Forerunner in high-pressure polyurethane processing in plastics
production
(Munich
Starting machine production at record speed
The
kickoff for processing polyurethane (PUR) at KraussMaffei took place in 1967.
The company was active on the market as a machine supplier just one year later.
"KraussMaffei is a forerunner for using this material in plastics
production. Thanks to years of experience, an up-to-date, premium-quality
machine portfolio and a large store of technology and procedure expertise,
we've developed into a worldwide market leader," explains Nicolas Beyl,
the Reaction Process Machinery Division Head at KraussMaffei since February
2012. KraussMaffei focused on high-pressure processing of PUR from the
beginning. In close cooperation with raw material manufacturers and processors,
new fields of application, machines and methods are still being developed
constantly to this day.
Offering customers new and innovative solutions
"We
want to strengthen our activity in the area of reaction process machinery
globally and to demonstrate additional application and efficiency potential for
our customers along their entire value chain. In particular, we want to draw
them to us using combinations of machines and methods for injection molding and
reaction process machinery and by using new technologies," explains Beyl.
These strengths recently received positive feedback at the NPE 2012 trade show
in Orlando (USA). The manufacture of an armrest using the SkinForm process was
shown. In one machine, the injection-molded carrier was flow-coated with a
foamed aliphatic type of polyurethane with pleasant surface characteristics and
outstanding UV resistance. "KraussMaffei's extensive Technology3
expertise across the entire process chain was apparent at this machine. The
machines, automation, mold technology, and custom solutions were all from our
company and unified our expertise," explains Beyl. Furthermore, the
company wants to advance new innovative solutions in growth fields, including
the areas of lightweight construction and fiber composite technology. "In
recent years we have been able to win numerous orders in these areas worldwide.
We also have a worldwide one-of-a-kind expertise center in this area, the fiber
composite technology TechCenter we opened in Munich
Pioneering lightweight construction solution for
trains distinguished
Thirteen
companies were honored with a JEC Europe Innovation Award this year as part of
the JEC trade show. The development consortium headed by the Fraunhofer ICT was
able to distinguish itself among the companies. The SCS process (structural
component spraying) premiered in the category of production processes. It is a
manufacturing process for lightweight structures based on sandwich structures
and spray processes for glass-fiber reinforced polyurethane resins. In addition
to KraussMaffei, partners Bombardier, Fraunhofer ICT, Bayer MaterialScience
DEC, the DLR Institute of Vehicle Concepts, the University of Stuttgart (IFB)
and the Institute for Technology in Karlsruhe (wbk) were responsible for the
manufacturing process and were distinguished for extensive developments along
the entire value chain. Sandwich core materials, cover layer materials,
manufacturing processes, fire protection systems, design principles and
calculation methods were developed for this sandwich structure demonstration
component with a length of 4.5 m and a width of 2.5 m. The innovative design
with identical interfaces using glass-fiber reinforced polyurethane sandwich
structures makes it possible to reduce the weight of the safety enclosure while
simultaneously reducing the number of components. Despite this, all of the
requirements of the requirements specifications are met, such as dielectric
strength.
Personal details
Nicolas
Beyl has been working for KraussMaffei since 2006. After spending three years
as Director Corporate Strategy in the KraussMaffei Group, he took up the post
of Director Technology in the Injection Molding Machinery Business Unit in
2009. The graduate in production engineering previously worked for nine years
as a management consultant at the Boston Consulting Group. The focal points of
his consulting work were the mechanical engineering and automotive industries.
Beyl also gained a Master's Degree in Business Administration at INSEAD during
this period.
An overview of KraussMaffei's performance and
innovative strengths in the area of processing polyurethane:
·
First developments and trials for
manufacturing polyurethane furniture
·
1968 First
special clamping unit with two rotating axes, called "moon-swing"
·
1970 Presentation
of the first KraussMaffei mixing head in successful production use
·
1972 First
self-cleaning mixing head in the world with a recirculation groove
·
1973 Export
of the first PUR bumper system for an automotive industry customer in the USA
·
1974 Delivery
of the 100th PUR metering machine
·
1981 Delivery
of the 2000th mixing head
·
1982 First
transfer mixing head in the world and first twin-piston metering machine
·
1984 First
dual-hardness soft foam system
·
1985 The
4000th mixing head of the families, which included 18 types at that time, is
delivered
·
1985 Delivery
of the 50 KK machine with metering outputs of up to 8000 cm³ per second
·
1989 Largest
piston metering machine in the world with up to 16,000 g/s
·
1991 Development
of the PUR recycling process; introduction of continuous gas charging
· 1992 The
in-mold coating process for an undercoat in a foam mold is presented at the K
trade show
·
1993 Systems for
CFC-free foams
·
1994 Series
system for carpet back-foaming
·
1995 Initial
presentation of the LFI PUR process unit at K
·
1996 Start
of lightweight design activities, first system for GRP components
·
1999 LFI
production system for the smart roof
·
2002 Founding
of the "white goods" expertise center in Abbiate Grasso , Italy
·
2005 First
skin spray head in production use
·
2004 The
SkinForm method is presented at K for the first time
·
2005 Start
of mold-building activities for PUR, milling and custom solutions
·
2006 Development
and presentation of the first small-quantity, high-pressure mixing head
·
2007 Large-scale
SkinForm system for manufacturing interior door panel sections at K
·
2010 Presentation
of the ColorForm process at K
· 2011 Opening
of the world's largest TechCenter for fiber composite technology (lightweight
construction) in Munich
· 2012 45
years of KraussMaffei reaction process machinery; first live demonstration of
PUR processing at NPE in the USA
No comments:
Post a Comment