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KARL MAYER and Grabher: Competence platform for wearables (c) KARL MAYER GROUP
13.03.2024

KARL MAYER and Grabher: Competence platform for wearables

KARL MAYER has already produced a wide range of electrically conductive warp-knitted items for a wide variety of applications in the TEXTILE-CIRCUIT division of its TEXTILE MAKERSPACE, including a sensor shirt, a gesture control system and a conductive charging station. In order to drive the topic of wearables forward, the textile machine manufacturer has signed a cooperation agreement with the Grabher Group and delivered an MJ 52/1-S to the specialist for high-tech textiles in Lustenau. Managing Director Günter Grabher officially inaugurated the key machine for project work in the smart textiles sector in May 2023.

The machine is involved in various research projects, but is also available for new projects and tasks. The smart textiles competence team at KARL MAYER and Grabher is looking forward to supporting the ideas and work of interested parties also outside the research network with its know-how and the possibilities of the MJ 52/1-S.

KARL MAYER has already produced a wide range of electrically conductive warp-knitted items for a wide variety of applications in the TEXTILE-CIRCUIT division of its TEXTILE MAKERSPACE, including a sensor shirt, a gesture control system and a conductive charging station. In order to drive the topic of wearables forward, the textile machine manufacturer has signed a cooperation agreement with the Grabher Group and delivered an MJ 52/1-S to the specialist for high-tech textiles in Lustenau. Managing Director Günter Grabher officially inaugurated the key machine for project work in the smart textiles sector in May 2023.

The machine is involved in various research projects, but is also available for new projects and tasks. The smart textiles competence team at KARL MAYER and Grabher is looking forward to supporting the ideas and work of interested parties also outside the research network with its know-how and the possibilities of the MJ 52/1-S.

The MJ 52/1 S is also an extremely flexible project machine. The 138″ model in gauge E 28 produces a wide range of warp-knitted fabrics and incorporates conductive material directly into the textile surface - exactly where it is needed and with the structure that is required. The basis for the tailor-made fiber placement is KARL MAYER's string bar technology. The system for controlling the pattern guide bars ensures a fast, established textile production process and a high degree of pattern freedom.

More information:
Karl Mayer Grabher Group Smart textiles wearables
Source:

KARL MAYER GROUP

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adidas: Study on effect of pressure in sports (c) adidas AG
19.02.2024

adidas: Study on effect of pressure in sports

Under adidas’ ambition to help athletes overcome high pressure moments in sport, it has teamed up with leading sport neuroscientists, neuro11, to understand the impact it has within a game of football, basketball, and golf during penalty shootouts, high-stake putts and must-make free-throws.

Working with Emiliano Martínez, Ludvig Åberg, Nneka Ogwumike, Rose Zhang, and Stina Blackstenius, as well as amateurs in the game, adidas and neuro11 delved into their minds to identify and analyse where pressure peaks, to help athletes across the globe to better understand it.

Understanding from this study that grassroots athletes and their elite counterparts experience similarly intense levels of pressure in the biggest sporting moments - but elite athletes were up to 40% more effective at managing pressure during these moments1 - a toolbox of techniques has been developed, built from the specific findings, to assist next-gen athletes in managing and overcoming the feeling within their game.

Under adidas’ ambition to help athletes overcome high pressure moments in sport, it has teamed up with leading sport neuroscientists, neuro11, to understand the impact it has within a game of football, basketball, and golf during penalty shootouts, high-stake putts and must-make free-throws.

Working with Emiliano Martínez, Ludvig Åberg, Nneka Ogwumike, Rose Zhang, and Stina Blackstenius, as well as amateurs in the game, adidas and neuro11 delved into their minds to identify and analyse where pressure peaks, to help athletes across the globe to better understand it.

Understanding from this study that grassroots athletes and their elite counterparts experience similarly intense levels of pressure in the biggest sporting moments - but elite athletes were up to 40% more effective at managing pressure during these moments1 - a toolbox of techniques has been developed, built from the specific findings, to assist next-gen athletes in managing and overcoming the feeling within their game.

Covering in-depth detail on what pressure looks like within each sport, how it has been proven to impact specific in-game moments, the brain zones that neuro11’s state-of-the-art brain technology measures and the main insights from each athlete’s training session, each report sets out to support all athletes in accessing the optimal zone - the brain state in which they perform at their best.

Rounded off with science-backed tips that reveal the optimal area of a goal to strike a penalty, how to use time to regain focus before netting a free throw, as well as the impact of dwell time on putting in golf – the guides are shaped around enhancing mental focus during some of the most pressured moments across sport.

1 Findings captured during athlete training sessions, as part of adidas SS24 Brand Campaign, in collaboration with neuro11 (November ’23- January ’24). Study carried out with Emiliano Martínez, Ludvig Åberg, Nneka Ogwumike, Rose Zhang, and Stina Blackstenius, in addition to 5 grassroot athletes.

More information:
adidas wearable sensors wearables
Source:

adidas AG

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(c) Oerlikon
The Oerlikon Barmag eccentric screw pump
02.06.2022

Oerlikon Barmag presents innovations at the ACHEMA 2022

Focus on eccentric screw pumps and pumps for shear-sensitive materials

Improved productivity and increased lifespan and tailored solutions also for the most demanding applications within the chemicals and plastics industries and in PUR applications – these are the convincing arguments with which Oerlikon Barmag is showcasing its precision metering pumps at this year’s ACHEMA between August 22 and 26, 2022 in Frankfurt. The focus is on the new pump for shear-sensitive conveying media and the new eccentric screw pump.

Focus on eccentric screw pumps and pumps for shear-sensitive materials

Improved productivity and increased lifespan and tailored solutions also for the most demanding applications within the chemicals and plastics industries and in PUR applications – these are the convincing arguments with which Oerlikon Barmag is showcasing its precision metering pumps at this year’s ACHEMA between August 22 and 26, 2022 in Frankfurt. The focus is on the new pump for shear-sensitive conveying media and the new eccentric screw pump.

Eccentric screw pumps – robust all-rounders convey any medium
The requirements for pumps are considerable, as the demand for customized solutions for increasingly complex processes is rising. This is particularly true for Oerlikon Barmag’s new eccentric screw pump range. High wear-resistance, increased durability and robust operation – the new pump is tailor-made for conveying highly-filled, high-viscosity and abrasive media, such as filled adhesives, filled silicones and filled casting compounds, for example. The is the multi-stage seal system, which considerably increases the pump’s lifespan. The upstream shaft sealing ring protects the slide ring seal against excessively-fast wear caused by challenging media. In turn, the optimum alignment of the drive shaft – ball bearing-supported and centrally-guided through the shaft sealing ring – prevents any metal debris caused by friction and hence ensures considerably greater durability. Producers benefit from considerably greater productivity, as the pumps’ maintenance intervals and hence machine downtimes are significantly reduced.

New pump for shear-sensitive materials
For increasingly complex customer-specific process solutions, Oerlikon Barmag is now expanding its GA series, developed especially for the challenging conveying of high-viscosity media, to include the GAB51F for shear-sensitive conveying media. The newly-developed pump with its viscosity range of max. 300 Pas is tailored to conveying high-viscosity, shear-sensitive materials such as adhesives and silicones, for example. “The shear forces impacting the medium within the pump are reduced to a minimum as a result of a specially geometry”, explains Thorsten Wagener, Senior Sales Manager within the Pump Construction business unit. The material is conveyed through the pump in an as gentle and low-pulsation manner as possible and metered precisely at the outlet – ensuring it retains its characteristic properties.

High-speed metering pump with sealed product space
The high-speed metering pump has been especially developed for metering poorly-lubricating media. Here, the main benefit is the sealed product space, which extends the pump’s lifespan considerably. The space that comes into contact with the media is limited to the area around the gears. “As a result, the high-speed pump is particularly suited for applications in the chemicals industry, which frequently involve aggressive acids”, comments Thorsten Wagener.

GM series for low-viscosity media
The pumps in the GM and GA series provide precision metering with low-pulsation feeding of the conveying medium. The multi-stage GM pump conveys low-viscosity media (i.e. 250 bar, 100 mPas) even under high pressure and in the most challenging conditions. The square design from the proven GM series is the standard pump for many metering tasks. The development of the multi-stage pump expands the applications range for the GM series considerably. The round 2-stage GM pump has been developed especially for use in high-pressure technology. It masters the particular challenge of conveying small throughputs with low viscosities. The pump is perfect for 0.05 through 20 cm³/rev feed sizes and is excellently suited for use in high-pressure machines for PUR molded parts, foam slab stock, refrigeration unit insulations and sandwich panels, for example.

GA series pumps for high-viscosity media
The Oerlikon Barmag GA range has been especially developed for the challenging conveying of media with higher viscosities. The GA series pumps are available for conveying volumes of between 1.25 and -30 cm³/rev (0.6-144 l/h). They have been designed for pressures of up to 200 bar, for viscosities of up to 1.500 Pas as well as for temperatures of up to max. 225 °C. With this range of pumps, Oerlikon Barmag offers its customers tailor-made solutions for many technical processes in which high-precision and even metering is of paramount importance.

The drum pump – conveying and metering using a single unit
With the drum pump, the Oerlikon Barmag pump specialists have created a pump designed specifically for conveying and metering high-viscosity materials such as adhesives, silicones and other high-viscosity materials from drums and other large containers and for pressures of up to 250 bar. Its special features not only include the fact that it removes high-viscosity materials from the drum, but that it also meters the medium directly without any additional interim stops.

More information:
Oerlikon Barmag chemicals plastics industry Achema
Source:

Oerlikon

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INDA Announces Six New Board Members and Officers (c) INDA
INDA New BOD Members 2022
08.03.2022

INDA Announces Six New Board Members and Officers

  • INDA, the Association of the Nonwoven Fabrics Industry, today announced six new board members and its 2022 slate of officers to guide the success of the nonwovens industry and its members.

Elected by the INDA membership to three-year terms that began on March 1, the new board members bring a high level of diverse expertise and insight to the management of the association as it moves forward with its vibrant growth.

“I am delighted to welcome such a strong group of new board members who bring deep industry knowledge and insights to provide strategic stewardship for our association,” said Dave Rousse, INDA President. “We look forward to working with them to advance INDA’s new value proposition to enhance our industry’s leadership position and deliver greater value to our members.”

The new board members are from global leaders Lenzing Group, Bast Fibre Technologies, Reifenhauser Reicofil, Rockline Industries, Hollingsworth & Vose Company and Principle Business Enterprises.  

  • INDA, the Association of the Nonwoven Fabrics Industry, today announced six new board members and its 2022 slate of officers to guide the success of the nonwovens industry and its members.

Elected by the INDA membership to three-year terms that began on March 1, the new board members bring a high level of diverse expertise and insight to the management of the association as it moves forward with its vibrant growth.

“I am delighted to welcome such a strong group of new board members who bring deep industry knowledge and insights to provide strategic stewardship for our association,” said Dave Rousse, INDA President. “We look forward to working with them to advance INDA’s new value proposition to enhance our industry’s leadership position and deliver greater value to our members.”

The new board members are from global leaders Lenzing Group, Bast Fibre Technologies, Reifenhauser Reicofil, Rockline Industries, Hollingsworth & Vose Company and Principle Business Enterprises.  

INDA also announced Bryan Haynes, Ph.D., R&E Technical Director Kimberly-Clark, has been named Chairman of the Board. Barbara Lawless, Vice President Sales and Marketing, Medical Products, Precision Fabrics Group, Inc. has been elected Vice Chair of Finance, and Richard Altice, President and CEO of NatureWorks, has been appointed to INDA’s Executive Committee.

The new board members are:

  • Jürgen Eizinger, Senior Commercial Director, Nonwovens Business EU/AM/MEA, Lenzing Group

Eizinger has nearly 20 years of fiber industry experience. He has been with the Lenzing Group since 2001 and most recently was Vice President of the Global Nonwoven Business. He has worked at multiple locations around the world and held various commercial, engineering and technical customer services roles.

  • Jim Posa, President and General Manager, Bast Fibre Technologies, Inc.

Posa has 30-plus years of nonwovens experience and has successfully led businesses from startups to some of the largest companies in the nonwovens market. He has developed and implemented strategic business, development, operational and acquisition growth plans. His teams have worked with businesses focused on most of the major end use markets such as hygiene, wipes, filtration, medical and industrial. As a senior executive, Posa has led global businesses at Fiberweb, BP/Amoco, CEO of a Nisseki/Amoco joint venture (ANCI), Lydall, and Nitto America. A long-time INDA supporter, he has previously served on committees and as a Board member.

  • Markus Mueller – Sales Director and Board Member, Reifenhauser Reicofil

Mueller brings to the INDA Board 35 years of experience with Reifenhauser in the nonwovens and film industries. His experience has included roles as PLC Engineer, Commissioning Engineer, Project Manager and Sales Manager. Mueller has extensive knowledge of the global hygiene and medical nonwovens markets. He holds a degree in Electrical Engineering from the Technical University of Cologne.

  • Matt Koele, Director of Global Materials Development, Rockline Industries

Koele is based at Rockline’s headquarters in Sheboygan, WI.  Before joining Rockline in 2012, he has held several business and Research and Development (R&D) leadership positions at SC Johnson and Kimberly-Clark Corporation. An inventor with over 10 patents, Koele is a magna cum laude graduate of Michigan Technological University in Chemical Engineering.

  • Mike Clark, President, Filtration Solutions, Hollingsworth & Vose Company

Clark joined H&V in 2003 and has held numerous leadership positions in the U.S. and Germany. He previously served as the President of the High Efficiency and Specialty Filtration Division from 2009 to 2020.  Before joining H&V, Clark was a strategy consultant for eight years working with Fortune 100 manufacturing companies. He holds a bachelor’s in Mechanical Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.

  • Andrew Stocking, Ph.D., President and CEO, Principle Business Enterprises, Inc. (PBE)

Stocking joined PBE in 2017 after a career in engineering, technology, nonprofits and government. He was named President and COO in 2018, then President and CEO in 2020, becoming the third-generation leader of the family-owned organization. He previously held roles in the private sector and within federal government offices, including the Department of Energy and Congressional Budget Office. He earned a BS in Chemical Engineering and an MS in Civil Engineering from Stanford University, and a Ph.D. in Resource Economics from the University of Maryland.

The 21-member board is comprised of elected Board Officers. One-third of the entire Board is elected each year for a three-year term by a majority vote of INDA’s general membership. INDA’s Executive Committee, empowered to act on behalf of the Board between meetings, consists of the Board Officers plus four appointees.

More information:
Association of the Nonwoven Fabrics Industry INDA
Source:

INDA, Association of the Nonwoven Fabrics Industry

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PCMC’s new Paragon reimagines the possibilities of tissue rewinding (c) PCMC
08.06.2021

PCMC’s new Paragon reimagines the possibilities of tissue rewinding

Winding technology offers simplicity, productivity and product control for premium tissue products

Paper Converting Machine Company (PCMC)—a division of Barry-Wehmiller and a global supplier of high-performance converting machinery for the tissue, nonwovens, package-printing and bag-converting industries— is pleased to announce the launch of its Paragon tissue rewinder.

Paragon features a patent-pending center-surface design that produces superior caliper, bulk and diameter flexibility. Log winding takes place in a new-concept nest, comprised of a winding drum, winding belt, compound-motion rider roll and center drives.

"Paragon offers a completely new method of tissue rewinding,” said Andrew Green, PCMC Vice President of Tissue and Folding. “It is radical only in the sense that we made the wind nest as simple as possible. Usually when you increase a machine’s speed, you sacrifice ease of use, but we know customers want both. With Paragon, we created a machine capable of higher speeds that is easier to operate. It’s remarkable.”

Winding technology offers simplicity, productivity and product control for premium tissue products

Paper Converting Machine Company (PCMC)—a division of Barry-Wehmiller and a global supplier of high-performance converting machinery for the tissue, nonwovens, package-printing and bag-converting industries— is pleased to announce the launch of its Paragon tissue rewinder.

Paragon features a patent-pending center-surface design that produces superior caliper, bulk and diameter flexibility. Log winding takes place in a new-concept nest, comprised of a winding drum, winding belt, compound-motion rider roll and center drives.

"Paragon offers a completely new method of tissue rewinding,” said Andrew Green, PCMC Vice President of Tissue and Folding. “It is radical only in the sense that we made the wind nest as simple as possible. Usually when you increase a machine’s speed, you sacrifice ease of use, but we know customers want both. With Paragon, we created a machine capable of higher speeds that is easier to operate. It’s remarkable.”

Many of Paragon’s subsystems are proven technology solutions in use on PCMC’s trusted Forte rewinder, with several upgrades. Paragon’s enhanced web handling and grade changes are mainly recipe-driven, and its specially designed tools guide fast calibrations. Like the Forte rewinder, Paragon has an intentional open-access design, plus, typical areas to clean require less frequent attention, and recovery and restart occur safely and quickly. Paragon also closes the gap between humans and machines with a new Smart Touch human-machine interface (HMI), which delivers Industry 4.0 tools that transform data to action. Following high-performance design principles, the clean and modern interface provides enhanced operator help, and new smart analytic features offer insights to improve overall equipment effectiveness. The Smart Touch HMI works much like today’s mobile devices with swipe functionality, enabling a short learning curve and improved productivity.

“While the focus is on the new wind nest, a Paragon line is more than that,” said Green. “We added elements like advanced web handling and a state-of-the-art HMI. At PCMC, we are not into hyperbole, but we believe that this machine has raised the bar and is what future tissue-converting machines will be judged against. And, that’s why we called it Paragon.” 

More information:
Paragon winding Paper Converting Machine Company PCMC
Source:

Paper Converting Machine Company

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(c) AZL Aachen GmbH
article as PDF
28.01.2020

AZL and IKV launch common project

In the AZL Workgroup "High-Performance SMC", a project was developed in cooperation with M-Base, the IKV and the AZL partner network for the efficient and standardized provision of engineering data for SMC. Within the scope of the project, companies can participate in the definition of the required characteristic material data, the guidelines for the production of test specimens and the test specifications.
Sheet Moulding Compounds (SMC) are used in various application areas such as vehicles, electronics, construction and infrastructure.

In the AZL Workgroup "High-Performance SMC", a project was developed in cooperation with M-Base, the IKV and the AZL partner network for the efficient and standardized provision of engineering data for SMC. Within the scope of the project, companies can participate in the definition of the required characteristic material data, the guidelines for the production of test specimens and the test specifications.
Sheet Moulding Compounds (SMC) are used in various application areas such as vehicles, electronics, construction and infrastructure.

Driven by the requirements to reduce the production costs of lightweight components, a new generation of SMC components with high mechanical properties is of highest relevance. SMC offers enormous potential to realize structural components with good lightweight characteristics at significantly reduced costs compared to conventional continuous fiber-reinforced components.
In order to further establish SMC in broad industrial applications companies participating within the AZL Workgroup recognized the value of a data bank for data harmonization of SMC to provide the possibility of easily finding the right material with its characteristics for the needed specific requirements.

“The segment of SMC is with 250,000 tons production per year the largest composites market in Europe. I am very pleased that we start now with the project of data harmonization along the complete value chain. The goal is to have a similar data base as already established by Campus® for thermoplastics and thermoplastic composites. Only with a reliable set data we can convince the engineering experts to use SMC in a larger variety of applications,” says Dr. Michael Effing, Chairman of the Board of AVK and Composites Germany.

As of right now a databank for engineered thermoplastic materials (by Campus®) already exists and is offering an immense value.
Under the lead of M-Base, Dr. CEO Erwin Baur who has successfully established the CAMPUS database, the AZL, IKV and companies along the value chain of long fibre reinforced SMC initiated to build a CAMPUS-compatible data structure and material characterization methodology during the High-Performance SMC Workgroup Meetings.

(c) AZL Aachen GmbH (c) AZL Aachen GmbH (c) AZL Aachen GmbH (c) AZL Aachen GmbH (c) AZL Aachen GmbH (c) AZL Aachen GmbH
More information:
SMC, AZL, RWTH Aachen RWTH Aachen IKV
Source:

AZL Aachen GmbH

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article as PDF
23.01.2020

SGL Carbon product finder supports selection of optimum graphite sealing material

  • New product finder "Flexible Graphite" finds optimum solutions for the respective customer requirements
  • Identification of the best SIGRAFLEX® graphite gasket material for a specific application

With the help of SGL Carbon’s new product finder "Flexible Graphite", users can quickly select exactly the sealing product that best suits their application requirements - from the range of SIGRAFLEX graphite gasket sheets available. The product finder is accessible free of charge on the company's website and guides the user to the optimum sealing material - online, easily and accurately.

The product finder "Flexible Graphite" can be found on the website at www.sigraflex.com/productfinder

  • New product finder "Flexible Graphite" finds optimum solutions for the respective customer requirements
  • Identification of the best SIGRAFLEX® graphite gasket material for a specific application

With the help of SGL Carbon’s new product finder "Flexible Graphite", users can quickly select exactly the sealing product that best suits their application requirements - from the range of SIGRAFLEX graphite gasket sheets available. The product finder is accessible free of charge on the company's website and guides the user to the optimum sealing material - online, easily and accurately.

The product finder "Flexible Graphite" can be found on the website at www.sigraflex.com/productfinder

More information:
SGL Carbon
Source:

SGL Carbon

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(c) Oerlikon
article as PDF
12.11.2019

Oerlikon: New upgrade transforms the ACW into WINGS

Recently, upgrades and retrofits were made available for Oerlikon Barmag ACW-series winders, with which the benefits of the WINGS concept become tangibly close for operators of POY spinning systems equipped with ACW technology. Worldwide, thousands of winders could take advantage of this system upgrade.

In addition to savings in terms of energy, waste and HR, the benefits of the WINGS concept above all include the consistently high yarn quality, making WINGS yarn a winner in further processing. Particularly with regards to its dyeing properties, the yarn is considerably superior to products manufactured using conventional winder technology.

Recently, upgrades and retrofits were made available for Oerlikon Barmag ACW-series winders, with which the benefits of the WINGS concept become tangibly close for operators of POY spinning systems equipped with ACW technology. Worldwide, thousands of winders could take advantage of this system upgrade.

In addition to savings in terms of energy, waste and HR, the benefits of the WINGS concept above all include the consistently high yarn quality, making WINGS yarn a winner in further processing. Particularly with regards to its dyeing properties, the yarn is considerably superior to products manufactured using conventional winder technology.

Yarn producers can now also achieve these typical WINGS properties with ACW winders – with a corresponding system upgrade. The ACW WINGS conversion components and ACW upgrades for draw units can be installed as plug-in units in virtually no time at all, hence minimizing system downtimes. Analog to WINGS, the new ACW WINGS draw unit is more compact and also guides the yarn using rollers instead of yarn guides. This minimizes friction for the yarn and the angles of deflection remain the same, which in turn optimizes the yarn tension on all packages.

Already being used in China
The first expansion phase with 96 positions is already successfully operating at Chinese polyester yarn manufacturer Zhejiang Rongsheng. “We achieved excellent yarn values after just four days. The yarns are of AA quality for a full package rate of 98% and a yarn break rate of 0.5 per ton”, summarizes Xu Yongming, Plant Manager at Rongsheng, talking about the upgrade package. “This has allowed us to once again become one of the top manufacturers with our ACW yarns.” A second expansion phase with 88 further positions will follow at the end of 2019.

The conversion package is also particularly interesting as a result of its fast ROI (return-on-investment) of less than one year. ACW WINGS is available for all ACW-type POY / HOY winders for polyester, polyamide 6 and polyamide 6.6.

More information:
Oerlikon Barmag
Source:

Oerlikon

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18.04.2019

AZL and Partner Institutes present lightweight processes and equipment during AZL Open Day

On April 11th, 2019, the 9 Partner Institutes of the AZL opened the doors of their machinery halls and research labs to provide an extensive and on-site insight into the research and development capaci-ties in the field of lightweight production and composites at the RWTH Aachen Campus. As a special highlight of this year, the AZL presented the "iComposite 4.0" self-optimizing process chain: fiber-spraying - dry fiber placement - adaptive RTM as well as AZL´s new prototype machine development "Ultra-Fast Consolidator Machine" for highly productive and flexible processing of thermoplastic tapes with in-situ consolidation (winner of the JEC World Innovation Award 2019).

More than 100 Participants from external companies as well as from the AZL Network had the possibility to experience updates on the latest lightweight production technologies and equipment, get to know the bene-fital infrastructure on the Campus and network with internationally represented companies of the entire light-weight value chain researches by taking part in five guided tours to the lightweight institutes.

On April 11th, 2019, the 9 Partner Institutes of the AZL opened the doors of their machinery halls and research labs to provide an extensive and on-site insight into the research and development capaci-ties in the field of lightweight production and composites at the RWTH Aachen Campus. As a special highlight of this year, the AZL presented the "iComposite 4.0" self-optimizing process chain: fiber-spraying - dry fiber placement - adaptive RTM as well as AZL´s new prototype machine development "Ultra-Fast Consolidator Machine" for highly productive and flexible processing of thermoplastic tapes with in-situ consolidation (winner of the JEC World Innovation Award 2019).

More than 100 Participants from external companies as well as from the AZL Network had the possibility to experience updates on the latest lightweight production technologies and equipment, get to know the bene-fital infrastructure on the Campus and network with internationally represented companies of the entire light-weight value chain researches by taking part in five guided tours to the lightweight institutes.

The AZL brought together content in the field of textiles (ITA), plastics and composite materials (IKV), pro-duction technology (WZL, IPT, ILT, and ISF), quality assurance and production-integrated measurement technology (WZL), lightweight design (SLA), automotive production (IKA) as well as multi-material systems and process integration (AZL).

Once a year at the Open Day, the AZL offers an exclusive and widespread unique insight into the R&D capacities of the institutes in the field of lightweight and composite technologies on the campus of RWTH Aachen University. Within walking distance, researchers and students from 9 institutes are working on the latest technologies for the cost-efficient development and production of lightweight components within one of the largest research landscapes in Europe. The research, closely involving industrial companies, covers the entire value chain from fiber production, materials and processing technology to quality assurance and com-ponent testing.

More information:
AZL SMC, AZL, RWTH Aachen
Source:

AZL Aachen GmbH

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(c) JEC Group
21.11.2018

Celebration of Composite Materials at the 11th JEC Asia

The annual meeting for the Asia-Pacific professionals of the composites industry, organized for the second time in a row in Seoul, has met its high expectations attracting +12% participants and acting as a major showcase for the composites industry in the region.

KEY FIGURES

  • +230 companies
  • 45 speakers
  • +7,000 professional visits
  • 49 countries represented
  • 12 JEC Innovation Awards
  • +450 Business meetings
  • 3 Composites Tours
  • Top 3 visitors’ countries: Korea - China - Japan

 

The annual meeting for the Asia-Pacific professionals of the composites industry, organized for the second time in a row in Seoul, has met its high expectations attracting +12% participants and acting as a major showcase for the composites industry in the region.

KEY FIGURES

  • +230 companies
  • 45 speakers
  • +7,000 professional visits
  • 49 countries represented
  • 12 JEC Innovation Awards
  • +450 Business meetings
  • 3 Composites Tours
  • Top 3 visitors’ countries: Korea - China - Japan

 

Gauging from the attendance of more than 7,000 professional visits from 49 countries, Eric PIERREJEAN, CEO of JEC Group, has already announced during the opening ceremony that JEC Asia 2019 will return next year on November 13, 14, 15, 2019. This ceremony was attended by industrialists, academics and officials, reflecting the huge interest that composite materials generates. Thus, at this ceremony we could notice the participation of Mr. BANG Yun Hyuk, President of KCTECH, Mr. Song, Ha Jin Jeonbuk Provincial Governor, Mr. HAN Byung Do, Senior secretary to the South Korean President for political affairs, Mr. CHOI Jin Hyuk, Director at MOTIE, Mr. KIM Yang Won, Vice Mayor of Jeonju, demonstrating the whole support of the Korean community; and Mr. Fabien PENONE, French Ambassador, was also present to underline the strong links and industrial interactions between Korea and France.

Hosting, this year again, the International Carbon Festival organized by KCTECH and the Jeonju region, JEC Asia also provided a comprehensive program dedicated to the Automotive professionals with a leadership circle attended by top stakeholders of the industry worldwide, top-notch conferences on automotive automated processes and composite applications for structural parts with speakers from Hyundai Motor Group, e-Xstream Engineering, L&L Products, Cobra International, Hanwha Advanced Materials, Daimler, Hankuk Carbon, Arkema, Cetim, Saertex & Co. KG to name a few.

“Aeronautics: 53% and beyond” conferences took place and attracted many attendees to discover new composites solutions and their wider use in this sector with Stratasys,IS Group, Cevotec… JEC Asia also offered its participants a chance to find out new business opportunities, highlighting the most relevant for the region and various application sectors.
All in all, the show floor was filled with innovations as JEC Asia 2018 showcased innovative parts and awarded 12 composites International champions among which 3 were about automotive, at the JEC Innovation Awards ceremony.

Also, to be noted at JEC Asia was the focus on networking with pre-arranged Business meetings that generated +450 qualified one-to-ones over the 3 days. Likewise, 3 composites tours opened exclusive doors to attendees when they visited Hanyang University, the composite architecture of the House of Dior, LG Hausys & Kolon and a day trip in Jeonju region and the Carbon Valley of the KCTECH.
For the first time, JEC Asia teamed up with MAI Carbon to offer a brand-new Student Program that keeps abreast of composite-industry needs to hire young, committed well-trained engineers. The two-part program included workshops with a focus on theoretical foundations and a guided tour through the JEC Asia trade show and the innovation planet.

(c) JEC Group
More information:
JEC-Gruppe
Source:

JEC Group

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Dissertation and Creativity Award of the German Textile Machinery Foundation 2018 to go to Aachen (c) VDMA. Eric Otto, Susanne Fischer, Dr. Benjamin Weise, Peter D. Dornier (Chairman Walter Reiners-Stiftung), Alon Tal, Jan Merlin Abram (left to right)
01.10.2018

Dissertation and Creativity Award of the German Textile Machinery Foundation 2018 to go to Aachen

The Mechanical Engineering Industry Association (VDMA) has awarded two prizes to graduates of the Institut für Textiltechnik (ITA) of RWTH Aachen University - the dissertation prize and the creativity prize of the Walter Reiners Foundation of German Textile Machinery 2018. ITA alumnus Dr Benjamin Weise was awarded the dissertation prize for the development of novel fibres for textile charge storage devices. For their work on a guide to 4D product design, Jan Merlin Abram and Aalon Tal (both ITA students) were honoured with the creativity prize. The dissertation prize is endowed with €5,000 whilst the creativity prize contains a one-year scholarship of €250 per month. Peter D. Dornier, President of the Walter Reiners Foundation and Chairman of the Management Board of Lindauer DORNIER, presented the awards on the 18 September 2018 at the 18th Textile Machinery Forum in the Digital Capability Center in Aachen, Germany.

Graphene revolutionizes all-in-one - supercaps, reduction of terahertz radiation and antistatics

The Mechanical Engineering Industry Association (VDMA) has awarded two prizes to graduates of the Institut für Textiltechnik (ITA) of RWTH Aachen University - the dissertation prize and the creativity prize of the Walter Reiners Foundation of German Textile Machinery 2018. ITA alumnus Dr Benjamin Weise was awarded the dissertation prize for the development of novel fibres for textile charge storage devices. For their work on a guide to 4D product design, Jan Merlin Abram and Aalon Tal (both ITA students) were honoured with the creativity prize. The dissertation prize is endowed with €5,000 whilst the creativity prize contains a one-year scholarship of €250 per month. Peter D. Dornier, President of the Walter Reiners Foundation and Chairman of the Management Board of Lindauer DORNIER, presented the awards on the 18 September 2018 at the 18th Textile Machinery Forum in the Digital Capability Center in Aachen, Germany.

Graphene revolutionizes all-in-one - supercaps, reduction of terahertz radiation and antistatics

In his dissertation "Development of graphene-modified multifilament yarns for the production of textile charge storage devices", laureate Dr Benjamin Weise developed novel fibres made of polyamide and graphene and further processed them into textile surfaces. The newly developed polyamide graphene fibres are featuring a multitude of advantages:

  • Due to their high performance in the charge storage area, they are predestined for use in double-layer capacitors, so-called super capacitors, or supercaps in short. Compared to lithium-ion batteries, supercaps offer significantly higher power density and a longer lifetime as no chemical reactions are taking place. towing to the graphene platelets in the filaments, it is now possible for the first time to integrate a charge storage device directly into a textile without having to sew in a rechargeable battery. This new fibre is therefore suitable for prospective use in smart textiles, for instance in a textile defibrillator.
  • The new graphene-modified polyamide fibres can attenuate inident terahertz radiation up to 25 % of their original intensity. Terahertz radiation, for example, offers transmission rates of 100 Mbit/sec and is therefore of high interest for high-performance wireless communication. However, the radiation could damage sensible electronics as in aircrafts if this technology will be used widespread. Consequently, the shielding of the radiation is of high importance, e.g. in the form of fibre composite components in the aircraft, which protect the on-board electronics.
  • As the fibres are showcasing a dissipative electrical conductivity, personal protective equipment is another prospective field of application.  

The development of a pilot process for graphene-modified fibres and the production of textile demonstrators are novel and disruptive attainments of Dr Weise’s PhD thesis and the reason for the award ceremony to him. Due to its outstanding properties, the European Union is funding research on graphene within the frame of the "Graphene Flagship" with an overall budget of one billion Euro (source: http://graphene-flagship.eu/project/Pages/About-Graphene-Flagship.aspx).

Modular product design of 4D products is now possible in simplified form

How can three-dimensional products change their shape over time and thus become "four-dimensional"? The students Jan Merlin Abram and Aalon Tal provide answers to this question in their project work "Leitfaden zur Auslegung hybrider morphender Textilien am Beispiel eines Scharniers" (Guidelines for the Design of Hybrid Morphing Textiles Using the Example of a Hinge), for which they were awarded the creativity prize. In their work, the students offer a guideline for the development of a four-dimensional textile from the idea to the demonstrator. Four-dimensional textiles, for example, consist of a hybrid material of elastic textile on which three-dimensional structures are printed. The fourth dimension describes the change in shape and/or a property over a defined period of time (= morphing).  This change is caused by external influences such as light and heat.

Every year, the Foundation of the German Textile Machinery awards prizes for the best dissertation, diploma or master's thesis and the creativity prize for the smartest student research project. Further prizes were awarded to Eric Otto, ITM Dresden, and Susanne Fischer, Reutlingen University.

More information:
Dornier VDMA RWTH Aachen, ITA, Textiltechnik
Source:

Institut für Textiltechnik of RWTH Aachen University

ITA

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APIC Attendees Take Home Hygienically Clean Soiled Linen Training
APIC Attendees Take Home Hygienically Clean Soiled Linen Training
15.06.2018

APIC Attendees Take Home Hygienically Clean Soiled Linen Training

Exhibiting at this week’s Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC) Annual Conference, Hygienically Clean Healthcare certified laundries provided nearly 200 copies of a training video guiding caregivers in improving soiled linen handling performance.

Provided on a flash drive: the 13-minute video (The Six Cs: Handling Soiled Linen in a Healthcare Environment), a quiz to immediately assess viewers’ grasp of the video’s lessons and posters to reinforce these year-round. Distributed since 2016, the video has been hailed for its value in aiding compliance with OSHA universal precautions regarding items saturated with blood, bodily fluids, harmful residue from treatments and other potentially infectious material.

The flash drive offer intrigued infection preventionists (IPs) from a single facility or those responsible for this function throughout health systems, whether acute or outpatient care environments or both. The drive also attracted the attention of other professionals who visited the Hygienically Clean exhibit, such as federal and state health officials and suppliers of products and services to the IP profession.

Exhibiting at this week’s Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC) Annual Conference, Hygienically Clean Healthcare certified laundries provided nearly 200 copies of a training video guiding caregivers in improving soiled linen handling performance.

Provided on a flash drive: the 13-minute video (The Six Cs: Handling Soiled Linen in a Healthcare Environment), a quiz to immediately assess viewers’ grasp of the video’s lessons and posters to reinforce these year-round. Distributed since 2016, the video has been hailed for its value in aiding compliance with OSHA universal precautions regarding items saturated with blood, bodily fluids, harmful residue from treatments and other potentially infectious material.

The flash drive offer intrigued infection preventionists (IPs) from a single facility or those responsible for this function throughout health systems, whether acute or outpatient care environments or both. The drive also attracted the attention of other professionals who visited the Hygienically Clean exhibit, such as federal and state health officials and suppliers of products and services to the IP profession.

Distributing the flash drive is a hallmark of the Hygienically Clean program’s philosophy of addressing healthcare providers’ operational needs outside the scope of outsourced laundries’ traditional functions. Certified operators’ certification fees provide funding for creating and distributing the video and other education tools for healthcare facilities.

Visitors to the Minneapolis display who previously received the video vouched for its effectiveness. Certified laundries have individually distributed the flash drive to customers and prospects in addition to  their collective effort to provide them at previous APIC and Association for the Healthcare Environment (AHE) expos.

The video’s easy-to-follow steps improve infection control and patient care and reduce costs by addressing OSHA-required universal precautions. Employees who handle soiled linen (usually nurses and environmental services staff) must assume all human blood and potentially infectious materials they touch are infected, because they can’t be sure which patients are infected or what infections are present.

Adhering to the six Cs (cover, collect, contain, consolidate, clean, cooperate) each day prevents injury and reduces the risk of spreading of infection to co-workers, patients and residents. These positive outcomes are only achieved when workers first protect themselves.

The flash drive is available to all healthcare providers at no cost. It also contains the Hygienically Clean standard and other guidance documents for infection preventionists related to linen and uniforms. Among these documents: Handling Clean Linen in a Healthcare Environment, an 8-page guide to safeguarding through effective transportation, storage and distribution.

More information:
soiled linen training Hygienically Clean Healthcare healthcare facilities Infection Control
Source:

TRSA

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14.06.2018

Help with Clean Linen from Hygienically Clean Laundries Welcomed at APIC

Attendees of the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC) expo confirmed Thursday the value of effective guidelines for properly handling clean linen, substantiating Hygienically Clean Healthcare certified operators’ efforts to help them ensure linen remains safe and clean when it reaches patients.

Visitors to the Hygienically Clean exhibit at APIC’s Annual Conference were supported in this respect by receiving Handling Clean Linen in a Healthcare Environment, a guide produced by these certified linen, uniform and facility services operators. APIC attendees shared anecdotes of mishandling clean linen in their workplaces including:

Attendees of the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC) expo confirmed Thursday the value of effective guidelines for properly handling clean linen, substantiating Hygienically Clean Healthcare certified operators’ efforts to help them ensure linen remains safe and clean when it reaches patients.

Visitors to the Hygienically Clean exhibit at APIC’s Annual Conference were supported in this respect by receiving Handling Clean Linen in a Healthcare Environment, a guide produced by these certified linen, uniform and facility services operators. APIC attendees shared anecdotes of mishandling clean linen in their workplaces including:

  • Employees holding and carrying stacks of bed linen and towels touching their chests
  • Commingling clean and soiled linen
  • Storing linen in closets in guest rooms instead of a secure linen room

Certified operators’ certification fees provided funding for creating and distributing the guide (and other resources for healthcare facilities), manifesting the Hygienically Clean program’s philosophy of addressing healthcare providers’ operational needs outside the scope of outsourced laundries’ traditional functions.

Angela Freeman, Hygienically Clean program manager, explained the importance of such laundries partnering with healthcare providers to create and implement plans to ensure clean textiles are delivered to patients. “When healthcare textiles (HCTs) reach a facility’s doors, an outsourced laundry’s role in maintaining their hygiene depends greatly on how the service agreement addresses linen distribution. Hygienically Clean’s resources for healthcare providers reflect the willingness of our certified operators to partner with their customers.”

A video version of the clean linen guide is in the works. TRSA, the global association for the linen and uniform services industry and Hygienically Clean administrator, continues to build the industry’s appreciation for partnering with healthcare customers.

In May, TRSA introduced Producing Hygienically Clean Textiles, an e-learning class to help laundry employees understand their roles in the processes, procedures and policies necessary to produce clean linens and uniforms. TRSA’s annual Healthcare Conference has guided industry managers in progressive linen distribution techniques to aid their training of their customers in these.

More information:
TRSA, Hygienically Clean Certification Hygiencally Clean Healthcare healthcare textiles APIC
Source:

TRSA

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27.11.2017

AZL is building on the success of the study on Composites in Buildings & Infrastructure

The AZL will continue its collaboration on composites in buildings and infrastructure after completing an initial market and technology study which identified new potentials for composite technologies in buildings and infrastructure markets. The aim of the new AZL Workgroup which will meet for the first time on January 25th, 2018 is to jointly develop new applications and to support the business development for composites in these two growing markets. The meeting is open to interested companies from the composite industry as well as the building and infrastructure markets.


The aim of the initial workgroup meeting will be to turn insights from the study into a long-term workgroup collaboration and to define topics and initiatives for the joint cooperation in the field of process and manufacturing technologies, fire safety regulations, materials as well as standards and norms. Industrial keynote presentations will introduce these action fields and will provide an insight into building and infrastructure applications for composites. The meeting will furthermore provide a platform to network with companies along the entire composite value chain.

The AZL will continue its collaboration on composites in buildings and infrastructure after completing an initial market and technology study which identified new potentials for composite technologies in buildings and infrastructure markets. The aim of the new AZL Workgroup which will meet for the first time on January 25th, 2018 is to jointly develop new applications and to support the business development for composites in these two growing markets. The meeting is open to interested companies from the composite industry as well as the building and infrastructure markets.


The aim of the initial workgroup meeting will be to turn insights from the study into a long-term workgroup collaboration and to define topics and initiatives for the joint cooperation in the field of process and manufacturing technologies, fire safety regulations, materials as well as standards and norms. Industrial keynote presentations will introduce these action fields and will provide an insight into building and infrastructure applications for composites. The meeting will furthermore provide a platform to network with companies along the entire composite value chain.


Dr. Amer Affan, CEO and founder of AFFAN Innovative Structures based in Dubai is in charge of various composite projects for buildings such as the Museum of the Future in Dubai: “We have been utilizing structural composites in construction since 2010. Composites is a truly high-tech material compared with the traditional building materials (steel, concrete, timber and aluminum) but it is still to be recognized as such in the conservative and price-sensitive building industry. AZL, particularly its location at the RWTH Aachen University and its partner companies, offers a good platform to progress the use of composites in construction.”


AZL together with more than 25 companies just completed the Joint Market and Technology Study on “New Potentials for Composite Technologies in Buildings and Infrastructure” establishing a broad knowledge on business opportunities for composite technologies in these two growing markets. In a structured approach, the study determined the key segments as well as the technologies/applications with the highest market and technological potential. Analyses of 20 market segments, investigation of 438 applications, technology analyses of 25 highlight components and 11 detailed business cases were elaborated throughout the study. Additional to requirement analyses for materials and production technologies, new concepts for efficient profitable production technologies and cost engineering analysis were developed. With the workgroup, the AZL will take this initiative a step further with the aim to build a long-term cooperation platform for composites in buildings and infrastructure markets.


Justin Jin, CEO of the Korean company AXIA Materials participated in the study and is part of the AZL Partner Network: “As producer of large thermoplastic composite sheets and composite SIP (Structural Insulated Panel), we are eager to drive composites in B&I applications with the best efficient way. The AZL study on Buildings and Infrastructure provided us a great networking with key players in this business field and opportunities to strengthen our products with the key elements from partners. The study also gave us a proper market understanding including market size/volume in numbers to prove the value of this technology to building industry. We are looking forward to following up on these first insights and to realize applications with the AZL and its partners.”


Besides the networking options, the meeting will offer the opportunity to get an insight into the activities of the AZL Network consisting of nine research institutes at the RWTH Aachen Campus and more than 80 companies from 21 countries. During an optional guided tour, participants will visit selected institutes at the RWTH Aachen Campus. The meeting is open to all interested companies and free of charge.

More Information on Meeting and the Study
Information on AZL activities in the field of buildings and infrastructure:
www.azl-lightweight-production.com/composites-buildings-infrastructure
Details and registration to first Workgroup Meeting on January 25th, 2018:
http://www.azl-lightweight-production.com/termine/1st-workgroup-meeting-buildings-infrastructure

 

Picture 1: The AZL Joint Market and Technology Study on “New Potentials for Composite Technologies in Buildings and Infrastructure Markets” followed a structured approach to identify 438 potential applications from 20 market segments. 25 of these were analyzed in technology analyses and 11of these in detailed business cases. Picture 2: Affan Innovative Structures is making the façade of the Museum of the Future which is currently under construction in Dubai. The façade will be made of fiber-reinforced stainless steel. Copyright: Affan Innovative Structures. Picture 3: Pixel Haus® is AXIA’s new construction solution to build houses with composite sandwich panels. Due to the lightweight and size, it is possible to complete construction by simple assembly of the panels in less than a week still offering the same structural and finishing performance as conventional construction methods. Copyright: AXIA Materials. Picture 4: 25 companies participated in the AZL study on “New Potentials for Composite Technologies in Buildings and Infrastructure Markets” which started in 2016 and was completed in September 2017. Copyright: AZL Aachen GmbH/Keller.
More information:
Composites SMC, AZL, RWTH Aachen
Source:

AZL Aachen GmbH in cooperation with Aachen Center for integrative Lightweight Production (AZL) of RWTH Aachen

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