Big plans, parts, and machines at Better Bath

Big are the markets Better Bath Components is pursuing, and it has high hopes for the Virtual Engineered Composites unit it helped design and now operates. Big, too, are plans for the Acrylobond PUR resin processing system.

Positively monstrous is the machine it just installed. The new unit, a three-station rotary machine supplied by Advanced Ventures in Technology Inc. (AVT; Gladwin, MI), will be the world''s largest operating rotary thermoforming system with a 10-by-25-ft forming area, and 144-inch up and down stroke. To make room for it, Better Bath (Waxahachie, TX) had to not only raise its ceiling but also dig a massive hole in the floor-the latter so that the forming stations are set low enough for workers to reach them, explains Roscoe Osteen, VP manufacturing. A prototype mold for the machine is already on order.

Better Bath Components is the thermoforming division of Kinro Inc., which makes windows and doors for the recreational-vehicle and prefabricated housing markets. It already runs eight rotary machines and one single-station machine, and the new one-plus other developments-will make the firm a force to be reckoned with, not just in thermoplastic sinks and bathtubs-where it is already a dominant North American player for prefab housing and recreational vehicles-but in just about any possible thermoformable application in those two core markets, says Bill Mitchell, president and general manager.

"Product development that we''re involved in will allow us to get a larger piece of the pie, with many more applications in those markets," says Mitchell. Adds Osteen, "We are going after everything you see on an RV." That monster thermoforming machine will help, says Mitchell: "If the top [of an RV] is 25 feet long or less, we''ll be able to thermoform the entire top in one piece. Currently, those tops are formed from multiple FRP [fiber-reinforced thermoset plastic] ones."

Front and rear sections of RVs will be another target. "We continue to hear there is a need to develop large thermoformed parts," says Mitchell, "and those are what we plan to offer." The prototype already has the necessary finish for the industry, he says. In addition, "an RV rear section might have a gel-coat fiberglass back, an extruded PVC trim, and injection molded caps and corners, so color matching can be tough. We''ll do them in one piece, so we''ll get the color right while also cutting system costs."

Mitchell also thinks that the new unit could help Better Bath gain traction in the marine industry, another reason for the purchase. "We could even do multicavity canoes or kayaks, for example, on the new unit," notes Osteen.

Beyond thermoforming

Better Bath formed the hull of the pleasure boat that stood as centerpiece at then-GE Plastics'' (now GE Advanced Materials) NPE 2003 booth. That hull was formed and then reinforced using a Virtual Engineered Composites (VEC) work cell; Better Bath worked with Minnesota boatbuilder Genmar "for the better part of four years," says Osteen, to develop VEC. (For more on VEC, see MPW April 2004, p. 14; and Aug. 2003, p. 58.)

Better Bath is still working to optimize the system. During MPW''s tour, the firm was using its VEC unit to add glass-fiber-reinforced resin backing to thermoformed ABS single-piece shower stalls. The result is a part with the strength of a composite part but the gloss and appearance of a thermoplastic one. Gloss of the prototype stalls is significantly higher than that achieved on gel coated ones, according to Better Bath.

The firm has another iron in the fire, called Acrylobond. This is not a thermoforming process but rather a two-part polyurethane-forming one. "It''s real simple, the equipment is easy to use, and the cost is where we want it to be," Osteen says. The process releases no VOCs. The firm started using Acrylobond (developed and marketed by Isotec, based in Canton, GA) in mid-2004 and already has commercial parts-its Permalux Plus sinks. The resin sets up after only 3.5 minutes, notes Osteen, so parts can be worked and trimmed before they are set aside to cure for an additional 24 hours.

"Acrylobond and VEC will let us go much further in the RV market," predicts Mitchell, as will the new thermoformer. "The increase in depth of draw and length [on the new machine] opens so many opportunities for us."

Who is Better Bath?

Not just bath tubs, for sure. The processor employs about 90. Though the plant doesn''t run 24/7 yet, Bill Mitchell says the firm has increased its capacity, and is now attracting new business to fill it. In addition to its thermoforming machinery, it owns five Thermwood CNC trimming machines. Acquired five years ago, buying these was "one of the best moves we ever made," says Osteen. Average cycle time of Better Bath products is 3 to 4 minutes. The firm forms about 400,000 parts/yr, mostly of ABS but also acrylic, and keeps a week to 10 days of inventory in stock. Scrap is shredded on site and shipped back to sheet extruder Spartech, with whom Better Bath works closely.

Matthew Defosse [email protected]