MANCHESTER,N.H. (July 20, 4:45 p.m. EDT) — Nylon Corp. of America made its NPE debut armed with a pair of new nylon copolymer alloys.
The first new grade offered by the Manchester-based firm is aimed at flexible tubing, hose, profiles and other industrial applications. The material is competitive with more expensive thermoplastic elastomers as well as with other nylons, Nycoa President and Chief Executive Officer Peter Shepard said in an interview at NPE, held June 19-23 in Chicago.
The second new material is part of the firm's NanoTuff-line of nylon-based nanocomposites. This grade is being marketed at structural applications in sporting goods, consumer products and any applications needing good cold-weather impact qualities, Shepard said.
The NanoTuff products also are expected to meet new and emerging standards for fuel tanks on riding lawn mowers, tractors and motorcycles.
“Nano products now are really getting some results,” Shepard said.
In Manchester, Nycoa expects to increase capacity as much as 10-15 percent this year through a series of continuous improvements at its plant, which polymerizes nylon resin while operating one twin-screw and three single-screw extrusion lines. The plant currently has a total output of about 25 million pounds annually.
Nycoa also has been doing more market development work with partners J&A Plastics GmbH of Krefeld, Germany, and Grupo Repol of Castellon, Spain. The agreements cover sales, distribution and product development.
Nycoa has seen recent sales growth of 3-5 percent annually. The firm posted sales of more than $25 million in 2005. Nycoa has enjoyed steady growth since Metapoint Partners LP of Peabody, Mass., bought a majority stake in the firm in 2004. Nycoa was launched as a joint venture between European materials firms Rhodia SA and Snia SpA.