PN May 2015 Issue

SAY YES TO PLASTICS Volume No. 90

PRN: - MCN/200/2015-2017

Issue No. 05

Pages 64

May 2015

Rs. 75.00

Plastics News • May 2015 •

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3968 8000 (30 Lines)

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2015 • Plastics Plastics News News 3 • May 2015 • February

PVC ADDITIVES

ACRYLIC IMPACT MODIFIER & PROCESSING AIDS FOR PVC INDUSTRY

First time in India

Core-shell molecular technology

Pressure Nozzle Spray drying for Narrow Particle size distribution & minimal dust

Acrylic Impact Modifier

Core-shell technology : Rubbery core and grafted shell for excellent impact strength, weather resistant, dimensional stability and surface gloss.

Acrylic Processing Aids

Acrylate Co-Polymer for obtaining perfect fusion under lowest temperature : Execellent mechanical properties, colour homogeneity, transparency, lubricancy depending upon the grade.

Foam Regulator

High Molecular weight processing aid that works as foam regulators : Promotes fusion, controls bubble amalgamation for even foaming, increases melt strength.

Automated Spray Dryer (48mtr. tall)

Green Trek

Reach compliant

An Indian-Italian

joint venture with

ICAP SIRA, Italy

ISO 9001:2008 & 14001:2004

Manufactured by : Haryana Leather Chemicals Ltd. 72-77, HSIIDC Industrial Estate, Hansi Road, Jind - 126102, India Ph +91 9313975981 | Email : hstripathi@leatherchem.com | www.haryanachem.com

Plastics News • May 2015 •

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Contents

Plastics News MCN/200/2015-2017 Volume 89

May 2015 No. 5

Hon. Editor Mr. Ajay Desai

I

13...... AIPMA At Work Milan Plast 2015

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

Update on the Ngt Case

19...... Interview

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

Annual Subscription Single issue

IS H T N

I

Chairman - Editorial Board Mr. Rituraj Gupta

. . .

E SSU

Rs. 1,000/Rs. 75/-

21...... Company News 25...... Features The Indian sub-continent: the world’s fastest growing regional polymer market Micro Irrigation – Untapped Potential Categories for Irrigation Learning, networking and knowledge sharing CHINAPLAS to hold over 50 sessions of technical seminar for buyers Study suggests infants at lower risk from BPA exposure than expected Top Plastic Injection Molding Trends for 2015 European injection moulding industry recovering Choosing the Right Injection Mold Tooling Material

Views/Reports/Extracts etc. published in Plastics News are those of the authors and not necessarily of the Editor. Furthermore except for copies of formal AIPMA communications no other matter in this journal should be interpreted as views of The All India Plastics Mfgrs. Association.

The Black Money

Office Bearers Mr. Rituraj Gupta Mr. R. K. Aggarwal Mr. Meela Jayadev Mr. Sanju Desai Mr. Ashok Agarwal Mr. Haren Sanghavi Mr. Manoj R. Shah Mr. Jagat Killawala

52...... Product News

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

38...... International News 48...... Business News 56...... Technology 58...... In the News

5 • May 2015 • Plastics News

Plastics News •• April May 2015 6 Plastics News 2015 •• 12

Plastics News • April 2015 • 4

7 • May 2015 • Plastics News

Front grill

Instrument panel

Bumpers

EOAT Designer

 Packaging Industries

Developer

 Electronics Industries

Assembler

 Sheet metal Industries  Glass Industries

Installer Sprue cutter

 Automotive Industries

 Solar Panel handling etc..

Quick changer

Runner/ Sprue picker

Angular/Finger gripper

Contact : +91-9825040231

Neejtech India 305, Swagat Building, C.G.Road Ahmedabad-380009, India Phone: +91-79-26561312 E-mail: info@neejtech.com Web: www.neejtech.com / www.gimaticindia.com

Plastics News • May 2015 •

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THE PRESIDENT SAYS

All the way to China (PLAS) Moderate and uneven global recovery is emerging,

A

the robust performance of

with economies being effected by currency

manufacturing and mining

fluctuations and commodity prices. However,

sectors and backed by a

global growth prospects are uneven across major

favourable base effect. The

economies. Growth in US is projected to rise on the

flurry of reform initiatives

back of oil prices.

taken by the government

Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to China has

has been duly supported

yielded $22 billion worth of MoU's showing China Inc.'s strong interest in the Indian story. The MoU's which span a wide range of industries including renewable energy, power infrastructure, and steel and small &

by the monetary easing stance of the RBI. Hope this decision of the banks to transmit the rate cut across sectors, would bring the investment momentum back

medium industries will enhance Chinese companies'

to the economy.

commitment to 'Make in India', As is known, the PM

We have already forwarded our suggestion on the

has signed 26 deals worth US $22 billion.

Plastic Waste management Rules - 2015 to the

In China, the GDP growth has declined from the

Ministry of Environment & Forest-Government of

past three decades’ average rate of nearly 10 per

India and hope it would be considered in the larger

cent. The Chinese economy is passing through an

interest of the Industry.

interesting period lately, with their President laying

I am of the opinion that our industry is definitely

emphasis on moving the economy towards ‘new

poised to grow and with the Prime Ministers of the

normal’ rate of growth. New normal basically refers

likes of Narendra Modi at the helm, we are moving

to a phase of growth where the stress is less on the

in the right direction.

rate of growth and is more on its quality. China is not only the world’s largest exporter of goods; it is also the second largest importer of goods. India thus might also see its exports of minerals and raw cotton to China taking a hit.

In India the industrial production clocked 5.0 per

The ChinaPlas 2015 is scheduled this month and we, at AIPMA, are all prepared to make this event a great success. Let's meet at ChinaPlas.

Rituraj Gupta

president@aipma.net

cent in February 2015, highest since November 2014 and the January 2015. We welcome this sharp bounce back of industrial output in February 2015, after a long period of sluggish growth, followed by

9 • May 2015 • Plastics News

Plastics News • May 2015 • 10

FROM THE EDITOR's PEN

The 'Accommodating' Plastics

P

lastics have been well known for its use since ages.

This time I would like to bring out to your notice two instances (New Appliation and a study) where in it is very evident that Plastics are one of the best alternate materials for practically all functional purposes and are quite safe and hygienic as well.

Plastic (Bottles) for Roof Tiles Plastics have been well known for its utility value since ages. A recent development in US has perhaps seems to be a bit innovative for, one can now have plastic bottles recycled for roof tiles (for housing). Thomson, President of a company called Center for Regenerative Design & Collaboration (CRDC), is rolling out a roof building system that relies on recycled Agua Costa Rica brand water bottles he developed at a small village of Pochote in Costa Rica in Central America The move was to develop a way to use recycled, specially designed water bottles instead of traditional roofing materials. Interestingly inspiration hit Thomson in 2011 while he was on a beach cleanup with two children at Pochote in Costa Rica The design is such that a panel of these bottles-turnedroofing tiles can be attached directly to rafters, eliminating the need for a roofing substrate at the right pitch. To make it happen empty bottles are compacted slightly with a special device to create a shape that can then be filled with a mixture of recycled paper, foam and cement to provide stability and strength. Those bottles are mounted on rails and weaved together with strings to provide hurricaneforce roof protection.

Also using recycled paper to help fill the bottle roofing tiles also allows the container to serve as a carbon sink because the paper will not decompose and one gets raw material back for almost zero cost.

I think, that’s a really great business model and one needs to appreciate it. Hopefully we are able to work on such innovation in this part of the world wherein we are focusing on affordable housing.

BPA safe for Infants A new study shows that newborn babies may have less risk from bisphenol A exposure than originally thought. The study also suggests that efforts to protect infants from BPA exposure by banning it from baby bottles and sippy cups may not actually be protecting them from it.

For the study, Nachman and the team collected urine samples from 44 full-term babies, once between three and six days of age and again between seven and 27 days of age, in search of both free BPA and BPA glucuronide.

The researchers found no free BPA in the urine samples.

They found no difference between BPA glucuronide levels in infants who were formula-fed and those who were breastfed.

Of the 44 healthy newborns studied between December 2012 and August 2013, 51 percent were fed formula exclusively, 28 percent were only fed breast milk and 21 percent consumed a combination of the two. Studies have shown that powdered baby formula contains no BPA, while breast milk does.

This is the first BPA study involving infants, though the assumption has been that infants would be particularly vulnerable to BPA exposure because their immature livers would have a hard time processing it. While the European Food Safety Authority and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration have repeatedly concluded that BPA is safe at its current levels in our foods it is still banned in some places.. is it justified?

Hon.Editor Ajay Desai

11 • May 2015 • Plastics News

Plastics News • May 2015 • 12

43 • April 2015 • Plastics News

Aipma at work

T

he Trade show Plast 2015 was held during 05 – 09, May 2015 at Milan, Italy and AIPMA had its official delegation for the trade show. The AIPMA delegates included Mr. Rituraj Gupta, President AIPMA, Mr. Raju Desai – Chairman NAB, Mr. Kailash Murarka – Chairman, PVI 2017, Mr. Arvind Mehta – Chairman Governing Council, Mr. R. K. Aggarwal – V.P. (North Zone), Mr. Meela Jayadev – V.P. (South Zone), Mr. Bipin Desai -Managing Committee member, Mr. Sunil Shah – Managing Committee member, Mr. Kishore Sampat – Chairman Job and Career Fair.

The exhibition was spread in 6 Halls with measuring gross area of 90,000 sq. meters.and around 1500 exhibitors.

This exhibition was attended by 50,000 visitors.

The Team AIPMA was lead by Mr. Raju Desai and it had a very good meeting with Mr. Thorsten Kuhmann, Secretary General, EUROMAP, C/o. VDMA, FV KuG, Lyoner Street. 18, DE 60528 Frankfurt and Ms. Lilli Rudrick from VDMA in the presence of Mr. Mario Maggiani. They have raised some queries pertaining to their participation in Plastivision Mumbai and Plastivision Delhi. We hope to reply them at the earliest possible.

Also team Plastivision India Mr. Bharat Vyas and Ms. Sanjeevani Kothare had a fruitful and positive response from exhibitors . to ensure effective communications brochures of PVI-2017 were also printed in Italian language and distributed at our booth at the exhibition.

There were some queries and exhibitors have shown positive responses who are willing to participate in the forthcoming trade shows PVI-2017 and PVA-2016.

(Lto R), Mr. Raju Desai-Chairman Advisory Board (PVI 2017), Mr. Rituraj Gupta-President, Mr. Sunil shah, (South Zone) Committee Member, Mr. Meela Jayadev-Vice President (South Zone), Mr. Kishor Sampat- Chairman job & career fair, Mr. Arvind Mehta- Chairman AIPMA Govering Council

13 • May 2015 • Plastics News

Aipma at work

The National Green Tribunal Case Update

A

Meeting with DCPC was convened on 27th April, 2015 at DCPC office to discuss the matter related to NGT order on use of Plastics with all the plastic industry association.

There was a detailed discussion on recyclability, economic value and volume of the PET Bottles and Plastics. AIPMA submitted that thickness of Plastic Carry Bags may be kept at 40 micron or at most 50 microns, as it is the present Rule in Maharashtra. For CaCo3 filled bags thickness should be kept at 40 microns only due to the reason, being filler content, weight of the bag increases and fillers facilitate recycling.

associated waste recycling and management practices, Industry is a major stakeholder to achieve substantial compliance to redrafted regulatory framework.

On PET, Secretary said that CIPET has taken all necessary actions for countering the allegations of toxicity and leaching. Moreover, on recycling of PET, he said that Department would declare that PET was highly recycled for its value of the end products. On multilayered metalized flexible packaging film, Secretary said that this type of material, although technically recyclable, however in reality is left out by the rag pickers as there are no takers (for recycling).

On 7th May, 2015 the case was held for hearing which was listed to 8th May, 2015.

Associations suggested that by arranging to take back the multilayered plastics waste by offering a ‘new packet’ on return of a pre-determined number of empty sachets, customers could be encouraged to collect the waste instead of littering. Secretary said that if such type of assurance was given by the producers / distributors of multilayered metalized film, DCPC would write positively in NGT case.

DCPC asked all the associations to give their inputs to put a strong stand in the NGT Case and also assured that the submission to NGT would be made by incorporating all the good suggestions.

On 1 st May, 2015 in New Delhi, CII organized an all Stakeholders Consultation Meet on recently redrafted Waste Management Rules for various categories of waste i.e. Municipal Solid Waste, e- Waste, Biomedical Waste, Plastic Waste, etc.

The objective of this consultation meet was to take feedback/inputs from all concerned stakeholders on the draft regulations. Since the aforesaid rules impact various aspects of business operations and

Plastics News • May 2015 • 14

AIPMA have submitted brief comments / suggestions point to point to MoEF, Secretary & Joint Secretary DCPC on the Draft Notification on Plastics Waste Management Handling Rules & Solid Waste Management Rules.

In continuation of this meeting, a national level meeting is scheduled on 22nd May, 2015 at Bangalore and thereafter in Kolkata on 5th June, 2015

NGT limited the applications and permitted to intervene in the main application. Only written submissions can be filed within the stipulated time.

The matter is listed for final argument on 15th, 16th and 17th July, 2015 before the five Members Bench.

15 • May 2015 • Plastics News

Aipma at work

FLEXIBLE PACKAGING SET FOR ROBUST GROWTH Rising demand from processed and packaged food industry is providing a fertile ground for flexible packaging industry to flourish in Middle East and Africa region.

According to PCI Films Consulting, the Middle East flexible packaging market is set to grow by 5% a year over the next five years, on back of increasing investment in food production and processing, rising flexible packaging production capacity and better penetration of pre-packed foods.

This fact is set to underscore the significance of the international plastics exhibition and conference, the 3rd Plastivision Arabia 2016, which will be held at Expo Centre Sharjah from February 22 to 25 in 2016.

Raising prospects for further growth, studies point out that the US$4 billion regional flexible packaging market has a per capita consumption of just over US$3, compared to Europe’s US$30.

“The flexible packaging market is growing more quickly than traditional rigid packaging markets. There are several factors that underpin the growth of flexible packaging in the region, including a rapidly growing young population, economic growth, continued urbanization, and a changing consumer lifestyle that calls for new convenient products,” said Mr. Harish Dharamsi, Chairman of Plastivision Arabia organizing committee, 2016.

In fact the processed and pre-packaged food accounts for more than 50% of the GCC food industry and is the biggest growth driver for the region’s largely fragmented

Plastics News • May 2015 • 16

flexible packaging industry.

With the exception of GCC, most of the Middle Eastern countries are net importers of flexible packaging, offering significant opportunities in building converter expertise in the faster growing added-value sectors of the market’s flexible packaging industry.

Plastivision Arabia will offer manufacturers and dealers a great opportunity to showcase equipment and systems for flexible packaging applications to the regional industry.

“Moreover, our tie-up with All India Plastics Manufacturers Association, the oldest and the largest apex body of the plastic industry in India, will help in tapping into the technical capability of the Indian converting industry and bringing together value-added flexible packaging material, packaging and converting machines from India,” added Mr. Saif Al Midfa, CEO of Expo Centre Sharjah.

Plastivision Arabia 2016 will also feature the 3rd Arabia Mold, which will be held in association with DEMAT, the organizer of world-renowned EuroMold, the world’s leading fair for mold-making & tooling, design and application development.

Arabia Mold will provide an ideal opportunity for the regional dies and molds industry to upgrade its know-how and keep pace with the latest developments in this segment.

The 2nd edition of Print Pack Arabia, which is jointly organised by Expo Centre Sharjah and the Indian Printing, Packaging and Allied Machinery Manufacturers’ Association (IPAMA), will also be held concurrently.

17 • May 2015 • Plastics News

Aipma at work

Training program on Currency Risk management

A

Training program on Currency Risk management was held on Friday May 15, 2015 at AIPMA house in Mumbai. The Training program was organized by AIPMA in association with Phillip Capital and National Stock Exchange (NSE ) of India Limited.

The Training program focused on introduction on Forex (currency Market), Basic of FX markets, factors affecting rupee. It also focused on various options and opportunities of transactions at the FOREX.

Benchmarking, Tracking & Monitoring Of Markets as per the Risk Guidelines, Hedging, Review & Reporting.

The session witnessed good response as this would help members understand the FX market and thereby could reduce their losses and moreover they could indentify and understand various FX options of hedging strategies and derivatives offered by bank and derivatives.

This program was also having a session on Insurance by M/s Mankad Associates.

The speakers elaborated on various methodologies and transaction in detail along with New Regulations in Exchange Traded Currency Derivatives (ETCD).

Mr. Vivek Acharya, National Stock Exchange of India Limited, made his presentations on Exchange Traded Currency Futures & Options making it very understanding for the members. He cited many examples on Benefits of Exchange Traded Currency Derivatives along with explaining various process. He also elaborated on Hedging as well.

Mr. Murtaza Sakarwala from Phillip Capital elaborated on the FX risk and explained various risk in involved in the currency market. The basic Risk management Principle includes: Exposure Identification, Market Forecast &

Plastics News • May 2015 • 18

Mr. S.D Shah gave a detailed presentation on various types of insurances and the process for the same. It included underwriting, technical documentation and claims.

interview

Dr.R.Rangaprasad, Director, SIES School of Packaging, Packaging Technology Centre, in a recent interaction with Plastics News discussed about the programmes of the centre. Excerpts of the interview…

Q) When was the SIES SOPPTC formed and what was the objective?

A) SIES School of Packaging Technology Center was established by the SIES management in 2001. The SIES (South Indian Education Society) is an 81 year old institution, dedicated to the cause of education spanning pre-primary to MBA and Engineering Music & Sanskrit. It has 18 institutions under its umbrella with schools and colleges are located in Sion, Matunga and Nerul.

School of Packaging, located at Nerul Campus Navi Mumbai, was conceived to educate and train professionals in packaging science and technology, with a background basic degree in pure science, biotechnology, engineering or pharmaceuticals, to understand and develop optimum packaging solutions for core sector users including FMCG, Industrial & Food & beverage products. It also aimed to equip professionals in the art & skills of testing & validation of packages according to Indian and International standards.

Q) What are the courses offered by the institute and what are the criteria?

A) School of Packaging offers three post graduate programmes in Packaging Science & Technology:

a. Two year four semester full time PG Programme: Criteria: Basic degree in science, engineering, technology, pharmaceuticals, (Now recognized by Packaging Engineering Programme, School of Engineering, Rutgers University, USA). b. One year Graduate diploma on Sundays for working professionals: Graduates with some working experience c. One year Graduate diploma through distance learning: Graduates with desire to acquire knowledge of packaging through self- learning.

Q) Are the courses affiliated to any university / Board or are they Autonomous? Details please.

A) SIES School of Packaging is an autonomous institute & offers its own certificates and diplomas.

Q) Who should opt for the said courses?

A) Graduates with background in Science, Engineering, Food t e c h n o l o g y, B i o t e c h n o l o g y, Ph a r m a c e u t i c a l s s c i e n c e & technology can opt for these courses. Mechanical Engineering Graduates intending to make a career in the packaging industry, can take this course & pursue higher studies at Rutgers to

specialize in Engineering skills & software tools like FEA, CAD/CAM etc.

Q) When the session does begin every year?

A) Academic session begins July every calendar year. Admission enquiries can be initiated with the Administration during the months April- June.

Q) What is the strength for these courses?

A) Full time: Intake capacity: 60 students Q) What is the fee structure for the courses offered?

A) Full time PG Course: Rs.2 lakhs for the entire course.

Q) Does the Institute have the hostel facility for outstation students?

A) No hostel facilities on campus are available at the present time.

However, the administration helps outstation students to secure affordable accommodation at nearby locations.

Q) Does the institute provides / helps in Placement or Jobs?

A) Yes, the School of Packaging has an excellent placement service and track record for the past 12 years has been 100% for all students. All our alumni are well May 2015 • Plastics News 19••April

interview placed in leading multinationalFMCG, Indian FMCG companies and contributing to the growth of these companies in the role of packaging development, Design & innovation, cost and weight reduction, brand managers etc.

The placement exercise with leading companies usually gets completed in Nov—Dec every year.

Q) What are the activities initiated by the institute for providing Industry exposure to the students?

Or Industry Participation (say, like workshop Demonstration, Seminars, etc) to provide a better understanding of the industry?

A) a) The school of Packaging organizes a study tour for 10 days during the second semester of the full time course. The students prepare a report which is a part of the examination assessment process.

In 2015 March, our students visited Bengaluru Industrial Area and covered 15 major packaging and associated companies.

b)Industry experts from Glass, Plastics, Adhesives, Paper and metal industries are invited as guest faculty to familiarize students with latest technology practices. Experts from BIS are also invited to make students aware of the standards, laws and regulations prevailing in the packaging domain. c) Students are encouraged to visit exhibitions, such as Plastivision, Intel-Pack, PackPlus, to see live machine demos and interact with exhibitors. Students typically prepare a visit report which is assessed by faculty.

Plastics News • May 2015 • 20

d) Students are taken around Technical centers of machine builders, raw materials & plastics additive suppliers and user industries at regular intervals to relate classroom concepts with industry practices.

e) A student seminar and oral presentation based on a contemporary topic in the packaging and allied industry is an integral part of the curriculum.

f) The last & 4th semester is based on In-plant training for 6 months in packaging and related industry.

g)Two industry sponsored student projects in design and creativity and innovation during the third semester. These projects are conceived by students, leading to building a prototype of a new concept which is critically evaluated by a jury from the sponsor- industry.

h)12 industry sponsored scholarship paper examinations are conducted every Nov Dec covering all aspects of packaging science & technology. Students taking these exams benefit in preparation for their placement interviews and overall knowledge of the subject matter.

i)Training workshops and customer specific courses for packaging user industries in large, medium and small scale sectors are conducted

by School of Packaging either at site or on the campus. This is a blend of theory sessions and hands-on laboratory programme for user industry.

Q) Your opinion on the current trends in Packaging / Printing Industry and why should students opt for such technical courses?

A) The Indian packaging industry is a sunrise industry and will continue to remain so for the next 10-15 years. This is one industry which has witnessed a staggering 18 % Growth rate in the wake of a global slowdown. The industry presents tremendous challenges in terms of cost and weight savings in the immediate scenario. In the long range vision, the packaging materials solutions will be based on bio derived polymers and additives, eco-friendly printing inks etc. designed to adhere to principles of sustainability and environmentally friendly practices.

Active & Intelligent packaging systems are only a few years away from the reach of the Indian consumer. Next Generation packaging materials like edible films and coatings has its roots in basic bio & food technology.

These innovations in packaging will call for sophisticated knowledge derived from domains like industrial biotechnology, nanomaterials and chemistry.

SIES School of Packaging has recognized these challenges and has a prepared a Vision document and has already implemented changes in the academic course work. This makes it lucrative for students and working professionals to pursue courses in Packaging science and technology as per their career goals and ambitions.

COMPANY NEWS

Wison Engineering achieves mechanical completion of new cracking furnace Wison Engineering Ltd. has achieved the mechanical completion of a new cracking furnace project in Saudi Arabia.

This project involved a new gas-based cracking furnace, extension of the pipe rack, a new decoking drum and its structure, a remote control room and an analysis house, as well as revamping of motor control cabinets in the substation. From resources allocation at the start of the project, its hierarchical project schedule planning, the strict control of each project milestone, to the management

and coordination of overseas patented technology providers and subcontractors, this project well proved the strong execution capability of Wison Engineering in its overseas projects.

"The biggest challenge we faced was how to address the complexities in the overseas market and leverage our EPC project management experience in China to ensure the seamless execution of engineering, procurement and construction management of this overseas project." Wison Engineering's project manager said.

Assam Gas Cracker project on the verge of completion

W

ork on the mega Assam Gas Cracker project is on track,

with the Centre today announcing that 99% of the project work has been completed. The mechanical completion of all the units at Lepetkata has also been achieved.

The project is targeted to be completed by June, Minister of State for Chemicals and Fertilizers Hansraj Gangaram Ahir said. According to reports as on March 15, the cumulative physical progress of the Brahmaputra Cracker and Polymer Limited (BCPL) project is 99.5% and the construction progress achieved is 98.7%. The mechanical completion of all the units at Lepetkata has been achieved. The project is

targeted to be completed by June.

The minister further confirmed that a monitoring committee has been formed under the chairmanship of the Secretary (Chemicals and Petrochemicals) to monitor the progress of implementation of the project. The project has a capacity to produce 2.20 lakh tonnes per annum (TPA) of high density polyethylene, lines low density polyethylene (LLDPE) and 60,000 TPA polyethylene (PP). A plastic park in Tinsukia has been approved under the scheme. In addition, the BCPL has organised awareness programmes for development of downstream industries in the north-eastern region for local consumption of products and byproducts of BCPL, Ahir said.

Mitsui Enters into CF Composite-based auto parts fabrication

M

itsui & Co., Ltd. entered into a cooperation agreement and an equipment lease agreement with the Innovative Composite Materials Research and Development Center (ICC) of the Kanazawa Institute of Technology (KIT) on April 21, 2015, to carry out experimental research concerning new production methods for the fabrication of automotive parts and other industrial products using carbon fiber composite materials. Mitsui has discussed various collaborative schemes with the ICC and relevant end users under the coordination of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI). Through this initiative, Mitsui will purchase experimental equipment, which will be made available to a business consortium—including end user companies—led by the ICC. The aim of this collaborative initiative is to jointly develop and implement new manufacturing methods for a wide range of components and products, including automotive parts, using carbon fiber composites. The ICC is one of Japan's biggest research centers in the field of composite materials. It was established by KIT in July 2013 to explore the potential for carbon fiber composite materials through the convergence of technologies from different industrial sectors and fields.

21 • May 2015 • Plastics News

COMPANY NEWS

A Schulman expands existing polyethylene terephthalate compounding capacity

MCOI begins operation at Texas

A

M

. Schulman, Inc. has expanded its existing polyethylene terephthalate compounding capacity by adding a new production line at the Bornem masterbatch plant in Belgium.

"The additional PET capacity will reinforce our leading market position as a masterbatch provider for the European food packaging and BoPET film markets," said Heinrich Lingnau, Vice-President and General Manager Europe, Middle East and Africa ("EMEA"), A. Schulman. "This investment is indeed aligned with current megatrends and addresses the needs of the packaging market."

"Coupled with our extensive technical and market knowledge as well as the existing polystyrene and polyolefin offering, this investment will enable us to meet our customers' growing demand for customized food packaging solutions," added Frank Roederer, Business Unit Director Masterbatch, EMEA. The added PET product, which is commercialized under the name of PolyPet™, will significantly increase the Company's PET yearly production capacity. In the first phase, the new line will be dedicated primarily to the production of additive concentrates and white PET masterbatch

Dow inaugurates state-of-the-art polyether polyols plant at Rayong

A

s part of its strategy of continued growth in Asia-Pacific, Dow Chemical Company has officially inaugurated its new state-of-theart polyether polyols plant at Asia Industrial Estate, Rayong,. The new polyol production site will mainly serve customers in Southeast Asia, China and India. The plant, which recently started operation, has a production capacity of up to 200,000 tpa, adding to the 25,000 tonn at Dow's facility in Map Ta Phut Industrial Estate, also in Rayong.Utilising proven state-of-the-art catalyst technology,

Plastics News • May 2015 • 22

the new facility will deliver a local, high-quality, reliable supply of polyether polyols into a variety of consumer comfort and industrial applications. This will increase Dow's participation in one of the largest and fastest-growing regions in the world and solidifies its position as one of the key players in foam technology for furniture, mattresses and bedding, and in specialty markets like highperforming coatings, adhesives, sealants and elastomers serving the infrastructure, transportation and construction markets

itsubishi Heavy Industries Compressor International Corporation (MCO-I), a U.S. subsidiary of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Compressor Corporation (MCO), a group company of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. (MHI), has begun operation at its manufacturing and service facility in Pearland, Texas, outside Houston. The newly constructed facility is MCO's first overseas-based compressor manufacturing and service location. The facility will provide one-stop manufacturing, repair and maintenance services for compressors and the steam turbines used to drive compressors, and will also respond to new installation and renewal demand at petrochemical plants.

The 17,000 square meter (180,000 square feet) facility is located on a 105,000 square meter (26 acre) site. It houses a variety of capabilities including packaging and assembly, rotor (Rotors are core components of compressors and turbines) storage, repair and maintenance services, administrative offices, and a training center. To date, MCO-I has invested more than $75 million into the state-ofthe-art Pearland Works facility.

COMPANY NEWS

Clariant sees great potential in Chinese market

S

witzerland specialty chemicals company Clariant will emphasize its commitment to the Chinese market at CHINAPLAS 2015 under the motto "Precious solutions for plastics - Shaped by your needs". With its service headquarters located in Shanghai, Clariant has been expanding rapidly in China over the past decade.

In view of the dramatic improvements in standards of living and dynamic economic growth in Greater China, Clariant sees great potential for development in this region.

"Much of Clariant's success is based on our extensive insights of our local markets as well as our ability to identify upcoming trends and new customer needs at an early stage, and then develop innovative and efficient solutions to match these," commented Jan Kreibaum, Regional President of Clariant Greater China.

The highlights of Clariant at the show include: - AddWorks, the new branding for Clariant's series of innovative Polymer Additives; - Exolit OP efficient and patent protected phosphinate flame retardants with new tailor made synergistic formulations; - Licocene polyolefin-based

waxes, offering efficient solutions for masterbatch production and adhesives; Hydrocerol chemical foaming masterbatches and nucleating agents that achieve weight reduction, raw material savings, improved thermal and acoustic insulation, increased wall stiffness and enhanced surface textures; - ColorForward 2016, Clariant's 10th annual color forecasting guide for the plastics industry combining color, design, marketing, trendwatching and polymer knowhow; - HiFormer integrated system for highly concentrated liquid masterbatches designed to enhance product properties and process parameters with improved efficiency of the manufacturing process; - PV Fast Pink E pigment, the Clariant EcoTain-labeled product based on bio-succinic acid with good fastness properties and superior dispersibility, suitable for high-end applications with sustainability performance over the whole life cycle.Unique range of 15 low halogen controlled pigments developed for electronic applications while meeting all of the legal and environmental standards and guidelines pertaining to the use of halogens in consumer goods.

Hanwha Azdel to increase capacity at Virginia

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anwha Azdel, Inc. announced that growing demand for lightweight composites in North America and Europe has prompted the company to increase capacity for its Azdel SuperLiteÂŽ lightweight reinforced thermoplastic (LWRT) composite product at its Lynchburg, Virginia. production facility.

The company is adding more space at the plant plus an entirely new production line that is due to come on stream in Q2-2015. Growing demand from customers in the recreational-vehicle (RV), automotive, commercial truck, building & construction, office furniture, and industrial market segments prompted the move to add capacity to support sales efforts in North America and Europe.

The capacity expansion will support North American and European customers by providing a more consistent regional supply of lightweight thermoplastic composite materials, whose global demand is projected to rise at more than 10% annually through the year 2020

23 • May 2015 • Plastics News

COMPANY NEWS

Honeywell's opens up in Zhangjiagang City IOC'sPP recovery unit at Mathura

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oneywell's Performance Materials and Technologies division has opened a new manufacturing facility in China to produce state-of-the-art catalysts used to make components for plastics production. This new site in Zhangjiagang City, Jiangsu Province, has begun production of catalysts used to covert propane to propylene as traditional sources for this product shrink. The catalysts are used in the Oleflex™ process developed by Honeywell's UOP, a global leader in technology for the oil and gas industries. Over the past four years, UOP has licensed its Oleflex

technology to 30 producers globally, including 25 in China. The first two of these new plants came online in China last year. Honeywell announced its plans to add this manufacturing capacity in October 2013. The facility is located in an established, worldclass industrial park about 85 miles northwest of Shanghai. In addition to Oleflex catalysts, the site will produce adsorbent materials used in applications including refining and petrochemical production and natural gas processing. Honeywell also is planning production of materials for other fast-growing technologies.

I

ndian Oil Corp (IOC) has commissioned a propylene recovery unit at its Mathura Refinery. Sanjiv Singh, Director (Refineries), IOC inaugurated the new propylene recovery unit which is designed to process cracked LPG feed to produce 165,000 tpa of 99.7% pure, petrochemical-grade propylene product. IOC, the second largest petrochemical firm in the country, is investing Rs 30,000 crore in increase its presence in the petrochemical business."These projects will utilize product streams from the existing refineries of IOC, thereby achieving better exploitation of the hydrocarbon value chain," singh added.

Solegear, Columbia Plastics collaborate to BPCL receives approval introduce Polysole(R) for Kochi petrochem olegear Bioplastic Technologies "We feel very fortunate to be working

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Inc. and Columbia Plastics Ltd., a custom injection molding company based in Surrey, BC, have agreed to work together to manufacture and distribute products made with Solegear's proprietary Polysole® bioplastics.

Solegear's plant-based plastics are known for their high-performance characteristics and processability on existing manufacturing equipment, allowing for the effective integration of Solegear's green chemistry-based technologies with Columbia's custom manufacturing capabilities. The companies will work on a customerby-customer basis to capitalize on business opportunities in the North American market.

Plastics News • May 2015 • 24

with Columbia Plastics, given their longstanding history and expertise in high-quality manufacturing. " said Toby Reid, CEO of Solegear. "We believe this collaboration will allow Solegear's Polysole injection moldable materials to access new applications, providing next-generation and sustainable solutions to a wider group of brands. " S o l e g e a r ' s Po l y s o l e i n j e c t i o n moldable materials are a suite of high-performance bioplastic materials that can be processed on conventional injection molding set-ups. With biobased content ranging from 75% to 100%, the Polysole family is designed to be recyclable and compostable, offering more options for end of life disposal.

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harat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) has received Environment Ministry approval for a Rs 4,588 crore expansion at its refinery facility at Kochi. BPCL can now plan to produce some niche petrochemicals that are mostly imported. The proposed Propylene Derivatives Petrochemical Project (PDPP) consists of three major process units acrylic acid, oxoalcohol and acrylates. Land has been acquired for the project.

The project is expected to achieve mechanical completion in Q1-2018.

PDPP complex will be set up close to the refinery to achieve integration of feedstock supply, utilities, offsites and other facilities.

FEATURES

Milan Plast ends on successful note

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LAST 2015 was held during 5-9 May 2015 at the Fiera Milano fairgrounds in Rho with around 50,000 visitors according to the organizers. Held every three years, the International Plastics and Rubber Fair was organized by Promaplast Srl. In its seventeenth edition this year, the Fair enjoyed the extraordinary coincidence, in both space and time, with EXPO 2015.

PLAST 2015 is considered to be one of the largest and most important tradeshows in the world for the plastics and rubber industry representing machinery and equipment manufacturers, producers of raw materials, converters and much more. And PLAST 2015 boasts a 4% increase in participation with respect to the previous fair in 2012. PLAST 2015 stands as an important showcase mainly for its international dimension, a fact that has been recognized by the Italian Ministry for Economic Development.

PLAST 2015 is witnessed delegations from forty countries (including China, India, Mexico, United States, Turkey, Russia and South Korea) with at least 300 authorized delegates from plastics and rubber converters who will meet with machinery builders and Italian firms at the Fair. Also some forty trade associations from all corners of the world with their own institutional stands, as well as Italian universities made it to the event.

The inaugural convention took place on Tuesday May 05, 2015 to open PLAST 2015. It was an occasion for discussing trends in the sector in Italy and in the rest of the world with the president of Assocomaplast, Giorgio Colombo, the president of Federazione Gomma Plastica, Filippo Bettini, and the president of PlasticsEurope Italia, Daniele Ferrari.

"The year 2014 was a positive one, both for exports, which recorded a +4.9%, and for the domestic market with a somewhat more modest +2% that nevertheless marks a change in a positive direction," said Giorgio Colombo, president of Assocomaplast.

"We have before us a scenario that has all the trappings of a successful

event, and that indeed has already recorded positive numbers, with 14,000 pre-registered visitors, more than twice the total in 2012, and new companies that have decided to present themselves at PLAST and stake their bets on this important tradeshow. There is an entrenched optimism in our industry, which we hope is not just a flash in the pan: the debate has to focus on enterprise, because this is the engine that will get the national economy moving again.

Innovation, the great strength of our companies, is generated all along the production chain, and comes to fruition in our country's relations with its customers.�

Marco Fortis, economist and vice president of Fondazione Edison, also weighed in on prospects for the industry: "Income for the industry slumped between 2011 and 2012, mostly due to the ill-conceived austerity policies that damaged producers and the domestic market, while Italy continued to export. Proof that our industry is highly competitive is seen in the fact that revenues from exports have grown even more than they have in Germany. There are many niche markets where Italy is the undisputed world leader, including the machinery and the plastics and rubber industries. Indeed the indices of excellence in international trade give our country a permanent seat on the podium, competing with Germany for the highest tier."

In spite of the recession and economic difficulties in recent years, which

25 • May 2015 • Plastics News

FEATURES have affected nearly all sectors of Italian and international industry, manufacturers of machinery and moulds for plastics and rubber have proven to represent a robust market, as underscored by the data for 2014 (as compared to the previous year): production +2.6%, exports +4.9%, imports +8.5% with a production output that reaches 4 billion euros.

The inaugural convention closed with the Plastic Technologies Award 2015, organized in collaboration with POLI. design.

This year's prize focuses on the disposal and recycling of rapidobsolescence, temporary or throwaway products, components and packaging.

The first prize was awarded to Marco Grimoldi and Tommaso Pardini's Palingenesi.

PLAST 2015 included three satellite fairs: RUBBER 2015, dedicated to the rubber industry, which already promises to be highly successful (+30% exhibitor participation with respect to 2012); PLAST 3D, a new section dedicated to additive manufacturing using plastics, rapid prototyping, modelling

Plastics News • May 2015 • 26

software, 3D printing and related technologies; and START PLAST, a new area set aside for some 40 selected start-ups who are invited, free of charge, to exhibit their products, technologies, software, etc. relating to the world of plastics and rubber.

A last but no less important novel feature at the Fair was the presentation of the upcoming edition: PLAST will be back from the 26th to the 30th of September 2017, one year earlier than would be dictated by its normal three-year cadence to avoid conflicts with other major fairs for the industry.

Around 50,000 visitors came to Plast 2015, with over one-third of them coming from abroad, informed Promaplast Srl. The majority of international visitors came from Europe, the US and Asia. 40 overseas delegations were formed for a total of 300 delegates.

There was a slight decline in Italian visitors compared to the previous edition in 2012, which according to the organizer, was predictable due to the economic difficulties that the domestic companies were facing. The total number of exhibitors, at 1,558, represented a 5% growth with respect to Plast 2012.

Having already announced that the next edition of Plast will take place in 2017, Promaplast confirmed that the three satellite fairs at Plast 2015,

namely Rubber, 3D Printing and Start Plast, will become permanent features, with new thematic areas under planning. "Thanks partly to the requests from exhibitors or potential exhibitors, now that this year's fair has ended we will get straight to work to stay one step ahead and embrace the new business opportunities and the new technological frontiers of our world," said Mario Maggiani, Managing Director of Promaplast.

"We will be organizing a number of thematic areas representing the future, one of which will be recycling." Another major theme to be emphasized at Plast 2017 will be composites, he added.

FEATURES

The Indian sub-continent: the world’s fastest growing regional polymer market

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he Indian sub-continent has established itself as the most exciting and dynamic emerging market in the world and is one full of potential and investment opportunities. With a population greater than China but with a polymer demand less than one-fifth the size, the region is expected to enjoy the fastest growth in polymer demand anywhere in the world over the next five years outstripping China and other emerging economies.With the growing infrastrucure and the increasing capacity across the country the growth is likely to be uniform.

Also the fact remains that with the increasing purchasing parity and the growth in the social strata the plastic consumption in India is also to increase further.

According to a recently published study by leading industry consultants, Applied Market Information Ltd (AMI Consulting), there is now massive investment occurring in the region’s petrochemical, polymer production and downstream plastic processing industries, driving strong growth in polymer demand - AMI forecasts that at the region’s current rate of growth its thermoplastics market will surpass 20 mln tons by 2020.

The market in the region is dominated

by India on account of its huge population and high GDP. However, growth in the region on the whole is driven by its increasingly globallyminded governments that are introducing policies to encourage

foreign direct investment and facilitate closer integration with the worldwide economy, helping to drive investment in petrochemicals, polymer production and downstream plastic processing. Growth in the region is not only fuelled by such policy relaxations but also by rising urbanisation of a large, youthful, population, leading to greater consumer spending for items that require plastics - from packaged goods to mobile phones and automobiles.

While much of these products are still

Polymer demand in the Indian Market

imported, there is now considerable investment taking place in plastics processing operations to support manufacturing investments, driving growth in polymer demand; those that understand and participate in this market now will reap the benefit of future growth.

However although rapidly developing, the region does face substantial challenges. For example, lack of

sufficient local polymer production is a major obstacle faced by many plastics processors in the region with each country besides India being heavily or even entirely reliant on resin imports depending on the country in question; these imports are mainly sourced from India, the Middle East and South East Asia.

Also the exchange rate fluctuations of local currencies against the dollar add further uncertainty to the market, making it harder to compete against cheaper Chinese imports of finished goods. In general, power supply in the sub-continent is tight but also erratic and unreliable in many regions, which can dramatically reduce effective utilisation.

However, in India in particular, the government is seeking to address these issues by implementing strategies to tackle infrastructural and power limitations. In addition, in September 2014, it announced its “Make in India” initiative, designed to catalyse Indian manufacturing to make the country a globally recognised manufacturing hub for years to come.

It is clear that plastics will be called on to play a vital role in this changing region and the plastics industry will benefit from national efforts to encourage and improve manufacturing. AMI forecasts 8% per year average increases in the Indian sub-continent over the next five years, with levels of annual growth varying from 5% in Sri Lanka to up to over 8% in India

27 • May 2015 • Plastics News

FEATURES

Micro Irrigation – Untapped Potential

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ater is becoming scarce in many parts of the world limiting towards the agricultural development. The capacities of large and agrarian country like India need to manage the available natural resources to which water being the most important and its judicious management.

The agro-climatic conditions of the country are suitable for growing variety of crops. Judicious exploitation and management of water, therefore, holds the key for the future growth of Indian agriculture. The micro irrigation technologies such as drip and sprinkler irrigation are the key interventions in water saving and improved crop productivity.

Prospects of Micro Irrigation in India Micro irrigation technologies are promoted in India by the central government and state governments by providing different kinds of financial, institutional and technical support systems. Despite the reported significant economic advantages and the concerted support the current micro irrigation area in India remains an insignificant proportion of its potential.

Classification of Micro Irrigation Technology

Micro Irrigation Micro Irrigation is a system where low volume of water is applied in high frequency within and around the plant root zone. The micro irrigation system consists of a network of pipes along with a suitable emitting device. Conceptually micro irrigation, refers to low pressure irrigation system that either drips or sprinkles water needed by the plant for its optimum growth.

Potential for Micro Irrigation in India

Advantages of Micro Irrigation • Low water application rate • Uniformity of water & nutrient application • Suitable for undulating/difficult terrains • Eliminates weed growth & saves labour • Reduced attack of disease & pests

Plastics News • May 2015 • 28

The potential for coverage under drip irrigation and sprinkler irrigation is estimated to be 27 mha and 42.5 mha respectively as reported in report of the Task Force on MI, however, in a recent study conducted by Government of India based upon the availability of source for irrigation in the country it is estimated that an area of 49.1 mha could be brought under micro irrigation technologies.

FEATURES Presently approx.7.4 mha have been covered under micro irrigation technology in the country which highlights the huge untapped potential yet to be achieved under this very technology with tremendous polymer opportunities for PE, PVC and PP under the technology with an estimated polymer opportunity of 786 KT during XII Plan Period. Today there are more than 230 micro irrigation system suppliers which caters the business volume close to 3000 – 3500 Cr. INR under MI technology in the country.

Considering the future food demand couple with 1%+ population growth, reduced available water for agriculture and focused attention under Govt. plans & programmes to continue financial assistance for micro irrigation & mergers with leading overseas MI component manufacturers would have more opportunities to for the Indian plastics industry.

Categories for Irrigation

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rrigation Projects in India are classified into three categories viz. Major, Medium and Minor Irrigation. Projects which have a Cultivable Command Area (CCA) of more than 10,000 hector are termed as Major Projects, those Irrigation Projects which have a CCA of less than 10,000 hector but more than 2,000 hector are termed as Medium projects and those Irrigation Projects which have a CCA of 2,000 hector or less are known as Minor projects.

A broad assessment of the area that can be ultimately brought under irrigation, both by surface and ground water, made by the various States in sixties has indicated that ultimate irrigation potential of the country would be of the order of 113m.ha (million hectare).

However, the ultimate potential is 139 m.ha, the increase being primarily due to upward revision in assessed potential of minor ground water schemes and minor surface water schemes to 64 m.ha. and 17m.ha. respectively.

Minor irrigation projects have both surface and ground water as their source, while Major and Medium projects mostly exploit surface water resources. 12.2. Type of Irrigation Technique: Various types of irrigation techniques differ in how the water obtained from the source is distributed within the field. In general, the goal is to supply the entire field uniformly with water, so that each plant has the amount of water it needs, neither too much nor too little.

The various irrigation techniques are as under: Surface Irrigation: In surface irrigation systems, water moves over and across the land by simple gravity flow in order to wet it and to infiltrate into the soil. Surface irrigation can be subdivided into furrow, border strip or basin irrigation. It is often called flood irrigation when the irrigation results in flooding or near flooding of the cultivated land. Localized Irrigation: Localized irrigation is a system where water is distributed under low pressure through a piped network, in a predetermined pattern, and applied as a small discharge to each plant or adjacent to it. Drip irrigation, spray or micro-sprinkler irrigation and bubbler irrigation belong to this category of irrigation methods. Drip Irrigation: Drip irrigation, also known as trickle irrigation, functions as its name suggests. Water is delivered at or near the root zone of plants, drop by drop. This method can be the most waterefficient method of irrigation, if managed properly, minimized. In modern agriculture, drip irrigation is often combined with plastic mulch, further reducing evaporation, and is also the means of delivery of fertilizer. Sprinkler Irrigation: In sprinkler or overhead irrigation, water is piped to one or more central locations within the field and distributed by overhead highpressure sprinklers or guns.

29 • May 2015 • Plastics News

FEATURES

Learning, networking and knowledge sharing - CHINAPLAS to hold over 50 sessions of technical seminar for buyers

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HINAPLAS 2015 is not only an international showcase of exhibits from over 3,200 companies from 40 countries/ regions, but also a place to facilitate technical knowledge transfer and networking between suppliers and buyers.

CHINAPLAS 2015, which will be held on 20-23 May, will bring in over 50 sessions of technical seminars where prestigious firms will share their latest technologies. Topics range from green building materials, energy savings, vehicle light weighting and safety, electronic devices performance to packaging materials safety and environmental issues.

With the rapid development of the plastics industry, the traditional production process has been unable to satisfy the needs of manufacturers who pursue more stable, efficient and smarter manufacturing technologies.

Germany Industry 4.0, being one of the ten major projects strenuously promoted by German government, has been brought into limelight. Arburg Machine & Trading (Shenzhen) Co., Ltd. will share about how injection molding industry can be more intelligent with the technology of Germany Industry 4.0 and how it helps the traditional manufacturing to be transitioned to intelligent production, with the combination of automation, internet of things, logistics management, Human-Computer interaction and 3D technology, etc.

In addition, Lubrizol Management

Plastics News • May 2015 • 30

(Shanghai) Co., Ltd. will send their two experts from global footwear and global foaming technology divisions to share about the new TPU physical foaming technology - BounCell-X in superior cushioning application.

Polyurethane is a new organic polymer material, known as the "fifth largest plastics". BounCell-X is designed for applications requiring recycle-friendly and more automated production processes, resulting in products having a longer term of cushioning property.

TSRC Corporation, one of the world's largest producers of styrenic block copolymer, will explore about the processing and resulting properties of the pure polymer and combinations with a variety of polyolefin (POE). In the same event, the company will also debut their new hydrogenated styrenic block copolymers (SBC) designed for polyolefin-like processing, compounding, films and fibers.

While being processed as a single phase melt, the product can retain its two phase nature at use temperatures to provide strength and creep resistance. It eliminates a variety of problems with mixing and small dimension articles such as films, fibers and thin walled parts when general SBC being processed in the phase separated state. As one of the Asia's leading extrusion machine suppliers, Nanjing Ruiya Extrusion System Ltd. will hold a session to share about the ways to optimize a twin-screw

compounding extrusion line to its highest productivity. The seminar will bring in the simplified approach of Design of Experiments (DOE) and strategies for optimizing the screw design and to identify the best operating range for screw speed, feed rate and barrel temperature settings.

Building & Construction Plastic building products have a big role to play in energy savings and efficiency in our living environment.

Choosing the right materials and compounds that perform the desired functions is also the key to success.

Chemical industry giant BASF will bring in three new applications of plastics in construction industry, viz. application of engineering plastic materials in water meter and sanitary industry; performance of energy efficient windows made of PVC-PBT co-extrusion profiles; introduction of SPS in construction application to the audience.

E&E Plastics have been widely used in E&E products, lending to their exceptional properties of anti-static and thermal conductivity. With the growing popularity of personal electronic devices, many electronic manufacturers and assemblers are looking for plastics with outstanding properties to improve device quality.

Dongguan Calvin Plastic & Tech Co., Ltd. has invited two experts of Electronic Instrument Anti-static

FEATURES Equipment Technology Committee in Ministry of Industry and Information Technology of China, Mr. Kong and Mr. Zhuang to share the application and key technology of thermally conductive / heat-removal materials, as well as the requirements and GB testing standards of anti-electrostatic technology of domestic markets.

Sumitomo Chemical, the world's leading super engineering plastics (SEP) manufacturer, will debut their latest developed SEP such as liquid crystal polymer (LCP), polyethersulfone (PES), etc. in the seminar.

Recently, SEP is on high demand among the fields of electronics, home appliances, film, and automobile due to its extraordinary heat resistance and stability.

Automotive With more stringent international safety and environmental protection regulations imposed, lightweighting is the future direction of the automotive industry. To align with the market trends, BASF will introduce their performance materials that provide solutions in automotive exterior application, such as roof system and lighting system. In addition, the company also cares about the consumer's driving comfort and safety and will introduce a special Thermoplastic Polyurethane Elastomers to meet these requirements.

BYK Additives (Shanghai) Co., Ltd., a subsidiary of BYK-Chemie, will bring in the interior application to the audience. The company will introduce an innovative additive for polyolefin

compound that can effectively reduce odor and VOC level at the interior car compartment to meet the requirements of OEMs in auto industry.

Reportedly, the new products can be able to reduce up to 80% of VOC.

Packaging China is one of the world's biggest packaging manufacturers and consumers. At the same time, plastic packaging is one of the four major packaging materials in the industry and occupies a lion's share of 30% of the sector's GDP. The competitiveness and technology levels of many Chinese packaging companies have improved a lot in recent years as they strive to adapt new technologies from foreign countries as well as are through selfinnovation.

Phthalate is the most common form of plasticizer widely used in the packaging industry, but over the years their health and environmental issues are in concern. The US based Emerald Kalama Chemical, LLC will introduce two environmentallyfriendly phthalate-free plasticizers - benzoates and dibenzoates. The fast-fusing plasticizers improve the process speed of flexible vinyls, effectively increasing line speed and/ or lower processing temperature, thereby improving productivity and

energy efficiency.

The light stabilizer in sheet and film products is an important additive as it can block off the ultraviolet rays and delay the photo-aging process, thereby extending the service life of the film products. ADEKA Corporation will introduce their light stabilizer ADK STAB LA-81. This product has excellent weatherability, making it an excellent candidate being used as agricultural films and membrane sheet.

It is just to name a few. Many more such as DSM, ExxonMobil, Borouge, SK Global, Farrel Pomini, along with other prestigious firms will together deliver over 50 sessions of technical seminar at CHINAPLAS. At the same time, a series of inspiring concurrent events and themed activities will be put on concurrently, namely, "Design x Innovation", "Industrial Automation: Robot Parade & Smart Production", "Medical Plastics Conference", "Haier's Suppliers Communication Conference" , "Open Up Asia and Latin America Emerging Markets" Seminar, making the show a must-go event.

31 • May 2015 • Plastics News

FEATURES

Study suggests infants at lower risk from BPA exposure than expected

By GAYLE S. PUTRICH

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new study in US shows that newborn babies may have less risk from bisphenol A exposure than originally thought.

According to a study by Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health researchers, released April 23 in The Journal of Pediatrics, infants have the ability to metabolize BPA and clear their systems just days after their birth.

The study also suggests that efforts to protect infants from BPA exposure by banning it from baby bottles and sippy cups may not actually be protecting them from it, since the majority of newborns studied still had the chemical in their systems — and researchers are not clear how it got there.

“Even though we’ve removed BPA from bottles, this work shows infants are still exposed to it,” said study leader Rebecca Massa Nachman, a

post-doctoral fellow at Johns Hopkins.

“But the good news is that our study also shows healthy newborns are better able to handle that exposure than we thought.”

For the study, Nachman and the • The researchers found no free BPA in the urine samples.

• Free BPA is the chemical as it exists in consumer products such as polycarbonate, can linings and epoxy resins.

• BPA glucuronide is what remains after free BPA is metabolized by the body and is biologically inert and harmless.

• The study found no difference between BPA glucuronide levels in infants who were formula-fed and those who were breastfed.

team collected urine samples from 44 full-term babies, once between three and six days of age and again between seven and 27 days of age,

in search of both free BPA and BPA glucuronide. Free BPA is the chemical as it exists in consumer products such as polycarbonate, can linings and epoxy resins; BPA glucuronide is what remains after free BPA is metabolized by the body and is biologically inert and harmless.

The researchers found no free BPA in the urine samples, while more than 70 percent of the samples contained BPA glucuronide. According to a news release accompanying the study, researchers still don’t know how the babies were exposed to BPA. They found no difference between BPA glucuronide levels in infants who were formula-fed and those who were breastfed. Of the 44 healthy newborns studied between December 2012 and August 2013, 51 percent were fed formula exclusively, 28 percent were only fed breast milk and 21 percent consumed a combination of the two.

Studies have shown that powdered baby formula contains no BPA, while breast milk does.

This is the first BPA study involving infants, though the assumption has been that infants would be particularly vulnerable to BPA exposure because their immature livers would have a hard time processing it. While the European Food Safety Authority and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration have repeatedly concluded that BPA is safe at its current levels in our foods, mounting controversy and consumer pressure led the FDA to ban BPA from baby bottles and sippy cups in 2012.

Plastics News • May 2015 • 32

FEATURES

Top Plastic Injection Molding Trends for 2015

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s injection molding continues to evolve, there are plastic injection trends that emerge to help improve the process – allowing the industry to remain at the forefront of manufacturing. Here are three trends (specifically in plastic parts and materials) that will play a major role in ensuring the injection molding industry remains competitive:

1. Re-Shoring Injection-molded products are produced worldwide be it in India or the United States (U.S.) . However as skepticism prevails Injection-molded products produced in the United States (U.S.) are likely becoming more economically attractive than products produced overseas, due in part to increasing labor costs in foreign countries and inflexible procurement schedules for overseas procurement.

These growing issues can affect adjusting inventory, making it more difficult and expensive for any type of movement.

2. Process Validation Process validation will be a major factor in producing high-quality products. A validated process is considered successful when it’s stable, dimensionally centered, and has few or no adjustments from run to run. Effective processes should include the following: Installation Qualification (IQ) Setting specific installation and process conditions succeeds the value of life for injection-molded products. It is during this stage that the equipment

and facilities used to manufacture the end product are maintained and calibrated as required. Related to plastic injection molding this would include preventative maintenance on molding machines, ensuring you have the proper size machine (shot size and tonnage), and ensuring all equipment used to inspect and accept the final product is calibrated and documented.

It’s important to document initial installation settings to minimize any over-head regarding rejects.

this consists of multiple manufacturing runs at your nominal process which is used to simulate different production runs.When executed properly, IQ OQ PQ can save a considerable amount of time, money, and resources by reducing production costs related to non-conforming product being produced. Additionally, a validated and qualified process ensures lot-tolot consistency, ultimately reducing the risk of long term failures due to an inconsistent manufacturing process.

Operation Qualification (OQ)

3. Chemical Resistance

Determined by experimentation, this phase will allow you to gain a complete understanding of the process and demonstrate it will produce acceptable product throughout a range of parameters. Through the use of analytical processes, as well as statistical and dimensional studies, the goal is to understand and establish parameters, the variations affecting the process and to continuously investigate the process deviations, which is essential to the manufacturing process. The process will not be considered validated if it has negatively impacted the finished product in any way.

Medical, food processing and chemical processing industries are all in increasingly high demand for chemically inert materials. Many commonly used materials, especially plastics, are not made to hold up well in extreme environments. Exposure to harsh chemicals and the regulations imposed on hospitals and medical offices to frequently disinfect medical equipment can and will deteriorate untreated plastic – increasing the risk of after-market defects, liability and cost. In response, OEM’s are turning to semi-crystalline based materials to achieve the level of chemical resistance required.

Though these materials can help to achieve a higher level of chemical resistance, semi-crystalline based materials have a much higher shrink differential than typical amorphous resins, so understanding chemical compounds and designing products in accordance with proper injection molding guidelines will be crucial.

Process Qualification (PQ) The final phase of validation will demonstrate the process is stable and capable of producing parts that meet the customers expectations. It’s vital to test products manufactured from the same production equipment and the processes that will be used for routine production to ensure consistency and accuracy. Typically,

According to Medical Device and Diagnostic Industry (MDDI), “Deciding

33 • May 2015 • Plastics News

FEATURES which polyurethane formulation to use for a medical application is a multifaceted challenge and requires consideration of many factors. Details such as the desired mechanical properties of the end polymer to the chemicals that the device will encounter should be taken into account to ensure the product will perform its intended function over its entire lifespan.” These will all be important considerations, which tie into the manufacturing of a variety of plastic compounds, and can also impact the validation phase.

H i g h p u r i t y, f l a m e r e t a r d a n t , resistance to acids/solvents and radiation/corrosion resistance, are just a few of the highlighted aspects that remain popular within medical and injection molding manufacturing.

The environmental stress that leads to cracking in medical devices can be related to many factors, including polymer morphology, chemical concentration and residual stress in molded components, MDDI reports. Studies have been conducted regarding the difference between wiping a sample with disinfectant fifteen times over a period of three days, as opposed to saturating the sample, which was useful in predicting long-term chemical resistance. These types of studies help to develop requirements that allow for the creation of chemically inert materials.

As long as the country continues to intricately validate processes and remain active in product requirement decisions, the injection molding industry will remain competitive, successful and at the forefront of the manufacturing industry.

Plastics News • May 2015 • 34

European injection moulding industry recovering AMI Consulting, Europe's largest consultancy dedicated to providing business research and analysis for global plastics industry, published a new report citing that the value of the European plastics injection moulding industry in 2014 was 11% higher than its pre-crisis value, although the volume of polymer processed was still about 7% lower than in 2007.

Much of the value increase is associated with higher raw material costs but the industry has striven to maximise the potential of new and added value opportunities. – The packaging sector remains by far the largest injection moulding market in terms of polymer volume consumed, particularly because it includes demand for PET preforms.

The packaging sector is almost equally important across every country because it typically serves local consumer demand. By comparison the automotive market is the most valuable injection moulding sector and its demand is increasingly being focussed in countries retaining or attracting vehicle assembly. Within Europe the shift of moulded volume from Western to Central and Eastern Europe has largely been a result of following the investment by customers, particularly the automotive and electrical appliance manufacturers.

However, the economic development of these regions has also created a larger consumer market to the benefit of the whole moulding sector.

The global recession accelerated the process of rationalisation of the European injection moulding industry that had been underway for several years, particularly in Western Europe.

Using analysis of AMI's proprietary injection moulding database the report tracks the structural changes within the industry, which is reported to involve more than 8,500 different companies across Europe. These range from small, family-owned concerns up to multinational groups. The importance of moulding to the overall business can also vary significantly hence a wide range of business models exist in the industry.

Western Europe has continued to experience most contraction with more than 2,000 moulding sites closing since 2007. In Central and Eastern Europe closures have been more than offset by new entrants: the region continues to attract a high level of new investment. The overall rate of decline in moulding sites is forecast to slow down but, through extrapolation from its database, AMI forecasts that Europe will lose a further 2% of its injection moulding sites by 2018.

However, polymer demand and industry value for injection moulded products is forecast to grow across almost every market sector. The higher demand will therefore be met by a smaller, yet more cost effective, strategically located supplier base.

FEATURES

Choosing the Right Injection Mold Tooling Material Kent Seeley

C

hoosing the proper material for your next injection mold can often be as critical as choosing the right plastic resin for your part. With many different types of mold material options available, all formulated to meet specific requirements, ensuring the material used to produce your injection mold has a positive impact on the success of your next project.

Similar to plastic resins being formulated to meet performance criteria in various applications, steel is also alloyed to meet specific requirements. We will discuss about all the Injection Mold Tooling Material in phases. Let us discuss the Pre hard steel in this part.

Part 1: Pre-hard Steel

Circumstances that effect choosing the proper injection mold material could include: • ensuring parting line integrity; • wear resistance because of mechanical fatigue; • wear resistance because of abrasive or corrosive plastic resins; or • inclusion of thermal properties needed to successfully mold your plastic part.

The most common materials used to construct plastic injection molds are pre-hard steel, hardened steel, and aluminum. This 3-part series will explore each and answer the important questions you should consider before choosing your material:

pre-hard steel and when it’s the appropriate material to choose.

Pre-hard Steel: 1. How many parts are expected to be molded?

Pre-hard steel is often considered “the work horse” for the plastic injection mold making industry. This is because pre-hard steel has a broad range of favorable characteristics and can be a great material for creating core and cavity detail. Typically found with a Rockwell rating of RC 30-42 (in its pre-hardened state), this material is quite tough, easy to machine and relatively inexpensive. 250,000500,000 cycles can easily be achieved when molding unfilled materials, and 50,000-100,000 cycles can be obtained with filled materials. The range is dependent on the amount of filler present in the plastic material.

When total expected volume is less than 250,000 cycle’s, pre-hard steel is the way to go.

2. What surface finish requirements are expected of the molded part?

General standards for the three most common injection mold materials

1. How many parts are expected to be molded?

result of the part design and are they conducive of excess wear

2. What surface finish requirements are expected of the molded part?

4. What type of plastic resin will be used on the molded part?

3. What steel conditions exist as a

In this first post, we’ll examine

Because of its versatility, pre-hard steel has the ability to accept a multitude of different surface treatments. So if you plan to incorporate a finish, including light to aggressive textures, EDM finishes, or even polish, this material can often be your best bet.

However, when considering a polish finish on your mold and subsequent molded part, certain steels are only capable of producing certain levels of polish.

In the case of most pre-hard steels, you can achieve an A-3 finish without

35 • May 2015 • Plastics News

FEATURES any additional treatment to the steel.

There are specialized vacuum arc remelted grades of pre-hard steel that can achieve very close to A-1 finish with optical lapping. So as long as your requirements do not exceed that of an A-3 requirement, pre-hard steel is once again a great choice.

failure of such details (cracking, breaking, bending, etc.). When the aspect ratio for standing core details exceeds this ratio you can diminish some of the risk of failure by inserting the mold in this area, but should always review with injection molder and mold maker prior to doing so.

3. What steel conditions exist as a result of the part design and are they conducive of excess wear?

It’s also important to understand the compression strength of your material.

Compression strength is critical in mold construction as it dictates not only the strength of the steel but also the dimensional stability. Of the 3 materials being reviewed in this 3-part series, pre-hard steel falls in the middle and has fair compression strength. Because of this, pre-hard steel is a great candidate for lower volume production tooling, including insert molding and overmolding. It is important to note, however, that you can still “hob” the steel if the molded part or insert is not properly placed and aligned in the mold.

Lastly, pre-hard steel is considered to have good to excellent dimensional stability depending on the grade being considered. You can still experience some warpage of the material during rough milling, so care should be taken.

When metal-to-metal wiping shutoffs exist, it is a common practice to have 5 degrees of draft on those wiping surfaces with pre-hard steel.

When 5 degrees of draft is achieved, pre-hard steel is often a good material choice as excess wear is kept to a minimum. In addition to adequate draft and where slides and lifters (moving components) may be required to create detail, it is suggested the moving components be made of a different alloy and/or hardness to further reduce any galling or excess wear. As the total expected volume of the mold increase, this becomes more of a common practice and is recommended to alleviate future, unforeseen problems. It is important to look at the detail in the part design that will also drive the detail required in the mold. With the pressures and heats seen during the injection molding process, small, intricate and tall details are inherently potential weak points for any steel and should be taken into consideration. The size of such details (width and height) can be of the most concern, and as a general rule of thumb you should aim to keep your aspect ratio below 5:1 for pre hard steel. This will alleviate issues down the road related to the

Plastics News • May 2015 • 36

4. What type of plastic resin will be used on the molded part?

High heat resins such as PEI, PPS, PPSU, PPA, and PEEK, as well as filled materials (long and short glass fiber, carbon, stainless steel, etc.), can often be tough on pre-hard steels from a wear perspective.

While certain steps can be taken, like inserting the gate area for easy maintenance and replacement, it should be expected that the life

of the mold will decrease in these circumstances. If you find that your project requires between 50,000100,000 parts over the life of your program, pre-hard steel is certainly adequate. If your part requires a high level of filler, or if you wish to extend the life of your pre-hard steel mold, a great “insurance policy” is to have the core and cavity surfaces of the mold coated/plated. Here, a very thin layer of material is applied to the core and cavity surfaces (typically .0003”-.0005”), which can greatly increase the Rockwell hardness of pre-hard steel. According to Bales Metal Surface Solutions, Rockwell ratings of 45RC-85RC can be achieved with various coatings. There are many options that offer different levels of hardness, as well as corrosion resistance, so it is recommended that you consult with your mold maker or coating professional.

A wide variety of mold materials are readily available for the construction of injection molds. By considering these 4 basic questions, you can make a more educated choice as to what the correct material is for you.

While choosing the best option for your mold is not complicated once you understand the pros and cons of each material, it is a critical part of the process that can affect the success of your project. Research done prior to mold construction, and more importantly vendor selection, can help ensure you receive the performance you expect from your next mold.

We will discuss hardened steel mold materials in the next part of the article

FEATURES

The Black Money

G

eneration of Black Money in the Country has been always the topic of discussion and we have had number of experts putting their thoughts on the probability of recovery i.e getting the black money .

The Modi Government seems to have taken this exercise seriously and is keen to curb the menace. Earlier this month, Shri Arun Jaitley, Union Finance Minister in written reply to a question in the Rajya Sabha had addressed the issue.

The Government had commissioned a study, inter alia, on estimation of unaccounted income and wealth inside and outside the country. One of the terms of reference of the study was – “To identify important sectors of economy in which unaccounted money is generated and examine causes and conditions that result in generation of unaccounted money”. Reports received are under examination of the Government. However there is no official estimation regarding the amount of black money generated in the country. Varying estimations of the amount of black money have been reported by different persons/ institutions. Such estimations are based upon different sets of facts, data, methods, assumptions etc, leading to varying inferences.

Moreover, sectoral analysis of seizure of valuables and admission of undisclosed income in the searches c o n d u c t e d b y t h e I n c o m e Ta x Department in the last three financial years indicates that the main sectors in this regard are real estate, trading

and manufacturing, contractors, gems and jewellery, services etc.

The Government has taken effective measures to curb the menace of black money. Such measures include (i) introduction of a comprehensive new law in the ongoing Budget Session 2015, specifically to deal with black money stashed abroad – The Undisclosed Foreign Income and Assets (Imposition of Tax) Bill, 2015 – inter alia, providing for stringent penalties (equal to three times the amount of tax payable) and prosecutions (rigorous imprisonment upto ten years with fine) in this regard; (ii)constitution of a Special Investigation Team (SIT) in May 2014, Chaired and Vice-Chaired by two former judges of the Hon’ble Supreme Court, inter alia, to deal with issues relating to black money stashed abroad; (iii) while focusing upon non-intrusive measures, due emphasis on enforcement measures in high impact cases with a view to prosecute the offenders at the earliest possible for credible deterrence against tax evasion; (iv) strengthening and streamlining the information collection and enforcement mechanism, inter alia, through extensive use of information technology, capacity building etc: (v) joining the global efforts to combat cross-border tax evasion and tax fraud and to promote

international tax compliance, including supporting the implementation of a uniform global standard on Automatic Exchange of Information on a fully reciprocal basis facilitating exchange of information regarding persons hiding their money in offshore financial centres and tax havens; (vi) renegotiation of Double Taxation Avoidance Agreements with other countries to bring the Article on Exchange of Information to International Standards and expanding India’s treaty network by signing new DTAAs and Tax Information Exchange Agreements (TIEAs) with many tax jurisdictions to facilitate the exchange of information and to bring transparency; (vii) Proactively engaging with foreign governments for exchange of information under the provisions of DTAAs/TIEAs/Multilateral Convention; (viii)exploring non-government sources to obtain information regarding undisclosed foreign assets; (ix)effectively utilizing the information received from treaty partners to combat tax evasion and avoidance.

Though easier said than done but one of the recent case of Gates Foundation’s donation to an Indian NGO , does speak about governments concern over this . Let’s hope we are successful in curbing the generation of Black Money.

37 • May 2015 • Plastics News

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

Petrochemical plants in Haifa closed due to pollution

T

he mayor of Haifa, Israel's third

warning of a disproportionately high

an immediate halt to all operations

largest city, ordered the closure

cancer rate in the Haifa area due to

of the polluting factories in the

of five petrochemical plants on

the operation of such plants. Written

Greater Haifa area," Yahav said. The

Sunday following a Health Ministry

by Professor Itamar Grotto, head of

environmental protection ministry

warning linking high cancer rates to

the ministry's public health services,

confirmed the Haifa Bay area "ranked

air pollution. Mayor Yahav further

the letter quoted Hebrew University

first in pollutant emissions in Israel"

said that municipality trucks were

research published in the American

while noting that the research was

blocking the entrances to Israel Oil

Journal of Cancer Epidemiology and

based on data from a decade ago and

Refineries and Petroleum & Energy

Prevention which found "an increased

there had been "a 70 percent drop in

Infrastructures, both of which are

risk of developing cancer in a heavily-

air pollution" in the bay area over the

based on the bay in the northern

industrialized sub-district" of the city.

past six years.

The letter was submitted as part of

However, Israel Oil Refineries said it

The move came after a senior health

an appeal against plans to expand

had invested over one billion shekels

ministry official sent a letter to the

oilrefineries in the area. "Compared

($255 million/236 million euros) in

interior ministry's planning department

to the incidence in the rest of Israel,

"preserving the environment and

warning of a disproportionately high

the Haifa subdistrict population had

diminishing pollutant emissions."The

cancer rate in the Haifa area due to

an elevated hazard ratio of lung,

company, which describes itself as

the operation of such plants. The move

head and neck, colo-rectal, gastric

Israel's "largest integrated refining and

came after a senior health ministry

and oesophagus, bladder and cervical

petrochemical group," said "objective

official sent a letter to the interior

carcinoma," the researchers wrote. "If

bodies" had measured "dramatic

ministry's planning department

the latest data is correct, we demand

improvements" in pollution levels.

port city.

European PP, PE plants resume operations

E

uropean PP and PE plants are

late April. OMV is also expected to

However, the company’s force

slowly resuming operations

lift their force majeure on ethylene

majeure declarations on PP and

following shutdowns that lasted up

output from their 500,000 tpa

PE reportedly remain in place,

to a month or more. The return of

cracker in Austria by the end of this

according to ChemOrbis.

the polymer plants is following the

month.

restarts at upstream units while

Market sources reported that

Borealis restarted their PP plant

Polychim’s 230,000 tpa PP plant in

at Kallo, Belgium in H2-April, with

Dunkirk, France was also in restart

stocks expected to return to normal

phase as of H2-April. The company

levels in mid-May. The company’s

declared force majeure on their PP

LDPE, LLDPE/HDPE and PP plants

supply due to a propylene shortage

Total, Versalis and Dow are planning

at Schwechat, Austria are also

by around mid-March.

to restart their crackers, with over

expected to resume full operations

1 mln tpa of ethylene capacity, in

towards end April.

polyolefins’ supply in the region is yet to improve as force majeure declarations from these plants remain in place for now.

Plastics News • May 2015 • 38

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39 • May 2015 • Plastics News

Plastics News • May 2015 • 40

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Plastics News • May April2015 2015•• 42 40

May 2015 2015 •• Plastics Plastics News News 43••April 41

Plastics News • May 2015 • 44

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

Indonesia to complete RFCC refinery- EU to reduce plastic Phase I in June bag use

I

ndonesian Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources (ESDM) stated that the construction of the Residual Fluid Catalytic Cracking (RFCC) refinery project- Phase I will be completed by will in June 2015, as per ANTARA News. The minister said that the RFCC is a modernization of the refinery to produce more valueadded products. The project which was inaugurated by President on December 28, 2011 has an investment value of US$1.4 bln. The project

is expected to increase gasoline production by 1.9 mln kiloliters per year. It increases the Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) production as much as 352,000 tpa and will produce "propylene" products up to 142,000 tpa.

Propylene production is expected to increase the supply for the needs of the domestic petrochemical plastics industry that has been dependent on imports.

Axiall continues to pursue ethane cracker project in Louisiana

D

espite rising capital costs and

chlorovinyls segment. Axiall's project

weakening ethylene margins,

comes amid a flurry of new ethylene

Axiall continues to pursue its

capacity slated to come online in the

proposed 1 mln tpa ethane cracker

Gulf coast region in the next several

in Louisiana. This is to meet the

years that is driving up the cost of

company's requirement for cheap

both building materials and labor.

ethylene to remain competitive in the chlorovinyls business, Axiall chief executive Paul Carrico has been quoted by Argus. "Our challenge is still not having cost-based ethylene to where all of our competitors will have that before it is all said and done,"

The Atlanta-based petrochemical producer has postponed a final investment decision on the cracker pending further cost analysis, but Carrico said it is important to leave the option on the table. "Going

Carrico said. "That is a very significant

forward, it continues to be important

portion of the vinyl chain at this point

to us to get an optimum position in

in terms of margin, so we have to deal

cost-based ethylene in some fashion,"

with that in some fashion too."

he said. "We continue to study what

Axiall's proposed cracker project, a 50:50 joint venture with South Korea's Lotte Chemical, would provide feedstock ethylene for Axiall's

we have on the table as well as continue to look for opportunities that might be there as some of this ethylene volume builds.

E

uropean Union countries will be required to reduce the use of plastic bags under new rules approved by the European Parliament April 28.

Member states will be able to choose either to take measures to reduce annual average consumption of nonbiodegradable plastic bags to 90 lightweight bags per citizen by the end of 2019 — and 40 by the end of 2025 — or ensure that by the end of 2018, no more light plastic bags are handed over free of charge to shoppers.

In 2010 every EU citizen used an estimated 198 plastic carrier bags, some 90 percent of which were lightweight. Lightweight plastic bags are those thinner than 50 microns, and make up the vast majority of plastic carrier bags used in the EU. Denmark’s European Parliament member Margrete Auken steered the legislation through Parliament and said it was a major step for the environment.

She said: “This legislation will create a genuine win-win situation.

"We're talking about an immense environmental problem. Billions of plastic bags end up directly in nature as untreated waste. It damages nature, harms fish, birds, and we have to get to grips with this.”Furthermore, the European Commission is required to assess the impact on the environment of oxo-degradable plastic materials, which fragment into small particles, and propose suitable measures. By 2017, the European Commission will have to propose labeling and marking measures for an EU-wide recognition of biodegradable and compostable plastic bags.

45 • May 2015 • Plastics News

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

California may require more recycled content in bottles

C

alifornia lawmakers are considering a pair of bills that would bump up the required recycled content in plastic bottles for beverage companies to keep getting a break on state fees. State senators are considering SB 732, which would require a minimum of 10 percent recycled content for all plastic beverage bottles sold in California starting in 2017. In the Assembly version of the bill, the 10 percent content requirement applies to PET bottles and food containers.

It also would extend the current 35 percent minimum recycled content requirement on glass to all glass bottles filled in California, not just those made in California. Earlier, a Senate committee voted 1-0 in favor of the bill but at least four votes in favor are required to move it forward.

Bottle bills in other states charge consumers a deposit that is refunded by the retailer when the containers are returned. But California’s system requires beverage distributors to pay a recycling processing fee to CalRecycle. A processing fee also is assessed on beverage manufacturers whose containers cost more to recycle than they are worth as scrap value.

However, if predetermined container diversion rates are achieved, the state reduces the amount manufacturers must pay. It then dips into state funds from unclaimed deposits to make up the difference when it cuts checks to

Plastics News • May 2015 • 46

recycling companies.

However, years of widespread fraud has left the California Redemption Value program strapped for cash. The new bills up for consideration could help staunch the cash hemorrhage, says Californians Against Waste, the bills’ sponsor, though it is a bit of a Catch-22. “On one hand we need more money,” said CAW Executive Director Mark Murray. “On the other hand, we want people to use recycled content. The truth is we want just enough people to use recycled content. Because we do need more money.”

Some beverage companies would be impacted more than others under the legislation. Analysis accompanying the bills says Coca-Cola Co. averages about 6 percent recycled content in its PET bottles, PepsiCo reports using 10 percent for beverage containers and Nestle states that five of its brands use a range from 50 percent to 100 percent recycled PET. If the bills pass, the changes would not necessarily solve the longer term problems of the state’s bottle program, Murray said, but it would be a start, as well as a push for more recycled content in bottles. He also acknowledged that is a big “if.” “But we have no analysis on the resin side,” Murray said. “So we have no idea how many manufactures could meet 10 percent on the plastic side or 35 percent on the glass side. If

we can’t answer that question then that bill is dead.” The measures also face considerable opposition from the plastics and glass industries, though Murray said plastics industry trade groups the Society of the Plastics Industry Inc. and the American Chemistry Council are misreading the bills.

In an April 10 letter, ACC expressed concern that the bills could “unnecessarily distort the existing recycling marketplace without justification. “Currently, plastic material collected for recycling is used as feedstock for a variety of end use markets — for example containers, textile products, pipe, strapping and carpet manufacturing.

Imposing an artificial mandate would divert this material away from these established markets that have already invested heavily in the recycling infrastructure,” the letter said.

“Furthermore, it is not clear whether there is sufficient reclamation capacity available to meet this mandate. In other words, there may not be enough [post consumer recycled material] in the marketplace to meet the requirements of this bill.”

CalRecycles representatives said they could not comment on pending legislation.

The state Senate’s Committee on Environmental Quality will meet again on SB 732 the first full week of May.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

Bag makers sue Dallas over 5-cent fee

A

n ordinance to tax plastic and paper bags in Dallas is the subject of a lawsuit filed May 1 by a group of bag manufacturers and recyclers.

The suit, brought by Hilex Poly Co. LLC, Superbag Corp., Inteplast Group and Advanced Polybag Inc., alleges that the 5-cent-per-bag tax passed by the City Council in March 2014 violates the Texas Solid Waste Disposal Act. Section 361.0961 of the Texas Health and Safety Code says local governments cannot ban or restrict “the sale or use of a container or package” or asses fees

or deposits on the sale of packaging.

The lawsuit alleges that makes the bag ban illegal. When the Dallas ban was passed, then-State Attorney General Greg Abbott was already looking into whether bag bans or taxes were legal in the state. He eventually concluded that such ordinances were a violation of state law. No other action has been taken on the nine other existing bans or fees in the state. Abbott has since been elected governor of Texas. The lawsuit also says the ordinance “raises more revenue

than is reasonably necessary to subsidize the city's efforts to ensure compliance with the ordinance” and that such a move has to be approved by voters. Also, while labeled a “fee,” it is in fact a tax, which Texas law says also has to have the approval of the voters, according to the lawsuit. Customers are harmed by the ordinance, the suit says, because of increased costs to them.

Retailers are in turn also harmed, it says, due to customers choosing to shop elsewhere, where bags are free.

Chinese Government supports battery development

T

he Chinese government is putting a huge amount of support behind the development of the lithium battery industry, and film manufacturers are optimistic about prospects for the sector.

More than 200 industry representatives gathered to discuss the development of the lithium-ion battery market in China and abroad at the 2015 Market and Technical Development Conference of Lithium-ion Battery & Separator Film and LIB Key Materials Industry Chain Development Forum 2015, held in Beijing in early April.

Speakers noted that lithium ion batteries are becoming popular around the world, including Japan, South Korea, the United States and Europe. Following this global trend, China’s demand for lithium batteries is also growing, especially since 2011, according to speaker Wu Yao Gen

chief engineer at FSPG Hi-Tech Co. Ltd., one of the top three producers of lithium-ion battery separator film in China.

The biggest increase in demand has remained in the consumer electronic goods category (for example smart phones and portable chargers), he said, although the demand for electric transportation tools such as electric bikes is growing at a markedly increased rate as well.

Following the increased demand, there also has been an increase in production. According to data he provided from AskCIData, the production of lithium batteries in China was more than 5.28 million units in 2014, an increase of 10.9 percent from 2013. According to CCM, the industry will have expanded 400 percent by 2017.

Chinese government subsidies for new energy vehicles remain a large part of the government support, although earlier this year the amount of subsidies decreased by 10 percent in order to extend the program.

Wu Yao Gen said that from 2009 to 2015, as production of lithium battery separator film steadily increased in China, the price of separator films steadily dropped. But he said there is a heavy dependence on imported films, with Japanese, South Korean and American manufacturers making up an overwhelming majority of the global separator film market.

Wu highlighted some of the reasons for the dependence on imported separator films such as many employees at foreign separator film companies have prior experience working in the battery industry and understand battery companies’ needs.

47 • May 2015 • Plastics News

Business NEWS

Andhra Pradesh to have ONG cracker Sanmar mulls US$350 mln project in Machilipatnam investment in expansion he Andhra Pradesh government away from Visakhapatnam down of Egypt plant

T

is planning to promote the establishment of a multi-billion dollar oil and natural gas cracker complex project in the port town of Machilipatnam with formation of a consortium with PSU oil companies as well as private global players, including the Kharashi group of Dubai. According to reports a letter from the state Chief Minister has been approved by the Prime Minister.

The project is proposed to have a 10 mln ton capacity requiring an investment of around Rs 1 lakh crore.

Machilipatnam is a little over 350 km

south and located almost at the middle point of AP’s seacoast.

The proposal also involves inclusion of Machilipatnam into the existing Petroleum Chemicals and Petrochemical Investment Region (PCPIR) centered around Visakhapatnam. The government has chosen Machilipatnam since it is unlikely to get environmental clearances at the existing PCPIR location due to coastal zoning regulations among other things.

The town is also part of the proposed capital city region

S

annmar plans to invest US$350 mln in the expansion of its Egyptian plant, raising its total investment in the country to US$1.45 billion, as per english.ahram. org.eg. The expansion of Trust Chemical Industries (TCI) in Port Said has been studied and approved by the company, Chairman Vijay Sankar was quoted as saying by Egypt's state news agency MENA. Sanmar acquired the petrochemicals plant TCI in 2007 and plans to turn it to the largest integrated producers of caustic soda and PVC in the Middle East and North Africa region.

Ferro Corp to acquire 100% stake in Nubiola Pigmentos

F

erro Corporation has signed a definitive agreement with the shareholders of Barcelonabased Nubiola Pigmentos to acquire 100% of the equity of Nubiola, on a cash-free and debt-free basis, for €146 million. Nubiola is among the worldwide producers of specialty inorganic pigments and the among the world’s largest producers of Ultramarine Blue, a high-value pigment for plastics and construction industries due to its durability, unique color attributes and its whitening capability.

Based on 2014 EBITDA, excluding expected transaction synergies, the acquisition purchase price represents a transaction multiple of approximately 7X. The transaction will be funded with excess cash

Plastics News • May 2015 • 48

and a draw on the Company’s existing revolving credit facility.

The transaction is expected to close within the next 60 days, subject to customary closing conditions.

Other products of Nubiola include specialty Iron Oxides, Chrome Oxide Greens and Corrosion Inhibitors.

Nubiola generated 2014 annual sales of $119 million, based on the current euro exchange rate, and achieved compound annual growth of 4.1% over the last three years.

The 101-year-old family-owned company employs approximately 750 people, including temporary employees, and has production facilities in Spain, Colombia, Romania, and India and a joint venture in China. Nubiola sells

into more than 85 countries. The majority of Nubiola’s customers serve the plastics and construction industries. Commenting on the proposed transaction, Peter Thomas, Chairman, President and CEO of Ferro Corporation, said, “Nubiola is an excellent strategic fit with Ferro, as we strengthen our position as a global color solutions provider. The acquisition will significantly expand our product portfolio and geographic footprint and more than triple the size of our addressable market in inorganic pigments to greater than $1 billion. Nubiola will bring technology leadership on a global scale in Ultramarine Blue, along with a range of other high-value pigment and corrosion inhibitor product lines

Business NEWS

Genstar buys molder Boyd Corp

S

an Francisco based-Genstar Capital has acquired Modesto, a California based Boyd Corp. from Snow Phipps Group L.L.C.. Headquartered in Modesto, Boyd operates five U.S. manufacturing facilities and four others in China. It also has manufacturing in South Korea, Thailand and Germany, with technical centers in Sweden and Taiwan. Genstar said Boyd's product offerings include thermal management, environmental sealing, bonding, protecting, insulating and other specialized customer solutions using both rubber and thermoplastics.

Boyd CEO Mitch Aiello said employment will not be affected.

industries, including auto, commercial vehicle, agriculture, aerospace, medical and electronics. Aiello said the firm is looking to strengthen its position within its already established industries, specifically in device and consumable areas in the medical field and in the airframe structure area of the aerospace industry. “We don't see a lot more diversity, but Genstar does have some connections in areas where we look to expand our business,” he said. Boyd's involvement in engineered components makes it attractive to investors, as well as its partnerships with original equipment manufacturers.

“We've known the Genstar guys for quite some time,” Aiello said. “One of their areas of practice is the industrial space with a focus on engineered products and components. They have a tremendous group of advisers in this space with great industry experience and a lot of different end markets and processes. Patterning with their advisory board is valuable, they have great access to growth capital and really fine experience in the space.” Boyd is active in a number of

The CEO said Boyd's average tenure of the firm's top 25 customers is more than 15 years, moving from platform to platform with their customers as they grow and develop new technology.“Boyd delivers bestin-class solutions for customers to ensure the efficacy, durability, and functionality of many of the world's most recognizable brands across a number of global industries,” Genstar Managing Director Rob Rutledge said, “The management team, led by Mitch

Aiello, has done an excellent job building the company into a leading player in its markets globally. Boyd's stellar reputation is based on intense customer focus and precise execution and we are excited to support its continued growth and expansion.”

Snow Phipps had acquired Boyd in July 2012 and since has completed several acquisitions, most recently buying the Solimide foam business from Evonik AG in September 2014 to boost Boyd's presence in the aerospace market.

Prior to that, Boyd acquired the Asian and European die-cut businesses of Brady Corporation in August 2014 to strengthen its presence in the mobile computing and electronics markets. It also established Boyd's first manufacturing presence in Europe.“This transaction validates our investment process,” Snow Phipps CEO Ian Snow said in a statement.

“Acquiring high quality businesses like Boyd and building partnerships between management, our investment team and operating partners create significant opportunities for our portfolio companies during and after our ownership.”

Saudi Aramco to expand in refining and petrochemicals

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audi Arabian Oil Co. plans to spend US$70-80 bln on overseas acquisitions and investments during the next five years. The investment is part of the state-owned company’s target of spending US$150 bln at home and internationally through 2019, to focus on Asia, particularly China and Korea.

Saudi Aramco is expanding in refining and petrochemicals and seeking to boost ties with Asia as part of its ambition to become both the world’s largest oil and chemicals producer by the end of the decade. Last year, it bought a US$2 billion stake in S-Oil Corp., South Korea’s third-largest oil refiner.

The company has joint-venture plants in China, owns stakes in refining businesses in South Korea, Japan and the U.S. and markets its crude and refined products globally. Aramco secured a $10 billion loan in March that could be used to fund potential acquisitions, people with knowledge of the matter told Bloomberg at the time.

49 • May 2015 • Plastics News

Business NEWS

Samsung’s Petrochemicals to be renamed CB&I awarded US640 as Hanwha Group mln contracts by he Samsung Group’s petrochemical billion) in November last year. Toyo

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subsidiaries, Samsung General C h e m i c a l s a n d S a m s u n g To t a l Petrochemicals, will be renamed and launched as Hanwha Group subsidiaries.

Samsung General Chemicals and Samsung Total Petrochemicals had an extraordinary shareholders meetings and board meetings on 27 and April 30 respectively . The agenda of the extraordinary shareholders meetings will be the change of company names and the approval of registered executives. The Samsung Group struck a big deal with Hanwha Group and sold four of its affiliate companies to Hanwha for 1.9 trillion won (US$1.77

The four companies are Samsung General Chemicals and Samsung Total Petrochemicals in its petrochemical sector, and Samsung Techwin and Samsung Thales in its defense sector.

When Samsung General Chemicals and Samsung Total Petrochemicals are handed over to Hanwha Group, getting approval in the extraordinary shareholders meetings, the Big Deal between the two groups will be half completed five months. The disposal procedure of the two subsidiaries in the petrochemical sector has been going relatively well compared to the other two in the defense sector.

Songwon forms JV with QLF

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ongwon Industrial Group has formed a joint venture (JV) with Qingdao Long Fortune Chemical & Auxiliary (QLF) to manufacture and market polymer stabilisers in China.

The companies have signed a JV agreement, which will see the production and sale of Songwon's one pack systems (OPS) and polymer stabilisers. Planned for the Qingdao area of Eastern China, the JV aims to become a preferred supplier to the country's polymer industry. Under the agreement, investments will be made into a new OPS plant based in the Pingdu County industrial park.

Construction on the plant is expected to begin in the end of Q2-2015 with operation scheduled to start by the end of Q1-2016.

Plastics News • May 2015 • 50

"The manufacturing facility is intended to offer new additive formulations to customers in customised, dust-free and easy disposable product forms."

The manufacturing facility is intended to offer new additive formulations to customers in customised, dust-free and easy disposable product forms, Songwon said. Songwon Industrial Group chairman and CEO Jongho Park said: "We are pleased to be teaming up with a competent partner that has such a superb reputation among all the major Chinese polyolefin manufacturers. "The partnership provides an excellent opportunity for us to build a manufacturing presence in China and further strengthens Songwon's ambition to become a leading polymer stabiliser supplier in this important region

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B&I has been awarded contracts valued in excess of US$640 mln

by Toyo Engineering Corporation to provide ethylene technology, basic engineering and cracker heater supply, as well as construction services for the Shintech Ethane Cracker Project in Plaquemine, Louisiana.The ethylene plant will employ CB&I's latest, proven ethylene technology, including highly selective SRT® cracking heaters and its innovative recovery section design, featuring low pressure separation and mixed refrigeration to minimize investment costs. "

Reliance to grow in North Carolina Reliance Packaging LLC expects to grow significantly during the next three years, both in production of heavy-duty plastic bags for the lawn and garden market and the amount of employees needed to make those bags.

The Aberdeen, N.C.-based operation is a joint venture and part of Sigma Plastics Group that expects to invest $3.5 million in the expansion effort.

Reliance relocated to Aberdeen from Florida late last year and started operations at the former Southern Film Extruders site on a limited basis, according to Reliance COO Satish Sharma said that now the firm is moving ahead with plans to dramatically increase production of bags using low and LLDPE.

Business NEWS

Erema posts record sales

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ustria-based recycling technology company Erema GmbH has announced that it hit record figures with its annual sales for the fiscal year of 2014-15, reporting 115 million euros ($131 million) in sales, an increase of 21 percent and 20 million euros ($22.8 million) on the previous year.The sales for the entire group — including Erema, Pure Loop and 3S — stood at 130 million euros ($148.1 million) for the year. "This growth is due primarily to the new Intarema plant generation and confirms that this innovation represents an attractive technology for customers,” said CEO Manfred Hackl. The Interama plant has sold 245 recycling systems at Ansfelden since the system was launched 18 months ago. The system is a complete recycling system, launched at K 2013.

Erema is concentrating on expansion.

It launched sister company Pure Loop GmbH at the beginning of the year, which focuses on shredderextruder technology, while Erema

states that as a group it will grow its range of services in the field of in-house recycling. Meanwhile, Erema's subsidiary Erema North America is more than doubling the size of its trial center due to demand, particularly from the post-consumer recycling sector. The trial center at the company's head office in Ipswich, Mass., will be extended to 25,000 square feet from the current 10,000, and will have four recycling systems for test runs. The expansion is scheduled for completion in late summer 2015.

Erema's sister company 3S has also expanded in the past year, with its new premises in Wartberg im Mürztal in Styria, Austria, extended by 4,000 square meters to a total of 7,000 square meters and its number of employees growing from 60 to 68.

Erema currently employs 480 people and states that globally 4000 Erema systems produce more than 14 million metric tons of plastic pellets every year.

Shintech to invest US$1.4 bln in new ethylene capacity

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orld No 1 PVC maker Shintech Inc. plans to invest US$1.4 bln in a new ethylene production capacity at its facility in Iberville Parish, Louisiana. This will be the first ethylene plant built in USA by a Japanese chemical company. With approximately 5,700 acres on the Mississippi River southwest of Baton Rouge, Shintech operates plants in Plaquemine and Addis that chiefly produce PVC and its feedstock vinyl chloride monomer (VCM)The latest

US$1.4 billion expansion will include installation of an ethane cracker at the Plaquemine complex and capital upgrades to connect the ethylene output to VCM and PVC production there. Shintech expects to break ground on the project in Q2-2015, with completion of the project slated for H1-2018. Shintech is near completion of an capacity expansion of its VCM, PVC and caustic soda capacity in Iberville Parish.

Eastman innovates with Aerafin

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astman Chemical has announced that it is expanding its polyolefin portfolio with the addition of Aerafin polymer.

Aerafin is an innovative polymer created for use in hygiene construction hot melt adhesives.

It enables a broad processing window for hot melt formulations, including the ability to spray at temperatures as low at 130°C and offers compatibility with a range of hydrocarbon tackifiers.

“The launch of Aerafin comes as a result of a dedicated innovation effort," said JP Kuijpers, adhesives business director at Eastman Chemical. "Our formulator customers and product brand owners expressed the desire for improved performance of the olefin polymers in hot melt adhesives and our technology team delivered. "Aerafin demonstrates the excellent peel strength brand owners need and can have lower tackifier loading requirements, enabling formulation flexibility," he added.

Eastman Aerafin™ polymer provides additional benefits in formulation, so that brand owners don’t have to make sacrifices in nozzle compatibility, production speeds, low temperature sprayability, or achieving quality spray patterns within a broad processing temperature range.

51 • May 2015 • Plastics News

Product NEWS

Tecknor launches low cost HFFR jacket

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eknor Apex Company has launched its new additions to a low-cost series of Halguard® halogen-free flame retardant (HFFR) compounds for general-purpose jacketing applications include two compounds with enhanced flame retardance and one that exhibits lower post-extrusion shrinkage, was announced by Teknor Apex Company.

The new compounds cost less than premium compounds while entailing little compromise in performance properties. Teknor Apex recommends them for cable used in subway, mass transit, cell tower, data center and infrastructure applications, as well as internal wiring in electrical and electronic equipment. The grades include: Halguard 58610 and 58615. These 53 Shore D compounds have UL-94 vertical burn ratings of V-0 for 1/16

in. (1.59 mm) thick specimens, and oxygen indices of 52 and 45%, respectively. Both enable passing the UL-1685 FT-4 and UL-1666 riser flame tests for more complex cable constructions.

Halguard 58620. This 54 Shore D compound provides the low level of post-extrusion shrinkage that is important for fiber optic cable applications and enables passing the UL-1685 flame test. The new c o m p o u n d s f o l l o w l a s t y e a r’s introduction of the first compounds in the low-cost HFFR series, Halguard 58600 and 58605.

“Teknor Apex developed Halguard 58610, 58615, and 58620 to address specific needs reported to us by customers following the introduction of 58600 and 58605 grades,” said Mike Patel, director of marketing and business development for the Vinyl Division of Teknor Apex.

GFP installs KraussMaffei MXH injection Georg Fischer Piping Systems bought a KraussMaffei MXH injection molding press with 3,200 metric tons of clamping force to mold extra-large pipe fittings. KM is claiming it’s the largest injection press ever to be installed in Switzerland.

The press began production in late 2014 for GF Piping Systems of Schaffenhausen, Switzerland, part of Georg Fischer Ltd. It makes pipe fittings with a diameter of up to 500 millimeters (19.7 inches). The maximum shot weight is 120 kilograms (265 pounds).

Plastics News • May 2015 • 52

One special challenge, according to KraussMaffei, was the high-viscosity polyethylene 10 material running on the large press. The solution involved optimized screw geometries and drives for the plasticizing unit.

The controlled melt temperature during plasticizing prevents the melt from overheating during the plasticizing, preventing thermal decomposition of the material as a result. At the same time, a high plasticizing output with outstanding melt quantities is possible.

Dri-Air rolls out E-Plus series

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indsor based Dri-Air Industries Inc. rolled out its new E-Plus series of dryers. The dryer system has the hopper encased in a tower design, and Sears noted that it uses 50 percent less energy. The setup means that the hopper is better insulated and there is only one small tube at the top.“We did the tower fatter and shorter for better efficiency. When you do that, you get good air flow,” said Charles Sears, president of Dri-Air, while showing off his newest creation. Sears said that he came up with the idea about five years ago and it underwent various testing and is finally ready for the latest NPE. The E-Plus he said stands for “energy-plus.”

The plus feature came about because it is a closed system and contains a laser sensor. Details are displayed on a touch screen which can be viewed from 20 feet or more. It is a standard feature. The screen is uncluttered, offering a quick look at stats, an ability to set the temperature and an on-off switch. Percentages and actual weight are now in digital form.

More information can be accessed if needed, and the control can be accessed from a smart phone, tablet or other portable device. The cleanout is simple.

There is a takeout box inside that you just remove. A spring-loaded slide gate keeps the material inside. Dryers are offered in three sizes with drying capacities of 25, 50 or 100 pounds an hour.

Product NEWS

Celstran® offer metal replacement, strength, lightweight

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anufacturers in the automotive, c o n s u m e r, i n d u s t r i a l a n d aerospace industries choose Celanese's Celstran® LFRT over conventional short-fiber reinforced thermoplastics because it is tough and resistant to chemicals, corrosion and high temperatures.

Manufacturers in these industries require metal replacement, strength and lightweight materials that results

in improved performance and lower emissions. At the same time, it is critical they maintain design freedom and easy processing in low and high temperatures.

Celstran® LFRT meets all of these requirements while also allowing stunning textures and surface appearance in a variety of mold-in colors, including metallic and chromes that eliminate the need for paint.

Celanese’s Celstran® LFRT material unites long-fiber reinforcements with advanced thermoplastic resins for a combination of mechanical properties, impact, creep resistance and low warpage. Manufacturers use Celstran® LFRT in products consumers use every day such as car instrument panels and gear shift levers, home appliances, power tools, piping, seating systems in airplanes, and much more

New High-Temperature Seals on Nordson Xaloy Slide Plate Screen Changers

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ordson Corporation has developed a new sealing technology for its slide-plate screen changers, enabling them to provide reliable leak-proof melt filtration at higher temperatures and pressures and substantially lower viscosities.

new sealing technology has exhibited leak-free operation in more than 2,000 hours of lab trials by Nordson and over 100,000 hours of service in dozens of production applications.” said Kevin Tuttle, business development manager

polyolefins, styrenics, and engineering polymers over a wide range of melt indices.” The new high-temperature sealing system is available on both manual and hydraulic slide plate

for melt stream products. “In these installations, Nordson Xaloy slide plate screen changers have been used successfully with dozens of grades of

screen changers, noted Parke Strong, R&D engineer, and it can be retrofitted on existing equipment.

The seals on Nordson Xaloy slide plate screen changers prevent leakage by utilizing an innovative design that seals effectively at both low and high pressures, temperatures and viscosities. The new Nordson seal enables the slide plate screen changers to perform reliably at temperatures up to 650 °F (345 °C), pressures up to 7,500 psi (515 BAR), and viscosities as low as 15 pascal seconds. (15,000 centipoise).

This represents a significant improvement in performance with low-viscosity materials in comparison with earlier sealing systems (see graph) for slide plate filtration. “The

53 • May 2015 • Plastics News

Product NEWS

JC-MNP (PP / HDPE) JC-MNN series (PA / PET) series

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ENN CHONG is well recognized as a technology engineering company that succeed in maintaining its pioneer position as competent supplier for comprehensive range of monofilament extrusion line to the global market. Over 30 years of experience in the monofilament extrusion technology provided the basis for the outstanding quality of JENN CHONG Monofilament Extrusion Line, which have always being the core competence of the company.

JENN CHONG monofilament extrusion line is the most flexible monofilament line at the forefront of the global market provides technical solution in the field of PP, HDPE, PA, and PET monofilament production.

The JC-MNP series monofilament extrusion line is conceived to process polypropylene (PP) and high density polyethylene (HDPE).

Extruder available from standard Ø 55mm to Ø 100mm for production of monofilament diameter range from Ø0.15mm to Ø1.00mm.

The JC-MNN series monofilament extrusion line is conceived to process polyamide (PA6, 6.6), polyester (PET), and polypropylene (PP). Extruder available from standard Ø 50mm to Ø 80mm for production of monofilament diameter range from Ø0.10 mm to Ø4.00mm.

Utilizing the latest technology system and with access to modern manufacturing plant, Jenn Chong

offers a complete solution to satisfy even the most demanding customer.

From standard monofilament line configuration, to custommade equipment for heavy gauge monofilament, flagged, crimped monofilament, with different monofilament profile, and diameter from Ø 0.10mm up to Ø 4.00mm for all domestic, agricultural, fishery, and various industrial applications. With its high level of reliability, efficiency, energy saving concept, and top quality finish product, JENN CHONG monofilament extrusion line ensures the modest investment compared with its high productivities to facilitate the ever-demand requirement of all market sectors.

Generation Tech introduces disposable thermoformed trays

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e n e r a t i o n Te c h , a F r e n c h company that has developed a line of thermoformed disposable paint trays (or trays for kitty litter, cleaning products, crafts and paints and carryout trays) in packs of five to 10 liners that stick to each other without glue — and are thermoformed all at the same time. The company can thermoform the very thin liners with a draw of 250 millimeters, or about 10 inches. You can peel away one of the thin liners for use, and still have more left over, according to Raphael Caldas, technical director of the company in Suresnes, a

Plastics News • May 2015 • 54

suburb of Paris. When you’re done, you crumple them up and dispose of them. Generation Tech also sells the patented machinery technology to make the trays, which sell under the name Pull-Liners. At NPE 2015, the company exhibited in the French Pavilion.Generation Tech signed an agreement with thermoformer Lindar Corp., which will make the Pull-Liner in the United States, Canada and Mexico for do-it-yourself applications.

Generation Tech is selling the liners in five European countries. Caldas said about 80 percent of its business is to

professionals in the building trades. Caldas invented the Pull-Liner for a personal reason: He was renovating his house and got tired of traditional paint trays — too messy, he said. The PullLiner won the award for thin-gauge part in the 2012 Society of Plastics Engineers’ European Thermoforming Parts Competition. The company also has won awards in France, including one for being a big seller on a home shopping television network.

Product NEWS

BASF introduces Lumina

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ASF has introduced Lumina® Royal product line which can now be used in a wide variety of plastics applications. In 2010, BASF introduced the effect pigment Lumina® Royal Blue for plastics applications into the market. With today's introduction, producers of plastics all over the world can create attractive designs in blue and copper color shades.

The pigments of the Lumina® Royal product series are characterized by their great brilliance, purity and highest chromaticity. The Blue, Aqua, Indigo and Magenta pigments cover the greenish- to reddish-blue interference color spectrum whereas Lumina® Royal Copper offers an opaque, bright copper effect shade.

“Lumina® Royal effect pigments offer our customers particularly brilliant solutions with creative styling options for plastics applications helping brand

owners to enhance their brands and to stand out among peers ,” said Jeff Knight, Senior Vice President, Dispersions and Pigments, Asia Pacific, BASF. The Lumina® Royal series can, for example, be used to produce eyecatching articles for sport and leisure like skateboards and snowboards, ski boots as well as children’s toys. Other fields of application are elegantly designed packaging for cosmetic products and casings for electronic devices and household appliances such as coffee makers. The Lumina® Royal series extends BASF’s broad portfolio of high-quality pigments for plastics. Besides effect pigments the company offers its customers also organic pigments and dyes which can be combined with the Lumina® Royal pigments. In this way, BASF enables producers of plastics to achieve special effects and creative styling options.

Priamus adds new interface for sensors O h i o b a s e d Pr i a m u s S y s t e m Technologies LLC has developed new interface solutions for its sensors.

Va l v e s c a n b e c o n t r o l l e d t o compensate for process and viscosity variations. The switching signals are usually directly connected with the machine interface, to open or close the valve gates.

In many cases, the interfaces are mounted outside of the machine.

With multi-cavity molds it often is necessary to provide a number of switching signals in a systematic and orderly manner, the company said.

Also Priamus’ Fillcontrol software now has been extended with a data export function, which allows the selection of a range of cycles, and stores all details in either csc or Excel format.

American Kuhne reduces downtime for SMED tool changes

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merican Kuhne has applied its Single-Minute Exchange of Die (SMED) to key tasks in extrusion job changeovers, creating three options that reduce downtime in tubing, profile, wire and cable and other small-die production lines.SMED Quick-Change options can reduce changeover times by nearly half an hour. The options are available with new American Kuhne extruders, or they can be retrofitted onto equipment from American Kuhne or other suppliers. The company offers three innovations:

Quick collet screw pusher, a device

that reduces the time needed to pull screws from five minutes to less than one minute, using a springmounted locking nut and a sliding collet to fasten the nut onto the threaded screw-pushing rod at the rear of the drive shaft. According to American Kuhne, normally the rod is affixed by spinning a nut into position and installing and tightening six screws. Rotary hopper, which can be pivoted away from the feed throat for rapid dumping of excess material and easy access for vacuuming our residual material, and adding purging compound or new material. This

cuts cleanout time from about six minutes to just one minute. Dualhead arrangement, which cuts the time to change dies from 20 minutes to two minutes by having a preheated head with breaker plate ready for fast replacement of the one that was in use. Both heads are mounted on pivoting support structures on either side of the die area. They have separate electrical connections. To replace a head, the operator simply loosens the clamping nut, opens the clamp and pivots away the previously used head.

55 • May 2015 • Plastics News

Technology

Biocompatible and biodegradable TPU vessels transform into biological ones

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olymer fabric vessels that transform into biological ones, once implanted have been developed. The artificial blood vessels are made from biocompatible and biodegradable thermoplastic polyurethanes. A team - from Vienna University of Technology and Vienna Medical University in Austria, describes how they made and tested the new material in a paper published in the journal Acta Biomaterialia.

Blocked blood vessels can quickly become very dangerous - they are one of the most common causes of death in industrialized countries.

It is often necessary to replace blocked blood vessels - for instance in a bypass operation - either with

other vessels taken from the body or with artificial ones. Artificial blood vessels are made from biodegradable materials that gradually populate with live cells to make new tissue.

As the artificial material dissolves, the new tissue takes over.However, the researchers say that the artificial materials currently available are not ideally compatible with body tissue.

They note in their paper, "Current approaches often reveal limited tensile strength and therefore require thicker or reinforced graft walls."

Another problem with currently available materials is they can cause the new blood vessel to become blocked, especially if it is only small in diameter. In their paper,

the researchers describe how they developed a new polymer - made from thermoplastic polyurethane - with much improved mechanical properties that can be made into vessels with walls that are very similar to natural ones. The artificial vessels are made by spinning the polymer in an electrical field to form very fine threads that are then wound onto a spool. The polymer fabric is slightly porous - this allows some blood to soak into and enrich the walls with growth factors, which encourages the migration of native cells. Tests of the new artificial blood vessels in rats, showed that after 6 months there was no evidence of bulging (aneurysm), blockage (thrombosis) or inflammation

Nano-coated transparent mesh that cleans oil spil

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

The water filtered through the mesh to land in a beaker below. The oil collected on top of the mesh, and rolled off easily into a separate beaker when the mesh was tilted.

The mesh coating is among a suite of nature-inspired nanotechnologies

Plastics News • May 2015 • 56

under development at Ohio State and described in two papers in the journal Nature Scientific Reports. Potential applications range from cleaning oil spills to tracking oil deposits underground. “If you scale this up, you could potentially catch an oil spill with a net,” says Bharat Bhushan, Ohio Eminent Scholar and Howard D. Winbigler Professor of mechanical engineering at Ohio State.

The work was partly inspired by lotus leaves, whose bumpy surfaces naturally repel water but not oil. To create a coating that did the opposite, Bhushan and postdoctoral researcher Philip Brown chose to cover a bumpy

surface with a polymer embedded with molecules of surfactant—the stuff that gives cleaning power to soap and detergent. They sprayed a fine dusting of silica nanoparticles onto the stainless steel mesh to create a randomly bumpy surface and layered the polymer and surfactant on top.

The silica, surfactant, polymer, and stainless steel are all nontoxic and relatively inexpensive, says Brown. Because the coating is only a few hundred nanometers (billionths of a meter) thick, it is mostly undetectable. To the touch, the coated mesh doesn’t feel any bumpier than uncoated mesh.

Technology

Lasers cook up complex, self-assembled nanomaterials, faster

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ew technique makes nanomaterial self-assembly 1,000 times faster and could be used for industrial-scale solar panels and electronics. Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy's Brookhaven National Laboratory have developed a laser-based technique to execute nanoscale self-assembly with unprecedented ease and efficiency.

"We design materials that build themselves," said Kevin Yager, a scientist at Brookhaven's Center for Functional Nanomaterials (CFN).

"Under the right conditions, molecules will naturally snap into a perfect configuration. The challenge is giving these nanomaterials the kick they need: the hotter they are, the faster they move around and settle into the desired formation. We used lasers to crank up the heat."

Yager and Brookhaven Lab postdoctoral researcher Pawel Majewski built a one-of-a-kind machine that sweeps a focused laser-line across a sample to generate intense and instantaneous spikes in temperature.

This new technique, called Laser Zone Annealing (LZA), drives self-assembly at rates more than 1,000 times faster than traditional industrial ovens. The results are described in the journal ACS Nano. "We created extremely uniform self-assembled structures in less than a second," Majewski said. "Beyond the extraordinary speed, our laser also reduced the defects and degradations present in oven-heated materials.

That combination makes LZA perfect for carrying small-scale laboratory breakthroughs into industry." The

scientists prepared the materials and built the LZA instrument at the CFN. They then analyzed samples using advanced electron microscopy at CFN and x-ray scattering at Brookhaven's now-retired National Synchrotron Light Source (NSLS) -- both DOE Office of Science User Facilities.

The researchers focused on socalled block copolymers, molecules containing two linked blocks with different chemical structures and properties. These blocks tend to repel each other, which can drive the spontaneous formation of complex and rigid nanoscale structures.

"The price of their excellent mechanical properties is the slow kinetics of their self-assembly," Majewski said. "They need energy and time to explore possibilities until they find the right configuration."In traditional block copolymer selfassembly, materials are heated in a vacuum-sealed oven. The sample is typically "baked" for a period of 24 hours or longer to provide enough kinetic energy for the molecules to snap into place -- much too long for commercial viability. The long exposure to high heat also causes inevitable thermal degradation, leaving cracks and imperfections throughout the sample.

The LZA process, however, offers sharp spikes of heat to rapidly excite the polymers without the sustained energy that damages the material.

"Within milliseconds, the entire sample is beautifully aligned," Yager said. "As the laser sweeps across

the material, the localized thermal spikes actually remove defects in the nanostructured film. LZA isn't just faster, it produces superior results."

LZA generates temperatures greater than 500 degrees Celsius, but the thermal gradients -- temperature variations tied to direction and location in a material -- can reach more than 4,000 degrees per millimeter. While scientists know that higher temperatures can accelerate self-assembly, this is the first proof of dramatic enhancement by extreme gradients.

The LZA is the first machine of its kind in the world, but it signals a dramatic step forward in scaling up meticulously designed nanotechnology. The laser can even be used to "draw" structures across the surface, meaning the nanostructures can assemble in welldefined patterns. This unparalleled synthesis control opens the door to complex applications, including electronics.

"There's really no limit to the size of a sample this technique could handle," Yager said. "In fact, you could run it in a roll-to-roll mode -- one of the leading manufacturing technologies."

The scientists plan to further develop the new technique to create multilayer structures that could have immediate impacts on anti-reflective coatings, improved solar cells, and advanced electronics.This research and operations at CFN and NSLS were funded by the DOE Office of Science.

57 • May 2015 • Plastics News

in the NEWS

Over 190 Tons Of Scrap Collected, Sorted And Recycled at Npe2015

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PI and Its Partners Recycled 87% of Overall Waste Generated at the Show At NPE2015, 82 exhibitors participated in the program to recycle processing scrap generated on the show floor, twice as many as at NPE2012, causing a dramatic increase in the amount of material collected for recycling, it was announced today by SPI: The Plastics Industry Trade Association, which produces the triennial NPE. Commercial Plastics Recycling (CPR), the official recycling company for NPE2015, collected, sorted, and recycled 191 tons of processing scrap, which was 62% more than was collected at NPE2012 and 235% more than at NPE2009. As the show has grown and the amount of scrap has increased, the recycling program has increased its capacity, ensuring plastics scrap is being managed properly. “We reached out to exhibitors well in advance of NPE2015 to find out their needs and get a clear idea of how we should

prepare,” said Paul Benvenuti of CPR. “Another big help was having our containers and trucks on site during setup since machines were being operated and generating scrap well before the start of the show.”

Altogether, NPE2015 generated 518 tons of waste at the Orange County Convention Center, including both processing scrap and post-consumer waste. Of the total, 452 tons, or 87%, was recycled. CPR reclaimed the processing scrap at its recycling facility in Tampa, FL, and through a contract carrier, the Orange County Convention Center arranged for recycling of post-consumer waste.

All of this was driven by NPE’s Recycling Committee, comprised of representatives from companies exhibiting at NPE2015, and SPI’s director of operations, Lori Campbell.

“SPI and the plastics industry’s commitment to reduce, reuse, or recycle was a significant focus of the show, and we believe our recycling efforts were a realization of that commitment,” said Bill Carteaux, SPI’s President and CEO. “As the leading trade event in plastics, we needed to model the appropriate behavior, and thanks to the efforts of our recycling program partners, we were able to do just that.”

These successful efforts at NPE2015 have led to an industry call for SPI to launch a new annual event to help brand owners, processors, and the plastics supply chain take its environmental goals from aspirational to operational.

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Gujarat city to use FRP to cover manholes

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adodara city's civic body has decided to replace manhole covers on drainage lines in the city with fibre-reinforced polymer (FRP) material instead of the conventional reinforced cement concrete (RCC) covers on an experimental basis. FRP covers offer longer life, strength and added durability than those made with RCC.

The FRP covers will cost the civic body Rs 5,850 each and it will spend around Rs 11.7 lakh on them. Patel said that besides being durable, the FRP covers had no scrap value.

Vadodara Municipal Corporation (VMC) traditionally used to fit cast iron covers on its drainage manholes.

But these are stolen frequently and the city police had even detected a case of theft of such covers by a scrap collector. It was after this that the civic body decided to use on RCC covers.

"The RCC covers are, however, prone to damage and breakage frequently.

The situation is particularly bad in monsoon when such wet covers break easily. The civic body had recently put up FRP covers at a couple of locations.The experience with these covers was good and they lasted longer than the RCC covers. To carry the process forward we have decided to use 200 such covers on an experimental basis throughout the city," said VMC city engineer P M Patel. Patel said that besides being durable, the FRP covers had no scrap value.

in the NEWS

California panel votes unanimously to add BPA to Prop 65 list

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California panel voted unanimously to list controversial polycarbonate ingredient bisphenol A as a hazardous chemical.California’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment’s (OEHHA) scientific panel, the Developmental a n d R e p r o d u c t i v e To x i c a n t Identification Committee (DARTIC), voted 7-0 to add BPA to the Proposition 65 list, contradicting recent pronouncements from scientists and the U.S., Canadian and European governments that the chemical is not a reproductive threat to humans. "We strongly disagree with the DART-IC decision to list BPA under Proposition 65 as a female reproductive toxicant," said Steven Hentges of the Polycarbonate/

BPA Global Group of the American Chemistry Council. "The decision is not supported by the extensive scientific record presented to the committee and is completely contrary to explicit input provided by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. In April, FDA’s acting chief scientist submitted a letter to the DART-IC stating that the results of FDA’s own comprehensive research 'do not support BPA as a reproductive toxicant.'"

A major concern for the plastics industry overall is that listing BPA, a key component of polycarbonate and certain epoxy resins, could result in preemptive deselection by manufacturers and consumers avoiding a large number of plastic

products without a full understanding of the amount of BPA they are being exposed to or the potential effects of the chemical. Attempts to put BPA on the Prop 65 list began in 2009. The OEHHA panel decided to list it in 2013, though the American Chemistry Council filed a lawsuit to stop it in March 2013. The litigation is still slowly working its way through the court system.

The biggest difference for this round of deliberations is that, after an extensive review of the science on BPA, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration declared unequivocally in 2014 that exposure to BPA is safe for humans. FDA sent a letter to that effect to the OEHHA panel. Scientists also have provided hundreds of pages of information on the safety of BPA to the panel as part of the public comment period of the process.

California's Proposition 65, approved by voters there in 1986, requires businesses to notify citizens when significant amount of chemicals are present in products, workplaces, public spaces or released into the environment. OEHHA administers the Prop 65 program, including managing the list of potentially harmful chemicals.

In July 2009, OEHHA's Developmental a n d R e p r o d u c t i v e To x i c a n t Identification Committee (DART-IC) voted unanimously that BPA did not belong on the Prop 65 list, based largely on the findings from a 2008 report by the National Toxicology Program.

China's first national 3-D printing lab Hunan Farsoon Hi-tech Co. Ltd. is leading the formation of China’s first national engineering lab for additive manufacturing.

The Changsha-based company held a ceremony April 25 to launch the construction of the facility. The lab reports directly to China’s National Development and Reform Commission in Beijing, represents the most stateof-art technology in China’s additive manufacturing industry, and is an integral part of China’s technology innovation system, Farsoon said in a statement.

Lab director Xu Xiaoshu, who is also Farsoon’s chairman, announced research objectives for the next three years, including: • Achieve breakthroughs in at least 20 key technologies such as material precision placement, precise color matching, multifocal, integrated high precision data acquisition, as well as high frequency, high precision, and real time energy control.

• Increase component precision and manufacturing efficiency by at least 100 percent.

• Develop one or two series of additive manufacturing equipment.

• Develop at least 15 polymer materials suitable for complex structures.

• Apply for at least 28 patents.

59 • May 2015 • Plastics News

in the NEWS

Banning plastic packaging to have adverse impact on several industries says FICCI

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anning plastic packaging would adversely impact the growth of several industries such as FMCG, food processing, etc, and is likely to raise the cost of products (especially low-cost) by manifold, according to a new study - titled ‘Why Banning

Plastics Packaging is Not a Viable Option’ – released by The Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) and Strategy& (the management consulting arm of PricewaterhouseCoopers) on May 6, 2015. “While appreciating the concerns related to environment it needs to be noted that restrictions or ban on plastics packaging would impact the growth of several industries like FMCG, food processing, plastics packaging and allied industries.

It could further adversely impact consumers in terms of cost, health and safety,” said Dr A Didar Singh, secretary general, FICCI. The report comes out as the National Green Tribunal meets today for a hearing on plastic packaging ban.

Plastics News • May 2015 • 60

The study, conducted by FICCI and Strategy&, estimates that a ban on plastic packaging will directly impact plastic industry sales of Rs 53,000 crores, and about 13 lakh personnel.

FICCI has conducted this study to analyse the impact of a possible ban and the findings show that this could lead to unwarranted consequences particularly on low priced products (Rs 5) as the cost to manufacture and distribute these products could rise multi fold. Further this study revealed that plastics industry sales & employment, agriculture sector and farmers could also be impacted. The study highlights that plastics are the material of choice in packaging products across categories globally. In India, an overwhelming majority of the FMCG products are packaged in plastic – in fact, 90 percent of biscuits, dried processed food items, hair care products, dairy products, laundry products and baked goods sold in India in 2014 were packaged in plastic.

Plastic has been the preferred material for packaging (relative to alternatives such as glass, paper, metals etc) globally as well as in India due to three critical benefits - superior food safety, quality and shelf life; lower environmental impact across the product lifecycle; and better versatility to create more innovative and consumer friendly packaging options. The study estimates that a

ban on plastic packaging will directly impact plastic industry sales of Rs 53,000 crores. Additionally, about 13 lakh personnel across 10,000 firms (mostly SMEs) engaged in plastic packaging for FMCG will need to find alternative employment. The indirect impact based on multiplier effect will be evenlarger - 2 to 2.5x the direct impact on sales and 3-5x on employment levels.

Further, it is deduced the ban might forfeit the purpose of intention behind it. As alternatives, in general, have lower product to package ratio, resulting in the use of higher quantities of raw materials. They also require higher energy and water during manufacturing.

“It is recommended that the prudent way forward is not an outright ban on plastic packaging but rather finding solutions to the problem of plastic waste management” The study estimates that reuse rates in India are about 70% for PET-plastic, and lower for non-PET plastic. The low rate of reuse is despite the existence of technologies that have been tested in India – such as polymer blending in bitumen roads and co-processing in cement kilns - that can help India solve its plastic conundrum in its entirety. The report explores the root causes for the low rates of reuse, and recommends a four-pronged approach that various stakeholders including the government and industry should undertake to improve the segregation, collection, recycling and re-use of plastic waste.

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