Auxiliaries

A study done at Value Plastics, a molder of precision molded couplers for medical applications, shows that a servo welder produces hermetic welds with a standard deviation of 0.4% compared to 2.9% when using a pneumatic welder.

Those results were reported last month at ANTEC in Cincinnati, OH by three officials at Dukane Corp., which has been testing potential benefits of its recently developed servo-driven ultrasonic welder.

IPEG Inc. (Cranberry Township, PA) has acquired Thermal Care Inc. (Niles, IL), boosting its heat transfer presence in the plastics industry and building out its auxiliaries portfolio, which already includes The Conair Group, Rapid Granulator, and Republic Machine, which it acquired o

Wittmann Kunststoffgeräte GmbH has added sheet metal forming at its Vienna headquarters, specifically capacity to fabricate round stainless steel components for products including its Feedmax conveying units and Silmax drying hoppers. The company sited "rapid sales growth" in materials drying and conveying equipment as the impetus for establishing its third sheet metal forming department.

The assets of injection molder Core Systems LLC (Painesville, OH) are set to go up for auction again following the company's February closing after the Whirlpool Corporation terminated its contract with Core. The molder had two plants, one in Mount Gilead, OH and the company's headquarters plant in Painesville, OH.

New precision equipment is emerging to meet growing quality control demands for producing tight tolerance micro extruder catheters and other types of tubing made from medical plastics.

A data accessory called "Pinpoint Capture" from Pinpoint Laser Systems (Peabody, MA) supplements Laser Microgage industrial measuring and laser alignment systems. It is said to allow operators to quickly grab measurement readings from as many as four remote laser receivers to analyze the alignment and performance of extrusion and other industrial equipment.

A new optical pellet screening system employs a combination of LED illumination, cameras, and air blowers to detect and remove pellets with black spots from a stream of resin pellets with a resolution (spot size) of 0.03 mm. The Super Platon KP-10000T from Kubota (Tokyo) was recently installed at an Asian elastomer compounder.

2012 was a capital year for North American plastics capital equipment, with orders for injection molding machines, blown-film lines, auxiliary equipment, thermoforming equipment, and hot runners all up compared to 2011. Even for single-screw extruders, where annual orders were down, albeit less than 2% (13 units), the full-year dollar value was up a gaudy 38% compared to 2011. The only market truly off in 2012 was the blowmolding segment. There, the total number of new of blowmolding machines ordered in 2012 was 67 units, down 18 from 2011, with the full-year dollar value off 34%.

Processors familiar with the nXheat induction barrel heating technology from Nordson Xaloy (New Castle, PA) for non-contact heating of injection barrels now have a potential alternative from a Korean source in the Eco-heater from ECOnomical Heater Co. (Siheung, Korea).

Accurate temperature control for demanding manufacture of critical components and products in cleanroom environments is available from Mokon.

Installable inside or outside of cleanrooms, the circulating liquid temperature control systems are augmented by an experienced team of application and product engineers who can provide assistance in selection and sizing of cleanroom process temperature control systems. Services offered include: heating and load cooling calculations, increased HVAC system loading, and feature and design recommendations.

Anaheim, CA—With two of its best years ever occurring over the course of the last three, material blender and loader manufacturer Plastrac Inc. (Edgemont, PA) is expanding its footprint and staffing. Plastrac VP Eric Bullivant told PlasticsToday at Plastec West 2013 that his company is in the midst doubling its building size, taking over an adjacent space that will give it close to 10,000 sq ft of production area.