Battenfeld increases range of extruders
Battenfeld Extrusionstechnik GmbH of Bad Oeynhausen, Germany, has extended the range of its twin-screw extruders with new BEX 2-130-25V/4 machines.
Compared to earlier versions, the new machines have higher screw torques and longer screws, and they achieve higher outputs, the company said.
Battenfeld said that, while prices for the new machines have increased only slightly, their outputs are 30 percent higher than earlier models. Battenfeld can now offer screw diameters from 90-130 millimeters.
Tel. +49 (2354) 72 560, fax +49 (2354) 72 575, e-mail 100654.1317 @compuserve.com.
Jomar introduces blow molding line
Pleasantville, N.J.-based Jomar Corp. offers a new double-station extrusion blow molding machine, the EBM 2.0 D.
Jomar Italia in Bologna, Italy, manufactures the machine, which is available worldwide. It can produce 1.5-liter bottles, including handleware, 1-liter bottles and half-liter bottles.
The machine's grooved extruder has a 70-millimeter diameter nitrided screw, with a 25-to-1 length-to-diameter ratio, and a nitrided barrel. The EBM 2.0 D's clamp system has no tie bars. Gates open fully for easy mold changes.
Tel. (609) 646-8000, fax (609) 645-9166.
Tradesco speeds up press mold changes
A new Quick Product Change system from Tradesco Mold Ltd. in Rexdale, Ontario, allows injection molding firms to do complete mold changes in as little as 45 minutes, even for stack molds.
QPC consists of interchangeable core and cavity modules, housed in a Tradesco hot-runner carrier frame. All electrical, water and air connections are permanently installed within the frame, making mold change quick.
Tradesco also has developed a new hot-runner system the company claims eliminates problems caused by tip unscrewing. A replaceable tip design allows tips to be changed without taking apart the hot runner.
Tel. (416) 749-0880, fax (416) 749-9669.
C-Mold Polymer Labs making rheometers
AC Technology North America Inc., a maker of C-Mold computer-aided engineering systems, is expanding in the testing and characterization of plastic resins.
Fabrication of slit-die rheometers for thermoset material testing has begun at C-Mold Polymer Labs in Ithaca, N.Y.
``The instrument design is founded upon nine years of thermoset material research by the Cornell Injection Molding Program,'' said Robert Newman, lead test engineer in Ithaca. ``The new instrument will give much-improved characterization data for materials such as epoxy molding compounds, which are of key importance to the microelectronic encapsulation industry.''
Newman said the rheometer also will characterize other types of materials such as bulk molding compound and rubber.
AC Technology said the slit-die rheometer method is better than the two current categories of thermoset testing, parallel plate rheology or capillary rheometer.
Commercial testing services for the new device will be offered Jan. 1.
Tel. (607) 257-4280, fax (607) 257-6355.
Extruder installer offers Rapid Tower
Up And Running, a company in New Haven, Conn., that specializes in setting up extrusion systems, has developed Rapid Tower, a quick-installation kit for making a blown film tower.
The company said Rapid Tower easily can be ``stack'' erected in only one to five days.
The pre-designed, pre-manufactured tower is compatible with most major brands of blown film equipment. It comes in two lay-flat sizes—from less than an inch to 64 inches and from 64-94 inches—that can be arranged in two, three or four levels.
Rapid Tower also can be reconfigured, for example, with a larger nip roll. The tower also is portable.
Tel. (860) 668-2676, fax (203) 773-3284.
Firm alters name to reflect changes
Great Lakes Feedscrews Inc. has changed its name to Glycon Corp., a move to reflect its evolution into a global player and broader product line, beyond screws.
``With our expanded market and product line, we feel the original company name with its implied linkage to a geographical region and emphasis on only a part of our overall product line no longer reflects the global nature of our company,'' said Glycon President Jeffrey Kuhman.
Kuhman founded the Tecumseh, Mich., company in 1978.
Glycon promoted Michael Walper from national sales manager to vice president of worldwide sales and marketing. Walper has worked at Glycon for eight years.
Glycon also announced some customer news. The firm sold 26 Barr E.T. feed screws and 26 quick shut-off valves to Courtesy Corp. Courtesy of Buffalo Grove, Ill., is using the screws in new Krauss-Maffei injection presses it is purchasing. Glycon also has received a contract for Barr E.T. screws from the Plastics Machinery Division of Johnson Controls Inc., which makes blow molding machines. Glycon did not disclose the size of the order.
Glycon also introduced several products at NPE:
A Barr 2000 feed screw, made with technology licensed from Robert Barr Inc. of Virginia Beach, Va. During testing in single-screw extruders, the 2000 screw delivered as much as a 300 percent increase in melt rate over traditional barrier screws, and at lower melt temperatures. A new geometric design maximizes the solid bed surface area and minimizes melt film thickness.
FliteScan, a patented inspection device that measures screw-to-barrel clearance without requiring the screw to be removed first from the barrel. FliteScan has a probe inserted into wells that are pre-cut into the barrel at precise points. The probe uses eddy currents to measure the clearance, with an accuracy of 0.001 inch, according to Glycon.
Tel. (517) 423-8356, fax (517) 423-7470.
Blackfriars adds model to Quiet line
Blackfriars Ltd. added another machine to its ``Quiet'' range of sound-deadening granulators by introducing Model 40/30, a medium-duty machine.
Model 40/30 has a throat opening that measures 12 inches by 16 inches. The machine has a standard feed chamber in front, but it can be equipped with a rear feed for profile extrusions or a top feed for blow molding.
Blackfriars is based in Leicester, England.
Tel. +44 (1858) 46 22 49, fax +44 (1858) 46 47 55.