MCC and Suzuki Develop Plant-derived, Bio-based Engineering Plastic

Mitsubishi Chemical Corporation announced that MCC and Suzuki Motor Corporation have jointly developed a new grade of bio-based engineering plastic called DURABIO™, which was used (*) in the interior resin color panels of Suzuki’s new Alto Lapin.

DURABIO™, developed by MCC, is a bio-based engineering plastic made from plant-derived isosorbide. It features excellent performance as it offers higher resistance to impact, heat, and weather than conventional engineering plastics. Additional benefits include ease of coloring – DURABIO™ can be simply mixed with pigment to create glossy, high reflective surfaces – as well its hardness, enhancing durability and scratch resistance. These advantages eliminate the need for a coating process, thereby reducing emissions of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) from paints. DURABIO™ is one of the the world’s first bio-based engineering plastics to offer bacteria-shedding performance. Simply rinsing or wiping the surface with water removes virtually all traces of bacteria.

In 2013, MCC-developed DURABIO™ marked a world first when the bio-based engineering plastic was used in the interior color panels of the Suzuki Hustler. Recognizing the material’s excellent performance, Suzuki began focusing DURABIO™ in its development of coloring materials for automotive components, pursuing improvements in both performance and texture. MCC and Suzuki have now succeeded in developing a new grade of DURABIO™ that offers even greater resistance to impact and heat and lower-density (lighter weight) compared to conventional bio-based engineering plastics, thanks to polymer alloy technology. At the same time, the new grade of DURABIO™ maintains the earlier advantages, such as high resistance to scratching and weather, as well as bacteria shedding.

MCC and Suzuki are committed to ongoing joint development aimed at producing eco-friendly, high-value-added vehicles.

Source: Mitsubishi Chemical Corporation

Gerresheimer at MD&M East: To Present Transparent Plastic Components for Medical Industry

A pharmaceutical drug’s effectiveness depends on how it is packaged and administered. The active ingredients have to be safely packaged and precise dosage is essential, irrespective of whether the product is administered by physicians or the patients themselves. That’s precisely what the innovative and proven products on display in Gerresheimer’s booth 2133 at MD&M East in New York from June 9-11 at the Jacob Javits Convention Center do. 

Auto-injectors are one of the more recent products added to Gerresheimer’s comprehensive range, when it secured a contract for them from a leading American pharmaceuticals manufacturer. Gerresheimer was chosen as supplier as a result of its special expertise in injection-related products and applications and the scope of services it offers. The auto-injector is composed of fourteen plastic components and three metal parts. The plastic components are produced by Gerresheimer, and then made into two subassemblies for final assembly and filling on the customer’s premises. 

Gerresheimer’s range of prefillable syringes is further proof of its injection-related application competence. The syringes are made of glass and used around the world as packaging for pharmaceutical and biotech products. They are the first choice primary packaging material for vaccines and numerous other medications and also used for ophthalmic applications. Gerresheimer’s portfolio also includes ClearJect syringes made of COP (cyclic olefin polymer), a high-performance polymer, for special biopharmaceutical and oncological parenteral drugs. 
MultiShell Vial 

The MultiShell vial by Gerresheimer proves that excellent barrier properties and glass-like transparency can be combined in one single product. It protects its content by way of a sandwich or multilayer structure composed of cyclic olefin polymer plus a polyamide layer as an oxygen barrier. This protects sensitive pharmaceuticals against oxidation and water vapor, and the polyamide oxygen barrier increases their shelf life. Gerresheimer has established a commercial production line and offer 2, 5, 10, 15, 50 and 100 ml vials. The installation of a multifunctional, automated packaging line will enable the packaging of different vials from bulk to ready-to-use. 

Source: Gerresheimer 

Bioplastic Producer EcoCortec® Completes ISO 9001 & 50001 Certification Audit

EcoCortec®, one of the most advanced manufacturers of bioplastic materials in Europe has successfully finalized ISO 9001 and ISO 50001 certification audit. After several months of preparations and finalization tasks the plant is now in the process of certification.

These certificates will enable optimizing EcoCortec®'s operations and enhance plant's competitiveness even more to access global markets. Quality management system will ensure that company’s operations are running at maximum efficiency, safety and quality.

Certification audit was conducted by TÜV Croatia, member of world renowned TÜV NORD group. TÜV NORD is among the global leaders in technology services with aim of accompanying its clients with prudence and foresight into the future.

ISO 9001 certificate is quality management system designed to help organizations ensure that they meet the needs of customers and other stakeholders while meeting statutory and regulatory requirements related to a product while dealing with the fundamentals of quality management
system.

ISO 50001 is energy management certificate based on the management system model of continual improvement and enables best energy efficiency. The standard aims to help organizations continually reduce their energy use, and therefore their energy costs and their greenhouse gas
emissions.

Meeting the requirements of these standards will provide EcoCortec® with excellent quality management systems and the foundation to better customer satisfaction, staff motivation and continual improvement, continuing EcoCortec®'s dedication to excellence.

Source: Cortec® Corporation 

NatureWorks to Support Growing 3D Printing Mkt; Unveils Ingeo™ 3D Series for PLA Filament

NatureWorks announced a broad new initiative to support the growth of the additive manufacturing market. The company’s move to support the 3D market comprehensively is based on a three pronged approach. It includes the introduction of an entirely new series of Ingeo™ grades designed specifically for PLA filament for the 3D printing market; a full suite of technical support services for the additive manufacturing industry’s leading 3D printer and filament producers; and the creation of an in-house print lab, enabling the company to rapidly test new Ingeo formulations and collaborate with printer and filament producers.

NatureWorks is one of the leading PLA suppliers with more than 20 different Ingeo grades, expertise with numerous specialized formulations, and more than a decade of world-scale production experience. In the 3D printing market, and particularly for desktop users, PLA filament has become a material of first choice in printing. The material’s low polymer thermal shrinkage allows high resolution printing for part accuracy and avoids warping of parts. Strong polymer fusing performance makes PLA easy to use and enhances performance. A relatively low melt point enables safe lower temperature printing and very low emissions means no unpleasant odors when printing.

For the past 18 months, NatureWorks has engaged directly with 3D filament suppliers, printer manufacturers, and print operators to obtain first hand feedback on the needs of the 3D printing market. “3D printing has the rapid pace of innovation, development, and change that is normal to a new and still nascent market,” said Dan Sawyer, Global Leader, New Business Segment, NatureWorks. “Many new suppliers are entering the PLA filament market, while a breadth of experienced suppliers large and small are formulating and compounding to provide additional filament properties and options. That’s the sort of innovation that NatureWorks is aggressively moving to support and amplify with our new broad-based initiative.”

With the launch of its initiative, NatureWorks is immediately offering the first grade in its new Ingeo 3D series. Denoted Ingeo 3D850, this base 3D grade takes advantage of the latest Ingeo polymer chemistries to provide a good overall balance of processability in filament production, filament consistency, and print quality. It is also designed to provide optimum performance for those looking to enhance the properties of PLA through further formulation and compounding to extend part properties beyond what base PLA grades provide.

“What we learned from our market engagement,” said Sawyer, “is that a large segment of the market prefers to print with PLA and would like to replace petroleum-based ABS if PLA can rival the other material’s heat resistance and the toughness of finished parts.” To enable this substitution, NatureWorks has been working on the next offering in its new Ingeo 3D series with extended-property-range Ingeo 3D resin formulations. PLA filament produced from new higher heat and toughness Ingeo formulations are now being tested in NatureWorks’ newly established in-house print lab, with market introduction targeted for later in the year.

NatureWorks has developed a full suite of filament melt processing guides, technical data sheets, and other technical service resources for printer manufacturers and filament producers. Furthermore, NatureWorks personnel are developing close working relationships with key regional suppliers. For those interested in purchasing Ingeo based PLA filament, the company has produced the NatureWorks 3D Printing Suppliers Guide.

Source: NatureWorks 

Green Packaging Market to Grow at a CAGR of 6.2% from 2015-20, Predicts TMR

According to a new market report published by Transparency Market Research Green Packaging Market - Global Industry Analysis, Trend, Size, Share and Forecast 2015 - 2021”, the global green packaging market was valued at USD 132.47 billion in 2014 and is expected to reach USD 203.15 billion by 2021, growing at a CAGR of 6.2% from 2015 to 2021. 

The global green packaging market is primarily driven by: 

1. Increasing health awareness among consumers - Currently, consumers are becoming more conscious about their health. Toxic materials used in packaging, especially food packaging is hazardous to consumer’s health. 
2. Biodegradable packaging due to its health benefits. Moreover, increasing environmental concern is also boosting the demand of green packaging globally. With increase in the environmental concern, consumers are shifting towards green packaging as they cause less environmental pollution such as land pollution, landfills and water pollution. 
3. Dearth of natural resources is also contributing to the growing demand for green packaging. As the natural resources are getting exhausted the packaging material manufacturers are leaning towards green packaging as they can be easily recycled. 

The green packaging market is segmented on the basis of application, packaging type and geography. The packaging type is further bifurcated into: 
• Recycled content packaging 
• Reusable packaging 
• Degradable packaging 

The various categories of recycled content packaging are paper packaging, plastic packaging, metal packaging, glass packaging and others. The reusable packaging is segmented into drums, plastic container and others. On the basis of applications, the green packaging market is segmented into food and beverage packaging, personal care packaging, health care packaging and others. By geography, the market has been segmented into North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific and Rest of the World (ROW). 

Among the different packaging segments, food and beverage segment accounts for the highest market share, i.e., 59.7% in overall green packaging market. Being the largest market, growth rate of Canada and Japan is sluggish, since the market penetration of green packaging market is the highest and the market is matured. Developing countries such as India, China, Germany, Russia and Brazil are the fast growing markets for green packaging and the demand is expected to be high in the forecast period. Large food and beverage industry, rising disposable income and growing awareness about green products are the major factors fueling the demand for green packaging in these regions. 

Crown holding, Tetra Laval, Amcor, E. I. Du Pont de Nemours, Ball Corp., Biopack Environmental Solutions, Constar International Inc. EnviroPAK and Bemis Company among others are some of the major players operating in green packaging market. 

Source: TMR 

DSM and NHU Form JV in Zhejiang to Develop PPS Compounds for Auto and E+E

Royal DSM, the global Life Sciences and Material Sciences company, and NHU announce the formation of a new joint venture company in Zhejiang for the market development and manufacturing of high performance plastics compounds based on polyphenylene sulphide, PPS. The compounds will further enhance DSM’s offering in the high performance engineering plastics space, adding to its leadership positions with DSM Stanyl® polyamide 46 and Stanyl® ForTii™ polyamide 4T. All sales at the joint venture, including those in China, will be handled by DSM’s Marketing and Sales organization with the brand name of Xytron™ PPS.

The joint venture, DSM NHU Engineering Plastics (Zhejiang) Co Ltd, in which DSM will hold a 60% share and NHU 40%, will be located at Zhejiang, Peoples Republic of China. It will produce a range of high performance engineering plastic compounds based on NHU PPS polymer. The partners do not disclose financial details of the agreement or information on the capacity of the new operation. Products will be targeted principally at Automotive, as well as in Electrical and Electronics, and Industrial markets.

Subject to anti-trust and other approvals from the relevant authorities the transaction is expected to close within a few months.

The partnership will benefit from a commitment by NHU to long-term supply of NHU PPS polymer from its existing plant in Zhejiang. This plant uses proven technology to provide high quality base polymer for compounds. NHU will also contribute its existing compounding capacity to the JV. DSM for its part brings its long-standing expertise in application development and materials science, as well as access to its global customer network. 

“The new joint venture will help DSM deliver on its growth strategy, and will reinforce its High Performance Plastics portfolio as a key growth driver”, says Roelof Westerbeek, President DSM Engineering Plastics. “PPS fits very well alongside our current range of materials, and will be particularly useful for us in presenting complete solutions for customers operating in key markets, especially automotive, electrical and electronics. PPS has a long and successful track record and a promising future, and we are very excited about presenting it to existing and new customers. We already know that the addition of PPS products into our product portfolio will be highly appreciated by our existing global key customers. It will strengthen DSM’s position as a preferred solutions provider and strengthen our current product portfolio.”

Jiang Weiming, President DSM China commented: “DSM is very pleased to establish co-operation with a very capable partner such as NHU, which has demonstrated a strong technology base and ability to develop new polymers like PPS. This major step shows our commitment to develop long term business relationships with our Chinese partners.”

Mr Bai Shan Hu-CEO NHU listed company says that NHU has found an ideal partner to bring the new PPS compound range to market. “NHU is looking forward to cooperating with DSM. We already have considerable experience in PPS polymerization technology, and high quality of our PPS polymers has been recognized and acknowledged by clients world widely. We believe that the combination of DSM’s strength in materials science and our technology of PPS Polymerization will bring more potentials of the product” he says. “And of course DSM’s global presence means that whole new markets are now opening up for us.”

Source: DSM 

HEMP Fibres and Hurds available

I do have tied up with various suppliers of HEMP Fibres and Hurds for various applications.Interested genuine end users contact me through my email (rosaram211@gmail.com) with your required spec of the Hemp fibres and hurds for the applications.

Regards
Muthuramalingam