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C T J U N E 2 0 1 4 19 Hexcel (Stamford, Conn.), introduced a new high-modulus carbon fber (HexTow HM63), a new epoxy (HexPly M92) and, notably, a new snap-cure prepreg epoxy, targeted toward automotive appli- cations. Characterized as a response to thermoplastics' incursions into automotive molding, the also new HexPly M77 ofers a two- minute cure. (Detailed data for Hexcel's new materials are available on p. 40). With interest in carbon fber/thermoplastic applications so high, pre-show rumors of yet another new PAN-based carbon f- ber manufacturer piqued CT's interest. Te rumors proved un- true, but CT found that the subject of the rumors, UHT Unitech Co. Ltd. (Zhongli, Taiwan), established in 2011, ofers not a new fber but a graphitization service for composites fabricators who purchase T700-grade PAN-carbon fber from existing manufac- turers. Unitech's president, Ben Wang says the company unspools PAN carbon fber (3K to 48K) provided by his customers, burns of the factory-applied sizing, then graphitizes it in Unitech's patented 2000°C/3632°F microwave ovens, reapplies fber sizing (Wang says he specializes in sizings compatible with thermoplastic resins for sporting goods and industrial applications) and re-spools the prod- uct. Te result? Wang quips that "no one believes it" but he says he can deliver the equivalent of T800 or T1000 fber at 15 to 30 percent lower cost, because the microwave technology reportedly consumes 30 percent less energy and processes fber 50 percent faster than conventional graphitization ovens. He says test results indicate that his UT800 and UT1000 products are roughly equivalent to others on the market. Currently capable of producing 300 metric tonnes of converted fber per year, Wang emphasized that he's not planning to engage in spinning or carbonization of raw PAN fber and is will- ing to partner with other carbon fber manufacturers interested in adapting his microwave process. TURNKEY SYSTEM INTEGRATION Tis third trend defned the proverbial handwriting on the wall: Touch labor is out, automation is in, and suppliers are uniting to ofer OEMs complete manufacturing systems. Several consortiums introduced or emphasized turnkey composite part manufacturing cells. Each emphasized that merely selling equipment is a strategy long out of date. A preshow announcement by molding machinery supplier Pi- nette Emidecau (Chalon-sur-Saône, France) requested CT's pres- ence at its press conference Tuesday, March 11, to hear about a new consortium made up of four companies combining technologies to provide global solutions for automated and high-speed RTM pro- duction technology. What wasn't revealed until that morning was that afer 10 years of close collaboration, the four had incorporated a new multinational company, Global RTM, to focus on market- ing a complete high-pressure resin transfer molding (HP-RTM) production line. Headquartered in Bellignat, France, Global RTM will build and market turnkey production systems that integrate ply preparation, preforming, tool preparation, injection and form- ing, postcuring and fnishing, for shop foor product fow inside the customer plant. Although the focus, for now, is aerospace, Pinette's president Jérôme Hubert, who also will head Global RTM, says the system will impact the automotive market within three years. Fives Cincinnati (Hebron, Ky.) also announced an entire manu- facturing system, developed since Five's much publicized acquisi- tion of Hebron, Ky.-based MAG Americas and designed expressly for autocomposites. It comprises two manufacturing cells: A Cin- cinnati Small Flat Tape Layer HV, which features a tape layer with integrated ply cutters, provides net- or near net-shaped and kitted stacks of carbon or glass fber fabrics, and a Cincinnati Form & Cure HV cell, which features a conveyor that receives the kitted stacks, then places them in a compression press supplied by Continental Structural Plastics (Auburn Hills, Mich.). At showtime, the system had already produced a car hood inner liner with a fber volume fraction of 65 percent. Fives ofcials said two-minute cycle times are within reach and that the company also wants to trial a glass/vinyl ester prepreg supplied by Mitsubishi Plastics Composites America Inc. (Chesapeake, Va.). ENGEL Austria GmbH (Schwertberg, Austria) spotlighted a nearly mass-production-ready, "geometrically optimized and stress- resistant" composite automotive brake pedal (see photo, above) produced in collaboration with automotive manufacturer ZF-Fried- richshafen AG (Friedrichshafen, Germany). Te carbon fber is from Zoltek (St. Louis, Mo.) and woven by Chomarat (Le Cheylard, France and Anderson, S.C.). Te pedal features a layered thermoplastic fabric structure adapted by ZF to the component geometry. Tis reportedly enabled a weight reduction of about 30 percent compared to steel brake pedals, without reducing the load-bearing capacity. ENGEL's or- ganomelt method, which enabled a one-shot process, involves heat- ing of fabrics woven from thermoplastic fbers in an infrared (IR) oven, preforming them in an injection mold, and then overmolding them with polyamide resin immediately aferwards. Te manufac- turing cell integrates a vertical ENGEL insert 200 injection mold- ing machine, an IR oven, a shuttle system, and an ENGEL multiaxis robot. Te oven enables rapid heating of thick-walled semifnished products. It and the robot are fully integrated into the injection molding machine's control unit. Similarly, turnkey systems were touted by Diefenbacher (Ep- pigen, Germany), Krauss-Mafei AG (Munich, Germany) and Roc- Tool, each working in collaboration with other suppliers to meet automotive industry demands. Source| ENGEL Austria 0614CT ShowJEC-OK-switchphoto.indd 19 5/20/2014 8:25:35 AM