PROCESSING | WINDOW PROFILES
Right: KraussMaffei Berstorff’s KMD 73 K/P conical twin-screw extruder is highly suitable for window profile extrusion
typically three-layer structures, with a skin layer providing protection and good appearance, the foam layer, and a rigid component such as polypropylene (PP). The Sarlink 8100 series of TPVs adhere well to, and can be coextruded with, other TPVs, TPOs, and PP. In addition, Teknor Apex supplies harder TPVs that serve as skin materials. The company can also custom-formulate foamable grades of TPVs or styrenic TPEs. “These foamable materials are the latest additions to a portfolio of more than 30 TPE and TPV grades for building seal applications,” said Tom Foley, senior market manager.
PVC recycling A key issue in window profiles is recycling, espe- cially of PVC. In Europe, VinylPlus – the voluntary scheme to boost recycling of PVC to 800,000 tonnes/year – says it will continue its Hybrid Project, which classifies the recyclability of PVC hybrid window profiles. VinylPlus says that, while post-industrial hybrid
waste is relatively easy to recognise, post-consum- er waste is more difficult to assess. For this reason, the project will focus on post-consumer waste in 2018, to find new ways to identify and design hybrid PVC profiles. This was revealed in the 2017 report of VinylPlus activities. In 2017, the window profile sector also imple- mented the VinylPlus Product Label, a sustainability labelling scheme for PVC products developed with BRE Global (Building Research Establishment) and the Natural Step (TNS), with support from the European PVC Window Profile and Related Building Products Association (EPPA). It focuses on PVC applications for the building and construction sector, and aims to help specifi- ers, consumers and procurement decision makers to identify PVC products and solutions that better contribute to sustainable development. Six EPPA members have applied for the label,
and certification audits began in late 2017, and four of them – Epwin Window Systems, Rehau, Schüco and Veka – have since received certification.
UK profile shortage Also in 2017, UK PVC recyclers reported a shortage of post-consumer window profiles. The UK is a major centre for PVC window frame recycling, contributing 30% to the total. Germany contributes 40%, with the rest of Europe accounting for the
24 PIPE & PROFILE EXTRUSION | September 2018
other 30%. The total volume of recycled window profiles in 2017 was around 303,000 tonnes, a rise of nearly 18% compared to 2016. However, leading players are confident that PVC window frame recycling in the UK will bounce back. Veka, the German window profile manufacturer, is to build a new PVC recyling plant in the UK. The company is investing £8m (€9m) in the facility – in Wellingborough – and plans to have it fully opera- tional by early 2019. The plant will recycle PVC window and door profiles, and is expected to create around 50 jobs. Veka says the 5.5 acre plant will be “the most sophisticated of its type installed anywhere in Europe”. Veka Recycling already has a UK plant in Swanscombe, which collects and compresses PVC waste and transports it to Veka’s recycling plant in Behringen, Germany. “The new plant allows us to take and reprocess even more – and within the UK,” said Simon Scholes, commercial director.
Indian expansions Veka is one of two major German players to expand window profile operations in India recently. The company has acquired a major stake in local
producer NCL Wintech – a subsidiary of NCL Group. Veka has had a presence in India – through its Veka India subsidiary – since 2003, and says the latest acquisition will strengthen its market position. NCL Group is a leading building materials company, while NCL Wintech is a leading producer of PVC profiles in India. Veka India and NCL Wintech – which both produce PVC window profiles – will continue to operate independently, said Veka. “We have set ambitious goals for our alliance with NCL,” said Andreas Hartleif, CEO of Veka. “We seek to optimise our product portfolio and set-up a new state-of-the-art facility in Hyderabad in 2018.” At the same time, Profine has opened a new
production facility in India – with plans for future expansion. The new plant, in Vadodara, has been
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