Maplan die enhances properties of pipe
Extruder maker American Maplan Corp. has developed a spider-type die head for producers of small-diameter PVC pipe, chlorinated PVC pipe and PVC conduit.
The die has optimized flow geometry that allows the knit lines of the spider to fuse together as a homogeneous melt before it exits the die. Maplan said that improves the physical properties of the pipe.
The tooling is designed to run about 200-350 pounds of pipe an hour.
A major advantage is the small size of the housing, which allows for dual-strand extrusion at a center distance of 6 inches, or quad extrusion using Maplan's flow separator.
Maplan is based in McPherson, Kan.
Tel. 620-798-2304, fax 620-241-2142, e-mail [email protected] .com.
Torninova unit keeps air in bubble wrap
Torninova srl displayed its new bubble-wrap manufacturing machine, called Coex Bubble 10, at the Plast'09 trade show, held March 24-28 in Milan.
The machine makes coextruded film in three layers of polyethylene and nylon 6, linked with a tie layer. Having a barrier means the bubble wrap retains air better, the company said.
The production line includes extruders, two flat dies, gravimetric blending and metering equipment, a chromium-plated forming cylinder and a controller.
Torninova said it sold the Plast'09 Coex Bubble 10 to a major Italian packaging company, which it did not identify.
Torninova is in Perugia, Italy.
Tel. 39-75-8000-655, fax 39-75-800-39-14, e-mail [email protected] .com.
Macchi SpA rolls out blown film machine
Macchi SpA, the blown film equipment supplier from Venegono Inferiore, Italy, unveiled the CoexFlex platform for coextrusion at the Plast'09 trade show in Milan.
Macchi is targeting the system at film applications that have thin-skin layers, such as stretch hood films, collation shrink applications and flexible lamination grades.
The line includes three Macchi extruders, using the gearless technology so the extruder can easily be removed from the rear.
The line can produce more than 1,320 pounds of film an hour.
The CoexFlex line also boasts Macchi's carbon-fiber cooling ring, presented in a double-ring arrangement.
Macchi North America Corp. is based in Gainesville, Ga.
Tel. 678-450-8170, fax 678-450-8172, e-mail [email protected]
Frigel cooling models allow greater airflow
Frigel North America Inc. said its EDK model, introduced to the Ecodry line of cooling equipment, allows greater, unrestricted airflow into the Ecodry unit. The result is greater overall cooling capacity, better humidification of the adiabatic chamber and reduced air pressure within the cooling chamber.
EDK replaces Frigel's EDG model. EDK features a V-shaped adiabatic chamber for greater airflow.
Customers can pick from three different EDK models.
Frigel North America is based in East Dundee, Ill.
Tel. 847-540-0160, fax 847-540-0161, e-mail [email protected]
Dynisco sensor gives more precise reading
Dynisco LLC of Franklin, Mass., introduced two new products.
The SPX-T pressure sensor has a built-in RTD (resistance-temperature-detector) temperature sensor to provide more accurate readings.
With temperature compensation, drift in pressure readings from the impact of ambient temperature is reduced by as much as 80 percent, and the user does not need to reset the sensor after the process is brought up to temperature.
Temperature readings also can be linked to a controller display, giving the user the convenience of both pressure and temperature sensing in a single instrument.
Opt-Trol is a low-cost, modular polymer-melt-control system with a color, touch-screen operator interface.
Users can precisely control pressure and temperature on most extrusion lines. The unit offers adaptive, auto-tuned control of temperature, pressure and speed control, plus differential control and process-variable trend charts.
The temperature card was developed for single-screw, twin-screw, coextrusion or blow film extrusion.
A system can be configured with as few as eight zones, then expanded in increments of eight zones to a maximum of 80 zones of control.
Tel. 508-541-9541, e-mail [email protected]
Wexco's barrel alloy improves screw speed
Barrel maker Wexco Corp. is using Dura 686XL, a new bimetallic barrel-lining alloy for higher screw speeds and volumes.
The alloy gives improved durability and wear resistance and a lower coefficient of friction. It is compatible with a wide range of hard-faced flight materials.
According to Wexco, although processing machinery manufacturers and tooling engineers have kept pace with developments in processing plastics at ever-higher screw speeds and volumes, little has been done to advance the durability of conventional boron bimetallic barrel linings.
Tony Grant, Wexco's director of sales and marketing, said screw speeds and throughput rates for filled and unfilled materials have nearly doubled.
The new Dura 686XL offers an affordable, heavy-duty alternative to more expensive barrel linings typically used for running highly glass-filled compounds and other severe-wear materials, according to the Lynchburg, Va.-based company.
Tel. 434-385-6006, fax 434-385-8316, e-mail [email protected]
A. Routsis offering basic math training
Math for Molders is the name of the new online training program from A. Routsis Associates Inc. of Dracut, Mass.
The training can benefit any production employee, according to Routsis.
Basic mathematics is needed for job functions as simple as counting inventory, calculating part tolerances and determining production requirements, and as complex as determining clamping-force tonnage requirements for an injection molding machine.
Tel. 978-957-0700, fax 978-957-1860, e-mail [email protected] tive.com.