news


Vi-Chem is introduced in Europe


Americhem Europe, the UK-based arm of the US supplier of colours, additives and compounds, introduced its Vi-Chem division for the first time in Europe at the VDI Plastics in Automotive Engineering Congress at Manheim, Germany, on 29–30 March. Vi-Chem, a specialist in PVC and TPE compounds, was acquired in March 2016. Americhem and Vi-Chem


have already achieved many synergies in the past year in areas including purchasing, R&D and the opening of new markets shared by both, while also offering customers a broader range. Project teams assembled from multiple departments are now developing new products to meet customer demand.


Americhem, including its


Infinity LTL Engineered Compounds operation, has ten plants in North America, Europe and Asia. Two new extruders have been installed at its recently renovated masterbatch facility in Manchester, UK. ❙ www.americhem.com


Milacron and Sepro ink robotics agreement


Plastics machinery giant Milacron and France’s Sepro Group have reached an agreement for Sepro to manufacture three- and five-axis robots for sale with Milacron injection moulding machines under the Milacron brand name throughout Europe. This mirrors a similar agreement in North America that began in 2010. More than 15 robots have already been shipped to European custom- ers.


“This agreement creates


new options for moulders who may prefer to deal with a single supplier for their injection moulding machine and automation requirements,” said Jean-Michel Renaudeau, CEO of the Sepro Group. Alliances of this type, he added, are critical to the implementa- tion of Industry 4.0. The new robot portfolio can


handle weights from 3 to 60 kg and robot control will be fully integrated into the machine


controls. Milacron said the agreement will expand its linear robot portfolio. Milacron will act as a single source, while combining all platform suppliers to provide services in combination with injection moulding machines, hot runner technology and process control systems. Platforms from Kuka, Fanuc, Yaskawa and Stäubli will be available from Milacron shortly. ❙ www.milacron.com ❙ www.sepro-group.com


Epsan expands PPA offering


Turkish technical compounder Epsan Plastic has expanded its portfolio of PPA and partially aromatic PA compounds for high temperature applications with the introduction of Eplamid HT01 and HT03, which are designed to plug gaps in the current range in terms of temperature resistance. “Polyphthalamides are


easily processable polymers which can exhibit different thermal properties according to their aliphatic and aromatic monomer compositions in their chemical structure,” said


PPA Compounds Manager Irem Nehir Yilmaz. Eplamid HT01 is said to


offer a high glass transition temperature and high melting


point; Eplamid HT03 is formulated for easy moulding and offers high mechanical performance. ❙ www.epsan.com.tr


Automotive air vents produced in PPA Waldorf-Technik secures VarioTIP automation patent


German automation specialist Waldorf-Technik announced that the German Federal Court of Justice (BGH) has upheld its EP 2323930 B1 patent, which covers the company‘s VarioTIP technology for packaging of


www.injectionworld.com


medical parts. The patent details a method


for cavity-sorted or group packaging of medical items such as pipette tips into racks using buffers. It had been challenged in 2012 by an


undisclosed competitor, which has delivered a handful of systems at “unreasonably low prices”, according to Waldorf- Technik CEO Wolfgang Czizegg. Kanzlei Bodenseepatent


patent attorney Kilian Wagner,


who acted for Waldorf-Technik, said the BGH ruling marks the beginning of a phase in which competitor systems on the market that infringe the patent are subsequently licensed. ❙ www.waldorf-technik.de


March/April 2017 | INJECTION WORLD 5


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