AKRO-PLASTIC GmbH, the specialist for innovative plastic compounds, has made its product range of PA 6 and PA 6.6 compounds, both non-reinforced and with as much as 60 % glass fibre reinforcement, fit for UL listing.

Compounds by AKRO-PLASTIC GmbH are used in a host of applications, in a broad array of industrial sectors. What makes these products stand out is their high, unwavering quality. With increasing frequency, the compounder’s customers are exporting their components and systems to countries for which the appropriate listings are required. This, coupled with the desire to increase the potential range of applications for their products in the household appliance, construction, electrical and electronics industries, has prompted AKRO-PLASTIC to list their non-reinforced PA 6.6 compounds (AKROMID® A3 1) and PA 6 grades (AKROMID® B3 1), as well as the PA 6 and PA 6.6 product families with up to 60 % glass fibre reinforcement (A3 GF xx 1, and B3 GF xx 1), according to UL guidelines. The UL listings pertain to compounds in natural and black tones, as well as all customer-specific colours. Appropriate masterbatches for in-house dyeing are also available on request.

“This allows us to create applications using polyamide 6 and 6.6 compounds without additional flame retardant properties, for which UL material listings are required”, explains Manfred Bär, Head of Product Management at AKRO-PLASTIC. “This is a logical complement to our flame-retardant, halogen-free polyamide compounds. Thus we are now able to offer a wide range of products both in the market in Europe, from our headquarters in Niederzissen, and in the Asian market, locally produced in our factory in Suzhou, China”, Bär adds.

Moreover, the glass-fibre-reinforced grades manufactured by AKRO-PLASTIC boast excellent mechanical properties, exhibiting above-average level concerning strength, stiffness, toughness and resistance to heat distortion.

Think Polyamide – Think Value – Think Masterbatch

Accumulated plastics expertise within a strong corporate group was the heading under which AKRO-PLASTIC GmbH, a specialist in innovative and application-oriented plastic compounds took part in the 21^st Fakuma trade fair in Friedrichshafen, Germany, together with its subsidiary AF-COLOR and K.D. Feddersen GmbH & Co. KG, a distributor of engineering plastics.

Think – was written in bold letters on the exhibition booth. With this slogan the companies of the Feddersen Group invited the visitors for common reflection. And there is always something to think about, as extensive know-how is provided „under one roof” and in this way a comprehensive service is offered to the customers.  

Think Value is the slogan of K.D. Feddersen underlining the Hamburg-based distributor’s focus on a customer-oriented and project-related work method.

Thus unlike a traditional trading company, K.D. Feddersen has its own Application Engineering department to assist customers in selecting the right raw material and create effective, practicable solutions for product development. Customer-focused demand, distribution and production planning means distribution concepts are tailor-made for each customer – even for small quantities.

AKRO-PLASTIC truly lives up to its slogan Think Polyamide. The manufacturer of compounds, situated in Niederzissen, Rhineland-Palatinate has established itself as an integrated service partner. In the state-of-the-art production facilities formulations are developed according to customers‘requirements and translated into marketable standard products or respectively applied special products.

From small orders to full service - in the area of toll compounding, a flexible, efficient production environment is offered at a high quality level. As one of few-medium sized providers of plastics production and compounding services, AKRO-PLASTIC offers the option of assured materials testing. The test methods have been certified by the German Accreditation Council in accordance with DIN EN ISO 17025.

AF-COLOR is perfectly suited for it’s slogan Think Masterbatch. The specialist of masterbatches presented its program involving color masterbatches and additive concentrates based on biodegradable polymers for the first time to specialists on the occasion of FAKUMA.

After expansion of warehouse, laboratory and administration building, AKRO-PLASTIC, the specialist for innovative and application-oriented plastic compounds invests again at the location Industriegebiet Brohltal-Ost in Niederzissen, Rhineland Palatinate. Groundbreaking for the expansion of the new production hall took place on 12^th of August 2011.

Andreas Stuber, Managing Director of AKRO-PLASTIC GmbH welcomed guests of local politics and involved construction companies in the new multi media room being on the top floor of the currently established administration building. Approximately one year after the last groundbreaking on 14^th of June 2010, the repeated willingness to invest of the group of companies at this site was welcomed. “We are grateful and proud, that AKRO-PLASTIC and in this way the internally acting Feddersen Group remained loyal with our area and business location”, according to Dr. Jürgen Pföhler (CDU), district administrator of the Kreis Ahrweiler. “This decision shows that the efforts of municipality and district to strive for an attractive economic location had been successful," Dr. Pföhler adds.

Dr. Pföhler emphasized in his greetings also the positive development of job market in the area. An unemployment rate of approximately 4 % means almost full employment. These figures are significantly below the state average and all the more below national average. By creating about 80 new jobs in the area, AKRO-PLASTIC makes its contribution to this positive trend.

The authorities have done their duty by easing the processes for permission. In case of AKRO-PLASTIC, the approval procedure was very complex and technically demanding as an additional power supply was necessary for the new building. This could be clarified smoothly and quickly within a round-table discussion together with the energy supplier, municipality and AKRO-PLASTIC.

Mr. Andreas Stuber praised the good cooperation with municipality as well as the long-standing successful cooperation with the local construction- and planning companies. After presenting a short overview of Feddersen Group and its single companies, Mr. Stuber explained expansion of production at the site Niederzissen in detail. At an area of 20.000 m², 14 new compounding lines will be successively installed reaching a capacity of more than 60.000 tons.

This means expansion of production capacity by 1.5 times. The existing, state-of-the art production concept  running in the 2002 constructed plant will be transferred to the new plant. There, AKRO manufactures mainly compounds on basis of polyamide, being sold under their own brand names AKROMID® or respectively AKROLOY®, as well as polyester being manufactured by toll compounding.

With the company FEDDEM GmbH & Co. KG situated in Sinzig also belonging to the district Ahrweiler, the Feddersen Group has a division manufacturing extrusion- and compounding lines. This backward integration represents a significant benefit, especially regarding service and maintenance.

“Due to the positive business trend in the last year, we have decided soon after expansion of warehouse, laboratory and administration to start expansion of production”, according to Andreas Stuber. “As a matter of fact, we cannot pretend in these days that the economic situation remains stable in future, but we like to invest anti-cyclical.  We are all working for this getting a great success."

The investment volume of the new construction of production at AKRO-PLASTIC amounts to approximately 17 million euro and is thus presently one of the biggest investments in Brohltal, as Johannes Bell (FWG), mayor of the Verbandsgemeinde Brohltal emphasized. “By establishing its new building in 2002, AKRO-PLASTIC created the start for this industrial area and remains the motor since that time”, according to Bell.

The mayor emphasized in his greetings once more how important it is to create highly qualified jobs in the neighborhood area and to include regional partners and companies in the building project. This would finally result in increasing tax income for the area, being used for financing infrastructure, kindergarten and schools. In the end, the general public interest is supported in this way.

During the subsequent plant tour through the administration building being established in 2010/2011 and the accredited laboratory, the guests could convince themselves from the state-of-the-art production and testing facilities.

In 2010, further investments within the Feddersen Group have been done in China, where AKRO Engineering Plastics (Suzhou) Co., Ltd. has obtained a new plant in the 3^rd quarter. Starting with 2 compounding lines, the annual manufacturing capacity has been expanded to 7.000 tons. Further lines are planned and will be ordered, as the capacity expands to meet the increasing demand.

The company AKRO-PLASTIC GmbH, known as specialist for innovative and application-oriented plastic compounds for more than 20 years, further completed its portfolio in 2009 with the newly developed PA 6.10. At the K-2010 6 new types of this product family are presented.

„As a matter of fact, the idea of developing polyamides on basis of sebacic acid is not a new one”, according to Dietrich Sülthaus, Development Engineer at AKRO-PLASTIC. “Already in the fifties, such products have been developed and commercialized. However, those rested as niche products on the market, as the major industrial production of standard polymers had been pressed ahead.”

The interest in materials on basis of renewable raw materials has now been steadily increased over the last years, even in the area polymer processing. Due to this fact, AKRO-PLASTIC being focussed on development of polyamide specialities has started to develop a polyamide 6.10 on basis of renewable raw materials. In this way, a renaissance of this material has been initialized.

In 2009, AKRO-PLASTIC further completed its portfolio with AKROMID® S, consisting of up to 70 % biogenic proportion (Castor oil extracted from the seeds of the castor oil plant form the building blocks for Sebacic Acid, which itself is the basis for the renewable raw material constituent of the polymer). Despite this fact, the PA 6.10 being developed by AKRO-PLASTIC is positioned on the market as engineering polymer and not as a “green” substitute of PA6.

The PA 6.10 is a so-called Drop-in Biopolymer. When manufacturing this material, the petrochemical raw material is partially substituted in the synthesis pathway by biogenic components. Biopolymers (bio-based products) furthermore belong to the lead market initiatives of the European Commission. 

In comparison to PA6 and PA6.6, AKROMID® S is characterized by higher chemical and hot water resistance. It absorbs 50 % less moisture and is more dimensionally stable, shows optimized low-temperature impact strength as well as a very good surface. Furthermore, it is characterized by an extremely high resistance in contrast to strongly stressed media (e. g. 50/50 glycol-water mixture).

„With our AKROMID® S, we fulfil the common definition of a biological compound. However, our product is not biodegradable as several ones of the materials being used in the packaging industry.

This feature is absolutely not desired with the use of technical compounds. There, we need high consistency of materials lasting the total life time, which can not be fulfilled by a degradable compound”, explains Leander Bergmann, Head of Marketing at AKRO-PLASTIC. “By use of plant raw materials, already having extracted CO₂ from the environment during their period of growth, the CO₂ balance of the material is more favourable in total in contrast to the one of polymers on basis of fossil raw materials”, Leander Bergmann adds.

Technically, PA 6.10 closes the gap between PA 6 or respectively PA 6.6 and PA 12. However, the processability of this product corresponds to this of a PA 6.

Due to these characteristic features as well as technical features of AKROMID® S, the product is perfect for the following application areas:

• Highly precise parts in technical apparatus construction as well as in precision engineering
• Technical parts in vehicle construction, as for example media pipes as well as media containers
• Connectors in vehicle electronics
• Connecting elements and plugs in photovoltaic as well as in solar thermal energy.

The product portfolio currently disposes of an unreinforced variant and several glass-fibre reinforced grades of 15 to 50 %.

At the K-2010, the company presents the following additions within the product family:

• AKROMID S3 1
• AKROMID S3 GF15 1
• AKROMID S3 GF23 1
• AKROMID S3 GF30 1
• AKROMID S3 GF30 4
• AKROMID S3 GF 50 1

AKROMID® S is particularly suitable for numerous applications in the following sectors:

• Automotive
• Machine and Appliance Engineering
• Sports and Leisure Time

The company AKRO-PLASTIC GmbH, specialist for innovative and application-oriented plastic compounds for more than 20 years has added with the Polyphtalamide AKROMID® T another classical engineering polymer within its product portfolio. The existing product range for substitution of metal die-casting is thus improved.

It’s not only the automotive industry where reduction of weight is growing more and more important due to high energy prices. The high design flexibility as well as extraordinary strength of engineering plastics also offer an economically and technically highly interesting alternative for other industrial sectors, to substitute current metal applications. By eliminating the extra refinishing process often used in metal die casting, the single plastic injection moulding cycle reduces the manufacturing cost of the part. Refinishing, being often the case in metal die casting, is omitted.

The new product family AKROMID® T is particularly suitable for the use with high temperature loaded applications, for example under the hood (UTH) of cars or mechanically highly loaded parts in the mechanical engineering sector. The reason is that this material is particularly characterized by a high temperature resistance as well as the lowest moisture absorption of all three PA product lines, originated from AKRO-PLASTIC.

In contrast to Polyamide PA 6 or respectively PA 6.6, the wall thickness of parts can be almost halved when developing the application, leading to impressive cost and weight savings.

Due to the aromatic semi-crystalline structures of AKROMID® T, highly stable parts even at temperatures of up to +140°C can be realized. Furthermore, the product shows extraordinary creep properties within a broad range of temperature. The very high dimensional stability is of course a consequence of the low moisture absorption. Even after extensive accumulation of water, the strength of a part in AKROMID® T stays at a high level. Due to the high chemical and hydrolysis resistance of the material, also aggressive media such as cleaning - and brake fluids, oils and fats as well as sand and dust can not do any harm to the part.

The high temperature resistance of AKROMID® T places it in the area of high performance engineering plastics. Temporarily, parts remain rigid and dimensionally stable even at temperatures of approximately +300°C and permanently at temperatures of up to +200°C. Depending on requirements specification, AKROMID® T acts as an interesting and cost-effective alternative to higher priced high performance plastics.

Due to the characteristic and technical features of PPA, AKROMID® T is especially recommended for applications in the automotive sector, in electrical engineering as well as in the heating and sanitary sector.

The product family presented in 2009 composes of 30 to 50 % glass-fibre reinforced products. At the K-2010, the following supplements of the AKROMID® T product family are presented:

• AKROMID T1 GF 30
• AKROMID T1 GF 40
• AKROMID T1 GF 50

This product line is especially recommended for applications, requiring high strength and stiffness at temperatures up to 140° C. Furthermore, the chemical resistance has been significantly improved in contrast to PA6 or respectively PA6.6.

• AKROMID T1 GF 30 9
• AKROMID T1 GF 40 9
• AKROMID T1 GF 50 9
• AKROMID T1 GF 55 9

This product line is especially recommended for applications, requiring high strength and stiffness at temperatures up to 100° C. Furthermore, it is recommended for applications requiring a high quality surface finish.

• AKROMID T6 GF 30
• AKROMID T6 GF 40
• AKROMID T6 GF 50

This product line is especially recommended for applications, requiring high strength and stiffness at temperatures above 150° C. Furthermore, it is recommended for applications requiring a special property balance at temperatures up to 200° C.

AKROMID® T is particularly suitable in the automotive sector, e. g.

• Thermostatic housing, connectors
• Central release units
• Ventilation duct parts (side parts for cooler of air charger, shifter shafts etc.)
• Highly stressed parts in the passenger compartment (center arm rests etc.)

Furthermore, it is suitable in electrical & electronic engineering, e. g.  

• Bobbins
• Bulb- and LED sockets

As well as in the sector industry and applicances, e. g. 

• Pump manufacturing (functional parts)

The company AKRO-PLASTIC GmbH, specialist for innovative and application-oriented plastic compounds for more than 20 years, expands the product series AKROMID® RM for the K-2010. A distinction is drawn between Design-Types as well as Mechanics-Types.

Design-Types

Unreinforced

• The types AKROMID B3 2 RM are being produced as UV- and impact resistant or respectively high impact resistant types.

This product is characterized by very good surface finish.

Reinforced

• AKROMID B3 GF 20 2 RM

The reinforced Design-Types are characterized by very good surface finish as well as optimized processing performance.

The AKROMID® RM Design-Types are characterized by significantly reduced moisture absorption as well as improved dimensional stability.

RM Design-Types are particularly suitable in the automotive sector, e. g.:

• Operating elements of climate control
• Covers in the dashboard
• Carriers for trim bars

Mechanics-Types

• AKROMID B3 GF 15 RM
• AKROMID B3 GF 30 RM
• AKROMID B3 GF 40 RM
• AKROMID B3 GF 50 RM

Besides reduced moisture absorption, this product series offers improved mechanical properties as a standard in contrast to the Design-Type. Furthermore, the special modification “4” shows high chemical- and CaCL₂ resistance. Last-mentioned property is unique for polyamides.

Furthermore, surface optimized types are being available with very constant performance in different climate conditions, low warpage and optimized surface finish.

Engineered thermoplastic polymers, plastic compounds and master batches from the Feddersen Group divisions K. D. Feddersen GmbH & Co. KG, AKRO-PLASTIC GmbH and AF-COLOR are free of Substances of Very High Concern (SVHC) according to the REACh Regulation.

According to the current REACh Regulation, products and preparations traded by the divisions of the Feddersen Group do not require registration with the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA). However, the substances that were used to manufacture these products may in fact fall under the obligation to register. "We maintain close contact with our raw materials suppliers and manufacturing partners to ensure they are acting in compliance with REACh. From a current perspective, we can guarantee that all products and preparations marketed by us are SVHC‑free and will continue to be supplied to our customers in the usual quality and quantity going forward," affirms Hans-Jörg Kroh, Quality Management Representative and EHS Manager for the divisions of the Feddersen Group.