexiglas brand in Southern Africa with the aim of becoming the market leader in this region,” explains Holger Morhart, business director of Evonik Acrylics Africa. In May 2012, to this end, Evonik entered into a joint venture with the South African plastics processor Ampaglas Plastics

Group, one of the largest manufacturers of extruded plastics in Southern Africa. Since then, the partners have further expanded the distribution network under the name Evonik Acrylics Africa. “Producing locally means we are more ﬂexible and can respond more quickly to customer requests and offer them more competitive products and better service,” says Morhart. “In doing so, we hope to further strengthen our good market position in this attractive growth region.” As a key sales market in Southern Africa,

Sasol disposes of Iranian joint venture

in fact, if it secured any polymer materials from the plant during the period?

SASOL Investment Company, a whollyowned subsidiary of Sasol, has sold its 50% share in the Arya polymer production plant in Iran. Sasol had written down the value of its investment in Arya, on the Persian gulf in the south of Iran, to R2.3-billion. “This was based on our assessment of the fair value of Arya as well as the accounting requirement to recognise operating profits of approximately R1.6-billion for the second half of the 2013 financial year,” Sasol said in a statement. The investment was sold to Main Street 1095, a South African subsidiary of an Iranian investor. As a result of this Transaction, Sasol has no on-going investment in Iran. The venture has been underway for over five years, but one wonders if any profitable transactions were achieved by Sasol during this period and,

Hellermann lists in UK

6 OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013

Hellermann Tyton plc, the parent company of Hellermann Tyton South Africa, listed on the London Stock Exchange earlier this year and was surprised that the offer was snapped up in record time. The shares on offer were apparently over-subscribed, which suggests that the Hellerman Tyton group and its core market – the production of cable ties – is seen as a solid investment. Besides cable ties, Hellermann produces cable identiﬁcation and securing products, cable accessories, tools and test instruments. www.hellermantyton.com

Mpact buys Marco thermoforming business MPACT group has further expanded its thermoforming capacity through its

the major market segments are construction and architecture, signage, lighting technologies, and furniture, shopﬁtting, and exhibition stand construction. Due to its material properties, Plexiglas is particularly well suited to the intense solar radiation in the region: UV radiation causes plastic to become yellow and brittle – thanks to its special chemical composition, Plexiglas is protected from this and at the same time enables a high degree of light transmission. Evonik guarantees that semi-ﬁnished

recent purchase of the thermoforming business of Marco Plastics of Alrode, Johannesburg. The result represents the culmination of a well-strategised project by Markus Jooste of Marco: his company entered the thermoforming business just ﬁve years ago, in 2008, when he noticed that PET sheet prices were moving up. Marco started thermoforming polystyrene containers using smaller, versatile GN machines that enabled it to manufacture shortrun containers cost effectively. Marco began to take market share away from the bigger players and, not surprisingly, attracted attention. Mpact group appears to be actively challenging Astrapak’s leadership in the thermoformed container market, and its purchase of Marco – following that of RA Plastics in the Western Cape last year – is further evidence of its mounting capability in this area. www.mpact.co.za

The huge Omipa machine produces 2050mmwide acrylic sheet from 2-15mm thick and runs at rates of 1 ton an hour, making it one of the highest throughput extrusion systems in the industry in South Africa

Vice president (Evonik Acrylic Sheet) Dr Bernhard Schafer and general manager Holger Morhart at the Evonik Acrylics plant in Elandsfontein

colourless Plexiglas will remain free from yellowing for up to 30 years; for coloured products, colour fastness will remain for up to ten years. The material can be processed in all conventional thermoplastic processes and is 100% recyclable.

Boxmore buys Lapack BOXMORE Plastics has bought Lapack of Johannesburg, one of SA’s top blow moulding businesses. The companies merged on 1 September, the result being the formation of the Specialty Plastics Division of Boxmore group. Lapack has been in operation for 32 years and specializes in the production of PET as well as various HD and PP containers, jars and dispensers as well as ‘wide mouth’ containers. Boxmore is wholly focused on the PET container market, so Lapack’s nonPET business allows it entry to these markets. Boxmore group supplies customers in 22 countries in Africa and the Indian Ocean islands, and supplying these markets hence creates opportunities for both partners in the new venture. Mark Smith, former MD of Lapack and now divisional managing director of Boxmore Specialty Plastics, said the company would continue to operate as a standalone business from Lapack’s premises in Tunney, Elandsfontein.

Packaging Consultants closed as Astrapak rejiggs

www.evonik.com

Acrylic sheet is particularly heavy, plus it needs to be laid ﬂat to avoid deformation, so special care needs to be taken during transport

Plastics industry asked to sign chemical sector accord PLASTICS│SA has been approached by the Department of Labour to discuss the Draft Chemical Sector Health and Safety Accord and to ask the Plastics Sector to sign the accord. A meeting with all signatories was held in September to jointly develop an Action Plan that will be implemented by the sector. The Accord and the Action Plan will be generic for the chemical industry. The proposed implementation date of the Action Plan is in the next ﬁnancial year (March 2014). It is hoped to have the Accord signed by government, business and labour by early November. Anton Hanekom, Executive Director of Plastics│SA said that he had raised the concern that although Government

JUST BRIEFLY

includes the plastics industry in the Chemical Cluster, that the downstream plastics sector is using plastics pellets for the production of their products and not chemicals. “We therefore do not have the same health and safety issues as the chemical sector and that we are also not participating in the Responsible Care Programme of the Chemical Sector. The question is if we are, in the health and safety context, part of the chemical industry and if it is a perfect ﬁt to sign a Chemical Sector Health and Safety Accord. Except maybe for the solvent users we do not use hazardous chemicals as in the case of the chemical sector,” he explained.

ASTRAPAK is shutting down its Packaging Consultants film and bag making business in Durban. It is redistributing the assets and key skills across the remainder of the flexible production sites in the group wherever possible, thereby creating a more efficient production platform in the whole, the group said. The profitability problems of Packaging Consultants – besides the fact that the company faced fierce competition in the LD bag making and printing sector in the Durban area (with top rivals Everest Flexibles, LR, Tropic and Venkpac operating in the coastal city too) – may have originated in the decision to switch to a ‘four-shift’ system in 2010. Although several in the industry concede that this shift system is logical and practical (workers are on shift for three days and then off for three), it met with strong resistance from staff. That wasn’t surprising as the change to the different system also led to reduced earnings for workers. Talk in the industry, however, was that salaries at the state-of-the-art plant were earning above-average.

OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013 7

INDUSTRY NEWS

UMP’s ﬁrst-of-its-kind

PU lining technology

Each pipe on average weighs about 3,5 tons and some are as high as 6m. With the new technology for the lining, UMP had to provide a solution that would be easily maintained on site and, with the current polyurethane lining supplied by the company, the pipeline should last at least 20 years

for pipe bends Part of $2-million Turkish construction contract POLYURETHANE specialist UMP has successfully developed the world’s ﬁrst polyurethane lining technology for largedimension 3D and 5D pipe bends. Part of a $2-million contract with Turkish-based construction company Tekfen Construction & Installation, UMP is supplying several specialised PU linings for pipe bends ranging from 350 nominalbore (NB) to 900 NB for a throttling plant at a phosphate project in Morocco. UMP director Trevor Carolin said it was necessary to design specialised tooling to line the pipe bends to 12mm thickness, and working in the large pipe ﬁttings made the installation, made the project particularly challenging. “Following a number of unsuccessful

attempts with other manufacturers from around the world, the client approached us to develop a solution that offers good abrasion resistance against the slurry, which is transported at a pressure of over 120 bar,” explained Carolin. “UMP manufactured special casting tools for the project, and invested around R2,8-million in the manufacture of a complex tooling system to get a mould in and out of the bend. As a result, we successfully developed this new lining technology, which has placed us as an international leader in the supply of polyurethane lining,” he added. “Each pipe on average weighs about 3,5 tons and some are as high as 6m. With the new technology for the lining,

UMP had to provide a solution that would be easily maintained on site. With the PU lining supplied, the pipeline should last at least 20 years.” The initial quotation for the project was signed in August 2012, and UMP received an order for the trial product in November 2012, before the contract with Tekfen was ofﬁcially signed earlier this year. In addition to the PU lining, UMP also supplies highdensity polyethylene lining for the project’s test loop. A number of the components have been shipped and received in Morocco, and Carolin is optimistic that the project will be completed within budget by the end of October. www.ump.co.za

Dyneema rope helps hold Costa Concordia upright

Tightrope act! – Dextron 12 Plus® ropes made by OTS AS of Norway with DSM’s Dyneema® ﬁbre were used by the team involved in the salvage of the Costa Concordia

Dextron 12 Plus ropes made with Dyneema fibre, manufactured by OTS AS in Norway, were selected by the salvage team. The patented Protective Jacket technology developed by OTS was fitted on the ropes to protect the load bearing structure against abrasion. The Dextron 12 Plus ropes with Dyneema will remain connected to the 114,000-ton Costa Concordia throughout the European winter, through to April/May 2014. They will hold the righted vessel in position while the sponsons (steel tanks, similar to those on the port side) are attached to the starboard side of the ship, after which refloating will begin prior to towing to its final destination. www.dyneema.com www.otsas.no

Costa plenty – The wreck of the cruise liner after it was uprighted off the Italian island of Giglio where it ran aground in February 2012

9 OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013

DSM, producer of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMwPE) fibre branded as Dyneema®, and Offshore & Trawl Supply AS (OTS), a Norwegian manufacturer of synthetic fibre ropes of extreme strength, played an important role in the refloatation of the doomed Costa Concordia cruise liner. Dextron® 12 Plus ropes made with Dyneema fibre took the strain of the Costa Concordia, holding it in position and relieving some of the tension felt by the engineers from Titan Salvage and Micoperi during the historic marine rescue exercise in September. Up-ending the wreck, known as ‘parbuckling’, was the most critical stage of the salvage operation, like no other in history. Before this extremely difficult operation could be executed, the wreck had to be held in position to prevent the Costa Concordia from sliding off the reef and subsea cliff into deeper waters.

INDUSTRY NEWS

Breakthrough experiment demonstrates efficiency of highly insulated building BASF and CSIR conclude initial study on passive energy efficiency in buildings AN experiment conducted by the CSIR and BASF to test the energy and thermal performance on a house built with BASF materials has revealed that the house is up to seven times cheaper to heat in winter than a standard low-income house. The results indicate that the BASF house will require minimal heating in winter to maintain a comfortable indoor environment. Using the conversion rate of 1Gigajoule (Gj) equalling 277.77 kilowatts hour (kWh) and a kWh rate of R1.20, the BASF house will have an annual heating cost of R567. For comparative purposes the standard low-income house constructed on the CSIR Innovation Site has a heating load of 12.28 Gj or 3 401 kWh with an annual heating cost of R4 082 (7 times more), while a South African National Standards 204 (SANS) compliant house has a heating load of 7.66 Gj or 2,127 kWh and an annual heating cost of R2 553 (4 times more). Helm Construction erected the house using the Imison Walling System 3, which is certified by Agrément. “Space heating costs can be significantly reduced in a residential building such as this: an owner of a small house such as this could save close to 80% in heating per

Insulation building products

year as opposed to the SANS compliant household, and this inevitably contributes to a healthier environment if we consider other forms of heating,” says Llewellyn van Wyk, Principal Researcher, CSIR Built Environment Unit, under whose direction the experiment was conducted. The aim was to measure absolute temperature performance of a standard building consisting of a roof, floor and walls using an alternative insulation technology based on Neopor®, a thermal insulation material by BASF. The house was also fitted with double glazed windows and doors. “We expect this valuable data will support specifiers and architects when determining insulation requirements in the Pretoria central region,” van Wyk added.

Llewellyn van Wyk, principal researcher, CSIR Built Environment Unit, under whose direction the experiment was conducted, Dr Cornelius Ruiters (executive director of CSIR Built Environment), Dr Dieter Kover (MD of BASF) and Dr Dirk Funhoff (BASF head of European Construction Competence Centre) 10 OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013

The completed BASF house

“BASF engaged in this study with the CSIR Built Environment to demonstrate the need for insulation in maintaining comfortable living temperatures. Although this test case was aimed at measuring the effectiveness of Neopor in the Southern Hemisphere – Cool Pigments for Paints also contributed to findings at the demonstration house. Apart from those two products, BASF also has other energy efficient solutions for the building industry, for example, Elastopor, and Micronal Phase Change Material – which enhance the local drive towards energy efficient buildings,” says Dr Dieter Kovar, MD of BASF Holdings South Africa. www.basf.com

Nick Jones (Biowaste business development manager), Delyce Ririe (BASF product manager), Joel Jones (Biowaste director) and Petra Bezuidenhout (BASF corporate communications manager)

uppe marketing A08645

We create chemistry that makes plastic love colour.

Colourants for plastics. Welcome to an advanced world of colour. BASF's Official Distributor: Lake International Technologies Sherisha Ramruthan Sherisha.Ramruthan@lake.co.za Tel: +27 11 409 5000 (switchboard) Fax: +27 11 388 6423 (direct) CALL CENTRE: 0860 99 00 11

BASF South Africa (Pty) Ltd (Plastic Additives) • Charis Lewis | Tel: +27 11 203 2596 • Cell: +27 71 670 2407 • Fax: +27 11 203 2602 • Email: charis.lewis@basf.com

INDUSTRY NEWS

Carlin Medical moves to

bigger site !

" # $%& '' ()* *+,( "-# $%& '' )%, ..%%

New 2000m2 factory in Wadeville CARLIN Medical Extrusions began extruding PVC and Silicone and supplying medical disposables to Government and private hospitals in 1982 out of a 250mÂ˛ factory in Marlboro. In 1994 they relocated to a 1400mÂ˛ in Sebenza, Edenvale. With the introduction of compression moulding presses, a vacuum press, two injection moulding machines, a polyurethane casting section and a liquid silicone (LSR) injection moulding machine, Carlin Medical again needed to expand. In June this year Carlin Medical moved into its new 2000mÂ˛ factory in Wadeville.

QUADRANT Engineering Plastic Products, the global leader of machinable plastics, has achieved NORSOK M-710 compliance for its KetronÂŽ 1000 PEEK (natural) injection moulded and extruded stock shapes. The engineering plastics manufacturer is the ďŹ rst in its industry to receive the certiďŹ cation under the most severe sour multiphase ďŹ&#x201A;uid ageing test environment with the highest H2S levels. The accomplishment highlights Ketron 1000 PEEKâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s suitability as an attractive, high strength alternative to ďŹ&#x201A;uoropolymers. It will also support improvements to environmental and workplace safety in the oil and gas industries through material parts that maintain high-level performance and restrict the potential for accidents by enabling safer application. During the qualiďŹ cation process, Quadrant subjected its Ketron 1000 PEEK stock shapes to the toughest testing procedure â&#x20AC;&#x201C; sour multiphase ďŹ&#x201A;uid ageing, high H2S levels â&#x20AC;&#x201C; to simulate environments found in oil and gas production. This method for predicting the progressive degradation of thermoplastic materials exposed to sour ďŹ&#x201A;uid at elevated temperature and pressure is three times more severe than the valid 12 OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013

0 0 01

The factory has an additional 2000mÂ˛ of land which can be used for future expansion. Carlin is able to compression mould a variety of rubber polymers such as EPDM, nitrile, silicone, Viton, ďŹ&#x201A;uoro silicone, natural rubber and other specialised materials.

Quadrant achieves Norsok M-710 compliance for peek stock shapes

/ 0 01

), 2 3 4 5 6 ( 4 7 4 ',+'

View of the plant

standard sour aging test for plastics. The standard test results in a 0.6% H S environment, whereas the test followed by Quadrant results in a 2% H2S environment. The Ketron PEEK material lineâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s advanced properties of chemical and abrasion resistance combined with high temperature rating and strength make it an ideal choice where performance and reliability is required in extreme and hostile environments. It is already highly-valued by design engineers for use in aircraft through to oil ďŹ eld drilling, in the form of structural parts, bushings, bearings, seals and back-up rings. Within oil and gas production, Ketron 1000 PEEK natural stock shapes are designed for extrusion and injection moulded tubes, plates and rods for applications including well completion, Christmas trees, control systems and valves. www.quadrantplastics.com Quadrantâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s NORSOK M-710 compliant Ketron 1000 PEEK Stock Shapes

Silicone press in action

It is also able to injection mould and extrude TPE, TPU and PVC. The main sector in which Carlin operates is the silicone extrusion industry. It has six silicone extruders which are capable of running proﬁles of up to 100mm in diameter

using standard silicone compounds from 30 Shore to 90 Shore hardness, as well as in speciality silicone compounds such as high-temperature resistant grades of 300˚C, ﬂuoro silicone, oil-resistant grades and conductive grades.

Proud, very proud! Neal Robertson and Colin Steinhobel in front of their new factory

www.carlinmedical.co.za

OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013 13

The many uses of silicone rubber Carlin Medical Extrusions specialises in the manufacture of silicone rubber products for every purpose. It’s perfect for almost anything

Products tailored to your needs An existing range of surgical tubing and a variety of shapes and sizes of proﬁles means that your needs can be met without the cost of having a product speciﬁcally designed.

Silicone rubber is ideal for use in a vast range of industrial applications. It is non-toxic and hard-wearing, resistant to corrosive ﬂuids, chemicals and UV rays.

In the event that a customer may require a custom made proﬁle, Carlin Medical is able within short notice to design and manufacture, using CAD drawings, new silicone proﬁles.

Silicone is widely used in the following areas of industry:

Carlin Medical also specializes in rubber and plastic mouldings.

• • • • • • •

Mining Explosives Building Medical Catering equipment Pharmaceutical Food/confectionery

Please contact us should you require a quotation. For more information on how CME’s products can beneﬁt your company, please call: Neal/Colin/Robby Tel: 011 865 4044 Fax: 011 865 4504 Website: www.carlinmedical.co.za

INDUSTRY NEWS

Formation of industry’s negotiating structure on cards Offer to create Plastics Negotiating Forum within MEIBC THERE appears at last, after a five-year dispute, to have been some agreement between the PCA and MEIBC … as the exhausted litigants finally concede that they need to resolve the impasse over collective bargaining for the plastics industry. The PCA (Plastics Convertors Association) has been endeavouring since 2008 to form a negotiating chamber for the industry. After three years, the PCA, which Breakaway over? is broadly representative of the plastics PCA director industry (403 members employing 76% of Johan Pieterse has conducted a 5-year all employees in this industry), broke away programme, so far, from the MEIBC (Metal & Engineering Into form a bargaining dustries Bargaining Council) in early 2011. structure for compaAttempts by PCA director Johan Pietnies in the plastics industry erse to engage in mediation with MEIBC management appeared to remain elusive throughout this time. The MEIBC may have had good reason to avoid the plastics converting industry from withdrawing: the industry employs about 60,000 people around the country and the council relies on the membership fees of such large groups to continue functioning. Besides that, withdrawal by such a substantial industry could have resulted in other sectors following suit, which could potentially have undermined the bargaining council. The MEIBC has the purpose of establishing ‘orderly collective bargaining at sectoral level’. It constituents include the general engineering, manufacturing and metallurgical industries (the major steel groups already conduct in-plant bargaining); electrical engineering industry; lift and escalator industry; and plastics industry. All of the latter three may have had interest in withdrawing from the bargaining council. A high percentage of the companies in these sectors are family-run or owner-managed businesses which could have cause to avoid collective bargaining. In spite of numerous approaches by Pieterse, the MEIBC remained non-committal: correspondence was frequently ignored for months, and then meetings would suddenly be summoned at short notice (like 9am tomorrow in Pretoria). Recently, and miraculously, however, the MEIBC finally extended the olive branch and offered to create a Plastics Negotiating Forum for the breakaway plastics body within the MEIBC. Continuing with its now traditional blitzkrieg-followed-bylong-delay style, it stated that the PCA/industry would need to apply to become a party to MEIBC by 3 September. Its management committee was to convene days later on 10 September to establish the Plastics Negotiating Forum; that the first meeting of the Forum should take place three weeks from that date (about 1 October); and that collective bargaining will take place in that newly established structure. The PCA’s executive committee discussed these proposals and agreed to proceed, and hence applied to become a party to the MEIBC once more. The application stated that it sought to commence negotiation within the Forum to accommodate the particular economic conditions facing employers and employees in the plastics sector.

14 OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013

High gloss ﬁnish – The PP random copolymer Advance™ 180 from Safripol is suited for the extrusion or injection-stretch blow moulding of either clear or coloured containers, one of the main advantages that the material achieves an impressively high gloss surface ﬁnish

Safripol ™

Advance s Polyolefins manufacturer advances literally: rebrands PP grades as Advance range SAFRIPOL has further improved the properties of a number of its polypropylene grades and rebranded them under its new Advance™ range. The fractional melt random copolymer polypropylene previously known as Safron® R103-01NU – a widely accepted grade used primarily in the toiletries and cosmetics industry for many years – is now being marketed under the brand name Advance™ 130. Advance™ 130 offers excellent contact clarity when used in either extrusion blow moulding or injection stretch blow moulding, whilst still retaining acceptable mechanical properties – thus allowing for containers up to 2 litres to be produced from this resin. Furthermore, when used in pigmented applications, the material produces an unusual high gloss surface normally not associated with polypropylene. Besides that, the new PP grade introduced earlier this year as Safron® R702-40RNA will now form part of the Advance range and be marketed as Advance™ 400. The material offers the injection moulder excellent clarity and a superb high gloss surface finish whilst still maintaining impact properties. The improved flow of this grade allows for high cycle times, particularly when used in thin-wall applications. This material is ideally suited for high-volume thin-walled consumer goods packaging where the brand owner wishes the packaged products to be clearly visible to consumers. www.safripol.co.za Clear improvement – The properties of the new Advance™ 400 grade were recently improved, suiting the material for use in thin-wall applications where clear visibility of packaged materials is necessary; improved MFI also allows for high-volume production

INDUSTRY NEWS

Zanogen goes up a gear to

6.5 tons ! Blade manufacturer is main supplier in big gear project

Gargantuan gear! â&#x20AC;&#x201C; The huge 6,5-ton gear dwarfed the Zanogen and SKS Gear teams during a recent inspection of the component at the SKS works in Benoni. The gear has an outer diameter of over 5m !

ZANOGEN Industrial Knives & Blades of Johannesburg was a main supplier in the production recently of a massive 6,5 ton gear. The gear was manufactured by SKS Gear Specialists, with Zanogen supplying the plates used by to set up the gear. This is the heaviest gear yet manufactured by SKS, of Benoni; it is consequently also one of the largest components which Zanogen has been involved in to date. The gear has 140 teeth, an outer diameter of over ďŹ ve metres and a face width of 330mm.

SKS is one of the leading large bore gear manufacturers in southern Africa; it has been in operation since 1965. Zanogen is a leading manufacturer of cutting media, supplying press brake tooling and machine knives for the plastics recycling, steel processing, scrap metal processing, print & paper and timber industries. www.sksgear.co.za

www.zanogen.co.za

16 OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013

* " # $ % & " "

' '' ( # $ & " )

! "

) & &

+ , )-++-./01

Ekh M_dd_d] <ehckbW I[ji Ki 7fWhj E kh M M__dd_d] <ehckbW I[ji Ki 7fWhj M_dd_d] <ehckbW I[ji Ki 7 ;B7IJEC;HI

FB7IJ?9I 9ECFEI?J;I

68B 8G :E9B :e^X]adgd]nYg^c ;@B =C7G =IK H^a^XdcZ >G C7G CG EK8$C7G 7aZcYh H7G 7G

67H 6XZiVa 6YY^i^kZh 8dbedh^iZh 8E: 8HB :K6 =>EH <EEH Cnadc E8 EK8 IE: IEK IEJ

<?BB;HI 7::?J?L;I

7KN?B?7H?;I I;HL?9;I

6ajb^cVh 6ci^bdcn EgdYjXih 7adl^c\h 6\Zcih 8VgWdc 7aVX`h ;aVbZ GZiVgYZcih =nYgdXVgWdc GZh^ch BV\cZh^jb Dm^YZ BVhiZgWViX]Zh B8 E: LVmZh B^cZgVa ;âaZgh EZgdm^YZh EgdXZhh 6^Yh GjWWZg 8]Zb^XVah HâVcZh Hâ^XV Hja[jg O^cX Dm^YZ

8jg^c\ 7aVYYZg BVX]^cZgn Di]Zg HZgk^XZh GZaZVhZ 6\Zcih GZaZVhZ a^cZgh HeVgZh

7D9>EH 9>;C?97BI 7ViX] D[[ 7dcY^c\ HnhiZbh 8dViZY EdlYZgh ;VXi^XZ BVhiZgWViX]^c\ EgdXZhh 6^Yh Idaa B^m^c\

E D AN B : G H 9 > K > H > D C

@e^Wdd[iXkh] 7^aa IVnadg ?Zccn LVgcZg KZad\Vc Bji]VnVc I %&& )-. (+%% ; %&& )-. (+%&

:khXWd ?VXd Hb^i] EVja GdhZ Gdc 9jclddY^Z I %(& (&( -*%% ; %(& (&( -*&+

9Wf[ Jemd E^ZiZg HcnbVc I %'& *%+ )*. ; %'& *%+ )*+&

mmm$YWhij$Ye$pW

Fehj ;b_pWX[j^ @Vi]n <VgYZ I %)& (., (+%% ; %)& (., (+%&

INDUSTRY NEWS

Safripol rated one of SA’s top employers – for the 6th time! SAFRIPOL was named the top employer in the chemical industry sector at the recent Top Employers Awards. This is the 6th consecutive Top Employer award for Safripol. The overall winner was Unilever. “Optimal employee conditions ensure that people develop themselves personally and professionally. Our comprehensive research concluded that Safripol provides an outstanding employment environment and nurtures and develops talent throughout all levels of the organisation. They offer a wide range of creative initiatives, from secondary beneﬁts and working conditions, to performance-management programmes, that are well-thought-out and truly aligned with the culture of their company,” said Samantha Crous, Regional Director Africa & Benelux for the Top Employers Institute who host the awards. Safripol works strategically with the Top Employers Institute using the rigour and credibility of their evaluation process of HR practices and offerings, overseen by the

auditing ﬁrm Grant Thornton. The process uses the best of local and international standards to measure the competing companies.

www.safripol.co.za

Top employers – standing, from left, Dheshni Gunpath & Nasriyn Snell (Mondelez SA), Tom Fraser (Tenova Mining & Minerals) and Sakkie du Plessis (Safripol). Sitting, from left, Noelene Gough and Brenda Lomberg (Simba) and Victor Matsoso (Safripol)

18 OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013

Maiden over! 6 perfect deliveries Always on top of our game. 6 years as one of South Africa’s top employers, where greatness demands nothing less than consistent high performance.

Thanks to all our staff, who make it easy to be a great employer, and to our customers, the reason we strive to be better. Eden Gardens Building, The Campus, Cnr. Main Road and Sloane Street, Private Bag X52, Bryanston, 2021 Tel: +27 11 575 4549; Fax: +27 11 576 4549; Email: info@safripol.com; Website: www.safripol.com

INDUSTRY NEWS

Switched on! New PET machine will produce films up to 1.5m wide TRIOPLASTICS will officially launch their new calendered process rigid PVC and the widest PET (up to 1.5m wide) machinery on 31 October. To ensure the smooth production of quality rigid PVC and PET at Trioplastics, the machines have been tested and re-tested. Guests at the official launch will witness the ribbon cutting ceremony before they participate in a walk-through of this world-class facility, showcasing the machines and the production line. Trioplastics specialize in the supply of quality rigid PVC and PET plastic films and sheets used in thermoforming, pharma- and food grade packaging. With the introduction of the new machinery the company will now be able to manage and produce various grades of PVC and PET films. It will also be able to service the packaging industry by providing the rigid films used in thermoform-

ing, blister packs, stationary and additional applications. Additional products from Trioplastics will include are GAG as well as cooling tower fills. Situated in Krugersdorp, Trioplastics services the whole of South Africa with rigid PVC and PET. They intend spreading their wings and expanding into other African markets next year. PVC films less likely to degrade The new PVC machine will be able to produce stable rigid PVC films that are less likely to degrade. The calendering process results in a higher quality PVC product, it’s cost effective, stable, can be used for laminations, and it creates a high gloss. PVC films that have been extruded can have up to a 20% rejection rate when used by clients. The calender process

reduces that rejection rate to less than 1% and minimizes waste. In addition, the new PET machine will allow Trioplastics to produce ﬁlms up to 1.5m in width. The ability to manufacture locally will mean that Trioplastics will be able to produce a high quality product at a competitive price. It will also signiﬁcantly decrease the lead-time of the product, enabling Trioplastics to position themselves as an industry leader. Together with SAVA (South African Vinyl Association), Trioplastics aims to become as environmentally friendly as they possibly can and assist in the sustainability of PVC, reassuring their customers and always improving their standards in the manufacturing of PVC and PET. www.trioplastics.co.za

Huge turnout for

20 OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013

28 coastal cleanup SOUTH Africans once again showed their commitment to the environment by participating in the 28th International Coastal Clean-up that took place at beaches around the country on 21 September 2013. Clean-ups took place on most of South Africa’s beaches where gloves, refuse bags and data sheets were handed out to volunteers upon their arrival. “From Kosi Bay on the East Coast to Alexander Bay on the West coast, communities and helpers from every age showed up to remove A beach cleanup also took place on Robben Island

litter from the beaches,” said John Kieser, Sustainability Manager of Plastics|SA and National Coordinator for the ICC. Various diving clubs took the initiative to coordinate underwater clean-ups in many of our country’s harbours, whilst a beach clean-up also took place on Robben Island. KwaZulu-Natal’s beach clean-ups attracted more than 6 000 volunteers on Saturday, with 1 600 youth attending a beach clean-up in the Durban Mangroves. The ﬁrst micro material clean-up for manmade material smaller than 10mm,

such as plastic pellets, also took place at Yzerfontein on the day. Plastics|SA stated that they are not yet in a position to release exact ﬁgures about how many volunteers participated or the amount of litter that was removed from beaches and water sources, as the collection and compilation of raw data obtained from the clean-ups can only begin after the annual clean-up. www.cleanup-sa.co.za

Doing his bit to help clean up the environment was Anton Hanekom, Executive Director of Plastics│SA

INDUSTRY NEWS

Best Recycled Product 2013 Brand owners recognising their role in race towards zero waste to landfill THREE years ago, SAPRO started a Best Recycled Product Competition to acknowledge recycled plastics products. The competition has since grown in leaps and bounds with SAPRO creating the ‘Oscars of the plastics recycling industry’ in South Africa. The products entered into the competition range from products used every day in South Africa by consumers and industries. Brand owners have started to recognise their role in the race towards zero waste to landfill and that is evident in the increased number of brand entries in this year’s competition, specifically from Unilever SA and Woolworths, which together were responsible for seven of the 27 entries. This year’s judges were Kobus Botha (seated) – recycled himself and now recycling – who has more than 30 years’ experience in recycling; Martin Wells, publisher of SA Plastics, Composites & Rubber magazine who has a sound knowledge of consumer and industry expectations; and Anton Hanekom, executive director of Plastics|SA, also managing the Zero Waste to Landfill initiatives in South Africa

SAPRO Trophy for the Best Recycled Product of 2013 The ﬁrst SAPRO trophy for the Best Recycled Product in 2010 went to Tufﬂex for their narrow gauge railway sleeper, followed by Polypet in 2011 with their Woolworths 1½ litre juice bottle. Last year Lasher

GOLD AWARD

was the overall winner with their Ecobarrow. This year the prestigious award goes to…

Sunlight dishwash bottle – 50% recycled content z 8QLOHYHU 6$

THE Sunlight dishwash bottle, like its predecessor, has been engineered to perform well at all levels of the high-speed supply chain, so that the brand integrity is maintained. This development has been achieved over a period of 18 months and is the second stage in an ongoing project to create a suitable market-friendly bottle that is 100% rPET by 2016. Current market trends indicate that Unilever is a pioneer in this type of development and it has taken courage, technical expertise and financial commitment from Unilever to change the landscape. Rather than pure profit driving the decision making, a deeper concern for the environment is being reflected in their marketing.

22 OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013

100% Recycled Content THIS was the largest category with 13 products entered. This is a very important category to SAPRO as it places a large responsibility on the plastics recycler to maintain its standards and quality throughout large batches of material.

The emphasis in this category was on tonnages kept off landfills, consumer acceptance and the technical achievements in manufacturing excellence. A high value was also put on the long-term demand for the product, i.e. does it establish consumer trust.

Genius Smart Shoe soles for smart kids z 1RYLWD 6KRHV

GOLD AWARD

SCHOOL shoes are a basic requirement for GOLD all school kids and have a high and long-term AWARD demand. The Genius Shoe comes with a six month consumer guarantee for fair wear and tear on the soles only. Regular testing of outsole flexing is conducted to ensure quality consistency. Recycled flexible PVC is used to manufacture the soles of the Genius shoe. The upgrading of the properties of the recycled material to obtain the same qualities as virgin material is a technical achievement worth mentioning. The recycled material is a 100% replacement for virgin plasticised PVC compound. At the end of the shoe’s life, the sole can find its way back into the system and can be recycled again. Environmentally a contribution of 80 tons of recycled PVC is made every month to produce a product that is durable, hard wearing, comfortable and above all, affordable.

Checkers carrier Combination rake bag z 7XII\ 3URPRWLRQV head z /DVKHU 7RROV

A complete new factory, Tuffy Flexibles, was built to manufacture a 100% recycled content carrier bag for Checkers. This new carrier bag plant will produce 170 million bags a year, which equates to the consumption of around 2100 tons of recycled plastics. Checkers have become the ﬁrst national retailer to use a veriﬁed 100% recycled content carrier bag, something they are very proud of.

DUE to the increasing steel prices and market demand for better quality tools, Lasher designed a rake that is made from 100% recycled material. Material was sourced from a reputable recycling company and there have been no problems with colour variations or melt ﬂows. Lasher has therefore been able to provide its market with a product that is far superior SILVER in quality compared to AWARD wood or steel. The rake has a much longer life span and can be recycled again.

Plastic droppers z 3ODVWLF 'URSSHUV

23 OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013

INDUSTRY NEWS

THESE unique plastics droppers have revolutionised the fencing industry. Not only do they reduce the carbon footprint and the need for wooden poles, but the farmers save at least 30% off their immediate fencing costs and long-term maintenance costs. The solid dropper is manufactured with a speciﬁc grip designed for game SILVER fencing; resulting in a total non-slip of the fencing AWARD wire as well as maintaining even wire spacing. It is manufactured from 100% recycled PE-HD.

INDUSTRY NEWS

Mixed recycled material content THIS category deals with products that are manufactured from a mixture of materials, more than one plastic or plastic and another material

like sand, cement or sawdust. They often provide solutions for difﬁcult-to-recycle materials and replace alternative materials like wood and steel.

Pallet corner block z 6N\SURSV CORNER blocks in the bottom of the pallet are designed to accommodate the forklift’s forks for lifting the pallet and are prone to getting wet in storage or transporting. Water SILVER makes wood expand and when drying out, cracks develop AWARD and with subsequent handling, deterioration sets in. A composition block made from recycled PE-LD and wood chips solved this problem. PE-LD is recycled at Skyprops and the wood chips are obtained from broken pallets. Not only are these blocks impact resistant and durable, they also have nail retention qualities and a life expectancy of about 10 years.

Percentage post-consumer recycled content PRODUCTS in this category are normally high volume packaging items and the inclusion of recycled content creates high volume markets for recyclate without the consumer actually knowing it. Brand owners, together with their recyclate provider, establish levels of recycled content based on the availability of the material and the quality requirements of the packaging item. The entries in this category were all worthy of being the winner and the competition was very tough. The judges

could only differentiate between them by looking at the compliance of the product, i.e. does it display the correct material identiﬁcation code and was it designed for recycling. The judges would like to encourage the brand owners to inform the consumer of the recycled content as part of their environmental drive. It seems such a waste to develop the product and not boast about it!

Organics recycled range – 25% recycled content – 8QLOHYHU 6$

SILVER

ORGANICS, Unilever’s popular AWARD family shampoo and conditioner range has been launched in 25% recycled content packs. This move saves 46 tons of virgin material per annum. The product launch has been further enhanced with the introduction of a 900ml value pouch, designed to allow the recycled 1-litre bottle to be used over an extended period of time. August 2013 saw the launch of 22 packs in 8 variants that have 25% recycled content. Over the next two months, the ﬁrst of the new packs will bleed into the market and eventually all Organics will be in 25% recycled material.

24 OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013

INDUSTRY NEWS

Woolworths Earth Friendly cleaning range – 30% recycled content – :RROZRUWKV

Winners

THE bottles for the range contain 30% post-consumer rPET and rPE-HD respectively. The inclusion of SILVER post-consumer recycled material in these bottles is in line with Woolworths Good Business Journey strategy AWARD to create high value markets and demand for quality recycled plastic, minimizing the packaging going to landﬁll and the demand on virgin materials. While inclusion of bottle-to-bottle recycled PET is now the norm in Woolworths packaging, recycled PE-HD from post-consumer waste was the next milestone to achieve. The positioning of this Earth Friendly product range was the perfect opportunity to introduce recycled content in the bottles. It is expected that this will set a new trend in the local PE-HD packaging industry. A higher value recycled plastic market will be created for PE-HD, increasing its collection and recycling rate, creating additional demand for plastic packaging waste and diverting it from landﬁll.

Silver Award winners were: Gold Awards went to the following: Checkers carrier bag by Tuffy Plastic Droppers by Plastic Droppers Promotions - 100 % recycled content - 100 % recycled content Genius Smart Shoe Soles for smart Combination rake head by Lasher kids by Novita Shoes - 100 % Tools - 100 % recycled content recycled content Pallet corner block by Skyprops mixed recycled content Sunlight Dishwash bottle by Unilever SA, containing 50% recycled content, Organics Recycled Range - Unilever for the category percentage postSA (25% recycled content, in the consumer recycled content. category for products containing

a percentage of post-consumer recycled content Woolworths Earth Friendly cleaning range (30% recycled content) for the category percentage post-consumer recycled content Lifestyle range by Eco Smart in the category Novel and Artistic Products Furniture and Sculptures by Bongani Khumalo of Ababhali

26 OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013

VIRGIN POLYMERS & RECYCLED MATERIAL • HDPE • LDPE • LLDPE • PP • PVC • EVA • PET • Natural & Synthetic Rubber • • • •

Masterbatch Additives & Inks Purging Compounds Chemicals & Solvents

DISTRIBUTION AGENT INTO AFRICA Contact: Tel: +27 11 803 0333 • Fax: +27 11 803 0332 • Cell: 0082 604 5926 • Email: safrique@safrique.com 50 Wessels Road, Rivonia, Gauteng, South Africa

Novel and artistic products Furniture & sculptures – $EDEKDOL

ALL the artworks are made from junk found on the street corners in Soweto. The artist, Bongani Khumalo, travels a radius of up to 4km to collect car tyres, wires, old table legs, light bulbs, polystyrene and car parts. The basic design or structure is made and plastics are then melted on top of the structure to cover it. The heat is obtained from burning paper and water is used to cool down the molten material. The ﬁnal effect is very interesting.

SILVER AWARD

individuals to turn waste products into valuables. As before, the diversity of the entries impressed the judges and each entry has a story to tell.

Eco Smart Lifestyle Range z (FR 6PDUW ECO Smart makes commercially viable products out of recycled, recyclable, up-cycled and ecofriendly materials. They work with various informal and community projects to provide a SILVER revenue stream for AWARD those individuals. The Lifestyle range is mainly made from upcycled redundant PVC marketing banners and billboards.

SAPRO Merit Award and SAPRO Award for Outstanding Service THE ﬁrst organisation to receive the SAPRO Merit Award is Woolworths for their dedicated support of the South African plastics recycling industry.

THE 2013 SAPRO Award for Outstanding Service went to Douglas Greig for guiding and leading SAPRO to become a professional industry organisation. 27 OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013

INDUSTRY NEWS

THIS category was introduced to allow for entries that will not consume necessarily large volumes of post-consumer materials but create opportunities for

INDUSTRY NEWS

Gala evening was â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;whoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s whoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Outstanding service â&#x20AC;&#x201C; SAPRO chairman Douglas Greig presented the awards and provided plenty of wit on the night. He was also awarded the 2013 SAPRO Award for Outstanding Service for guiding and leading SAPRO to become a professional industry body

Nampak team â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Nampak group, which submitted a number of entries this year, was represented by Terry van der Walt, Charles Mugoma; Arthur Smith and Jaco Geldenhuys, who chatted with photographerresearcher Clive Glover

Clive Glover and Martin Wells, one of the competition judges, with Cindy and Wikus Johnstone of Polyfence Drop Poles All the winners â&#x20AC;&#x201C; With the various categories, such as 100% recycled content and percentage recycled content, there were quite a lot of winners on the night â&#x20AC;Ś although the big winner was the recycling sector and its recovery of valuable materials and putting these into use again. Here we see the winning brand owners along with some of the material suppliers, who indirectly are winners too 28 OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013

K 2013 COME AND SEE US AT THE K TRADE FAIR IN DĂ&#x153;SSELDORF 16.â&#x20AC;&#x201C;23. OCT. 2013 HALL 16, BOOTH F56

Soul & Solutions for Global Success

5)& /&8 #&/$)."3, 4 THIS IS WHAT THE ENERGY AND MATERIAL EFFICIENT PRODUCTION OF THE FUTURE LOOKS LIKE The DESMA S3 generation now also available with the innovation ZeroWaste ITM for an article production without losses and other technical features setting standards:

t &OFSHZ TBWJOH ESJWF BOE SFEVDFE OPJTF FNJTTJPO by means of the hydraulic system ServoGear t 4BGF GFFEJOH PG NBUFSJBM TUSJQT PG MBSHFS dimensions with the feed roller ActiveFeed

t &BTF PG PQFSBUJPO UISPVHI JOUVJUJWF VTFS prompting by way of 19Ë?-haptic-touch display of the DRC 2020 HT control system

t 3BJTFE JOKFDUJPO BDDVSBDZ CZ the non-return valve PlastControl

t )JHIFS BWBJMBCJMJUZ BMTP UIBOLT UP UIF injection unit FIFO-Advanced

t &GGFDUJWF DVSF UJNF SFEVDUJPO UISPVHI UIF patented nozzle technology FlowControl+ www.desma.biz

INDUSTRY NEWS

of recycling

Matric dance? No, not quite: this was the setting for SAPRO’s 2013 ‘Best Recycled Products’ banquet, at the St George Hotel in Irene, Pretoria, magical nevertheless! Unilever team – Gareth Edmonds, Yoageshni Appelsamy and Terisha Pillay, all from Unilever

The person most involved in the recycling design competition is none other than Annabé Pretorius, the SAPRO coordinator, and she was thanked for her work and commitment (and jokes) by Douglas Greig, the chairman of SAPRO MC – Simon Gear, environmentalist/entertainer and ex-weatherman, was the Master of Ceremonies on the night; here he’s ﬂanked by Monique Holtzhausen-Hinds and Adri Spangenberg who looked, well, like they were at a matric dance

Dean and Candice Toi of Relloy and principal Erema of Austria, with Sandra and Carl Rosslee. Relloy and Erema, the manufacturer of recycling systems, were Gold sponsors of the 2013 SAPRO gala evening 29 OCT / NOV 2013

ASSOCIATION NEWS

Rotation 2013

Annual consumption July - June

Main goal remains achieving faster cycle times and better returns THE good news for the roto moulding sector is that business in the southern African region is up by a double-digit rate. What’s not such good news is the fact that our neighbouring states are growing at a higher rate than our local market. But you have to take positives where you can and the estimated 10,3% increase in tonnage converted – the ﬁgure breached the 30,000-ton mark for the ﬁrst time, settling at an estimated 31,100 tons for the past year – is without a doubt one of the most noticeable increases in the local plastics industry in recent years. This news in fact came only at the end of the recent ARMSA Rotation 2013 conference at Kloofzicht Lodge near Muldersdrift to the west of Johannesburg. ARMSA (the Association of Rotation Moulders of Southern Africa) has succeeded in presenting its Rotation conferences annually for the last decade. On this occasion, the hardened and indefatigable roto guys had spent the better part of a day-and-a-half debating the main topic, namely achieving faster cycle times and getting cosier with its elusive bedfellow,

better returns. This year’s programme was somewhat concertinaed and included fewer presentations and just one night out, at the very well appointed Kloofzicht Lodge, part of the Guvon Hotels group. But the ARMSA committee again succeeded in arranging a balanced programme with technical, related services and motivational speakers mixing it with a number of presentations from international guests. Make no mistake, all sectors of the industry in Southern Africa could justifiably do the same, such is the need for technology and business advancement, but it’s the pioneering spirit within ARMSA that is keeping the annual show on the road! Higher tonnages The stats for the roto market are compiled by Clive Robertson of ACD RotoFlo on an ‘unofficial’ basis. Clive has a good grasp of material trends, having been virtually ‘joined at the hip’ to the sector over the past three decades. Since starting in the industry, he’s been involved at SA Moulded Plastics, the Plastics Federation of SA (now Plastics|SA), Plastamid, FHE Automotive Technologies, Sasol Polymers, Polyimpex (Borealis), Affirm Marketing, Lomotek and CrC RotoCon-

YEAR

TONS

% CHANGE

1996 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013

8300 9650 10050 14000 17510 19700 19540 23570 24680 24150 23050 23430 26610 28180 31100

16% 4.1% 39% 25% 12% -1% 28% 4.7% -2% -4.6% 1.6% 13.5% 6% 10.36%

The steady increases in material consumption over the past decade reveal the good growth achieved by roto moulders in South Africa and now, more recently, increasingly in other countries in the region

sult before starting ACD RotoFlo in April 2012. ACD RotoFlo, based in Kya Sand in Johannesburg, is involved in colour compounding and pulverising of roto powders and other speciality powders, from which vantage Clive has been able to observe material trends around the region and world. The ﬁgures suggest that there has been good growth in the sector over the past three years, with a 10% increase in polymer sales

Product of Year winners keep it cool Pioneer walks off with gold and silver JUST about everything about ARMSA’s Product of the Year competition is novel … as entered products have quite frequently never been roto moulded before! The 2013 edition of the competition was no exception and it was Pioneer Plastics of Rosslyn, Pretoria, which repeated its victory of 2012 and backed that up with the runners-up prize too. Pioneer seems to be backing up its established experience in the heavy vehicle component market (long-range tanks and mud guards etc) in its newfound focus on the entertainment sector. In 2011 they entered a mobile bar, which proved very popular at that year’s Rotation, so it was a surprise when the 2013 entries arrived empty! But the standards of all the entered products were high and congratulations are due to Pioneer and the other entrants. 30 OCT / NOV 2013

GOLD

Cool Bar !

Product of the Year – This is no ordinary bar stool! Pioneer Plastics won the 2013 ARMSA Product of the Year Award for its roto moulded ‘Cool Bar’, which is a plastic cooler box that extends upwards to create a cocktail tablestool. It’s perfect for outdoor sport or social events, beach and ﬁshing trips, pool parties and braais. Moulded in colour compounded LLDPE, the panels are polyurethane foamed. The components are moulded around an aluminum insert, and the unit features full colour, digitally printed, UHI graphic panels. It can keep ice cold for up to 12 hours – quite a bonus! www.pioneerplastics.co.za

SILVER

Wheelie Cooler Runner-up – Another entry from Pioneer Plastics, the 60-litre ‘Wheelie Cooler’ – a cool box with runners – took the silver medal. The structure includes polyurethane foaming, an area where Pioneer has advanced its skills. In this case the 50mm PU foamed walls offer optimal insulation, and can keep ice for up to ﬁve days. This ‘Rolls Royce’ of cooler features 120mm rubber wheels, stainless steel axle with rotationally moulded pull handle. The Wheelie Cooler is intended for informal vending applications and other consumer and trade events Both these products are manufactured for Adapt Marketing by Pioneer Plastics and are available from www.adaptgroup.com

ARMSA chairman, the ever humorous Wayne Wiid of Pioneer Plastics, is only the fourth chairman in the association’s 14-year history

Clive Robertson of ACD RotoFlo, who was the previous ARMSA chairman, makes an active analysis of trends in the roto market and supplied the ﬁgures in the adjacent table

over the past year. A high percentage of the roto material being used in the region is supplied by South African companies. And the figures weren’t disappointing before the recent spurt either: the roto market suffered ‘relatively minor’ damage during the financial fiasco of 2008/9 and before that enjoyed very positive years in 2002 and 2006. Clive’s observations are that a number of new roto moulding companies have sprung up in the neighbouring states, notably in Botswana and Mozambique, and although these constitute a relatively small percentage of the total tonnages, do show a new trend. New investment in state-of-the-art imported roto machines has also assisted in the continued growth of the South African market, reducing fuel consumption (to heat ovens) and cycle times – and hence improving returns! The continued support of Sasol

BRONZE

Owl box

For the birds – JoJo has been extending its expertise in roto tanks to other products, including this owl box, for which it won a bronze medal. JoJo is one of the leaders in the tank market in southern Africa (in fact, water tanks are widely referred to as ‘JoJos’ in the country) and the production and material formulation skills it has built up in the process give it a big advantage. The owl box is a 2-component moulding produced in a carousel oven. The mould was made in house and evolved from a dog kennel via SolidWorks to arrive at the neat Alpine-style structure. South Africa’s leading authorities on owls, Dr Rudy Erasmus and Dr Gerhard Verdoorn, assisted in the development process. The barn owl (Tyto alba) and other subspecies are the number one rodent catchers and offer an effective ecological control of rodents, especially in the grain and grape producing areas. Some farmers have cut use of rodenticides to as low as 20% of normal use by using owls. www.jojotanks.co.za

Global chairman – Ravi Mehra (right), the chairman of ARMO, the global Affiliation of Rotation Moulding Organisations, enjoyed the wildlife and the nightlife (at Rotation 2013!) during his first visit to Africa. Here we see the USA-based Mehra with Gary Lategan of Roto Solutions, South Africa’s unofficial ‘roto ambassador’ who has encouraged many global roto specialists to visit the country

Polymers with world-class roto LLDPE grades has helped create a level of stability and growth impetus for this region. Although rotational moulding constitutes just over 3% of South Africa’s total plastic material consumption, its products – speciﬁcally roto moulded water tanks – are among the most widely recognized plastic items in Southern Africa, particularly in rural areas and hence at least somewhat emblematic of the industry’s role in the region overall. Tanks represent about 60-70% of roto powder consumed in the region as compared to the rest of Africa at about 98%. Global guests Besides providing a window to the global roto industry for delegates at Rotation 2013, this year’s international guests – ARMO chairman Ravi Mehra and Dr Marek Szostak of the Polish Association of Rotational Moulders – also gave candid reﬂec-

Wall planter Accelerate Design again came up with something new, a wall planter system for ‘hanging’ gardens. The product offers the advantage of being relatively light, and hence easier to install than the concrete alternative. The containers are moulded as separate sections which fit into each other, and a complete wall can be covered in the process. The mouldings can also be used as a filter for fish ponds, and can potentially be more effective than the normal sand or koi pond filter as the water is aerated as it trickles back down to the pond. Accelerate was the winner in 2009, but had to settle for a notable commendation on this occasion. www.accelerate.co.za

Pole position – Marek Szostak, a lecturer/ researcher at Poznan University of Technology in Poland and also current chairman of Poland’s ROTOPOL association, was an interested guest at the event at Kloofzicht. For a large European company, Poland’s roto industry is very similar to that in South Africa: about 58 companies are active, the sector is showing growth of a healthy 9-10% and water tanks comprise a smaller share of the market (about 40%) than here, with transport and logistics being relatively large at about 25% of the market overall. A salient feature of the Polish industry in the high level of research conducted, signiﬁcantly more than here

tions on our own industry, and noted some of the positives we sometimes overlook. Both gentlemen were virtually overwhelmed by the hospitality they received, impressed by the amount of space and wildlife encountered and, possibly most relevantly, almost knocked out by the apparently very pleasant relations that appear to exist among both roto moulders and with suppliers in our market. In Poland, according to Dr Szostak, the level of competition is intense and relations between companies tend to be frosty at best and there is as a result little cooperation within the market. We on the other hand do know somewhat differently (i.e. things do get tense here from time to time), but it can be conceded that even companies that are ﬁerce competitors here are still able to treat each other in a respectful manner and, amazingly, are still able to engage in constructive debate at conferences!

Flawless ﬁnish Atlas Plastics of Klerksdorp, a regular entrant in the competition and twice a winner in previous years, received a commendable mention for its Viking hand wash basin. The component is produced on a CNC aluminium mould, which achieves a very high standard surface ﬁnish and, together with the high standard compounded material used, enabled Atlas to achieve a very positive outcome. www.atlasplastics.co.za

PRODUCT OF THE YEAR WINNERS 2000

Atlas Plastics

2001

Technitop

2002

Kaymac

2003

Technitop

2005

K-FAB

2006

Ivy Blue

2007

Atlas Plastics

2008

East Coast Moulders

2009

Accelerate Design

2010

CHM Plastics

2011

CHM Plastics

2012

Pioneer Plastics

OCT / NOV 2013 31

Tough challenge but students come out tops

ASSOCIATION NEWS

THIS year’s Sasol Student Design Competition at the ARMSA Rotation 2013 conference posed one of the most challenging undertakings for the students yet: to ‘design a part which will prevent ingress of ﬂoating waste into river systems, or to catch this waste once it gets there’. The brief said the device to catch waste could be used for a river, dam or the ocean and ‘can have a dual function’. At least some of us may have idly contemplated such a challenge … and abandoned it. But not the design students at the Tshwane University of Technology (TUT) and University of Johannesburg (UJ) – they set about the project with gusto and, free of the burdens both imaginary and real that can beset older types, came up with some really novel solutions. And, it must be added, solutions that appear to stand a good chance of being effective if fully applied! The designs were judged on the following criteria: originality; marketability and ‘rotomouldability’.

Guest of honour this year was Mehra, chairman of ARMO, the global Afﬁliation of Rotation Moulding Organisations. From India originally, Mehra has resided in the USA for some time and has travelled widely in his rotational work. This is giving him the opportunity to build ties within the global roto family, and it certainly does appear cross pollination of ideas is taking place regularly at international roto events. ARMO is a global partnership aimed at promoting better member interaction and education. It presently has 11 members, the most recent signee being Mexico, whose ANIPAC association signed up earlier this year. Member countries host meetings – literally on a rotational basis! – which present scope for visiting delegates to look for product and technology opportunities. So expect to catch a Mexican wave soon … www.armo-global.org

India roto market With a population of about 1.2 billion, a rapidly emerging middle class now estimated to number over 250 million individuals and per capita plastics consumption of just 5kgs p/a, it’s hardly surprising that the plastics industry is booming in the ‘sub-continent’. It’s estimated that about 12.5 million tons is being converted annually by the industry in India (about x10 more than South Africa), with an estimated 4.5 million people being employed in about 25,000 units, said Mehra. The bandying about of ﬁgures of this scale caused several in the audience to sit bolt upright, and there was more to come: India’s development rate is estimated to be about 7% currently, signiﬁcantly more than

32 OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013

WINNER ‘Strider’ by Daniel Carstens and Dillon Farrell of UJ is a solarpowered catamaran with suspended net for the collection of ﬂoating plastic litter on the water surface. The big advantage is that it’s mobile and self-powered, and virtually all the components with the exception of the net can be roto moulded … here are students who adhered well to the difﬁcult design brief and challenge – well done guys!

the situation in Africa, but that ﬁgure is being outstripped even by the roto sector, where there is a growth rate of about 12-15% … and tank production is seeing even more extreme growth of about 85%. Every market has its own particular trends and in India, apparently, tanks have to be multi-layer structures as the inside of the tank has to be white! Other buoyant markets in India include the production of components for the transport sector (bus seats) and solar water tanks, where opportunities exist. About 500 roto moulders operate around the country, which, as in the other trends, is about ten times more than in South Africa. Roto vs blow or injection moulding In his presentation, ‘Alternative manufacturing processes for water tanks,’ the ever witty Piet van Niekerk of Accelerate Design assessed whether there are more effective processes for producing water tanks than rotational moulding. The most obvious options are blow and injection moulding, with each offering both advantages and

disadvantages. Piet was looking at all related aspects, particularly set-up costs (mainly of machine and mould costs), cycle times and surface ﬁnish. Still other processes are available for plastic tank production, speciﬁcally composite fabrication: GRP offers the solution for arguably the strongest tanks, but production times are far longer than any of the other processes. With blow moulding, complex shapes and high levels of automation can be achieved, but operator skills levels and maintenance requirements are higher than for roto. Costs of producing moulds for the blown process are also higher. Our estimates also suggest that large blow moulding machines involve major capex: two installations in South Africa this year have had budgets in excess of R20-million each. With injection moulding the cycle times are far shorter, but the set-up costs are astronomically higher. Piet estimated that a machine to injection mould a 3000-litre tank (just one half would be produced at a time,

Accelerate – Piet van Niekerk compared various technologies for manufacturing tanks in his presentation. There are without a doubt advantages and disadvantages with blow and injection moulding, he noted, but roto is almost certainly the most practical solution at present. Here we see Piet with his daughter, Anle Els, outgoing ARMSA secretary, who has returned to SA computer manufacturer Mustek. Anle was outstanding as ARMSA secretary and we wish her well in the IT sector

Skim Bridge by Dumisani Tshabalala and Sibusiso Mkhwanazi of UJ, is a relatively simple solution but one which potentially can haul in large volumes of ďŹ&#x201A;oating scrap from rivers

RUNNER-UP

TIED 3RD

Waterboom Skimmer by Emile Dippenaar and Kirsty Keet of UJ and â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Stingray Conceptâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; by Jacques Steenkamp (TUT) tied for third place

THE JUDGES The judges, who applied their minds to the wide range of solutions developed by the students, included Ravi Mehra (chairman of the global roto body ARMO), Nick Aggett of Sasol Polymers (coordinator of the competition for the past 13 years), Angus Campbell (UJ), Hein Dubery (TUT), Wayne Wiid (Pioneer Plastics and ARMSA chairman) and Jacques Lightfoot of Plastics|SA

and subsequently joined â&#x20AC;&#x201C; which would also allow for easier transport) would cost in the region of a prohibitive R150-million for the machine as opposed to R3.5-million for the roto machine. The manufacture of the injection mould would also be extremely expensive. The R150-million machine could produce

an estimated 10,800 tanks per month which â&#x20AC;&#x201C; at a repayment rate of a whopping R3,4million per month! â&#x20AC;&#x201C; would result in a cost of R324,07 per tank. The injection option also requires far greater electricity usage (240kW as opposed to 30KW for the roto machine), whereas roto by comparison would require a higher gas or parafďŹ n cost.

Besides the fact that capital layout would be a barrier to entry, a huge â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;captured marketâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; would be necessary to justify either blow or injection moulding of tanks. So, all things said and done, Pietâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s calculations suggest that rotational moulding is still the preferred option for tank production.

OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013 33

ACD RotoFlo Your Supplier of Choice Colour Compounding of Roto and Speciality Polymers Pulverising of Roto and Speciality Powders Clive Robertson Michael BĂśltau Chanda Mukuka

cliverobertson@iburst.co.za

082 880 4976 084 540 2896 011 708 3361 / Fax : 011 708 1919

ASSOCIATION NEWS

Moulding smarter to reduce costs The inimitable Gary Lategan of Roto Solutions, the man who has been a perennial presenter at the Rotation conferences over the years, was happy to impart some of the lessons he’s learned in the ﬁeld. Gary has worked with over 300 rotational moulding companies in 47 countries – from as far aﬁeld as Ukraine, North Korea and Indonesia – and certainly has the experience to back up his strategies. “Most moulders have the same BASIC problems, and the main result of this is poor quality and hidden costs,” said Gary at kickoff (this is probably something that everyone in manufacturing in the industry needs to think about). “Too many moulders are looking for new ideas all the time, yet they don’t have the basics right,” said Lategan. And the basics, he added, can be summed up by the following: measure, control … improve! Everything we do in the factory needs to viewed with these priorities, said Gary, whose suggestions included: designs frequently include too many ribs (which can achieve create weak points, instead of strengthening the structure of the moulding);

think of your operators when designing moulds. Many in company management don’t even know the names of their operators. He suggested managers should spend time on the factory floor with the operators to find out what they need to produce more effectively; switching off machines during lunch break (or any breaks for that matter) is not cost effective, as reheating the moulds wastes time and is costly. He suggested that workers at a profitable and well-run roto business simply do not all take lunch at the same time – the machines must keep running! To be profitable, it’s important to have good teamwork in the factory, and this sometimes requires encouraging individuals with bad attitudes to exit the scene, suggested Gary, who has made exactly this suggestion at a number of global roto companies where he has consulted, although he used less tactful language. And mould turnaround during the cycle is another area where efficiency is essential: the cycle of removing a mould from the oven and inserting the next should take from 7-10 seconds … not unlike a grand prix pitstop!

Gary² – They build them tough in Klerksdorp! Gary Bolt, who is now running Atlas Plastics in the North-West town, and Gary Lategan, one of the cofounders of Atlas but now at Roto Solutions in Cape Town, shared some ‘war stories’ at Rotation 2013. Lategan has given a presentation at every Rotation event since the show hit the road

Unusual design – This tank, from Ganga of India, exhibits both unusual design and colour – certainly from an African perspective (where design and colour are mainly uniform, to reduce costs) The TempLogger system from Roto Solutions enables rotational moulders to closely monitor the heating and cooling phases, as well as other important data such as well thickness, enabling roto companies to produce mould smarter … saving you energy, time and money! Roto moulded couches like this can cost you an arm and a leg

The ultimate road barrier … these large containers are usually roto moulded, but in this case were blow moulded – evidence that Piet van Niekerk is not far off the mark!

Whatta load – This creative operator ﬁtted a whopping 58 tanks onto his sedan

NICO HICKLEY of CHM Plastics of Midrand, winner of the ARMSA Product of the Year competition in 2010 and 2011, gave a presentation titled ‘Intelligent CNC machined mould design’. Because roto moulding has traditionally focused on large-volume products, CNC (computer numerical control) machining moulds out of steel or aluminum was not a viable option, due to the cost of the metal. But with increasing specialization,

Tank standards An ARMSA sub-committee has perennially endeavoured to get a set of standards for water tanks agreed and adopted under the auspices of the South African Bureau of Standards. Rod Cairns of JoJo has most recently been handling this assignment and reported back during the AGM. He has, in short, found it difﬁcult to progress, as several individuals had established previously … and found that they are in fact actually not even sure who they are dealing with at the SABS. Rod also hinted that cooperating with the SABS could result in quite onerous costs.

smaller products are now being produced and Nico has been focusing on this area – and been happy to talk about his experience to date. CNC machining allows for ﬁner detail, high accuracy and complex features … which is opening the roto sector to products which it previously could not produce. An advantage of the roto process is that the mould wall thickness needs to be narrow: 1.6mm is

Why not just use the ARMSA draft standards, he asked? The main reason for the desire to adopt a recognized standards programme is to prevent unscrupulous manufacturers, who produce sub-spec tanks which can potentially fail, from taking market share from manufacturers who stick to safe standards. The logic behind this is that tank failure would be negative for the plastic water tank sector overall. Ravi Mehra suggested that the situation was very similar in India, where the mainly well run roto companies were

frequently used, even 2mm thick metal is considered too thick (requires more power to heat), as a result of which multiple-panel moulds can be used, in this case with detailed surface ﬁnishing that is CNC machined. Nico uses SolidWorks to design and control the cutting process

www.hickley.co.za

supplying manufactured tanks to a high standard, but were having difﬁculty competing with sub-standards tanks.

Association of Rotational Moulders of Southern Africa Chairman: Wayne Wiid E-mail: wayne@pioneerplastics.co.za Tel: 012 541 6000 / 082 772 7369 Secretary: Petro Geldenhuys Tel: 082 562 4994 | Fax: 086 509 8909 E-mail: info@armsa.co.za ASSOCIATIONS AFFILIATED TO ARMSA THROUGH ARMO Association Francophone du Rotomoulage Associazione Italiana Stampaggio Rotazionale www.armsa.co.za Association of Rotational Moulders Australasia Association of Rotational Moulding Central Europe Association of Rotomoulders Ireland The British Plastics Federation Rotational Moulders Group

36 OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013

It’s time to ask “WHY?”. Why always use regular rotomoulding materials if more cost-effective materials are available? Why use the same material for vastly different applications? Why not change to a stiffer material that can reduce the weight?

If you’re not talking to us yet, why not?

Johannesburg Client Service: Francois Kuhn francoiskuhn@lomotek.co.za +27 11 310 1000

Cape Town Client Service: Wouter du Toit wouterdutoit@lomotek.co.za +27 21 597 5905

R13,000 â&#x20AC;Ś and counting

ASSOCIATION NEWS

ROD Cairns of JoJo was relentless again, as regards fund-raising that is. ARMSA adopts a social cause each year as a way for the roto association to give back to the community. This year the selected charity was Ikaya Nothando Place of Safety for Infants in Pretoria, which cares for abandoned toddlers. Rod went about it with gusto and â&#x20AC;&#x201C; by â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;ďŹ nes,â&#x20AC;&#x2122; coercion and other means â&#x20AC;&#x201C; raised nearly double the ďŹ gure achieved at Rotation â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;012. And the amazing thing is that most of the delegates actually enjoyed it!

Shoestring university Keynote speaker Dr Taddy Bletcher gave an uplifting presentation titled â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;The Future South Africa Deserves,â&#x20AC;&#x2122; in which he explained how he got involved, possibly unwittingly, in attempting to turn around some underperforming schools in the Johannesburg area â&#x20AC;Ś and ended up â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;creatingâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; a university on a shoestring! After graduating as an actuary and working in Canada and Australia, Bletcher returned to these shores and found that many school leavers had very few options. Some tough measures were required initially, such as â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;lockoutâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; for pupils â&#x20AC;&#x201C; and teachers! â&#x20AC;&#x201C; who arrived late for school. This led later, in 2007, to the establishment of what was at ďŹ rst perceived by some as a bogus university, but Bletcher persevered with the development of the Maharishi University in Johannesburg and managed to get some international luminaries â&#x20AC;&#x201C; including Richard Bransonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Virgin group (which led to the formation of the Branson School of Entrepreneurship) and Dell Computers â&#x20AC;&#x201C; to assist. The result is a reality: the Maharishi Institute was created to make tertiary education accessible to all through providing funding for education programmes, to showcase South Africa as a leading innovator in education provision, and support the worldwide breakthrough of consciousness-based education. www.maharishiinstitute.org

ARMO conference in Goa in December ARMO 2013, the biannual conference of the global roto association group, takes place in Goa on the west coast of India from 30 November-3 December. The event â&#x20AC;&#x201C; at The Lalit, one of the biggest and most picturesque 5-star resorts in Goa â&#x20AC;&#x201C; takes the form of a technical conference with networking and business opportunities â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;matched in equal measure by the many splendours of Goa - vivacious culture, exciting cuisine and exotic ambience!â&#x20AC;&#x2122; Goa is Indiaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s richest state with a GDP per capita two-and-a-half times that of the country as a whole. Goa is a former Portuguese province; the Portuguese overseas territory of Portuguese India existed for about 450 years until it was annexed by India in 1961. The main sponsors are Reinhardt Roto Machines and Reliance Polymers. www.armo2013.org

OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013 37

PIONEER PLASTICS Anythingâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Possible.....

2012 & 2013 ARMSA PRODUCT OF THE YEAR WINNER EST 1982

PIONEER PLASTICS

ÂŽ

Anythingâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Possible

Specialists in Custom Moulding

BBBEE Compliant

Major product range includes: Bins, Drums and Containers Mobile Toilet Huts Road Barriers Recycle and Litter Bins Plastic Lockers Many other products

MKII Toilet Huts

Bins & Containers

Round Drums

Enclosed Drums

Trolley Bins

Horizontal Tanks

MKII Barriers

Recycle Bins

Pallet Bins

Lockers

Hoppers & Conicals

Water Tanks

www.pioneerplastics.co.za 012 541 6000/1/2 sales@pioneerplastics.co.za

ASSOCIATION NEWS

Pipes VII, focus remains on effective supply of water SAPPMA show rolls on ... to the sector. South Africa is classiﬁed as a waterscarce country (although the Western Cape will probably disagree after the recent winter) and there can be little doubt that the functioning of the cities of Johannesburg and Pretoria would be impaired were it not for major projects such as the Lesotho Highlands Water Scheme. The Gauteng cities are playing a vital role in the development of the southern African economy, and the supply of water to these metropoles is hence a topic of great interest. But the provision of Plastic pipe manufacturers have been water to communities around the southern picking up market share in the highly comAfrica region is at the core of the infrastrucpetitive water pipe market, ture programmes now buoyed by advantages underway. Important to look that plastic pipe offers in SAPPMA chairman at ‘overall integrity’ many applications, and Jan Venter kicked off the of a pipe system SAPPMA’s programmes programme at the Bytes rather than individual have been a positive factor Conference Centre in components in the process: close to Midrand, sketching the 200 delegates attended current background to the the day-long conference on 10 September, water scene in South Africa. Some of the with consulting engineers and role-players stats are not encouraging: over half of South in the industry getting the opportunity to Africa’s municipalities have not been able to meet with SAPPMA members and suppliers produce any data about water losses. And

THE SAPPMA show rolled on as the Pipe Manufacturers Association presented its seventh conference – Pipes VII – and although some may have been sceptical about the need for the event to be annual, such is the importance of water supply in Africa that the conference’s get-together role is making it increasingly relevant.

Jan Venter of SAPPMA thanked Dr Roelof Botha for his entertaining presentation. An economist and economics commentator, Dr Botha suggested that, even though a lot of tough challenges face the SA economy, there are several fundamentally positive developments. He pointed out that the SA economy is buoyant when international commodities prices are good, and the reverse is the case when prices decline

38 OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013

Alaster Goyns of Pipes cc has been a regular at the Pipes conferences, frequently undertaking challenging topics. At Pipes VII Goyns gave a presentation on ‘Sewer inspection by CCTV’ which, if you care to know, is a very important service in highly urbanised areas. Faith Mkhacwa of the CSIR gave a presentation on industrial energy efﬁciency improvement in which she encouraged manufacturers to contact the National Cleaner Production Centre at the CSIR to implement energysaving solutions www.ncpc.csir.co.za

around 37% of water supplied in this country is ‘non-revenue’ (only 63% of supplied water is actually paid for), so funding of the system is a problem. However, the international average for non-revenue water is 36%, so the figure is possibly acceptable. “The focus on this year’s event fell strongly on the challenges and opportunities the plastic pipe and water infrastructure industries are facing, while the speakers highlighted some of the trends that influence the direction the industry is taking on a local and global scale,” said Venter. Massive investment is required to maintain and refurbish South Africa’s water infrastructure, he added. Local and international speakers Economist Dr Roelof Botha delivered an entertaining keynote address, and managed to convey profound and deep truths and insights about the local and global economy while having the audience in fits of laughter. International presentations included Steven Tan of PVC4Pipes of Brussels, Ulrich Schulte of Frankfurt, Germany, Mohana Murali of Borouge (Middle East), and Paul

Uli Schlute (right), formerly with Plastomark in South Africa in the 1980s but now based in Germany where he’s involved with PE100 association, gave a presentation. Here we see him with Dr Mike Gradwell of Safripol, which hosted his visit to the country

Hutchings of Reinert Ritz GmbH Germany. “We were privileged to have such a strong international presence at this year’s conference, giving our delegates important international perspectives on issues relating to the use and manufacture of HDPE and PVC pipes,” said Venter. South African views and research were presented by various top local practitioners, including Peter Fischer of Royal Haskoning DHV, Mike Smart of Genesis Consulting, Marco van Dijk of the Department of Civil Engineering at the University of Pretoria, Delanie Bezuidenhout (SAVA), Ian Venter (Marley Pipe Systems) and Faith Mkhacwa of the CSIR. Infrastructure In his presentation, ‘An Analysis of Infrastructure Pipe Materials,’ Ian Venter of Marley Pipe Systems said plastic pipe had recently come to the forefront due to a number of advantages, including: ease of installation; low breakage rates; low total installed cost; weldability; modular; repairable. PVC pipe has been around since 1935 and has followed a steady course of development since. He said, however, that it is more important to look at the “overall integrity” of a pipe system rather than the individual components. Overlooking any aspect of a pipe system could lead to failure of the whole system, said the Marley man. Venter’s presentation further included a comprehensive comparison between

Dawie Fick of Customised Plastic Products/ IFPA (Installation and Fabrication Plastic Pipe Association), and also a session host, thanked Ian Venter of Marley Pipe Systems for his presentation

Marley’s Weholite™ HDPE pipe and concrete pipe and corrugated metal pipe (CMP), in which respect the plastic pipe offers a weight advantage (easier installation). But as far consulting engineers are concerned, the areas of real importance are laying of the pipe and possibility for subsequent failure, with the latter being of over-riding relevance. It is the full analysis of these areas and failsafe installation which is enabling plastic pipe manufacturers such as Marley – and their laying crews! – to gain market share. Marley Pipe Systems is part of the Aliaxis group, a global supplier to the building and sanitaryware sectors.

Laying it – Plastic pipe is seen to be easier to lay than rivals such as steel and concrete

In the pipeline – Effective joining of pipe such as corrugated polyethylene pipe (CPP) is essential to long-term performance of the system

Water leakage, a thing of the past! – Paul Hutchings (right) of Reinert-Ritz of Germany gave a presentation about water leakages and resolutions thereof. Reinert specialises in anti-leak solutions for large bore highpressure pipe; here we see him with Reinert MD Michael Ritz

Niccoló Gericke of Alprene Plastic Products of Cape Town, agent for Georg Fischer, with Michelle Harding of Marley Pipe Systems

OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013 39

ASSOCIATION NEWS

High pressure – Valves and the joining thereof to highpressure systems is a difﬁcult and dangerous area, which is an area that Reinert Ritz of Germany is specialised in. This installation is for a 14-bar ﬁrewater main for Airbus in Hamburg

Hydrostatic pressure testing of parts by Reinert Ritz

The leakage problem Germany is reputed to lose just 2% of its water to leakage … which we in Africa can only dream of! That’s according to Paul Hutchings of Reinert Ritz GmbH of Germany, in his presentation ‘Water leakage and resolutions’. The company specialises in the joining of large bore high-pressure pipe, an area which – besides leakages – is often downright dangerous to work in. Hutchings focussed on polyethylene to metal joints as well as PE-to-PE connections. With higher pressure, it’s not simply a matter of ‘torquing up’ the joint, as even high grade polyethylene materials such as PE100 then begin to behave like rubber. Reinert has been conducting extensive research into this dynamic and challenging area and

Lucky draw – Nic Marais of Paterson & Cooke Engineering, a specialist in slurry pipeline engineering for mining, was the winner of the lucky draw competition, an iPad mini sponsored by material supplier Emeraude, whose Trevor Moroney was on hand

40 OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013

has developed solutions to contain pressures of up to 25 bar. Such high pressures can ironically create a vacuum that sucks the gasket off, Hutchings informed the surprised audience. Problems frequently appear in the ﬁrst 50-100 hours when ‘most of the relaxation’ takes place (yep, even under high pressure!) Sponsors The main sponsors of Pipes VII were Fiberpipe, Protea Polymers and DPI Plastics, while secondary sponsorships were given by Sun Ace, Sasol Polymers, Marley Pipe Systems, Emeraude, Flo-Tek and Capital Polymers. • COPIES OF THE BRAND NEW REVISED SAPPMA TECHNICAL MANUAL ARE AVAILABLE AT THE SAPPMA OFFICE @ R200 PLUS VAT, ADMIN@SAPPMA.CO.ZA

Smart move – Mike Smart imparted some of the wisdom gained over many years in the pipe sector with his presentation about ‘On site quality management’. Mike laid out a list of what pipeline designers need to do to ensure successful pipe installation, beginning with working with a consultant and contractors with expertise … and good housekeeping is essential!

Pipe chronology – The testing fundi Bernard Reeksting presented the ﬁrst phase of ‘A Chronology of plastic pipes in South Africa,’ effectively a history of the manufacture of plastic pipe in southern Africa. It’s currently a work in progress and we hope to be able to publish the full story at some stage … the only thing that we can guarantee is that a lot has happened … as well as a lot of ‘funny stuff’ too!

SABICâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s products touch the lives of millions of people around the world. The company works closely with its customers to achieve their commercial ambitions and provides the right level of support to meet their manufacturing challenges. SABIC offers its customers a wide range of polymer products such as LLDPE, HDPE, Bimodal HDPE, LDPE, PET and EPVC. SABIC South Africa (Pty) Ltd 18th Floor, Metropolitan Centre, 7 Walter Sisulu (Coen Steytler) Avenue, Cape Town, 8001 Tel: +27 21 409 6100 Fax: +27 21 409 6101

www.sabic.com

ASSOCIATION NEWS

Pipes VII exhibition DELEGATES also had opportunity to visit the exhibition stands in the reception area at the Bytes Centre in Midrand. The winner this year was SA Leak Detection (gold certiﬁcate winner), which presented a range of solutions for leak detection and repair. Marley Pipe Systems won the silver and Hydrodifusion the bronze. Other exhibitors included DPI Plastics, Fiberpipe, Protea Polymers, Plastics|SA, Roundabout Water Solutions, Interact Media and Plasti-tech. Leak seeking – SA Leak Detection won the gold certiﬁcate for its lively and interactive exhibition stand; here the East Rand company’s Hurn Merrington demonstrates a leak seeking device. The company supplies Sewerin leak detection equipment and NuFlow pipe relining systems www.leakdetectionsa.co.za 42 OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013

SAPPMA’s 9th AGM THE new Board of Directors who will be leading SAPPMA in the coming year was announced at the association’s 9th Annual General Meeting in September. SAPPMA chairman Jan Venter also announceed the winners of the annual merit awards, awarded to members of the Technical Committee since 2008 in recognition of their individual contributions: Renier Snyman (DPI Plastics), Mike Smart (Flo-tek), George Diliyannis (Safripol), and Ralph Mosikidi (Marley Pipe Systems). Venter said that despite a tough environment and rising costs associated with the manufacturing, transportation and installation of pipe, SAPPMA continues to raise the bar of standards for their members and their industry. “We realize that we live in a world where compromise is rife. However, we feel strongly that for us ‘good enough’ is quite simply no longer good enough. We are proud of the fact that we were able to meet all of the objectives we had set for ourselves during last year’s AGM, but we will continue to try harder, produce smarter and waste less. Our members will continue to produce plastic pipes that provide stable and reliable infrastructures for generations to come,” Venter concluded.

Contact Alpha Plast For all your cable and ﬂexible needs Sales & Marketing Manager: Ken Price Tel: +27 11 933 3200 Fax: +27 11 933 3306 Email: ken@alphaplast.co.za 118 Gibbs Road, Devland Johannesburg 1832

Contact Elco Plastics For all your rigid, bottle and ﬂexible needs National Sales Manager: Ewert Schnetler Tel: +27 21 948 8008 Fax: +27 21 948 8022 Email: info@elcoplastics.co.za 11 Danie Uys Street, Stikland 7530, South Africa www.elcoplastics.co.za

www.sappma.co.za SAPPMA board members for 2013/2014 - Hein Momberg of Fiberpipe, new member Vijay Naik of Flo-tek, Jan Venter re-elected as Chairman, Louis Albertyn of Marley Pipe Systems, new member Mike Biesheuvel from Sasol Polymers and Gerhard Kotzee of DPI Plastics

SUN ACE South Africa (Pty) Ltd 12 Innes Road, Jet Park 1459, East Rand Johannesburg GPS: S26° 09.957’ E028° 12.610’

CONTACT US P.O. Box 1070, Kempton Park, 1620 Johannesburg, South Africa Tel : +27(11) 552 6200 Fax : +27(11) 552 6499 Email : info@sunace.co.za

The World’s leading producers of PVC additives and metallic stearates www.sunace.co.za

ASSOCIATION NEWS

Exciting speaker line-up for

international colloquium PETCO has announced an exciting line-up ing various topics relating to creating a of speakers and topics for its forthcoming sustainable recycling sector in 7 plenary colloquium with the European Plastics sessions on the day,” said Cheri Scholtz, Recycling Organisation (EPRO) in Cape CEO of PETCO. Town on 21 November. This exciting EPRO’s visit to South Africa will conevent not only sees global collaboration, clude on 22 November with a half-day but local partnertechnical tour to ships with the a local recycling ‘We are very proud and National Research plant, wash plant excited to conﬁrm that we Foundation, the and production will have arguably 15 of packaging industry facilities as well as Europe’s top minds and as well as academia other sustainable such as Stellenbuilt environment experts on the day.’ bosch University, projects and Cape Peninsula University of Technology cultural tours. and Georgetown’s Mc Donough School of Discussions, debates and plenary sesBusiness. sions will be focused around the following “We are very proud and excited to topics: conﬁrm that we will have arguably 15 Instruments for an enabling environof Europe’s top minds and experts on ment, aimed at enhancing co-operation matters relating to waste management with other countries, developing a welland recycling, combined with 15 of South coordinated global framework; Africa’s brightest and best, addressKey instruments and actions to boost

recovery of packaging waste, looking beyond the targets, unpacking barriers and investigating opportunities to boost recovery; Making recycling a bankable sector, analysing what it takes to make recycling and collection work; The use and recycling of plastics in the agricultural sector; Sustainability and advocacy across borders and the opportunities for global stakeholders; and Technological innovation and advances, pushing the boundaries and encouraging closed loop systems and other future trends. FOR MORE INFO ON THE SPEAKERS VISIT WWW.PETCO.CO.ZA/CONFERENCE

www.petco.co.za

44 OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013

Engage in debate, Forge new partnerships, Excellent networking opportunities. See the pairing of 15 international speakers from developed economies in Europe and America with 15 local industry leaders, representing developing countries in Africa like Zimbabwe, Namibia and South Africa, sharing their views on waste and resource management and the recycling economy, global trends, EPR, legislative tools, technical innovation, education and advocacy, job creation in the green economy and more. You cannot miss this opportunity for joint learning. Cross pollinate ideas and learn from best practice, engage in debate during parallel streams, access case studies and forge new partnerships, excellent networking opportunities and more! Attend, exhibit or sponsor- you cannot miss this opportunity for joint learning.

GLOBAL PARTNERSHIPS For a Sustainable Recycling Sector

Date: 21- 22 November, 2013 Venue: The Pavillion, V&A Waterfront, Cape Town, South Africa

www.petco.co.za/conference

ITâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S ALL

briefinglab.com

IN THE

YOU LOOK AT IT YOU CALL IT BLOWN FILM EXTRUSION

66 years devoted to creating extrusion lines for thermoplastic materials! A passion which, hand-in-hand, with research and development of innovative flat die technology, keeps us motivated to continually improve the performance of our blown film extrusion lines - allowing you to achieve greater quality and efficiency for your customers. All our extrusion lines are designed and manufactured to represent: reliability and safety optimum quality and performance extremely reduced energy consumption

VISIT US AT K2013, DĂźsseldorf

luigibandera.com

16-23 Oct 2013, HALL 17 C06

ASSOCIATION NEWS

PVC celebrates 100

years of

After initial ‘accidental discoveries’ in the 1800s, PVC has developed to the point where it a vital component of modern society today LOOKING back to 100 years ago, the year 1913 was an important year for innovation and inventions: The car had just been put into production, the airplane was just invented, the telephone was still fairly new, and there were still people without electricity. It was also this year that the ﬁrst patent was awarded for the polymerization of polyvinyl chloride (PVC). “PVC is one of the oldest synthetic materials with the longest history in industrial production,” said Delanie Bezuidenhout, CEO of the Southern African Vinyls Association (SAVA). Early development Although PVC was accidentally discovered by researchers on two earlier occasions (1838 and again 1872), it was the German inventor Friedrich Heinrich August Klatte who took out a patent on PVC in 1913. The material was initially difﬁcult to work with and no one mastered the challenge of commercial applications. A few years later all of this changed 46 OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013

after an industrial scientist, Waldo Semon, developed a synthetic replacement for increasingly costly natural rubber, using PVC. Semon continued to experiment with polyvinyl chloride and came up with the idea of using the material as a water resistant coating for fabrics. Despite the ﬁnancial recession that had hit America hard at the time, sales took off quickly with a rapidly expanding product range. Demand accelerated again during the Second World War, when PVC was used to replace traditional materials to insulate wiring on military ships. During the 1950s many more companies started to produce PVC and volumes increased dramatically around the world. Developers quickly found further, innovative uses through the decades that followed and reﬁned methods to enhance PVC’s durability. PVC into the future However, like any successful brand or product that has stood the test of time, PVC does not rest on its laurels, but

continues to grow and evolve to be in step with modern demands. “When it was ﬁrst developed, issues such as recyclability and the responsible use of additives were not important. During recent years, however, vinyl has successfully reinvented itself in order to address the historical environmental concerns of PVC and improve its environmental performance,” added Delanie. Taking these issues to heart, local manufacturers of vinyl products belonging to SAVA have all committed themselves to the responsible and sustainable

innovation SAVA explains product label

‘Vinyl.’

Part of SAVA’s product stewardship programme

Delanie Bezuidenhout (SAVA CEO) has developed some strong feelings for PVC products of late

use of additives, the implementation of a sustainable recycling programme and the promotion of a healthy vinyls industry through the association’s Product Stewardship Programme (PSP). “We are looking forward to what the next 100 years will hold for PVC. We are proud of the long and illustrious history of this product, and the many applications that continue to be developed using vinyl on a daily basis. We raise our glasses to salute and toast a centenarian that is ﬁt, healthy and strong and look forward to an exciting and illustrious future ﬁlled with innovation and invention!” www.savinyls.co.za

SAVA recently hosted two workshops to explain the importance of its new ‘Vinyl.’ product label. “In the same way the SABS mark stands for quality and certain standards, the Vinyl. product label was created as a mark of excellence and approval that gives retailers and their customers peace of mind that the PVC product they are using complies with best practice as prescribed by our Product Stewardship Programme”, said SAVA CEO Delanie Bezuidenhout. The initiative was launched across the industry earlier this year during SAVA’s AGM. “Since then, we have received overwhelming support from our members as well as retailers and their

customers who have recognised the beneﬁts that the ‘vinyl.’ product label will unlock for their businesses. We are hoping to register the ﬁrst ‘vinyl.’ brand holders by the end of the year”, Delanie said. “More than ever before we are optimistic and excited about what the future holds for the vinyls industry in South Africa. Vinyl has proven to have a wide range of applications, high tensile strength, and an excellent cost-performance ratio. We have the support and the participation we need to ensure it will continue to be a widely used and trusted material for many years to come,” she added. www.sava.co.za

47 OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013

ASSOCIATION NEWS

Industry, Govt need to join hands to reduce plastic litter ANDREW Marthinusen has been involved in the packaging industry for close to half a century â&#x20AC;&#x201C; for 48 years! â&#x20AC;&#x201C; during which time he Andrew Marthinusen built up seriously extensive experience. He â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;retiredâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; from Nampak group in 2005, where he was involved in metal, cardboard and plastics packaging, and has for the past eight years been the executive director of the Packaging Council of SA. In this interview we asked Andrew to assess the role of plastics in the packaging market.

wider range brand you trust %&# + "(' % & -* ,& - ! '& - * ' "' % *"%- - && &(##- %& " $( - ', " # ' ' ) -, #% #%" ( '& ' ,"( , !"' * % " & ' * % % ! " #%" ( '& * !"* " % %" ' * -- !"*! % ! " %&# + &' %,- '" ! +'%( %,- & ',% ! & ! " " %

086 090 4859 www.perspex.co.za info@perspex.co.za

I believe that the only anti-litter message that would have any leverage with the majority of South Africans would have to come from Government. Our industry plan suggests that industry and government join hands to make this as effective as possible. SAP: What plastic packaging products present the most problems for recycling? AM: Most of the material streams in plastics packaging have set up their associations to deal with the speciďŹ c problems relating to recycling in their focused streams and I think this is the only way that these problems will be dealt with. Having said that I think the two biggest challenges facing plastics are trays and ďŹ&#x201A;exible packaging, particularly multilayer materials.

SAP: Where, brieďŹ&#x201A;y, do you see the packaging market going from here? SA Plastics: What are the most pressing AM: Packaging volume is a function of popuenvironmental issues facing the plastics lation and wealth. I think that the population industry in SA? growth will continue and if we can close the Andrew Marthinusen: The plastics packwealth gap, we should see growth going aging recycling rates overall in SA are the forward. lowest of all the four packaging materials. Packaging preserves and protects its conWithin plastics there are some streams that tents. Waste from the food agricultural sector have done fantastic work but my overall in total is estimated by statement is still acthe CSIR to be 10 million curate! â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;wThe one certainty is tons p.a., currently worth The traditional that whatever Waste Plan some R62 billion p.a. in approach from plastic is accepted, regulations SA. Maybe more rather industry leaders is that will ensure free riders will than less packaging plastic does not litter, will help to reduce this people do. Whilst this not be toleratedâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; waste. This is a big opis true, I think it comes portunity for packaging as food waste turns across as a typically SA way of passing the to methane â&#x20AC;&#x201C; a much worse greenhouse gas buck. In volume terms, plastic is the third than CO2 and I have little doubt that this will largest stream in packaging, yet the biggest when it comes to litter visibility. attract the attention of the legislators going We tend to take a defensive approach forward. rather than promoting the big initiatives that Plasticsâ&#x201D;&#x201A;SA are doing about marine litter SAP: What have been the highlights solutions and clean-up campaigns. during your tenure at PACSA? In the value chain, apart from PET, AM: The formation of the Recovery Action plastics is less attractive than other materials Group (RAG) which consists of all the matebecause the prices paid to collectors tend rial streams in packaging and which allowed to be low and thus they focus on the more us to present a united front in our dealings proďŹ table lines and leave the plastic materiwith Government and helping ďŹ nd solutions als behind. with municipalities and provinces. Gaining acceptance from the public sector SAP: Is it possible to develop a model that the packaging and paper industries have that will allow for the reduction of plastic done a great deal in growing recycling rates litter in the environment? in SA to the current level of over 47% of all AM: Our industry plan has, as one of its packaging and paper consumed in SA. core elements, the obligatory separation at The writing and delivery of the Industry source of waste at households into recyWaste Management Plan for the packaging clable and wet streams. This would result in and paper Industries â&#x20AC;&#x201C; quite a challenge with more uncontaminated plastic waste for the the highly diversiďŹ ed needs and aspirations recyclers. of the paper, metal, plastic and glass sectors! 48 OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013 (THE OPINIONS EXPRESSED BY ANDREW ARE PERSONAL AND NOT NECESSARILY THOSE OF PACSA OR ITS MEMBERS.)

Exciting research at NMMU PROF Zenixole Tshentu presented a lecture at the annual IOM³ Eastern Cape branch’s Education Evening, showcasing some of the exciting research currently on-the-go at NMMU. Zeni is an Associate Professor of Analytical and Inorganic chemistry at NMMU, and has recently rejoined his alma mater after some time at Rhodes University. He specializes in the use of classical Co-ordination Chemistry to design selective systems for extraction of metal ions. This is particularly useful in the design of catalysts for selective oxidation reactions and also functional polymer nano-fibre materials for hosting the extractants and catalysts. Zeni explained how their research relies on an understanding of chemistry, to design selective metal-based systems. Most of the classical chemistry and new chemical systems are hosted on solid platforms using nano-fibres. Nano-fibre technology is cutting edge stuff and produces an exciting new class of materials used for several valueadded applications. Examples are in medical applications, filtration, barrier, wipes, composite, garments, insulation, energy storage, sample clean-up and catalysis, to mention but a few. Nano-fibres with a diameter range of tens of nanometres to a few microns can be achieved by choosing suitable electrospinning parameters. Electrospinning is an effective method for producing nano-fibres under the influence of electrical charges. An advantage of nano-fibres is the ease of surface chemistry modification in order to accommodate various functionalities, and a lot of their work centres around the exploitation of this property. Nano-fibres also possess unique characteristics such as high surface area per unit mass, high porosity, and extreme flexibility. An important industrial development is that electro-spinning has been up-scaled for nano-fibre production on a commercial scale, which has resulted in the production of many workable systems (for

N.G.ENGINEERING Tool & die maker , Plastic injection Moulders

Manufacturer of Price display systems

BY KATHY GARDE

example ‘nano-spider’). Some of the novel findings at NMMU involve nano-fibres containing functional metal centres such as iridium and rhodium, with specific focus on the length of the carbon chain spacer. Optimal length appears to be 10 carbons, and although more work is still needed, the findings are proving to be very promising for target-specific functionality. Special thanks to Karbochem for sponsoring this evening. NMMU Polymer Research Department update – presented Dr Percy Hlanghoti Government funding is now finalized for partnership with NMMU, the objective being to utilize NMMU’s Polymer Research Department as an R&D Centre as well as ‘Tyre and Rubber Forensic Lab’, particularly for the area of tyre recycling. Stellenbosch University will also be involved in this research, at a Process Engineering level. Prof Zenixole Tshentu, associate Professor of Analytical and Inorganic chemistry at the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, in the lab at NMMU OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013 49

CUT BACK ON RISING COOLING PLANT RUNNING COSTS.

CAN YOU AFFORD NOT TOO? Reduce plant electrical consumption by regulating cooling pump and cooling fan motor speeds in accordance with your plant needs Using the latest Variable Speed Drive technology along with pressure, temperature or flow PID control With more than 8 years experience in VSD pump and fan motor control, our company is perfectly geared to assist and evaluate possible saving in your cooling plant running costs

Also specialising in Micro- moulding Components up to 2 grams Low volumes No problem inquiries@ngengineering.co.za

011/825 6028

Pump & Fan Motor Control Specialists Don’t forget to visit us on stand P.... at the “Industrial Showcase Cape” expo between 3 - 5 July 2013 at CTICC

Gator Products (Pty) Ltd Tel: +27 (21) 9827561/2/3 Fax: +27 (21) 9814473 Email: info@gator.co. Web: www.gator.co.za

Gator Products Energy Efficiency

AC Motor Control & Automation Products

ASSOCIATION NEWS

Tony Varrie pioneered introduction of equipment from Far East TONY Varrie, who started his career as a shoe craftsman and ended up as one of the top equipment suppliers to the plastics industry in South Africa, passed away recently. He was 73. Born in Johannesburg in 1940, Tony qualified as a leather and shoe craftsman and first worked in that sector, but his journey from the shoe industry to equipment sales was not surprising: he was a calm and patient salesman, and he combined that with good foresight – sometimes anticipating what manufacturers would need … before they did themselves. His main achievement was that of virtually pioneering the introduction of plastics processing equipment from the Far East in the late 1980s. After exiting the leather sector, Tony got involved in sales of plastics containers in 1973 at Polycrate in Durban, where plastic dust bins and other containers were produced. He was one of the first to realize that it was possible to use recycled material, which was useful and cost effective for Polycrate. The company was purchased by Sentrachem and Tony then moved back to the Highveld and

joined another Sentrachem company, Omega Barfel, in Olifantsfontein. He ﬁrst got involved in equipment sales when he joined Adron, where he spent eight years. His next move was to the Dutch equipment supplier Internatio, but he’d been there for just two years when the SA operation was shut down in 1988. That left him little option but to start on his own and, at the age of 48, Tony commenced the phase for which he became best known: he came up with a very suitable name, Plasquip, and got started in earnest. Lowrie Sharp introduced Tony to the late Sam Newman, who had imported a substantial amount of equipment from Hong Kong which he could not sell. Tony and Sam travelled to Hong Kong and visited numerous factories, securing the agencies for Chen Hsong, Sam Chin and Akei, which all became popular here. All the stock was sold in six weeks, giving Plasquip the kickstart it needed. The ‘Jetmaster’ injection moulding machines from Chen Hsong group took off too: The machines were priced below the European equivalent but still offered comparable

50 OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013

POLYMERS CPE

WEIFANG

FLUORO ELASTOMERS

CHENGUANG

PER FLUORO ELASTOMERS TPE ,TPV AND TPR

ELASTRON TURKEY

EPS

SHINHO ,TAITA, HYUNDAI ENGINEERING PLASTICS (DONGBU) , SUSHOU CHANGLE(DONGBU Technology)

PS & HIPS

HYUNDAI ENGINEERING PLASTICS

LDPE & LLDPE

HANWHA

(Dongbu)

EVA HDPE PIPE PE 80/100 SILICON RUBBER

Shanghai Hongshen

MAGNETITE ENGINEERING POLYMERS REWORKED AND REPALETIZED MATERIALS

DH POLYMERSCC Contact: Deon Cell: 083 677 0852 Fax: 086 578 1830 • Tel: 011 760 1089 deon@dhpolymers.co.za

Tony Varrie started Plasquip in 1988 and had over the past 25 years supplied processing equipment from the Far East to convertors across southern Africa. Plasquip also supplies machinery from Europe and the USA, but machines such as the ‘Jetmaster’ units from Chen Hsong group of Taiwan/China have proved especially successful in Africa

technology and performance. Holding stock of most machine lines enabled Plasquip to support customers effectively. In one case it was even able to supply a machine on the same day as the order! Plasquip operated from cramped rented premises in Wadeville for a long time before more recently constructing its own larger warehouse on a site nearby. Three of Tony’s four children remain involved in the industry.

Company performance: The ‘usual suspects’ are not to blame ‘New Map’ man suggests we look elsewhere HENK Lourens is a man who has made a close study of the ‘health’ of manufacturing businesses in the local plastics industry. A member of the PISA Northern branch, Henk has been involved in the industry for more than two decades – in both the material supply and converting sectors (most recently in the sheet extrusion sector at Ampaglas) – during which time he’s made active observations about what works … and what doesn’t. Henk gave presentations to gatherings of the PISA Northern and Western Cape branches recently. Titled ‘A Manager’s Guide to Turning your Company Around’, the presentation looked at problems encountered in manufacturing and proposed possible solutions. It presented opportunities for any who are concerned about the performance and prospects of their businesses to learn more as well as, potentially, to debate options. The function in Cape Town drew a small audience, with good representation from Bowler Plastics, one of the Cape’s top converting groups. One could immediately draw the observation that well-run businesses are more likely to be aware of the need to analyze performance, and hence see the possible beneﬁt of attending such functions, whereas badly managed businesses are either unaware of their plight or simply don’t have the time to stand back and consider what they’re doing and where they’re going. Henk kicked off by suggesting that

“the fun seems to have gone out of work for many of us,” and then immediately countered that by proposing that the “usual suspects” we parade as the causes of the situation are in fact not to blame. The usual suspects, he said, include assertions that workers’ skills levels are low, workers are too expensive, the government interferes too much (legislation), the government interferes too little (import protection), banks do not want to lend … and quite a number of other causes. He debunked some widely believed myths, such as the belief that material costs constitute too much of overall costs. In his view, it’s good if material costs form a high portion of total costs as that implies that other costs are lower. Another myth pursued by many manufacturers is to avoid expenditure on equipment, whereas in his view a lot of the equipment in use in South Africa currently is uneconomical. Successful businesses, he suggested, commit to capital expenditure programmes that enable them to run efﬁcient machines that achieve better output and reduced power consumption. Much of Henk’s reference is drawn from the experience of turning around an ailing plastic sheet manufacturing business in East London. Apparently doomed to closure, Henk got the various parties at the company to begin constructive engagement with each other and to confront problems that were harming the operation.

Henk Lourens was thanked for his interesting presentation in Cape Town on 26 August by Martin Wells of PISA

It’s good if material costs form a high portion of total costs as that implies that other costs are lower In Henk’s view, the performance of a manufacturing business, and particularly the state of relations between the shopfloor and management, is almost entirely the responsibility of management. Engaging in this debate was worthwhile for all of those in attendance on the night at the Plastics│SA premises in Cape Town in Johannesburg. The events were sponsored by PISA. As of September, Henk has shifted into consulting fulltime and started the business Stratflow Consulting, which has the goal of assisting businesses to achieve their potential. Henk has recently published an ‘e’ book, ‘Drawing a New Map’. www.stratflow.com 51 OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013

9,.3673(:

High-performance temperature control units

… for large injection moulds, extruders, rollers, autoclaves and other processing equipment Type 90 Smart

Type 150 Smart

s 3IMULTANEOUS READOUT OF TEMPERATURE set-point and actual value

Temperature control units for water up to 90°C

Temperature control units for oil up to 150°C

s #LEAR ARRANGEMENT OF OPERATING AND indicating elements

• Controller RT61 PID

• Controller RT61 PID • Outlet temperature max 150°C

• Heating capacity 9 kW • Cooling capacity 24-90 kW

• Heating capacity at 400V 6 kW

• Pump capacity 60 litres/min,

• Cooling capacity 28kW @ 140°C

3.8 bar

• Pump capacity 60 litres/min, 3.8 bar

s 3OLID STATE RELAY 332 INSTEAD OF heating contactor s !LL COMPONENTS EXPOSED TO WATER ARE made of non-rusting materials, hence long service-life s !CHIEVES ESTIMATED REDUCTION IN REJECTS AND INCREASE IN PRODUCTIVITY

1,56>033 :,9=0*,: Contact – Willy Tschopp | Tel: 021 551 7241 | Fax: 021 551 7243 28C Lilly Park, Railway Rd, Montague Gardens, Cape Town | jenowill@iafrica.com

www.regloplas.com

PRODUCTS

Mpact expands its

Jumbo Bin offering MPACT Plastic Containers, a subsidiary of leading paper and plastics packaging group Mpact, has launched its 528h Jumbo Bin for use in the agriculture sector and general industry. This shallow bin, with a height of 528mm, complements the existing 748mm standard height bin, and is also based on the South African size footprint. The reduced internal height lends itself to the storage and transportation of more delicate products eg. stone fruit, avocados, tomatoes and sultanas. Loutjie de Jongh, managing director of Mpact Plastic Containers, says one of the key beneﬁts of this product is its durability, which helps protect the contents right through to its destination point. The volume of the 528h bin is 478 litres, which is 60% of the full depth Jumbo Bin. The two bins are designed to stack and interwork completely, and are rated to the same maximum top load. New features include four-way forklift entry, which allows for handling the bins from both directions. At the same time standard pallet jacks can be used. Other key features of the new 528h Jumbo Bins include: Smooth interior surfaces reduce waste and downgrades Superior ventilation reduces cooling time Clean, non-porous surfaces Weighs 45% less than wooden bins Safe and stable stacking with maximum loads of up to 3 400kg on the base bin Fully recyclable Can be ﬁtted with a RFID tag www.mpact.co.za

WHEN

every second counts Plexiglas helicopter glazing guarantees clear visibility, maximum safety WHEN rescue helicopters take off, a few seconds can make all the difference. Whether they’re responding to a car accident in a city centre, ﬂying on a rescue mission in the mountains, or battling strong winds at sea – the extreme conditions place very high demands on the material. The Eurocopter EC135 has proven its reliability in air rescue operations thanks to its optimal safety and stability.

The light and agile Eurocopter, produced since 1996 by the company with the same name, can handle all these requirements. The rotors are stable, yet ﬂexible and lightweight; the engines are reliable and powerful. Often, it’s not only the pilots’ lives that depend on them. Another safety element is invisible, even though it’s right under their noses: the front windscreen. This provides a panoramic view, but it’s not made from glass. It is PLEXIGLAS® from Evonik that protects pilots from UV rays, offering them clear visibility and maximum safety during a rescue mission. “Plexiglas is twice as light as traditional mineral glass,” says Gottfried Hornung, who is overseeing the completion of the EC135 at Eurocopter. This reduces fuel usage and Quality control – PLEXIGLAS® aviation materials at the Evonik plant in Weiterstadt, Germany

Versatile thermoplastic biomaterial

for spinal fusion cages SINTEA Plustek S.r.l., based in Milan, Italy, a leading supplier of minimally invasive spinal implants and delivery systems, has launched the new DOMINO cervical fusion cage implant made of Zeniva® polyetheretherketone (PEEK) resin from Solvay Specialty Polymers. The fusion cage implant – available in Italy and throughout Europe – has earned the CE (Conformité Européenne) mark which demonstrates compliance with numerous EC directives, enabling the product to be sold throughout the European region. Sintea Plustek selected Zeniva PEEK – part of Solvay’s line of Solviva® Biomaterials – because of its modulus of elasticity which is very close to that of bone, thus allowing better load transfer. The thermoplastic biomaterial also has radiolucent properties which permit x-ray procedures and meets the requirements of ASTM F2026-12 for surgical implant applications. The DOMINO cervical plate-cage system allows cervical interbody fusion and disc height restoration by an anterior ﬁxation. The implant system consists of an intersomatic cage made of 16-mm diameter machined Zeniva PEEK rod which is integrated with an anterior ﬁxation plate made of tita52 OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013

nium alloy. The implant is available in three sizes, which allows for perfect adaptation to the patient’s anatomy. The cage has a convex shape on its superior face to ﬁt perfectly in the intervertebral space and it is centrally opened to allow bone graft insertion which promotes fusion. The primary stability of the system, guaranteed by the anterior plate, is enhanced by the presence of notches on the superior and inferior surfaces. www.solvay.com www.sinteaplustek.com

PP T-EDGES

FOR FURNITURE

means that rescue teams can stay in the air for longer. All the transparent glazing on the EC135 model – front, side, and rear – is made from this modern material. www.evonik.com

we custom-formulated for DoellkenWoodtape provides a degree of flexibility not available with ABS and other common alternatives, while retaining sufficient stiffness to ensure the permanent capture of the profile barb in the furniture edge groove,” said Stephan Pronovost, business director for the Specialty Compounding Division of Teknor Apex. “At the same time, the compound exhibits the impact resistance needed for longer service life.” Extrusion technology developed by Doellken-Woodtape yields profiles whose width is precisely controlled so that furniture edges are completely covered without need for trimming.

PRODUCTS

The Eurocopter EC135 has proven its reliability in air rescue operations thanks to its optimal safety and stability. It is PLEXIGLAS® from Evonik that protects pilots from UV rays, offering them clear visibility and maximum safety during a rescue mission

DOELLKEN-Woodtape, a leading supplier of edgebanding to the woodworking industry, uses a new polypropylene- based compound from Teknor Apex Company to produce T-edge profiles that provide an alternative to traditional materials for finishing curved surfaces in office furniture that is compatible with today’s green building rating system and codes. The Synres® PP compound used by Doellken-Woodtape for its T3™ T-edge profiles is a pliable material that provides the flexibility needed for application to the curved edges of desks, filing cabinets, and other items, providing permanent, uniform coverage even at corners with a 25mm radius. This overcomes problems with deformation, spring-back, and stresswhitening encountered with T-edges made of other materials. “The innovative Synres compound which

www.teknorapex.com www.doellken-woodtape.com

Pallet-free packaging system wins

Premium environmental award ‘tottle’ DURING the last ‘Make Up in Paris’ event in June, DuPont de Nemours highlighted the application of DuPont™ Surlyn® resins for tottles. Successfully approved for its glass-like properties when injection moulded, Surlyn also adds signiﬁcant value for soft packaging when used as the outer layer of a multi-layer blow moulding cosmetic container. This type of container, called a tottle (tube + bottle), enables controlled dispensing of the product thanks to the unique stiffness and spring back effect of Surlyn. The extreme glossy look of the tottle is also thanks to Surlyn. The outstanding scratch resistance of the DuPont resin also increases the shelf life of the tottle by maintaining premium aesthetics across its use. The transparency of Surlyn magniﬁes the pigments that may be introduced in the intermediate layer of this 3-layer structure, bringing superior visual effects and a cost effective solution when compared with a coating.

www.dupont.com

TELLAP (Pty) Ltd has won the prestigious ‘Best Product’ award, in the under R1million category, in the 2013 Green Supply Chain Awards, held in Johannesburg recently. “The Tellap environmentally-friendly pallet-free bulk bag is an innovative storage and transportation system, which integrates two light plastic sleeves into a polypropylene bulk bag, replacing the conventional wooden pallet, with a totally recyclable design,” says Clinton van den Berg, products manager for Tellap. The environmental award recognises excellence and innovation in the ‘greening’ of supply chains. Tellap is a 100% recyclable, lightweight, space-saving packaging system, weighing less than 5 kg. This system offers enhanced safety, improved logistic efﬁciencies and easy implementation. Designed to replace the pallet and bag, the Tellap system comprises a proprietary bulk bag with strong lightweight, plastic sleeves. The sleeves, integrated into the base of the bag become the pallet, allowing a forklift to raise the bag from the base. Safety has been an important focus of the design of the Tellap system. The integrated sleeves, which act like outriggers on

a canoe, increase stability during storage and transport, making the system safer for workers. Stacking three high, where legislation allows, uses limited space whilst retaining stability. Tellap, which is certiﬁed by TEN-E Packaging Services, global specialists in packaging component testing, has passed rigorous independent testing and meets stringent performance requirements for non-dangerous goods contained in ﬂexible intermediate bulk containers (FIBC). www.tellap.com.au

The Tellap environmentally-friendly palletfree bulk bag is an innovative storage and transportation system, which integrates two light plastic sleeves into a polypropylene bulk bag, replacing the conventional wooden pallet, with a totally recyclable design

INDUSTRY NEWS

Premiere: electric ALLROUNDER 820 A Arburg will premiere the electric Allrounder 820A, which completes the high-end electric Alldrive machine series, at the K show in Düsseldorf. Both the 4,000 kN toggle-type clamping unit and the size 2100 electric injection unit have been newly developed for this machine. The gap between 3,200 and 5,000 kN in the electric clamping unit range has thus been closed. The same applies to the high-performance hybrid Hidrive range, for which this new toggle size will also be available in future. With the new clamping force and injection unit sizes for electric machines, the modularity of the Arburg range has been further enhanced, offering customers the option of adapting their Allrounders even more precisely to the relevant application and product, further increasing efﬁciency.

yrs

Hestico celebrates as Arburg agent

54 OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013

HESTICO and its principal Arburg of Germany, one of the world’s top manufacturers of injection moulding machines, celebrated notable milestones recently: Arburg for 50 years of production and Hestico for its 20th year as its local agent. A party was held at Melrose Arch in Johannesburg in August to celebrate the occasion, with the guest of honour being Helmut Heinson, managing director for sales at Arburg in Lossburg, Germany. Hestico has sold over 500 of the Arburg machines over the past two decades. The machines have proved very popular in the small machine category in South Africa, for the production of complex, technical parts, but more recently Arburg has also produced larger machines as well as fully electric machines up to 5,000kN clamp force. Arburg began producing injection machines in Germany in 1963 and in fact delivered a number of machines to convertors in South Africa in the later 1960s, through different trading companies. It eventually appointed Hestico as its exclusive partner

Guests at the reception at Melrose Arch included Chris Philippides of ADV Plastics, Anton Hanekom of Plastics|SA, Sam Antill of HellermanTyton, Helmut Heinson of Arburg, Nicholas Jagesar of Koogan Plastics and Basil Philippides of ADV were at the party

Helmut Heinson (right), MD of Arburg in Germany, guest speaker at the function to celebrate the top injection moulding machine manufacturer’s long-standing relationship with its South African agent, with Hestico directors Kelvin Mills, Juanita Stiehler-Brits

in 1993. At that time it was mainly Heiner Wolber (now retired from Hestico) who established the intensive contacts between the businesses. Heiner had German roots: he was born only a few kilometres from the Arburg plant in the Black Forest. Gerhard Greiner (now retired too) was also very successful with sales of Arburg machine in the Cape. “We had the classical win-win situation, where both partners joined forces for the sake of their customers: Arburg by supplying high-level injection moulding machines, Hestico by providing excellent support and service for the end user,” said Heinson. Around 2010 another important step was

Arburg users Helmut Schober of Vari Plug, Nick Duarte and Ernie de Witt of BIC, Steve Cooke of Cooke & Sons, Eric Schober of Vari Plug and Kurt Fellgieber of Concorde Plastics were at the party

taken when there was a “change in generations” at Hestico, with Juanita Stiehler-Brits and Kevin Mills taking over responsibility for the business. “Today in 2013 we are enjoying a close and trustful cooperation between our companies, namely a strong commitment of the management combined with excellent contacts in the industry, a stable organisation and a high level of competence are the basis for success in an extremely competitive world,” he added. www.arburg.com www.hestico.co.za

Joe de Olivera, Renato Ferraz, Michael Sardinha and Gary Ferraz, all from Fergoi Plastics, with Victor Stiehler of Hestico

Visit our new

www.arburg.com

High performance counts! 7.3 million cycles per year on an ALLROUNDER HIDRIVE: performance becomes high performance. This is what really counts in the packaging sector.

JOHANNESBURG - HEAD OFFICE Tel: (011) 786-5228 e-mail: tarina.vw@ hestico.co.za www.hestico.co.za

ARBURG GmbH + Co KG Postfach 11 09 Âˇ 72286 LoĂ&#x;burg Tel.: +49 (0) 74 46 33-0 Fax: +49 (0) 74 46 33 33 65 e-mail: contact@arburg.com

www.arburg.com

! " # $

MATERIALS

Victrex PEEK for Airbus aerospace components Components deliver equivalent strength, stiffness at up to 70% lighter weights a high flow, easy processing material that VICTREX, a leading manufacturer of results in components with a high moduPEEK polymer solutions, has successfully lus. This provides an advantage helping secured the qualification of its VICTREX® engineers to design PEEK 90HMF40 components that polymer with Airbus, The high-modulus polymer can deliver an a leading aircraft provides up to 100 times equivalent strength manufacturer. The longer fatigue life and up and stiffness at cooperation along to 20% higher specific up to 70% lighter the entire supply weights when comchain from the strength and stiffness when pared to traditional material supplier compared to aluminium aerospace metals to the OEM is a such as stainless steel, titanium, and crucial factor, especially as the aerospace aluminum. industry continues to focus on replacing “Victrex strives to work with our custommetals with plastics to reduce aircraft ers at all levels to develop and deliver weight. solutions for the toughest challenges,” said The thermoplastic qualified by Airbus is 56

Harald Hedderich, Aerospace Strategic Marketing Manager for Victrex Polymer Solutions. “Removing as little as 45kg can result in up to $10,000 in annual fuel cost savings per long-range plane,” explained Hedderich. While standard unfilled, carbon fibre, and glass fibre filled VICTREX PEEK polymers have been qualified for more than 25 years in some instances, VICTREX PEEK 90HMF40 delivers several key benefits those grades cannot. The high-modulus polymer provides up to 100 times longer fatigue life and up to 20% higher specific strength and stiffness when compared to aluminium 7075-T6 under the same conditions. These high mechanical proper-

OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013

#/34 #/-0%4)4)6% /. ',/"!, 3#!,% s 0RESS TOOLS s #OMPONENT PRODUCTION SUPPLY s $EEP DRAWING TOOLS s 4HIN WALL HIGH PRECISION THROUGH HARDENED MOULDS s 3ILICONE MOULDS

#/.4!#4 53 #HINA -OBILE 0086 151 685 69018 -OBILE +27 (0)82 821 4775 %MAIL brian.miraclemould@gmail.com

Secure, durable solution for x-ray tablet clamps

ties, its ability to perform across a broad temperature range and its durability in chemically aggressive environments allows VICTREX PEEK polymers to continue to be a material of choice for the aerospace industry. â&#x20AC;˘ PLASTICHEM SUPPLIES VICTRIX PEEK IN SOUTH AFRICA

www.victrex.com www.plastichem.co.za

THE versatility of VictrexÂŽ PEEK polymer is demonstrated by its ability to replace metal in connection clamps for x-ray tablets. The high-performance thermoplastic is wear resistant, and being a dielectric material, functions as an excellent insulator in electrical connectors and cable applications for medical components and instrumentation. High-precision, injection-moulded PEEK parts make the medical clamps not only a low-cost option, compared to metals, but also a lighter, more secure and durable solution. When frequently used, medical equipment that cannot keep up with daily wear and deterioration are at risk for safety and reliability. Connections for cables and wires in medical devices demand a level of wear resistance that can withstand repeated use. They also require excellent chemical and hydrolysis resistance to withstand the processes involved in sterilization. It is important that design engineers specify materials that improve functionality and increase component lifetimes, while reducing the need for maintenance and lowering bill of materials (BOM) costs. With its combination of highperformance properties and ease of processing into a variety of shapes and structures, Victrex PEEK has been used in medical devices for many years in hospitals and laboratories around the

world. The polymer is up to 70% lighter compared to metals. Victrex PEEK (polyetheretherketone) is a semi-crystalline thermoplastic with a melting temperature of 343Â°C. It has a molecular structure that provides the strength and stiffness, along with the wear, creep, chemical, and ďŹ&#x201A;ame resistance that are required by todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s demanding medical applications and for components and devices that were previously the domain of metals only. â&#x20AC;˘ REPRESENTED IN SOUTH AFRICA BY PLASTICHEM

Ametek clamps

www.victrex.com www.plastichem.co.za

OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013 57

%80%2)%.#% s &,%8)"),)49 s 30%%$ s !UTOMOTIVE MOULDS s -EDICAL COMPONENT MOULDS s YEARS EXPERIENCE s )3/ CERTIl ED TOOL ROOM s (OUSEWARE MOULDS s 0 % 4 PREFORM MOULDS BLOW MOULDS s )3/ CERTIl ED INJECTION MOULDING AND TESTING FACILITY s /PTIMISED FAST CYCLING MOULDS s #OST EFFECTIVE s 2APID PROTOTYPING AND #.# PROTOTYPE MANUFACTURE s &INITE ELEMENT STUDIES UNDERTAKEN

350%2 15!,) )/2 49

Far left: Samples of cap seals manufactured by Convertacor Left: Steven Tichy and his father Joe with samples of the cap liners that Convercor manufacture

Convertacor

yrs

INDUSTRY NEWS

celebrates CONVERTACOR cc, a leader in the closure liner market in Southern Africa, celebrates 30 years of business this year. Convertacor cc is a family-run business which offers a vast range of closure liners and has the technical knowledge to support the industry. The company has developed the closure liner industry in Southern Africa and introduced market trends like induction sealing. They also offer technical support and pride themselves on their ﬂexibility handling deadlines. Convertacor are able to develop liners speciﬁc to customer requirements and can offer personalized printing. The company also offers heat induction machinery and wadding/liner inserting machinery. Steven Tichy, general manager of Convertacor explains that selecting the type of liner for a closure is important because there many factors which determine the type of liner that must be used. Liners are used for variety of reasons: Leak prevention Tamper evidence

Freshness Pilferage protection Commonly used liners and applications include: Foamed polyethylene (EPE) - A general purpose liner used for leak prevention and to ensure freshness of product. It is resistant to most acids, alkalis, solvents, alcohols, oils, household cosmetics and aqueous products. PVDC (Saranex) foamed polyethylene – PVDC ﬁlm is laminated to the foamed polyethylene and creates a liner that is suited for the packaging of strong chemicals, used for leak prevention and to ensure freshness of product. These liners are resistant to moisture penetration, fats, mild acids, alkalis, solvents, alcohols, oils and aqueous products. Not recommended for active hydrocarbons or bleaches. PET foamed polyethylene – PET ﬁlm is laminated to the foamed polyethylene and is normally used with heat induction liners as a backing liner. PET liners are resistant

dilute acids, acidic salts, alcohols, ethers, oils, fats, aromatic and aliphatic hydrocarbons. Heat Induction liner – A specialized laminate containing aluminium foil and a plastic heat sealable ﬁlm that hermetically seals to a container through the use a heat induction machine. Induction liners are used to prevent leakage, tamper evidence and increase the life of the product. Pressure sensitive – A foamed polystyrene liner with one adhesive side that sticks to the container with the pressure used to place the closure on the container. Pressure sensitive is a good general purpose tamper and leak prevention liner which is mainly used for dry products but can also be used for liquid ingredients. Aluminium foil (direct heat liner) – A plastic heat sealable ﬁlm laminated to aluminium foil that seals to the container through the use of a conductive or direct heat. www.convertacor.co.za

Marley increases HDPE manufacturing capacity Additional bore sizes from 16mm up to 1000mm diameter MARLEY Pipe Systems has increased its manufacturing capacity for HDPE piping and pressure systems, allowing them to offer additional bore sizes from 16mm up to 1000mm diameter to the market. From August, the addition of large pipe diameters to Marley’s growing range of

piping systems for the mining, industrial and infrastructure markets will extend the corrosion and abrasion resistant benefits of HDPE pipe to additional applications where ease of installation, longer service life (100 year design life), high flow capacity and damage resistance are required. The increased size ranges that Marley is now able to offer will enable contractors to meet the demands of larger projects and thereby improve the integrity of finished pipelines over time. The HDPE pipes manufactured by 58 OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013

Marley Pipe Systems are manufactured to, and carry the SABS mark of quality for SANS ISO 4427 and are now available in diameters from 16mm up to 1000mm, in pressure ranges from PN2.5 to PN8 in PE100. In addition to large diameter HDPE piping systems, Marley has also added new product ranges to their offering as a direct result of their recent acquisition of the Petzetakis assets. Marley’s increased facilities and production capabilities have afforded them the means to add more value to the infrastructure markets.

- passionate about the plastic industry. Supplier of:

ty t o G

Injection Moulding Machine

Servo Klockner

Rebuild

VICTOR MACHINERY

Tel: +27 11 824 3103 - Fax: +27 11 824 6018 email: sales@sescc.co.za - www.sescc.co.za Unit 1, 16 Davidson Place, Wadeville, 1428

K2013

K is the world’s key ﬂagship fair in terms of its quantitative and qualitative performance characteristics. Not only had the visitors judged the fair to be a full success, but also 93% of the surveyed exhibitors awarded K2010 top marks!

Novel developments at global plastics show in Germany THIS year’s event at the Messe Düsseldorf in Germany runs from 16-23 October, with the K still being the leading show for the plastics and rubber sectors internationally. The 2013 event will feature a net exhibition space of more than 170,000 m² and some 3000 exhibitors from over 50

countries who will be presenting innovative solutions and visionary concepts in the areas of machinery and equipment, raw materials and auxiliaries, semiﬁnished products, technical parts and reinforced plastics. www.k-online.de

INTERNATIONAL FAIR

Counterfeit protection

Mould for lightweight fibre composite parts An innovative mould for the series production of lightweight fibre composite parts developed by Georg Kaufmann AG of Switzerland will be shown at the K. The development is part of a joint project that goes by the name of LIPA (Lightweight Integrated Process Application). Cut-tosize blanks of Tepex organic sheet – a fabric-reinforced thermoplastic – are first pre-heated and then placed in the mould, where they are thermoformed and at the same time provided with moulded-on ribs, bearing eyes and other working parts with the aid of the long-fibre direct injection moulding process developed by Arburg. Pictured here is the demonstration lever: (top) schematic depiction with enlarged detail of overlap area; (bottom) actual lightweight fibre composite part. www.gktool.ch

Inexpensive and lightweight Ticona, the engineering polymers business of Celanese Corporation, the Fraunhofer Institute for Chemical Technology and the engineering company EDAG are facing the challenge of weight saving for vehicle construction with the use of a matrix of polypropylene and unidirectional oriented glass ﬁbres (UD-GF) for the production of reinforcing UD-tapes that are used in multi-layer inlays. The project has led to the prototyping of a weight-optimized commercial vehicle storage compartment ﬂap. www.ticona.com

60 OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013

An additive masterbatch from GabrielChemie, Maxithen® ProTec4, provides protection against counterfeits and imitations. The masterbatch is equipped with security pigments – inert, inorganic and highly temperature-resistant substances that are integrated homogeneously into the plastic matrix – to provide the end products with an unmistakable code. Clear proof of the origin can be ascertained using the measuring technology provided. By using different codes, even lots of different product are clearly identiﬁable. www.gabriel-chemie.com

‘Smartheat’ The ﬁrst completely ‘cool-tothe-touch’ heating system for injection barrels and melt pipes from Nordson XALOY delivers heat more uniformly and reaches start-up targets more rapidly than band heaters, while substantially reducing energy consumption. Here we see barrel temperature distribution, via infrared camera, showing uniformity with the SmartHeat™ system and variation with conventional heater bands. www.xaloy.com

Fully electric Bekum Bekum Maschinenfabriken is premiering its fully-electric version of the current seventh generation blow moulding machines with a clamping force of 150kN. The exhibit, a two-station Eblow 407 D blow moulder, combines the modular structure of the 07 series with an energy-efﬁcient, all-electric drive. The machine is equipped with a spiral distributor extrusion head that offers signiﬁcant advantages for product quality as well as productivity. A feature of the Eblow 407 D is very smooth calibrated surfaces on the product. www.bekum.de

Flame retardant sets new standards The huge breadth of synthetic material types available on the market is not only due to the extremely wide range of plastic applications they serve but is also necessary to ensure that components comply with all relevant standards and regulations. Many of these materials possess a single outstanding characteristic but display deficiencies in their other characteristics. As a consequence, several plastics are frequently combined in a single component. Lorenz Kunststoff GmbH will launch a new duroplast, BMC 0204, at K 2013, which will allow a considerable reduction in the diversity of plastic types used in this way. This unique new material is not only extremely flame retardant but with a flow rate of 1000mm, is ideal for injection moulding involving small, fine-wrought parts. With a CTI value of 600V and low thermal conductivity, the material is suitable for use as a material for electronics products. www.lomix.de

Sepro presents 23 robots With a total of 23 robots on display on its stand and in the booths of six partner companies, Sepro Robotique of France intends to show visitors to the K that no other company offers so much choice in injection-molding automation. Pictured here is the 5-axis 5X-35 unit. The 5X line is based on high-precision Sepro 3-axis Cartesian beam robots and a 2-axis StĂ¤ubli servo wrist. The two additional compact servo rotations make it easy to adapt to challenging applications such as insert placing, complex extraction paths in the mould, path tracking for ďŹ&#x201A;ame treatment, and the like. www.sepro-robotique.com

#2$0%*'.; 49 ; 4&

#2$0%*'.; 49 ; 4&;+3;#/;+/&'1'/&'/4;!054*; (2+%#/ 120&5%'2;0(;#;7+&';2#/)';0(;39/4*'4+%;25$$'23;(02;4*' 492';#/&;+/&5342+#-;25$$'2;.#/5(#%452+/);.#2,'43 +/%-5&+/);4*';%0..0&+49;491'3

NATPET The polypropylene producer from Saudi Arabia, will focus on enhancing converter productivity and end-product appeal in the rigid packaging sector by highlighting the high-clarity aesthetics, processing efďŹ ciency and performance possibilities of its advanced thermoforming and injection moulding grades at the K, including its H03TF grade PP which combines high clarity with a new level of superior dimensional stability for thermoformed cups, trays and containers. www.natpetpp.com

! ; (10-

!! ; (30-

07;%+3 ; +4*+5.;%#4#-93'&;25$$'23; (&'/'

3;7'--;#3 :

+)*;%+3 ;/'0&9.+5.;%#4#-93'&;25$$'2; '0&'/'

; 0-9 +3012'/'; 30)2+1

Groundbreaking lamination technology Starlinger of Austria is presenting a new web lamination concept in DĂźsseldorf this year. This is a revolutionary step in continuous web lamination, making it a lot easier and more efďŹ cient while guaranteeing best lamination quality, said Starlinger sales director Hermann Adrigan. Starlinger has previously set the standards with its stacoTEC lamination lines, selling up to 30 lines per year to customers around the globe. The worldwide ďŹ rst presentation of the new lamination line will be at the Starlinger booth in hall 16, where visitors can see it in operation. www.starlinger.com

#2$0%*'.; 0-&+/)3;7*0--9;07/3; #2$0%*'.; 49 ; 4& "*';!94*'4+%; #4'8; 0.1#/9; 49 ; 4&;#/&; 2%*'.; 49 ; 4&

02;(524*'2;+/(02.#4+0/;%0/4#%4;052;.#2,'4+/);0((+%';#4 "'- ; ; ; ; ;:; #8 ; ; ; ; " "; ! ! 0*/; +4*)07 +'22'; 2+/,

#34)#4'; ((+%'; #2, ; -0%,; ; 205/&; -002 !054*; 05-'6#2& ; ; ; 08; ; 25.#;

K2013: FEATUTRE

Bioplastics: an alternative with a future? World production capacity for bioplastics to reach 5.8 million tons by 2016 AS a complement and in some areas as an alternative to conventional plastics, bioplastics appear to be a logical and necessary step for a modern and forward-looking plastics industry. And they will also of course have their place at K2013 in Düsseldorf. Any discussion of the pros and cons, the future role and the market potential of bioplastics makes little sense without prior clarification of the meaning of the prefix “bio-”, says Prof. Dr.-Ing. Christian Bonten of the Institute of Plastics Engineering at the University of Stuttgart. One prefix, two meanings – bio-degradable & bio-based plastics Biodegradable plastics Apart from small quantities of substances, biodegradable plastics consist of biodegradable polymers and additives. Special bacteM440 ECO computer mouse housing made of Biograde® (SOURCE: FUJITSU)

ria and their enzymes demonstrably convert biodegradable plastics into biomass, CO2 or methane, water and minerals as soon as the macromolecules have been sufﬁciently fragmented by other degradation mechanisms. For a plastic to be termed ‘compostable’ in Europe, 90% of it must degrade in clearly deﬁned conditions into fragments smaller than 2mm within 12 weeks. Only then can composting facilities operate costeffectively and without disruption. Biodegradable plastics are not necessarily made from renewable resources and can also be derived from mineral oil. Biodegradability therefore depends not on the raw material, but on the plastic’s chemical structure. Examples of biodegradable polymers are polylactides (PLA), polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA), cellulose derivatives and starch as well as mineral-oil-based polybutylene terephthalate (PBAT) and polybutylene succinate (PBS). Non-biodegradable, on the other hand, are polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP), polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and polyamides (PA), for example. Bio-based plastics Bio-based plastics, on the other hand, are renewable resources derived from nature. However, these are not necessarily biodegradable as well. The adjective ‘bio-based’ merely tells us that the carbon atoms in the molecule chains come from today’s nature and are thus ‘bio’. At present, bio-based plastics are derived from different

Mulch films of biodegradable PBAT/PLA compound can be ploughed in after the harvest and, unlike classical film, do not have to be first collected and then disposed of (PHOTO: BASF SE).

hydrocarbons such as those found in sugar, starch, proteins, cellulose, lignin, bio-fats and oils. Bio-based polymers include polylactides (PLA), polyhydryoxybutyrate (PHB), cellulose derivatives (CA, CAB) and starch derivatives as well as, for example, bio-polyethylene (PE). The latter is derived entirely from Brazilian sugar cane, has the same properties as conventional polyethylene, but is not biodegradable. Bioplastics – global output In global polymer output, bioplastics have not so far ﬁgured highly in the roughly 235 million tons of plastics materials. Because of the high market growth, European Bioplastics is forecasting world production capacity for bioplastics to reach roughly 5.8 million tons by 2016. The study of the nova institute of March 2013 is forecasting output of over 8 million tons by 2016 and roughly 12 million tons by 2020 for bio-based plastics. According to the manufacturers’ association European Bioplastics, biodegradable plastics at several 100,000 tons accounted for the lion’s share of total global capacity for bioplastics in 2009. Since 2010, the

Current applications of bioplastics (source: Hannover University of Applied Sciences and Arts, IfBB – Institute for Bioplastics and Biocomposites)

Transparent food ﬁlm made of Bio-Flex® A 4100 CL / F 2201 CL / A 4100 CL (PHOTO: FKUR)

Domestic/ near-domestic products management

Ofﬁce supplies

Furniture/furnishings

Waste

Watering cans, vacuum cleaners, drinking straws

Writing implements, correction rollers, rulers

Chairs

(Compostable) waste bags and bin liners

Agriculture/ gardening and landscaping

Catering

Construction

Electrical items

Agricultural ﬁlms and nonwovens, dispensers, plant pots

Disposable cutlery and crockery, waste bags

Tool handles, dowels, bio-PU insulation, insulating materials, terrace surfaces, carpeting and ﬂoorcoverings

Housings for computer mice, keyboards, telephones, mobile phones, cable insulation

62 OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013

A paper cup coated with a ﬁlm of plastic made of PBAT/PLA compound does not go soggy and can be industrially composted (PHOTO: BASF SE).

growth rates for biodegradable plastics have been far outstripped by those for bio-based plastics. According to association forecasts and despite constant growth, they will account for only about a seventh of overall bioplastics output by 2016. The far larger share of bioplastics will then be bio-based but not biodegradable. Rising standards – bioplastics are no exception For their growing technical applications, plastics have to meet increasingly high standards. And bioplastics are no exception. As far as reproducibility is concerned, they still have some catching-up to do, and in terms of barrier properties, durability and compatibility with other biopolymers and additives, there is still plenty of room for improvement. Bioplastics and their applications today Biodegradable plastics are usually employed in applications where degradability proves to be particularly useful. This applies, for example, in agriculture to mulch

ﬁlms and plant pots that do not have to be collected and transported elsewhere after use, but metabolise on the spot in the soil to form biomass. In private households, degradable kitchen waste bags have conquered a market and can be composted together with their contents. Bio-based plastics are now also found in consumer electronics and automotive applications. For its Sai hybrid car only available in Japan, Toyota, for instance, has developed interior furnishings and equipment made of 80% renewable raw materials, as of model year 2011. This has been made possible by the use of bio-PET, a plastic derived from sugar cane. Nonetheless, PLA and polyurethane (PU) foam based on soya are also found today in a vast diversity of automotive components. Practically all car manufacturers make use of bioplastics in their vehicles and are working towards increasing their use. www.k-online

Compostable plastic in coffee capsules

Chart 1: Global production capacity of bioplastics - Production capacity for biodegradable and bio-based plastics in 2011 with a forecast for 2016 (SOURCE: EUROPEAN BIOPLASTICS; HANNOVER UNIVERSITY OF APPLIED SCIENCES AND ARTS, IFBB – INSTITUTE FOR BIOPLASTICS AND BIOCOMPOSITES)

THE compostable plastic ecovio® from BASF has found its ﬁrst production application in a system solution for packaging. The Swiss Coffee Company’s coffee capsules beanarella consist of the new injection moulding grade ecovio IS1335; at the same time the multi-layer composite system for the aroma-tight outer barrier packaging for the capsules is also ecovio-based. The capsules fulﬁll the demanding requirements for protecting the product and brewing coffee in high-pressure coffee machines, yet may still be composted; so does the barrier packaging. The system solution is predominantly based on renewable resources. In mid-May, the Swiss Coffee Company received the IDEE SUISSE ‘Golden Idea Award 2013’ innovation prize for this product concept in Zürich for an “innovative contribution to the sustainable strengthening of the Swiss economy”. (PHOTO: BASF 2013)

www.basf.com OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013 63

K2013: ADDITIVES

Pevalenâ&#x201E;˘ â&#x20AC;&#x201C; an innovative plasticizer for sensitive applications. (PHOTO: PERSTORP)

Innovative plasticizer for sensitive applications THE Perstorp Group, a world leader in specialty chemicals, will be presenting its latest developments in plasticizers at K2013. This will include an innovative new general-purpose plasticizer, Pevalenâ&#x201E;˘, developed speciďŹ cally for sensitive closeto-consumer applications. Plasticizers are a vital component in soft PVC plastics where durability and ďŹ&#x201A;exibility are important properties, for example in ďŹ&#x201A;ooring, artiďŹ cial leathers, tarpaulins, toys, automotive interiors, and cables. Perstorp, with a successful history within the ďŹ eld of plasticizers, has launched Pevalen as a non-phthalate plasticizer meeting market

demand in sensitive applications. Pevalen is very efďŹ cient, which means your formulation requires less plasticizer. In combination with low migration and volatility the performance is unmet by other plasticizers. Pevalen also displays excellent UV stability making it a perfect choice in applications exposed to sunlight. Pevalen is easier and faster to blend with PVC than most other plasticizers. This reduces processing time, helps you increase capacity of your existing production line, and maintains a low production cost ensuring a robust manufacturing process. Pevalen is a well-proven product that

is REACH-registered. Pevalen is based on food-approved raw materials and the process for obtaining food contact approval for Pevalen is underway. As a high performance non-phthalate plasticizer Pevalen contributes to a more sustainable PVC solution. PVC and Pevalen is a winning combination for long life products that are safe and hygienic to use. Many of these products require little or no maintenance giving the plastics a low cost and trouble-free service lifetime.

www.perstorp.com

64 OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013

Welltec Plastics has the injection moulding machines to meet your requirements.

Excellent prices on existing stock / %-/ / *!& ' (+# !/ / %-/ / *!& ' (+# !/ # / / / / / - / / / # / / / / / - / / / % !# / / // / (/ %') ' % !# / / // / (/ %') ' $ !# /(& '" $, % . $ !# /(& '" $, % . (!) /,,, $( (!) /,,, $( %& % . %& % .

High-end look at the point of sale – Labels by Viappiani

66 OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013

K2013: ANCILLARIES

High-performance system for IML THE IML Competence collaboration of IML experts involving Beck Automation AG, Ernst H. Furrer AG, Glaroform AG, Viappiani Printing and BFA Solutions will demonstrate the possibilities of a highperformance system for IML technology at K2013. As IML is a highly dynamic process, profitability is derived from the level of system components. Electrostatic charging and core alignment are the key processing points in the procedure. First the labels are sucked from the label magazine. In the second, the labels are placed on the cores and held with vacuum. The automation cores move into the cavities to transfer the labels. In this stage the labels are blown against the vacuum, electrostatically charged and thus placed and held in the cavities so they are form-fitting. This makes the level of process design and quality of the label key factors in process safety, reproducibility, product quality and economic efficiency. Swiss-made mould technology for thin-wall technology Glaroform AG in Näfels, Switzerland, will show a fast running injection mould with two cavities for a round-oval 500 ml food container. The mould has an on-site hot runner system with pneumatically operated needle valves. The moulded part is decorated with IML on the sides. The mould is equipped with a form-fitting and highly efficient cooling system to guarantee a very fast cycle time with reproducible product quality. Form-fitting cooling also effectively reduces warping of the part. The thin-walled product has an average wall-thickness of 0.4 mm and a weight per unit of approx. 11g. Automation with QA Module Beck Automation AG in Oberengstringen, Switzerland, adds a highly dynamic automated IML system to the manufacturing cell. The modular cell raises the bar in speed, availability and process reliability in IML automation. The application cycle time is less than 3.0 seconds. Beck’s system is equipped with the latest in control and

drive technology and is operated by touch screen. An integrated remote access provides the option to log into the system from outside. A camera inspection system from Omron is used for quality control of the manufactured containers. Any parts which are flawed are rejected by the Q-SORT LINE after inspection, and collected in a NOK parts box. The good products are then stacked and removed from the system via a conveyor belt. The Q-SORT LINE can be retrofitted: Existing plants can be upgraded with this QA module. Energy-efficient cooling concepts Ernst H. Furrer AG in Dällikon, Switzerland, supports the application with temperate cooling water using the newest cooler technology. So-called ‘free cooling’ can be deployed optionally. This means that cooling is achieved with cold outside air, as long as the difference is sufficient to permit the desired medium temperature. The use of compressors is unnecessary in this phase, enabling power cost savings of up to 60%. High-quality labels Viappiani Printing in Segrate, Italy, will produce labels for this exhibit based on a 60μ EUP orange peel film made by Treofan. The container’s round-oval shape requires labels to be stamped with the utmost precision and that can guarantee the fast cycle time with a good electrostatic charge. The sheet offset method guarantees the best print quality for both the 4-colour photographs and the Pantone colours. Viappiani

Camera inspection Omron, integrated by Beck Automation

can print IML labels with up to 8 colours including lacquer coating. Complete documentation in IML BFA Solutions for the ﬁrst time ever will present the production data capture for a closed cell (MDE) in packaging for IML Competence. The product information system PiSolutions jointly captures, displays and chronologically logs the process data, data sets, orders, error messages and status information of the exhibited application. In the case of the exhibited application, the injection moulding machine data is recorded by the machine’s standardized Euromap63 interface and combined with the automation data received from an OPC interface. This data is then stored and visualized in a central database. www.beck-automation.com

Thin-wall technology moulding for IML – Dualcavity highperformance mould by Glaroform

Visit our stand for the latest equipment Hall 15 Stand D22

Objet Eden Family

Objet Desktop Family

Hall 2 Stand G23

Sumitoma Demag will be exhibiting at the K, 16-23 October 2013 in Düsseldorf, Germany, Hall 15 Stand D22, the world’s premier trade fair in plastics and rubbers. Demaplastech’s, Jacques Kleynhans, a veteran in the South African plastic industry will be at their stand to show you what’s new and exciting! Demaplastech also represents Stratasys in South Africa, an all rounded 3D printing machine supplier, exhibiting in Hall 2 Stand G23. Have a look at this exciting technology.

TEL: +27 (0) 11 462 2990

SOLUTION

FAX: +27 (0) 11 462 8229

MACHINERY (PTY) LTD

e-mail: jacques@demaplastech.co.za

Plasma power

68 OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013

PlantMaster MES system BMSvision will show the latest version of its PlantMaster Manufacturing Execution System used in more than 500 moulding, extrusion, assembly and flexible packaging production plants around the world. Effort has been spent on the development of a brand new report generator, allowing the combination of real time data and history information in one and the same report. The seamless integration of the data collected by the BMSvision EnergyMaster system provides the customer with full transparency about the energy consumption in the plant and allows reporting of crucial KPI’s such as the Specific Energy Consumption (SEC) by product and mould, the energy efficiency and the total energy cost for each production order. A newly developed WEB-DU application allows easy access to information anywhere in the mill through PC’s, touch screen terminals, tablets and smart phones. Actions can be taken and input can be entered in the Web-DU as if the user was sitting at his desk in the office. The newly developed Management Dashboard allows the combined presentation of data available in different software modules into one single web based report. • TEL: + 27 828 551 957 EMAIL: TOLKEN@TELKOMSA.NET www.bmsvision.com/plastics

The plasma Openair process selectively cleans and simultaneously activates the plastic surface in a single operation (PHOTO: PLASMATREAT)

This year Plasmatreat will focus on five particular fields of application: The latest Openair plasma system has been designed to pretreat EPDM profiles of greatly varying size in a fully automated production process. Prior to digital printing or coating, large panels or lightweight boards can now be pretreated using the world’s first 180 cm-wide atmospheric plasma system. • THE SA AGENT FOR PLASMATREAT IS RESIN PROCESSING SOLUTIONS, P. 021 510 6903 www.plasmatreat.de

60 years of innovative power charge FOR 60 years, Electrostatic Innovations by Eltex have revolved around one highvoltage subject: Eltex uses static electricity wherever and whenever it’s beneficial, and eliminates it where it disrupts or even harms. As straightforward and simple as this core competence sounds – it involves highly complex technologies. Eltex has become established and renowned as a consistent problem solver for the industry. In demand throughout the world, Eltex delivers broad-based expertise for the best possible solutions for highly specific requirements in many industries. Above all, in the plastics industry with the focus on converting and laminating, and in the production worlds of printing, packaging, converting and finishing. Eltex will exhibit the latest in electrostatic options for process optimisation: higher production speeds, more efficient work

processes, lower energy consumption, substantially higher quality, fewer disruptions and downtimes and less waste. The intelligent Eltex discharging bar IONSTAR RX3 for perfect discharge over large distances The new discharging solution Eltex BASIX 100% Eltex - at a low price Compact, powerful, versatile – COMPACT POWER ES24 the new miniature 24V power supply unit The Eltex Charging and Discharging Systems for a vast array of applications in the plastics industry The ION Blower Technology for higher power and greater range

www.eltex.com

Discharging bar IONSTAR RX3 on rewinder Discharging on reel slitter

Charging in inmould labeling

K2013: ANCILLARIES

BMSvision shows latest version of

PLASMATREAT will be staging a truly impressive range of plasma installations and demonstrations at this year’s K. The market leader in atmospheric plasma jet technology will not only showcase its latest plasma systems and developments for the environmentally friendly pretreatment of material surfaces, it will also demonstrate its highly effective Openair plasma technology live throughout the entire show. On their joint 160m² exhibition stand, Plasmatreat and its system partner and foam technology specialist CeraCon will use a new out-of-the-box robotic cell to demonstrate how a strong bond can be achieved between nonpolar polypropylene plastic and 1-K polyurethane foam simply with the aid of plasma. In addition, atmospheric plasma treatments followed by subsequent coating and bonding applications will be conducted manually throughout each day in a dedicated ‘plasma demo corner’.

The cockpit as comfort zone

K2013: MATERIALS

Integrated cockpit concept based on polycarbonate WHEN it comes to the interior of their automobiles, more and more people dream of a customized comfort zone. It should offer a level of comfort similar to that of their living room at home while including all the latest technology and a high degree of functionality. At K2013 Bayer MaterialScience is presenting a complete material concept for the future design of automobile interiors that goes a long way toward fulfilling this customer dream. One example is innovative displays with a homogenous, three-dimensional surface, but sharp images and high brightness. This is made possible by rear projection technology, in which a light source behind the film transforms it into an illuminated display. Bayer MaterialScience has developed the special polycarbonate film Makrofol® RP (RP stands for Rear Projection) for this application. When switched off, only an elegant, matte black surface is visible. The driver is not distracted by underlying structures or other effects. Bayer researchers developed the black panel technology behind this a couple of years ago. Slim, retractable components that are only visible when switched on fit well with the current infotainment trend. Blends from the Bayblend® line and the transparent polycarbonate Makrolon® LED are used here. The latter was specifically developed for lighting engineering applications. These products also play a key role in the production of coated components with integrated light guides. Besides Makrolon LED2245 as the material for the light guide, refined Bayblend grades are used as the carrier material. The carrier materi-

als are ﬂooded directly in the mould with polyurethane coatings. Perfect reproduction of the mould surfaces enables structured, grained, high-gloss and matte surfaces to be produced simultaneously. Fabrication using the DirectCoating method co-developed by Bayer is costefﬁcient and can be completed in a single step. This method combines injection moulding and reaction injection moulding

(RIM). Among the companies with which Bayer MaterialScience is collaborating in this ﬁeld is KraussMaffei Technologies GmbH, which markets the method under the ColorForm name. The machinery manufacturer will be demonstrating the production of a component under nearseries conditions at its stand at the K 2013. www.materialscience.bayer.com

Drivers are placing increasing value on customized and personalized interior appointments. This includes pleasant, atmospheric lighting, a seamless design and transparent, coloured and diversely decorated surfaces. Other trends include natural materials, expanded functionality and infotainment – and with perfect workmanship and the greatest possible impression of quality. At K2013, Bayer MaterialScience will present an integrated design concept based on polycarbonate that fully and cost-efﬁciently satisﬁes these demands

Sparkling alternative to polycarbonate, polystyrene & glass THE Perstorp Group, a world leader in specialty chemicals, will be presenting the next generation of co-polyesters at K2013. This will include Akestra™, a high performance plastic with remarkable properties. Perstorp have formed a strategic partnership with Mitsubishi Gas Chemical to develop and distribute this co-polyester throughout Europe. Perstorp puts its main development focus into delivering high performance, safe and sustainable chemistry. Akestra is not only innovative, but represents an entirely new generation of plastics. Its unique properties make it an important alternative to polycarbonate, polystyrene and glass. Akestra has a sparkling glass-like appearance that is sure to enhance both disposable and reusable packaging. It can be used as a polystyrene replacement for heat resistant thin wall contain70 OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013

ers, a polycarbonate replacement for durable dishwasher-proof transparent products and a glass replacement for hot-ﬁll food containers. The high glass transition temperature, combined with its amorphous and high strength properties make it a superior alternative in food packaging, and a material that can be easily blended with other plastics to improve their properties too. The high melt strength of Akestra makes it particularly suitable for extrusion blow moulding as well as extrusion foaming processes. In combination with PET, it creates a ﬁner cell structure allowing further weight savings with superior mechanical properties in structural and packaging foam applications. www.perstorp.com

HAITIAN HUAYUAN˄ ˄SOUTH AFRICA˅MACHINERY (Pty) Ltd

Everywhere costs continue to spiral rapidly and our customers increasingly have less scope for their business. Prices for raw materials are rising. In many countries, energy is becoming the critical cost factor. This is why efficient overall concepts are rated so highly at Haitian. Purposeful solutions, as an answer to the growing cost pressure. “Technology brought to the point” is our motto here, concentrating on the inherent strong points of the injection-moulding technique: greatest possibility efficiency in the manufacture of standard parts, speed with large production quantities, repeat-accuracy precision, and not least of all; a quick return on investment. At the same time, we consciously combine in-novation solutions with standard components and on fair terms. The new Mars II Series contains various ingenious innovations for even more stability, precision and process efficiency. The new clam-ping unit with optimised servo-hydraulic technology reduces production cycles while simultaneously increasing energy efficiency. A convenient control system offers numerous possibilities for evaluating individually, and for optimising the productivity of the whole system.

The optimised master of efficiency. Clamping force from 600 to 40,000kN

-New clamping unit for more stability, precision and efficiency -Optimised platen design for centralised force transmission to the mould -Better toggle system kinematics for faster mould movements and dry-cycle times reduced by 25% -Energy-saving drive concept with patented “Mars Technology” -Tuned injection unit (new twin Cylinder) for smooth injection and screw movements -Latest KEBA control for easy usage on the touch-screen, including analysis of energy consumption and cycle.

Coming up in the next issue, information on our new:

Our Details: Managing Director: After Sales Service Manager: Office & Spares Manager: Service Engineer Sales Manager Durban Website:

Hu Shunhui Johan Venter Leonie Grove Wu Wenqing Peter Wessel

+27-799170588 +27-726681322 011 974 1127 +27-724383102 +27-848039260

hsh@mail.haitian.com jv.haitian@gmail.com lsg.haitian@gmail.com wwq.haitian@gmail.com pw.haitian@telkomsa.net www.haitian.com

MISSION ICEFOX uses thermoplastics and also reduces the total weight of the sled. The material passed the load test on Spitsbergen with ﬂying colours. The two adventurers will be giving an account of their experiences on Spitsbergen at K2013 at hall 6, booth A07/B07 18 October 18 at 9:00 a.m.

www.celanese.com

Innovation excellence in engineering plastic applications POLYSCOPE, the world’s leading producer of styrene maleic anhydride (SMA) copolymers and compounds, will display some of its most recent developments in engineering plastic applications. As the world’s leading developer of styrene, maleic anhydride and N-phenylmaleimide (SMA and SMANPMI) terpolymers, marketed as XIRAN®, Polyscope continues to make application development breakthroughs. The latest of these is the development of very-large thermoplastic sunroof frames for serial production of the Citroen DS3 Cabrio, which will be on show at the Polyscope booth. XIRAN compounds offer high dimensional accuracy, very-low warpage, superior adhesion and a low density of the ﬁnal part. This makes it an excellent solution for high precision parts. Recently introduced XIRAN IZ grades are designed to be highly efﬁcient in increasing the high heat performance of engineering plastic, especially in styrenics like ABS. They were developed to respond

72 OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013

to the increasing trend within the plastic industry to create styrenic engineering plastics with high temperature resistance and low volatile residuals. The new XIRAN IZ grades exhibit a glass transition temperature (Tg) of 175˚C or higher and

can be exposed to higher processing temperatures with excellent miscibility in styrenic polymers like ABS. www.polyscope.eu

XIRAN® thermoplastic sunroof frames for serial production of the Citroen DS3 Cabrio. (PHOTO POLYSCOPE)

K2013: MATERIALS

IN April this year, two adventurers set off on ‘Mission Icefox’ for Celanese, the leading producer of engineering polymers. Over several weeks, adventure photographer, Mike Fuchs, and Celanese engineer, Eric Folz, crossed the northern part of the Norwegian Island of Spitsbergen. They used newly designed Pulkas made from plastics at temperatures as low as minus 50 degrees and with around 130kg payload. The sled manufacturer, Acapulka, entered a new arena with the thermoplastic materials; previously robust duroplastics were primarily used for these extreme loads on Artic tours. The Celstran® CFR-TP used in the new sled stands the pace in reliability

BOOK EARLY BEFORE THE DECEMBER SHUTDOWN

dean@relloy.co.za

Polyamide 6.6 for intricate auto parts Combines good flow with flexibility, low-temperature impact resistance compounding and draws on long experience as a supplier of filled, reinforced, lubricated, toughened, and other modified formulations of engineering thermoplastics (ETPs). The Chemlon range of compounds includes polyamides 6, 6.6, and 6.12. Under the Beetle® brand, the Engineering

Thermoplastics Division also produces PBT, PET, and polypropylene compounds. www.teknorapex.com www.advancedpolymers.co.za

Fuel line clips

Among the items the company will present at K2013 is a small mechanical injection pump that ﬁts comfortably into one’s breast pocket. Patients can thus administer their own medicines and keep their mobility at an advanced age. All housing components are made of Makrolon® Rx. This product satisﬁes major bio-compatibility requirements and can be sterilized through high-energy radiation www.materialscience.bayer.com

OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013 75

K2013: MATERIALS

TEKNOR Apex Company will introduce a new toughened polyamide 6.6 compound for injection moulding provides good flow properties for intricate or multi-cavity parts, along with flexural strength and low-temperature impact resistance for demanding automotive applications at K 2013 (Hall 06 / C54-3). The flexural and impact strength of Chemlon® 104 polyamide enables components such as automotive fuel line fasteners to withstand the stresses of assembly and end use and endure exposure to cold. When un-reinforced polyamide 6.6 provides insufficient flexibility or toughness for an application, Chemlon 104 compound can often fill in the gap. This is a new alternative for automotive manufacturers and is available at a price that is very competitive with toughened polyamides already on the market. Teknor Apex can supply identical formulations of Chemlon 104 compound worldwide from production facilities in Europe, the U.S., and Singapore. The material is available in natural, black, or any colour specified by the customer. Teknor Apex specializes in custom

! %

' % % & # ! %

$ ! !

! !

" % ! %

$$ & !

' # $ ! " ! " ! ! ! $ ! % " ! ! ! $ ! ' # $ ' " % ! # !

www.exxonmobilpe.com

((! ! + + + $% + # + + !&% + $

# *# "&, #(' %", %

('* , " , $ '*, # *! %&, #(' %", %

Polysaf

Shore

'* , '

" ! , , ,

,,,, ( , ,, , ,,,, , #),

, % " , ) %% + # %* + *" '' % '+ $# *& #! ''' ((! ! ! liam.chegwidden@polysaf.com, kelly.dewet@polysaf.com and alan.wassung@polysaf.com liam.chegwidden@polysaf.com and alan.wassung@polysaf.com (Cape Town) (Cape Town) www.exxonmobilchemical.com

K2013: ANCILLARIES In the ďŹ eld of laser plastic welding, Leister Technologies AG offers a wide range of products

Latest advances in laser technology

for joining & welding plastics LEISTER will exhibit products for industrial process heat, plastic welding using hot-air, hot-wedge and hand extruder systems and laser plastic welding technology at this yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s K show. Leister components for industrial process heat are distinguished not only by their high level of reliability, but also by the large number of versions available and high variability. Whether for heating and preheating, shrinking, drying, welding or forming, whether in packaging or medical technology, cosmetics or the automotive industry; Leister has been providing innovative solutions for over 60 years. As a highlight, Leister will present its completely revised range of professional hot-air hand tools for the ďŹ rst time: Triac ST, Triac AT and the world premiĂ¨re of the Electron ST. Leister has also extended its hand extruder range with the Weldplast S1, probably the most compact tool in its class: maximum output with minimum size, extremely robust for use on construction sites, LED work light, balancer suspension, ergo-

Higher output, energy saving wicketing machines AS the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s leading producer of wicketing machines for the production of bread, poultry, produce and hygiene wicket bags for automatic ďŹ lling, the latest version of Hudson-Sharpâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s successful model 5750 W will be exhibited at K2013. The new machine includes several new standard and optional features designed to increase output, reduce downtime, save energy and ensure complete operation safety. For certain applications and under optimum conditions, the machine can run consistently in a production environment at cycle speeds of 450 per minute. The use of new materials for key components combined with the latest servo technology has signiďŹ cantly contributed to the increase in running speed. Attention has also been focused on reducing energy costs. Both the new standard airless anti-static system and servo driven wicket punches improve running costs. Downtime is reduced and production quality enhanced with Hudson-Sharpâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s automatic seal bar cleaner. The machine can be programmed to stop at pre-programmed intervals for the seal bar to be cleaned automatically. This cleaning cycle lasts less than12 seconds compared with minutes for a manual clean. During K2013, Hudson-Sharp will exhibit one of its most successful automation systems. The WASP or Wicket Automation Stack Processor has been ergonomically designed to reduce repetitive strain injuries for machine operator. www.hudsonsharp.com

nomic design, multifunctional control unit with display and proďŹ le selection, as well as freely assignable memories for your own proďŹ les, twist-free wire intake for 3 and 4mm welding rods and a large selection of welding materials such as HD-PE, LD-PE, PP, PVC-U, PVC-C, PVDF, ECTFE, PA. The new Variant T1 Tape and the Triac AT Drive high-tech extruders will also be unveiled for the ďŹ rst time. In the ďŹ eld of laser plastic welding, Leister Technologies AG will also unveil its latest product, the Novolas Tabletop System. TTS denotes a laser welding system in which the laser unit is separate from the welding cell. This has the advantage that the cell can be placed on a table while the laser unit is set up anywhere in the vicinity. The system has been designed for contour welding and is equipped with an optimized spot optic. www.leister.com

www.plastiweld.co.za

OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013 77

" ! # ! ! ! !

! !

ĹĄ ĹĄ

# !$

Reifenhäuser’s waterless extruder

K2013: EXTRUSION

Convert large temperature difference during plastics processing into electrical current REIFENHAUSER Extrusion Technology will present a concept for a single-screw extruder that no longer requires water for cooling the intake area, but rather works with thermoelectric generators (TEG). The concept is based on the winning idea of the first web-based Open Innovation Competition in the branch, the Extrusioneers Innovation Contest held by the Reifenhäuser Group in 2011. The winner, Norman Friedrich, proposed to convert the large temperature difference during plastics processing into electrical current with the aid of thermoelectric generators. The phenomenon known as the Seebeck effect enables the conversion and was initially employed in aeronautics for operating space and measuring probes far away from the sun. Reifenhäuser Extrusion Technology has carried out a series of tests on this idea in the last two years. The results have shown that operating temperatures of over 200°C in the ranges of cylinder, tool and piping tempering combined with the low degree of efficiency of the TEGs limit their possible uses for generating electricity in the extrusion. During the series of tests, the engineers further developed the original idea and found a more efficient utilisation of the TEGs. Namely, TEGs can function in the other direction: If current is applied to an element, a temperature difference arises – known as the Peltier effect. Reifenhäuser Extrusion Technology had

successfully installed such Peltier elements for cooling and targeted heating of the grooved bush area of a single-screw extruder. By skilfully combining the elements with ventilation blowers, it is possible to completely dispense with the usual water tempering in grooved bush extruders. This saves resources and frees producers from being dependent on water quality. Temperature control via Peltier elements is additionally very precise and also robust. Although the concept is already functional today and offers clear technical advantages over the current solution, the practical implementation of waterless cooling is still more of a dream than reality. At this time, the comparatively high costs for Peltier

elements inhibits the technology from being economically feasible. In the coming years, however, a signiﬁcant drop in the costs of Peltier elements and further improvement of the degree of efﬁciency are expected. This is because Peltier elements are increasingly utilized in automotive engineering and CPU cooling. The engineers at Reifenhäuser are anticipating the elements being economic feasible by the year 2020. • THE SA AGENT IS FERROSTAAL www.ferrostaal.com www.reifenhauser-et.com

New solutions for processing of rubber compounds Throughput of 10,000 kg/h – fine-mesh straining enters a new dimension UTH GmbH from Fulda, Germany, will present its extended range of products, covering both roll-ex fine-mesh straining systems and extrusion systems, at Hall 15, stand D41. The latest model from the roll-ex series is one of the standouts. With this product, the fine-mesh straining of rubber compounds in mixing lines with throughputs of up to 10,000 kg/h can be realized. Rubber processing presents enormous challenges day in day out to rubber and tyre manufacturers. The demand is for products of the highest quality and, simultaneously, for greater cost-effectiveness. Accordingly, UTH GmbH has made fresh progress in perfecting the manufacturing

of tyre, rubber and silicone products. The roll-ex® extruder systems from UTH have set the benchmark world-wide for ﬁne-mesh straining of rubber compounds. Roll-ex gear extruders are a particularly good choice when frequent compound changes are involved or coloured materials used. They can be cleaned quickly and thoroughly on account of their unique design. The modular roll-ex system can be combined with a two-roll feeder (TRF), a screw feeder, or a conical twin-screw extruder. Throughputs range from 70 kg/h to 10,000 kg/h for standard applications, while customer-speciﬁc solutions

78 OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013 Roll-ex DSE

can also be realised. Precision extrusion is another primary application of roll-ex gear extruders and gear pumps, where high operating pressures (up to 800 bars) can be applied. UTH can supply, among other things, system solutions involving complete lines for the manufacture of rubber-coated wire, yarn, or ﬁbre components. www.uth-gmbh.com

THE POLYMER SOLUTIONS COMPANY Plastamid, a member of the Chemical Services Group, has brought premier polymer solutions, extensive application development and technical service to the local and international polymer markets for over 35 years. Plastamid plays a leading role in the manufacture and supply of thermoplastic compounds to a diverse range of industries.

Automotive

Electrical

Industrial

Packaging

Consumer

Compounding Service

Experience PR E MI E R P OL YM ER SOL UTION S with exten siv e A PPL I C A TION DEVEL OP M EN T and expert T E C H N IC A L SER VIC ES Visit www.plastamid.co.za for further information. 021I 914 9042 Johannesburg 922031 1600701 / Durban 3445 75 278 CPT 021Cape MEHTown MNHF JHB 011/ 922 1600 I 011 DBN 9546 I031PE762 08000

The MacroPower 1500 is equipped with ServoPower technology

Ground shaft mould

‘Power for the Future’

K2013: INJECTION MOULDING

with the new MacroPower 1500 WITTMANN BATTENFELD is presenting the largest MacroPower it has built so far to trade visitors at K2013 The MacroPower series – on display for the first time with the MacroPower 1000 at the K 2010 – has now been extended upwards by adding size 6, the MacroPower 1500. The series is now available in the full range of clamping forces from 400 to 1,600ton. The significant advantages of the MacroPower series – compact design, high speed, extremely easy operation and cleanness – are also outstanding features of the new MacroPower 1500. On the machine showcased at the K – a MacroPower 1500/8800 with ServoPower technology – a ground shaft will be manufactured from PP supplied by Borealis, Austria, using a mould from the Austrian mould maker ifw mould tec. The 4 pipe branch-off apertures are formed with the help of complex core-pull technology. The core pulls are equipped with P/Q valves. The finished part is demoulded by means of an ‘interim core pull stop’ in the opening stroke. The parts are removed and deposited in stacks by a Wittmann W853 robot. Thanks to the 1600 x 1250mm diagonal distance between tie-bars of the MacroPower 1500, the

mould with its four core pulls can be ﬁtted optimally into the machine. In the application demonstrated the durability of the product is of paramount importance in practical use. A product lifecycle of well over 50 years is assumed, which the product must survive underground without deformation or cracking. Special attention must be paid to optimal melt processing to prevent possible ﬂaws.

This is why high quality standards and reliability in particular are decisive criteria in ground shaft manufacturing in addition to efﬁcient, low-cost production. www.mouldplas.co.za www.wittmann-group.com

Ground shaft with pipe branch-offs (PHOTO: COURTESY OF IFW MOULD TEC)

The new BOY 25 E is even more powerful THE new BOY 25 E with 250 kN clamping force will be presented to the public for the ﬁrst time at K2013. Because of the compactness of all BOY injection moulding machines, a footprint of only 1,8m² is required. Attention has also been paid to improving the accessibility to the mould space and the plasticizing units, allowing for even faster mould changes. Thanks to the servo-motor pump drive, not only the energy costs can be kept low, but also a reduction of oil to 65 litres and a reduction of noise emission to below 67 dB (A) were realized. 80 OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013

In the area of the mould space and the trip chute, smoother surfaces ensure a safe removal of the parts and improved clean room compatibility. The new model has six optional injection units in the range of the Euromap sizes SP 11 to SP 82. With the availability of screw diameters from 12mm to 32mm (for 4,5 to maximum 76,4 cm³ stroke volume) an enormous scope of applications is covered. As a special highlight, differential injection is possible with the thermoplastic plasticizing units SP 11, SP 16 and SP 39. www.dr-boy.de

www.pmsplastics.co.za

Be efﬁciently informed New Engel Microsite and app for K 2013 EFFICIENCY is set to be the main theme at K2013, and it can now become a key part of visitors’ preparation before the event as well. Through a new microsite and an exclusive app, Engel has already started to inform the international injection moulding industry about innovations that will be on display and activities that will be taking place at K in the run-up to the trade fair. Visitors will also be able to be guided efﬁciently to the Engel exhibits which are relevant to their sector and applications when they are actually at the fair in Düsseldorf in October. K 2013 has already started at www.engel-k-online.com. On Engel’s microsite, there is now a preview of its stand at the fair. All 12 machine exhibits can be seen in action in trailers, while further detailed information makes the company’s upgrades and new developments transparent and is already offering the public an insight into the future potential of the innovative products, technologies and system solutions. In addition, the microsite provides a schedule for machine demonstrations and

an overview of Engel injection moulding machines and system solutions being presented at partner stands. There is also a contact link, which allows users to get in touch with Engel’s experts directly even before the trade fair starts. The new Engel app for K 2013 is available free of charge at www.engel-k-online.com for Android and iOS. It means fair visitors can quickly access the descriptions of the exhibits, the trailers, the demonstration times

and a plan of the company’s stand at any time. Once installed, the app does not need a live connection to the Internet to work. • REPRESENTED IN SOUTH AFRICA BY MARITIME MARKETING

www.marimark.co.za www.engel-k-online.com

Well informed before and during the trade fair: Engel’s new microsite for K 2013 is now up and running

‘SmartHeat’ barrel heating increases injection moulding process control 30 to 60% more energy efﬁcient than band heaters THE ﬁrst completely ‘cool-to-the-touch’ heating system for injection barrels and melt pipes from Nordson XALOY delivers heat more uniformly and reaches start-up targets more rapidly than band heaters, while substantially reducing energy consumption. Called ‘SmartHeat’™, the new barrel coating consists of two layers of plasma-sprayed metallized ceramic with a nichrome wire wrap sandwiched in between, plus a thermal insulation cover. Because the heat from the wires is conducted throughout the ceramic material, the system raises the temperature of the barrel to target levels more quickly than with band heaters, maintains it more uniformly, and uses less energy. The tightly strapped thermal insulation wrap over the ceramic coating virtually eliminates heat losses to the workplace, saving on air conditioning costs and reducing the risk of operator injury.

Another safety benefit of the new system is the elimination of the fire hazard from having numerous exposed wires connected to multiple heater bands. Instead, all SmartHeat wiring is run underneath the thermal insulation. The speed and uniformity of heating with the SmartHeat system appears in a sideby-side comparison with an injection press using conventional band heating, showing the effects on four zones. While the SmartHeat system brings the zones to the same target temperature within 15 minutes and then maintains all four at exactly that level, the start-up with the band heaters takes 23 minutes, and there continue to be wide temperature variations in each zone thereafter. Overall, the SmartHeat barrel coating is 30 to 60% more efficient than band heaters, according to David Hotchkiss, global product manager. The SmartHeat system can be used

SmartHeat™ coating installed on an injection moulding line, with thermal insulation visible in green, along with strapping

for process temperatures up to 750 ºF (400ºC). It is available with new barrels or can be readily retroﬁtted.

www.xaloy.com OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013 81

Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE dominate the project spend pipeline for reﬁning and petrochemical projects in the GCC. (PHOTO – ARABIANOILANDGAS.COM)

PLASTICS CONVERTING SME SECTOR IN MIDDLE EAST

COULD BE ANSWER TO JOB CREATION Job creation is possibly its most important priority to maintain stability

BY DR NIALL MARSHALL

FEATURE

THE biggest challenge facing every country in the Middle East is not the demand for democracy; it’s the cry for jobs. Jobs for the unemployed, jobs for graduates and school leavers and especially jobs for the majority of the population that is younger than 25 years old. In Egypt and Tunisia relatively successful transitions to democracy have not brought the hoped for economic beneﬁts and jobs and this dissatisfaction has contributed to further unrest and, in the case of Egypt, a counter revolution. Countries like the U.A.E. and Qatar have enormous oil wealth and relatively small populations and so the governments can afford to continue to create well-paying public sector jobs for their citizens – for now. High oil prices are a boon, but tend to result in increased spending while on the horizon are the twin threats of rising costs and increased competition from alternative nonconventional sources of oil in North America and elsewhere. Other countries, with larger populations or less oil and gas, cannot continue to provide the same level of support through government jobs and subsidies as in the past, and especially not for the burgeoning populations the majority of which have not yet ﬁnished school. For Saudi Arabia, with its population of almost 30 million, 30% of whom are under 14 years old; job creation is possibly its most important priority to maintain stability. The challenge is how? Policies such as Saudization where the government mandates that a certain 82 OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013

percentage of every company’s employees are local citizens can only create so many jobs and, where available skills don’t meet companies’ requirements, make it less attractive to have a business in the country. Massive investments in the petrochemical industry are important for the economies but provide relatively few jobs – a multi-billion dollar oil refinery or polymer plant will only create a few hundred jobs. It is recognized that a plastics converting industry, especially with the availability of local polymer, has the potential to create jobs and there are various programs to try to attract foreign investment including the establishment of converting parks. To date this has been of limited success: the current global economic situation is not conducive to large scale investment by foreign companies who are under pressure in their home markets and even simplified and ‘business friendly’ policies can be bureaucratic and time consuming. But even if that was to change the establishment of a few large foreign-owned converters will not create the number of jobs that are required. Large manufacturing companies situate their plants where there are cost advantages and they further improve their competitiveness by continuously optimizing operations, including having highly automated plants. Red tape, high labour costs and structural inefficiencies are not always offset by low utility costs, cheap raw materials and a convenient location central to global markets. There is another way to develop a local manufacturing industry, one that is less reliant on attracting foreign investors and better suited to created jobs: the establishment of locally owned medium sized manufacturing companies. The backbone of the German economy are the ‘Mittelstand’ companies, private or family owned companies with 20 to 200 employees responsible for around 70%

of jobs and strongly focused on specialized products for export markets. Italy, the second largest plastics converting industry in Europe (after Germany), also has a large and robust medium sized company sector – that is companies with a turnover of up to $66 million per year. In the Middle East the largest plastics converting industry is found in Turkey (with almost 7 million tons of polymer processed per year it would rank in third place in Europe). More than 98% of the 6000 plastic converters in Turkey are classified as small or medium sized enterprises and they create 250 000 jobs and contribute $8 billion to the economy. Turkey is fortunate to have a large domestic market for its converted plastic, around 4.7 million tons of plastic per year, but this is perhaps a consequence of a robust industry rather than the reason for its existence. Promoting a locally owned plastics converting SME sector in the Middle East could be a significant engine for job creation with local ownership. There is a risk that small local companies could be inefficient, especially if everyone tries to produce the same products, but competition and an export focus, can help the best converters to be truly world class. Perhaps from an investment promotion perspective SME companies are not as attractive as getting General Motors to invest in an assembly plant, but it could lead to the establishment of an Arabian ‘Scuderia Ferrari’!

Dr Niall Marshall was formerly based in Johannesburg where he worked with Sasol and Ciba. He subsequently moved to Bahrain in the Middle East and joined Everspring Middle East, one of the largest manufacturers of polymer stabilisers, and X-ponent Three, which supplies a complementary range of additives and pigments and provides technical and business consulting services

where quality is action

A-PET

ORGANISATIONAL HEALTH

Gaining the advantage LEADERSHIPWORKS INTERVIEW WITH PATRICK LENCIONI, BEST-SELLING AUTHOR OF THE 5 DYSFUNCTIONS OF A TEAM AND THE ADVANTAGE OFTEN companies tend to focus on being smarter rather than healthier. They look to technology, finance, marketing and other disciplines to define their success. But these are no longer meaningful differentiators – organisational health is the last remaining and mostly untapped source of competitive advantage available to companies today. What’s more, it’s simple, reliable and virtually free. Patrick Lencioni is the author of 10 business books including the new release, The Advantage: Why Organisational Health Trumps Everything Else in Business, and the international best-seller, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team. He is founder and president of The Table Group, a management consulting firm focused on organisational health. In the first of a six part series, LeadershipWorks – The Table Group Partners in Southern Africa - asks Lencioni why organisational health is the cornerstone of a successful business. LeadershipWorks: In The Advantage you write about the concept of organisational health. What does a healthy organisation look like and why does this matter? Patrick Lencioni: An organisation is

LeadershipWorks: Why are some of the healthy when it minimises politics, confusion smartest companies losing to supposand dysfunction. It accomplishes this by edly humbler underdogs? ensuring that the leadership team is cohePatrick Lencioni: Smart companies often sive and is on the same page about how lose to more humble underdogs because to answer the most fundamental questions they spend their time focused on intellectual about the company. When the top team has issues, failing to realize that the greatest clarity it is able to repeatedly communicate remaining competitive advantage in busithose answers to employees everywhere ness today is about making organisations so that everybody can rally behind what the healthier. organisation is trying to achieve. Healthy orOrganisational health is often overlooked ganisations also put just enough structure in because it has that place to reinforce rare and challengthose answers ‘Organisational health is ing combination of in everything the the last remaining and being both simple and company does. mostly untapped source difficult. Because it is There is no of competitive advantage simple, many leaders better way to available to companies today’ refuse to believe that achieve profound it has the power to improvement in transform their businesses. And because an organisation than by attacking the root it is difficult, requiring real and sometimes causes of these dysfunctions, politics and painful behavioural change over a period of sources of confusion. Too many leaders time, many leaders shy away and look for are still limiting their search for advantage something more cosmetic. in largely exhausted areas like marketing, strategy and technology while there is a gold LeadershipWorks: Are you saying that mine sitting right beneath them. Instead of getting your company healthier makes it trying to become smarter, leaders need to smarter but getting it smarter won’t get shift their focus to becoming healthier, allowit healthier? Why is this? ing them to tap into the more than sufficient Patrick Lencioni: Yes, this happens to intelligence and expertise they already have. be the case. Making a company healthier contributes to it getting smarter because a healthy company is humble and functional enough to identify issues and address them. Over time, healthy organisations learn and adapt – they get smarter. Think of health as the multiplier – the multiplier of the intelligence an organisation possesses and the multiplier of the energy in the people who work there. Extremely smart organisations, on the other hand, can struggle to become healthier because people who are focused on intellectual superiority sometimes struggle to be humble, and they often downplay the importance of behavioural issues. LeadershipWorks: Can any business of any size use the disciplines you recommend? Also what can a lower level employee do to contribute to the overall health of a company?

84 OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013

FEATURE

Patrick Lencioni: Yes they can and in some ways smaller and medium sized businesses can use the principles of organisational health even better than large ones, because they can see the impact more quickly and tangibly and they are less constrained by red tape and hierarchical politics. The biggest impact on organisational health a lower level employee can make is by speaking truth upward to their leaders. This requires tact, kindness and courage. When people hold back from speaking the truth then everyone is part of the problem. They can also do their best to make their own areas healthier by implementing the key concepts â&#x20AC;&#x201C; this will lead others to take notice and ask the question â&#x20AC;&#x153;hey, what are you doing that is working so well?â&#x20AC;? LeadershipWorks: Youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re a big fan of accountability and of team members holding each other accountable. Can you expand on this more? Patrick Lencioni: Accountability is critical, especially in building a healthy team. However, many leaders, despite acting tough, balk when it comes to confronting people about issues that are causing problems. This dangerous tendency to avoid holding their people accountable, especially for behavioural issues, leads to problems. One of these is that good people leave. By contrast, in a healthy business star performers never want to leave because accountability underpins performance. The best way to improve a teamâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s peer accountability is for the leader to start holding people accountable more, and to do so in front of the rest of the team. By demonstrating that he or she is willing to do this, a leader makes it more likely that people on the team will step up and do so too. Of course, the leader has to be vulnerable enough to be held accountable by the team too. LeadershipWorks: Whatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s the ďŹ rst step any company can take to start achieving organisational health? Patrick Lencioni: The ďŹ rst step in becoming healthy is to get the leadership team together, offsite, for a couple days of focused, rigorous, honest discussion. Nothing touchyfeely, but rather a practical session around everything from how the team behaves to how it is going to succeed to what its most important priority needs to be. That ďŹ rst session will provide the momentum a team needs to lead the organisation to health. LeadershipWorks: What impact do you hope this book will have? Patrick Lencioni: I hope that this book does two things. First, I want it to enable the people who read it to achieve meaningful

and tangible improvement in their organisations, as measured on the bottom line and in the lives of the people who work there and those they serve. Additionally, I want it to provoke a real movement around organisational health, so that at some point in the future, every company will have the expectation that the only way it can put itself in a position to succeed will be to become healthy, just as no organisation would think of overlooking technology or strategy or quality.

ABOUT LEADERSHIPWORKS

LeadershipWorks is the ofďŹ cial partner for The Table Group and Patrick Lencioni content in Southern Africa. The company provides training and consulting services to leaders and their organisations to build healthy organisations and great business teams. For more information contact: Grant AshďŹ eld: tel: 011 463 4788, SMS: 082 894 4288, Email: grant@ leadershipworks.co.za

www.leadershipworks.co.za OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013 85

Build a Healthy Organisation and High Performing Teams Leadership and Organisational Consulting

r $UH \RX D OHDGHU ZKR ZDQWV WR LPSURYH WKH SHUIRUPDQFH RI \RXU WHDP" r ,V \RXU RUJDQLVDWLRQ KHDOWK\" r $UH \RXU PDQDJHUV HTXLSSHG ZLWK WKH VNLOOV DQG WRROV WR EXLOG DQG OHDG GLVFLSOLQHG WHDPV DW HYHU\ OHYHO RI \RXU RUJDQLVDWLRQ" Patrick Lencioniâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s ground breaking team workshops and organisational health consulting services are now available in Southern Africa. /HDGHUVKLS:RUNV LV WKH H[FOXVLYH SDUWQHU IRU 7KH 7DEOH *URXS DQG 3DWULFN /HQFLRQL FRQWHQW LQ $IULFD :H FDQ KHOS \RXU RUJDQLVDWLRQ DQG WHDPV WDS LQWR WKHLU IXOO SRWHQWLDO DQG FUHDWH KLJK SHUIRUPLQJ KHDOWK\ SURGXFWLYH ZRUN HQYLURQPHQWV

)LQG RXW DERXW

The Advantage 6HQLRU /HDGHUVKLS 7HDP 3URJUDPPH The Five Dysfunctions of a Team WHDPZRUN WUDLQLQJ IRU 0DQDJHUV DQG WKHLU WHDPV +RZ ZH SURYLGH RQJRLQJ WHDP DQG OHDGHU VXSSRUW

&DOO *UDQW $VKĆŹHOG

7 & ( JUDQW#OHDGHUVKLSZRUNV FR ]D

Plexiglas supports search for giant squid

Above: Joachim Jakobsen, who controls the Lula1000, and his wife Kirsten, who is in charge of the ﬁlm shoot, behind the PLEXIGLAS® viewing dome. (PHOTO: CHRISTOPH BAUER/EVONIK INDUSTRIES AG)

Above left: The Lula1000 can also move autonomously on dives. After the dive down, Joachim Jakobsen controls it from the hull of the catamaran Ada Rebikoff, the only submarine tender boat in the world. (PHOTO: CHRISTOPH BAUER/EVONIK INDUSTRIES AG)

Specially developed submersible with large Plexiglas viewing dome EVONIK Industries AG, Essen, is supporting a three-year project of the non-profit Rebikoff-Niggeler Foundation, which plans to seek out and film the legendary giant squid (Architeuthis) in its natural habitat, using a submersible constructed specifically for this purpose. A central component of the submersible ‘Lula1000’ is a large viewing dome made of Plexiglas® manufactured by

Evonik. Underwater pioneers Kirsten and Joachim Jakobsen, the driving force behind the foundation, have now begun their search for the giant squid. The 7.5-metrelong submersible is cleared to dive to a depth of 1,000 metres below sea level. At this depth, the pressure is 1,000 tons per square metre and no light penetrates the

darkness. The Plexiglas viewing dome plays a key role in the exploration of the deep sea with this manned exploration vessel. The dome, with a diameter of 1.4 metres, was manufactured and shaped in a special process by Evonik. www.evonik.com/lula-1000

Clearly a better cello thanks to polyurethane BAYER MaterialScience has developed a lightweight and transparent plastic cello, which incorporates a series of optical effects. Visitors to K 2013 will be able to see the instrument at the show in Hall 6, Stand A75. The body of the cello is made of a crystal-clear, cast aliphatic polyurethane resin prepared from two liquid, solvent-free, components from Bayer MaterialScience’s Desmodur and Desmophen product lines. Depending on the components selected, the materials can be adapted to the specific requirements in terms of hardness and flexibility. The project was jointly overseen by an international team of designers led by Ulrich Schweig, head of Teams Design’s Hamburg office.

“We were all enthralled by the dream of making the cello ‘2.0’ an interactive musical instrument,” said Schweig. “We accepted the challenge and wanted to implement it as a joint project to which each partner could contribute its own skills in such a way that they would complement one another perfectly.” “There was also the question of how the inherent beauty of string instruments could be enhanced by incorporating innovative functions,” says Mélanie Dick, innovation manager at Bayer MaterialScience’s creative centre and head of the project. A variety of LEDs and mini video projectors were installed in the cello’s body and neck by TLD Planungsgruppe, a specialist lighting and media design company.

(FIRST PUBLISHED IN PLASTICS & RUBBER WEEKLY)

86 OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013

www.bayer.com

WORLD NEWS

ExxonMobil PBE for

novelty iPad case VISTAMAXX propylene-based elastomer (PBE) from ExxonMobil Chemical, the US-based materials producer, is being used by the Taiwanese Ndevr Corporation to make a soft, child-friendly cover for Apple’s iPad tablet computer. Ndevr hoped to capture a gap in the market, with most tablet cases being produced for adult users. Its requirements were a material that would help its conceptual product become a material reality whilst meeting certain food contact regulations and provide sustainabilitiy opportunities. Vistamaxx PBE was chosen because the foaming material could make the covers pliable, tough and shock absorbent. ExxonMobil says the material can be easily moulded into irregular shapes. Indeed, eschewing the minimalist design aesthetic championed by Apple, Ndevr’s range of three cases are designed to look like stylised gremlins, sharks and crabs with integrated soft handles to make them easier for small hands to hold. Vistamaxx PBE meets various food contact compliance regulations including US FDA, EU and China, as well as voluntary standards set by industry associations such as JHOSPA. Vistamaxx PBE-based foams have passed ASTM F963, CPSIA, CE, EN71 and ROHS for toy safety standards. In addition, any scrap produced during processing can be reused and recycled. www.ndevr.com

www.exxonmobilchemical.com/

AROUND THE WORLD Clariant & Tasnee establish masterbatches JV in Saudi Arabia CLARIANT and Tasnee, one of the largest industrial conglomerates in Saudi Arabia, have signed an agreement to establish a masterbatches joint venture in Saudi Arabia. Through its 100% subsidiary Rowad National Plastic Company Ltd., Tasnee will acquire a 40% stake in Clariant’s masterbatches operations in the country, already operating under the name Clariant Masterbatches (Saudi Arabia) Ltd. The JV will keep its main focus on the Arabic peninsulas core market. www.clariant.com

Lanxess conversion at EPDM site THE largest production line for the Keltanbranded EPDM synthetic rubber at the Lanxess’ site of Sittard, Geleen, The Netherlands, has been successfully converted to the company’s innovative ACE technology. The German pioneer in synthetic rubbers development has invested roughly €12 million to convert the production line from conventional Ziegler-Natta chemistry to its innovative ACEprocess. The new line – EPT 3 – has a capacity of 95,000 tons per year. It is the world’s largest EPDM plant with an annual capacity of 180,000 tons. www.lanxess.com

Tosaf expands application technology labs in Israel TO further expand its commitment in the polymer films industry, Tosaf, a leading international manufacturer of high-quality compounds, additives and masterbatches, has completed a substantial expansion of its production simulation labs in Israel. New and enhanced state-of-the-art laboratory systems now allow a full range of basic developmental and customer-specific test runs. The versatile set of test and simulation devices includes a multilayer co-extrusion blown film line, a cast film line, a corona surface treatment system and a printing simulator. A cold chamber supports the development of advanced additives for cold climate environment. With a newly installed, modified QUV system, Tosaf is responding to increasing customer demand for results from accelerated weathering in aggressive environments. A specialized greenhouse simulation is dedicated to the accelerated testing of agricultural films exposed to UV light, high temperatures and humidity. www.tosaf.com Tosaf’s advanced production simulation facilities include a laboratory size multilayer coextrusion and blown film system Advanced analysis devices at Tosaf’s expanded production simulation and materials testing facilities include sophisticated systems to answer questions such as how compounding affects a polymer’s structure and its physical and mechanical properties

Bayer terminates nano projects BAYER MaterialScience is to bring its work on carbon nanotubes (CNTs) to a close. Precisely how the research results and know-how for the production and application CNT will be used further will be determined shortly. Researchers from Bayer had collaborated with external partners in recent years to resolve complex issues related to the safe production of speciﬁc carbon nanotubes. www.materialscience.bayer.com

Dow to sell PP licensing and plastic additive arms DOW Chemical may sell its polypropylene licensing and catalysts business unit, plus its plastics additives operation. As part of its operational review against the backdrop of a “slowgrowth world” the US group said it planned to sell off nearly $1.5bn-worth of assets in the next 18 months. Dow said that since 2009 it had sold off non-core businesses representing approximately $8bn in revenue, most recently the disposal in January of the stabilizers component of its plastics additives business

OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013 87

USEFUL INFO ON THE INTERNET

Arburg top video with over 100 000 views Top video shows injection moulding of 72 screw caps in less than three seconds WHEN it comes to YouTube, Arburg is also a successful pioneer. The company has been releasing up-to-date short films on this multimedia Internet platform since 2010, covering trade fairs, sector-specific solutions, automation and applications technology. And the success has been considerable. Both in terms of the number of films released online and the number of subscribers and views, Arburg is clearly ahead in the field of injection moulding machine manufacturing. Now, from a total of 63 videos, one has

exceeded a remarkable threshold: on 28 May 2013, the ﬁlm “Injection moulding of 72 screw caps in less than 3 seconds” became Arburg’s most watched video, with 100,885 views. In just over two minutes, it demonstrates how 72 screw caps can be produced rapidly and reliably on an Allrounder injection moulding machine featuring downstream peripherals. Existing or potential customers who watch this ﬁlm quickly and easily understand how production takes place and whether the

Practical help from BOY

Ecobuild community

A PRACTICAL smartphone application – http://app.dr-boy.de – with a design platform by BOY can be used with any mobile communication device that has internet access. In addition to a cooling time calculation, the required clamping force can also be determined. Extensive data sheets for processing, pre-drying and density of the most common plastics are listed in this free app. This app also includes BOY contacts in service, process engineering and sales. A tap on the desired name and the smartphone automatically calls the person. When material data needs to be reviewed or cooling times need to be calculated on a machine, the information can be retrieved fast. An overview of the BOY product range with the most important technical data, a short company proﬁle, a location map and a link to the detailed BOY website complete the app.

HERE is a South African website you should take note of! Ecobuild is more than just a website. It is a community of people working towards an eco-friendly and sustainable built environment – with buildings that are designed, constructed and operated to mimimise the impact on human health, safety and the environment. Ecobuild set out in 2012 with the aim of bringing professionals in the sustainable building industry to one platform to communicate with each other about their common ‘green’ goals. Not only is this the place to be for these professionals, but ecobuild has become more than just a website for industry leaders, learners, teachers and end-users within the sustainable building sector in SA; it has become a community. Ecobuild offers breaking news, technical articles, guidelines and information about the National Building Regulations and related standards as well as exciting interactive features written around various ‘green’ topics. So whether you’re a professional in the building industry, or the end user looking for a sustainable solution, the ecobuild community is a place to learn and teach.

www.dr-boy.de

SAVA on Youtube! SAVA has recently released its ﬁrst video, which is also available on Youtube! The video provides the viewer with a short summary of the SAVA product stewardship journey. http://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=ztH9ovsMYs8

www.ecobuildonline.co.za 88 OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013

solution shown could also answer to their requirements. Anyone wishing to view Arburg’s top ﬁlms can simply enter “ARBURGofﬁcial” on www.youtube.com for immediate access to the company’s own channel. Here, 63 videos are currently available for viewing. www.arburg.com

PLASTIKCITY LAUNCHES WITH R ONLINE SUPPLIERS OFFE THE MD of Negri Bossi UK has launched an online ‘one-stop shop’ for people looking to source products and services in the plastics sector. Carl Futcher said he had worked on the development of PlastikCity for the last 18 months, with a view to it becoming a comprehensive website covering machinery, ancillaries, materials, moulds and skilled services. Explaining how the site worked Futcher said visitors selected a product and completed an online form which then led to what he called a ‘bespoke proposal’ from up to three chosen suppliers, whom a customer could assess through write-ups, comments and veriﬁed testimonials. Requests would then be processed by potential suppliers who were only allowed to contact a lead by email; no sales canvassing by suppliers was allowed. UK suppliers that had already partnered up with PlastikCity included Summit Systems, Piovan, Tool Temp, IsoCool, Jenco, Magog, TWS and TAV, he added. www.plastikcity.co.uk

BASF automotive lightweighting solutions at Composites Europe Automotive lightweighting with thermoplastic composites: First Ultracom prototypes

DIARY

This seatback, manufactured by Johnson Controls, is one of the first, externally manufactured prototypes resulting from BASF’s new Ultracom™ product and service package. The new materials employed here include Ultralaminate™ and the overmoulding compound Ultramid® ZG7 COM. The computer-assisted component design using the universal Ultrasim® simulation tool is also a unit of the three-fold package. The CIFO part (lower figure) made on the new production-scale manufacturing cell at BASF is a test component for continuous fibre-reinforced composite parts based on laminates, tapes and overmoulding compounds. It incorporates over 20 individual functionalities

BASF presented its thermosetting materials at Composites Europe in Stuttgart in September as well as its new thermoplastic composites with continuous fibre reinforcement developed specifically for lightweight applications for the automotive industry. Following the introduction of its new Ultracom™ product and service concept in June, BASF was able to present the first prototype composite part demonstrating this service package at the Composites Europe fair: the seatback developed for automobile rear seats by Johnson Controls Automotive Seating with BASF is based on Ultralaminate™, one of the new continuous fibrereinforced thermoplastic woven fabrics that is overmoulded with Ultramid® ZG7 COM, a specially formulated, high-impact modified polyamide 6. During development, the extensive simulation knowhow of BASF was provided as part of the Ultracom package. Compared to the current metal version, the complex composite part provides weight savings of more than 30%. The new CIFO part, its name being derived from Combination of Inmould-Forming and Overmoulding, was developed by BASF to fully exploit all possibilities of composite part design with Ultracom in its new manufacturing cell. www.basf.com 90 OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013

Label Indaba draws THE first African Label Indaba, held in Johannesburg in August, attracted a lively audience of over 130 delegates. Organised by VDS Media, the 2-day workshop/conference at the Radisson Blu Gautrain in Sandton was sponsored by Paragon Inks, UPM Raflatac, Fima, and Afripack. A workshop was conducted on the first day of the event, which in itself was useful for all involved in labelling. The technical side of show on day 2 kicked off with an overview of the South African label market by Gareth Pearson of BMI Research. He hinted that, even though the label sector here is highly developed

in the African context, there are deﬁnitely areas where improvement is possible, and necessary. Besides that, the programme covered virtually all stops of the label process, from roll stock production to printing and the use of UV inks and coatings. An important presentation on labelling and product liability by Janusz Luterek of Hahn & Hahn Inc reminded delegates of the responsibilities involved. Steve Baker of L’Oreal gave a brand owner’s perspective in his presentation, which may have been of most interest to delegates. www.vdsmedia.co.za

COMING UP PROPAK CAPE 2014 AFTER a highly successful Propak Africa, Specialised Exhibitions is proud to bring you Propak Cape; the highly successful regional event taking place in the Western Cape from 21-23 October 2014, at the Cape Town International Convention Centre. This trade exhibition, together with co-located shows, offers an excellent opportunity for exhibitors: to generate sales, gain valuable sales leads and develop business connections. Although the basic function of packaging is to preserve and protect the pack contents, packaging, particularly in the retail market, has become a fascinating marketing tool that is used to promote and sell products. Visitors will be able to see hot new trends in the area of packaging with a focus on design, extended shelf-life technologies and environment-sensitive advancements. www.propakcape.co.za

AUTO SURFACES ADVANCES EUROPEAN Plastics News will present a major global conference of the latest developments in automotive surfaces in the automotive industry from 26-27 November in the Concorde Hotel, Berlin, Germany. The Automotive Surfaces Conference will present new innovations by the automotive and plastics industries both in creating new interior decoration as well as integrating functionality into surfaces using the in-mould decoration process. Ideas regarding the car of the future will be presented on both days. www.decorativeautomotiveplastics.com

PLASTIVISION INDIA THE 9th edition of Plastivision India will be held in Mumbai from 12-16 December. Organised by the All India Plastics Manufacturers’ Association (AIPMA), the event is held in Mumbai every three years. Over the years, Plastivision India has become a flagship event in India and is on the calendar of plastics industry worldwide. It is India’s second largest plastics show after PlastIndia. Plastivision India 2013 will be the biggest in the series so far. Over 1500 companies from India and 30 other countries are expected to exhibit in an area spanning nearly 70,000m² with an estimated 100,000 businessmen and other key stakeholders awaited. www.aipma.net / www.plastivision.org

ANTEC DUBAI THE Society of Plastics Engineers is to hold its first technical conference for the plastics industry in the Middle East. About 75 world renowned speakers, covering topics on global business, current and future plastics technology enhancements, will participate at ANTEC Dubai will on 21/22 of January 2014. In a year without an ArabPlast event taking place, ANTEC Dubai 2014 offers prime exposure and a route into this thriving marketplace. The show will be held at the JW Marriott Marquis Hotel in Dubai, UAE. www.antecdubai.org

good turnout Amanda Jones of Paragon Inks, who spoke about UV inks and coatings, and Ran Landau of HP Graphic Solutions Business

Vijay Gramoney; Erich Kuhl, executive secretary of the Flexographic Technical Association (FTASA); Patrick Munyembate of FIMA, who was MC at the Indaba; and Shaun Rootman of label manufacturer UPM Raﬂatac, an international labels supplier which operates a plant in Johannesburg

Uwe Bögl of Rako Labels, who gave a presentation about innovations in PSA and shrink sleeve labels, and delegate Mark Liptrot of Afripack group, a major user of labels

DIARY

WORLD PULTRUSION EVENT IN MARCH

EUROPEAN THERMOFORMING CONFERENCE

THE 12th World Pultrusion Conference, organised by the European Pultrusion Technology Association (EPTA) is to take place in Lisbon, Portugal, on 6-7 March. Interested specialists in this unusual but increasingly popular process are invited to submit papers on pultruded reinforced plastics for the conference. Write to info@pultruders.com / www.pultruders.com

THE ninth biennial European Thermoforming Conference is to take place in Prague, Czech Republic, on 3-4 April. With the topic ‘Forming a Sustainable Future,’ the event has been organised to bring together all of Europe’s leading manufacturers and representatives from allied industries to discuss technical advances and hear the views of internationally renowned experts in the field. www.e-t-d.org

91 OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013

Plastic Electronics

First integrated printed electronic system with rewritable memory – Thin Film Electronics ASA of Norway has developed a prototype of an integrated printed electronic ﬁlm which offers tag-based rewritable memory. The printed electronic label, consisting of printed memory, sensor and logic, detects that critical temperature thresholds have been exceeded and records data digitally for later retrieval and display

THE real promise for the future of plastic electronics is expected to stem from solution-based printed devices, applications and products on ﬂexible substrates. This was the focus of the Plastic Electronics show in Dresden, Germany, from 8-10 October. Considerable progress has been made over the last 12 months in the areas of energy ‘harvesting’ applications and integrated systems on foil for packaging and FMCG (fast moving consumer goods). Companies such as Heliatek of Germany are close to

www.thinﬁlm.no

reaching efficiencies, allowing for commercial use of thick film photo voltaic films and products. Yet another example of progress in the commercialization of plastic electronics is the Norwegian firm Thin Film Electronics ASA, which was able to develop printed R2R memory and logic to be used for brand protection and product identification in FMCG applications. More progress is expected to become visible this year in thick film based printed sensors, printed batteries, smart labels and other integrated devices www.plastic-electronics.org

DIARY

EVENTS Tubotech 2013

1-3 October

Sao Paulo, Brazil

wynhoffU@messe-duesseldorf.de

SPE TPO Auto Eng Polyoleﬁns Conf

6-9 October

Troy Marriott, Detroit, USA

www.4spe.org

Plastic Electronics

8-10 October

Dresden, Germany

www.plastic-electronics.org

MOTEK 2013

7-10 October

Stuttgart, Germany

www.deprag.com

PE2013 Exhibition & Conference

8-10 October

Messe Dresden, Germany

www.plastic-electronics.org

Thermoplastic Elastomers 2013

15-16 October

Düsseldorf, Germany

www.tpe-conference.com

K2013

16-23 October

Düsseldorf, Germany

www.konline.de

Luxe Pack Monaco

23-25 October

Grimaldi Forum, Monaco

info@idice.fr

RAPDASA 2013

30 Oct - 01 Nov

SANParks Golden Gate Hotel

www.rapdasa.org

Plastics Caps & Closures

4-5 November

Hotel le Negresco, Nice, France

www.plasticscapsandclosures.com

Global Plastics Summit

4-6 November

Hyatt Regency Hotel Chicago, USA

www.GlobalPlasticsSummit.com

Chem Expo Africa

6-7 November

Sandton Convention Centre, Jhb

www.chemexpoafrica.com

Petrochemical Seminar

15 November

Cartagena, Colombia

www.polyoleﬁnsconsulting.com

PDA Europe

18-20 November

Atahotel Villa Pamphili, Rome

www.pda-europe.org

Tyre Rubber Recycling

19-20 November

Brussels, Belgium

www.tirerubberrecycling.com

Polymer Foam 2013

19-21 November

Marriott Hotel, Hamburg, Germany

www.amiplastics.com/events

(Yiwu) International Exhibition

19-22 November

Yiwu City, Zhejiang Province, China

www.yiwuppp.com

COMPAMED 2013

20-22 November

Düsseldorf, Germany

www.compamed.de

Automotive Surfaces Conference

26-27 November

Berlin, Germany

www.decorativeautomotiveplastics.com

Thin Wall Packagking

3-5 December

Maritim Hotel, Cologne, Germany

www.amiplastics.com

Wind Turbine Blade Manufacture

3-5 December

Maritim Hotel, Dusseldorf, Germany

www.amiplastics.com/events

EuroMold 2013

3-6 December

Exhibition Centre, Frankfurt, Germany

www.euromold.com

Plastvision India

12-16 December

Mumbai, India

www.plastvision.org

IndiaMold 2013

12-16 December

Bombay Exhibition Centre, Mumbai

www.euromold.com

ANTEC Dubai 2014

21-22 January

Marriott Marquis Hotel Dubai, UAE

www.antecdubai.org

Tyrexpo Africa

4-6 March

Sandton Convention Centre, Jhb

www.eci-international.com

World Pultrusion Conference

6-7 March

Lisbon, Portugal

www.pultruders.com

Propak East Africa

1-3 April

Kenyatta Int’l Conference Centre, Nairobi

www.propakeastafrica.com

European Thermoforming Conf

3-4 April

Prague, Czech Rep

www.e-t-d.org

Tube & Wire Trade Fair

7-11 April

Dusseldorf, Germany

www.tube.de

Chinaplas 2014

23-26 April

Shanghai New International Expo Centre

www.ChinaplasOnline.com

Interpack 2014

8-14 May

Düsseldorf, Germany

www.interpack.com

CeMAT 2014

19-23 May

Hannover, Germany

www.CeMAT.com

AfriMold 2014

3-4 June

Sandton Convention Centre, Johannesburg

www.afrimold.co.za

PPS30

8-12 June

Cleveland, Ohio, USA

www.pps30.com

Propak West Africa 2014

2-4 September

Eko Hotel & Suites, Lagos, Nigeria

www.propakwestafrica.com

Propak Cape 2014

21-23 October

Cape Town Int’l Convention Centre

www.propakcape.co.za

2014

92 OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013

BOOKS

Useful and multilayered DUE to their considerable importance in the plastics industry for the most diverse industrial branches and the wide variety of possible applications, market analysts at Ceresana expect global demand for plastic films to increase to approximately 71 million tons until 2020. The strategic focus of this study is on flexible films that are used for application areas such as the packaging sector. This includes films used for foodstuffs, but also films for nonfood applications, for example the packaging of textiles, stationary, and industrial goods. Additional analyses are provided of the application areas bags, sacks and shrink/ stretch films. Besides packaging, films are also important in agriculture as well as other applications such as construction. There are distinct regional differences in demand

development for plastic films. A notable discrepancy between saturated industrial markets and emerging countries with dynamic development in Asia-Pacific, South America, the Middle East or parts of Eastern Europe exists. An enormous growth potential is offered by China and India, which account for about a third of the global plastic films market when taken together. Divergent development can also be observed in regard to the material the films are made of. Films based on polyethylene (LDPE, LLDPE, HDPE) accounted for 73% and thus by far largest share of the plastic films market. However, BOPP (biaxially oriented polypropylene) and PET films have been gaining market shares due to their being used for high-quality packaging and are developing at high growth rates.

www.ceresana.com/en/Market-Studies/Industry/Plastic-Films-World

Update on carbon fibre SONGWON Industrial Group has completed its first Sustainability Report. The organizational report gives information about economic, environmental, social and governance performance and is part of a systematic sustainability reporting initiative that gives comparable data, with agreed disclosures and metrics. The report covers all Songwon majority owned manufacturing and business entities. A key sustainable feature of operations is the organisation’s proprietary technology and being fully back-integrated in combination with recycling waste, reducing its water usage and eliminating transport and packaging from outside suppliers. The report fully complies with the stringent guidelines of GRI (Global Reporting Initiative), a non-profit organization that promotes economic, environmental and social sustainability. www.songwon.com

SMITHERS Rapra Publishing has released the latest Update which brings together available information on the production, properties, application and future of carbon fibres. This Update will be of interest to those involved in the investigation of carbon fibre, carbon-fibre manufacturers, and users of carbon fibres. A further objective is to review the status of carbon fibrereinforced polymer (CFRP) recycling operations, focusing on state-of-the-art fibre reclamation and re-manufacturing processes, as well as the commercialisation and potential applications of recycled products. This Update will also be of interest to those involved in the recycling of CFRP and manufacturing of composites from recycled CFRP. Students engaged in the fields of chemistry, material science and polymer science will also find this Update very useful. www.polymer-books.com

Engineering plastics still on the rise FOR several years now engineering plastics have been generating higher growth rates than standard plastics. Given their physical and chemical properties, many industrial, electrical, and electronic parts as well as everyday products are made from engineering plastics by now. Faced with an increasing demand for ever more efﬁcient and lighter materials, this trend will continue to gather momentum. The market research institute Ceresana expects global market value of engineering plastics to increase to approx. US$ billion in 2020. Ceresana has comprehensively analyzed the market for engineering plastics as a whole as well as in re94

gard to individual products (ABS, PC, PA, PMMA, POM, PBT, SAN, ﬂuoropolymers). The study offers data on demand, revenues, production, and trade for the entire market as well as on demand for and revenues generated with individual products. For the ﬁrst time, this report covers all relevant data and facts regarding the market. With the processed information, producers, processors, and traders as well as all other market participants obtain the basis for their strategic and operational planning. www.ceresana.com/en/market-studies/ plastics/engineering-plastics/

#,!33)&)%$ !$6%243 Advertisers: Oct / Nov 2013 ACD RotoFlo 31 Alpha Plast 40 Associated Additives 44 BASF 11 Cabletech Marketing OBC Carlin Medical 13 Carst & Walker 17 DemaPlastech 67 DESMA 54 DH Polymers 48 Extrupet 25 Fukutomi 48 Gator Products 47 Haitian Huayuan 71 Hestico 55 Hosaf 83 Jenowill 49 Karbochem 61 LeadershipWorks 85 Leister Technologies 40 Lomotek 34 Luigi Bandera 45 Masterbatch SA 69 MBT 35 MGMW Trading 19 Miracle Mould 56, 57 Mould Base SA 05, 91 NG Engineering 47 Orion Engineered Carbons 15 Paradigm Containers 08 Performance Colour Systems 65 Perspex 46 PETCO 42 Pioneer Plastics 35 Plastamid 79 PlastiChem IFC Plasti-Weld 12 Plastomark 89 Polysaf 76 Progetto International 55 Protea Polymers IBC Rawmac 16 Relloy 73 REPI S.p.A. 01 SABIC 41 Safripol 18 Safrique International 26 SAPY Colours 74 Sasol Polymers 93 SAVA 45 SES 59 Sun Ace 03, 43 Trioplastics 21 Welltec 64 West African Group 27

For Sale 2000kg POM Plastic granulated black for R6/kilo or nearest Contact: Johan van Zyl Tel: 012 668 1413 or Cell: 082 460 9669

SAVE 90% of your electricity use with GN! GN (Canada): machines for reduced waste and reduced energy; Thermoforming Moulds for GN and other thermoformers EXTRUSION TECHNOLOGY FROM AGRIPAK OF ITALY Mono & multi-layer extrusion lines for the production of:

New extruder for sale Screw L/D: 38.55/1, screw diameter 100mm 45KW Siemens motor with Siemens 440 Micromaster VSD

‘Cartonplast’ (twinwall/hollow proﬁle sheet); Multilayer sheet for packaging; Semi-foamed sheet for thermoforming MATERIALS FOR THERMOFORMED PACKAGING NEW: Octal DPET/PE laminated sheet for FFS packaging lines OPS, PP, PET sheet for general packaging; PP/EVOH/PP for high barrier containers

Max speed: 50 RPM. Price: POR Contact: Steven on 072 496 8363 steven@convertacor.co.za

COMPOUNDING CAPACITY AVAILABLE We can compound mineral powders into PP or PE Please call Alon on 021 521 2400

GREENLAND OILS Michael Engels 072 125 4323

We Buy and Sell Plastic Pallets 083 756 6897 www.premierpallets.co.za

THERMOFORMING TECHNOLOGY

Tel: (011) 903-8084 Fax: (086) 665-4323 email: mengels1@ telkomsa.net PO Box 1220 Walkerville 1876

Reinette Jordan Email: reinette@jcl.co.za

SUBSCRIBE TO SA PLASTICS, COMPOSITES & RUBBER SA Plastics, Composites & Rubber is published six times a year and is available to people involved in the plastics and polymer industry in South Africa on a subscription basis at a cost of R250 a year. It is available in other countries in Southern Africa at a subscription cost of ZAR500 per year. International subscription, supplied by airmail, is ZAR700. If you’d like to subscribe, email your details to saplastics@iafrica.com or visit our website at www.saplastics.co.za

To place a classiﬁed advert please Fax: 086 519 6089 or Tel: 021 712 1408 or E-mail: saplastics@iafrica.com www.saplastics.co.za

OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013

Stretchy as rubber but also light and springy

BASF presents ‘Inﬁnergy’, the world’s ﬁrst expanded thermoplastic polyurethane (ETPU). This closed-cell particle foam shows an excellent resilience and an especially high durability over a wide temperature range. (PHOTO: BASF/ADIDAS)

SPORTS

BASF develops the first expanded TPU THE world’s first expanded thermoplastic polyurethane (E-TPU) has been released by BASF as Infinergy™. The first product making use of this entirely new, closed-cell particle foam went on the market recently: the new ‘Energy Boost’ running shoe from Adidas, which the sportswear manufacturer has developed in close partnership with BASF. This means that BASF is now able to boast a broad portfolio of particle foams, from rigid foam (EPS) to soft and stretchy foam plastic (E-TPU). To produce Infinergy, the well-established BASF thermoplastic polyurethane (Elastollan®) is expanded at the Ludwigshafen headquarters, using an innovative procedure. In the process the benefits of thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) are retained, but to these are added the typical properties of foams. Being a particle foam, Infinergy has a low bulk weight, with a density of about 110kg per cubic metre, and, after process-

ing on standard moulding machines, a moulded part weight of between 200 and 320kg per cubic meter. That puts the new foam somewhere between expanded polystyrene (EPS) or polypropylene (EPP), which are generally lighter, and the heavier elastomeric polyurethane foams. Thanks to its closed-cell structure, Inﬁnergy also absorbs little water, less than 2% by volume in 24 hours. Like the TPU on which it is based, it is also characterized by very high breaking elongation (between 100% and 150% depending on the density), tensile strength (approx. 600 kilopascals) and abrasion resistance, combined with good chemical resistance. The outstanding running characteristics of the new Energy Boost running shoes are due mainly to the combination of softness and high elasticity in the midsole. During the materials testing in the adidas laboratory, the forces and deformation that occur during running were simulated

on test machines in order to calculate the wear and the energy return. To guarantee maximum performance in all seasons and all climate zones, the shoes were tested across a temperature range from -20 to +40°C. Tests showed the BOOST technology to be superior in many ways when compared with the ethylene-vinyl acetate (EVA) cushioning systems that are predominantly used in the industry. No other midsole on the market generate more rebound (energy return). Compared with EVA, BOOST shows three times better temperature resistance in its deformation behaviour – less hardening in the cold and less softening at high temperatures. Its durability under cyclical dynamic loading is also signiﬁcantly better than with EVA cushioning systems.

www.inﬁnergy.basf.com

Keeping personal water crafts afloat THANKS to the use of the particle foam E-por®, Yamaha Motor WaveRunners fulfill the requirements on lightweight and buoyancy according to ISO 13590. BASF’s E-por is installed in the front and side spaces of the body of the VX700S model where it ensures the buoyancy of the PWC (personal water craft) due to its low density. The VX700S with a vessel’s body weight of 240kg is the lightest threeseater PWC model ever built. Despite making up a large proportion of the total volume, the E-por parts account for only 3.3kg of the total weight. E-por can also be easily processed, like EPS, into the desired density and shape so that the moulded parts can be inserted optimally into the casing. The BASF interpolymer offers an interesting alternative to other foams, and E-por impresses because of its good property profile. In particular, the minimal water absorption, its crack-resistance and also the good chemical resistance of the BASF particle foam played a crucial role in the selection process. www.basf.com 96 OCTOBER / NOVEMBER 2013

www.E-por.de

The Protea Polymers Team offers innovative solutions to the plastics industry with the backing of world class products and industry professionals.

Touching lives everyday

â&#x20AC;&#x153;more than just a chemical supplierâ&#x20AC;?

Johannesburg: +27 (0) 11 842 3600 Durban: +27 (0) 31 450 5777 Port Elizabeth: +27 (0) 41 401 5500 Cape Town: +27 (0) 21 550 8232 www.proteachemicals.co.za

Fax: +27 (0) 11 842-3700

Having the right equipment is everything

Injection moulding

Extrusion

Granulation Systems

Jingmi Ancillaryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s

Pulverisers

Extrusion Laboratory Equipment

Gravimetric Systems

Mixing & Blending

Huayan Blow Moulding

Pelletising Systems

PET Systems

Barrel & Screws

Purging Compound

Cabletech gives you the competitive edge For further information contact: Pierre Jurgens: +27 (0) 83 276 1978 10 Staal Street Kya Sands Randburg

TEL: +27 (0) 11 704 0824

FAX: +27 (0) 11 462 2108

:(3,: :,9=0*, :<7769; :<**,:: :05*, E-MAIL: info@cabletech.co.za

WEBSITE: www.cabletech.co.za