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Are you in the moldmaking business and want to have a word with your Congress person? Then you need to go to Washington, DC with the AMBA.

This supplier of polycarbonate has developed a new hardcoated film that, despite its scratchproof coating, can be shaped three-dimensionally. The film produces 3D component surfaces with a deep-gloss finish and supposedly outstanding abrasion resistance.

BASF (Ludwigshafen, Germany) has sold its hydrophilic melt additives business to Techmer PM LLC (Clinton, TN) after a strategic portfolio review completed following its acquisition of Ciba Plastic Additives. Techmer, which manufactures colors and additives for the plastics and fiber industries, said in a release that the Irgasurf HL products complement its existing product line and strong presence in the fibers and nonwoven markets.

Cutting weight from cars has to help the environment by reducing emissions and increasing mileage, right? Trexel decided to find out just how much good its MuCell microcellular foam can do, and hired an environmental firm to spell it out. As it happens, they only need capital letters.

Overview: Polypropylene (PP) ended its recent skid, raising a penny in the spot market, while polyethylene (PE) continues its slide, losing another $0.02-$0.03/lb. Spot-trading platform, The Plastics Exchange (TPE) saw similar movements in the spot monomer markets, where ethylene prices fell in active trading and propylene prices edged upward.

During its pre-K 2010 press conference today (June 22) in Frankenthal, Germany, officials at plastics and additives supplier BASF announced the company's entry into the market for long-glass-fiber-reinforced grades of polyamide. Not only will the material be offered, but the company also has upgraded the capabilities of its proprietary Ultrasim software to permit simulation of components made with these materials.

SABIC Innovative Plastics has developed new grades of its Ultem polyetherimide (PEI) resin, as well as Ultem-based compounds, to win medical and electrical/electronic components, with an industrial spring project in the mix for good measure.

Various sizes of scrap present no problem to a series of horizontally fed granulators for PET container recycling said to be quieter and more efficient than gravity-fed size-reduction equipment.

Windmoeller & Hoelscher Corp. (W&H; Lincoln, RI) has recently secured orders for its flexographic printing and blown-film technologies, with fourth-quarter deliveries planned for a flexographic press to Bema Polytech (Elmhurst, IL) and a co-extrusion film extrusion line to McNeely Plastics (Clinton, MS). A W&H North America representative told PlasticsToday that the company's sales through the first half of 2010 have been "robust," with the potential to post a record year.

Injection molders and compounders keen to experiment with NatureWorks' high-heat resistant, high-impact bioresin are being offered full details on the modifiers, nucleants, and other additives typically compounded into the material. The supplier hopes that this "full disclosure" will help spur innovation and drive biopolymers more widely into injection molding applications.