Wilmington, Mass. — Trexel Inc. has entered into a strategic partnership with SA Engineering to create a new facility for technical collaboration using modern injection molding equipment and the latest MuCell foaming systems — in the Detroit-area automotive center.
Dubbed the SA Engineering Technology Center (SA Tech Center), the facility in Livonia, Mich., will be a “collaborative incubator for developing leading edge technology processes and finding innovative and efficient solutions to reach customers' objectives,” the Wilmington-based Trexel said in a May 10 news release.
Technical experts and partner companies will support customers in optimizing specific processes in a confidential environment, the companies said.
The center will house five Engel injection molding machines ranging in clamping force size from 285-3,500 tons. Currently, three of these machines are MuCell-capable, equipped to run with Trexel's latest T-series gas dosing systems. MuCell product development capability is available on a 285-ton press, a wide-platen 660-ton with core back, and another wide-platen injection molding press, also with core back, a 1,000-tonner.
Trexel will also provide research and development and mold-trial support for customers that want to evaluate TecoCell, the company's latest foaming product offering.
Trexel's North American automotive technical team is co-located at the center. Trexel officials said the company has been conducting trials in the facility since early March.
“Our participation in the SA Tech Center allows us to bring a staffed MuCell technical center, similar to what we offer in Wilmington, but on a greater range of injection molding machines, to the heart of the North American automotive industry.” said Brian Bechard, president and CEO of Trexel.
In a statement, Bechard said sharing an operation with other injection molding technologies will enable “a new level of collaboration and problem-solving to deliver innovative solutions to the industry.”
