GELEEN, THE NETHERLANDS, July 26, 2012: European plastics processors serving industries as diverse as automotive, medical, consumer products, and wire and cable now can rely on a single supplier of thermoplastic elastomers (TPEs) for support in selecting the best compound for their application, it was announced today by Teknor Apex Europe. The company will highlight its expanded capabilities at Fakuma 2012 (Stand B4-4107).
For the first time, Teknor Apex Europe can produce, at its plants in Belgium and the UK, compounds spanning the entire range of TPE chemistries developed worldwide by Teknor Apex Company. Following two years of expanding in Europe and reorganizing its operations in the region to integrate sales, service, and distribution for its uniquely diversified product offerings, Teknor Apex now provides the broadest selection of TPE alternatives available from a European compounder, according to Barry Galpin, sales director for Europe.
“Over more than six decades, Teknor Apex Company has acquired a wealth of experience serving key industries like automotive, consumer and industrial products, electrical and electronics, and medical devices, and now all of this expertise is available to manufacturers in Europe,” said Mr. Galpin. “As a custom compounder drawing from the region’s broadest portfolio of TPE chemistries, Teknor Apex Europe is well positioned to supply each customer with precisely the right compound for an application.”
Teknor Apex Europe manufactures compounds in four broad product families based on these widely differing TPE chemistries: Styrenics: blends of styrene block copolymer rubber and thermoplastics; Vulcanizates: compounds consisting of crosslinked elastomers within a thermoplastic matrix; Olefinics: blends of polypropylene or polyethylene with thermoset rubber or with olefin block copolymer (OBC); and Over-Molding Compounds: proprietary blends that can bond to a wide range of styrenic and engineering resins.
Besides its compounding plants in Europe, Mr. Galpin noted, Teknor Apex produces TPEs at five sites in the U.S.A. and one in Singapore. “No matter how many operations a customer has worldwide, we can supply any or all of them with precisely the same TPE formulation required for an application.”
Teknor Apex Versatility in TPEs Benefits European Customers in Key End Use Sectors
The expanded capabilities of Teknor Apex Europe bring new compound alternatives to some of the largest markets for TPES:
Automotive. “While European automotive manufacturers are already well familiar with the thermoplastic vulcanizate [TPV] elastomers in our Sarlink® range, they now also have access to other TPE types developed by Teknor Apex in North America and marked by a long history of OEM approvals there,” said Ger Vroomen, senior automotive market manager. “Typically in Europe, a TPE compounder serving the auto industry supplies either TPVs or other TPEs such as the styrenics, but not both.”
Consumer and Industrial. Developed in the USA, the Monprene® range of compounds is the most versatile of all TPE families, according to Stef Hordijk, senior manager for non-automotive markets. Appropriately, Monprene products have found application in a vast array of products, such as personal care items, toys, writing instruments, sporting goods, housewares, and wheels and casters. Spanning a wide spectrum of hardness, these compounds range from super-soft to hard and tough, from water clear to opaque, and from dry-to-the-touch to high-tack / resilient. They can be over-molded onto polyolefins.
Electrical. Elexar® compounds, now available in Europe, combine superior electrical properties, flexibility, and toughness. The flame retardant formulations are RoHS-compliant and meet stringent flame-test requirements and service temperature specifications. They are used in a wide range of power, communications, and data cable, as well as in molded plugs and connectors.
Medical. All of Teknor Apex’s TPE product offerings for medical are part of the broad Medalist® range of compounds. “Widely successful in the U.S.A. since their introduction a little over three years ago, Medalist compounds provide device manufacturers with a comprehensive selection of styrenic, olefinic, and vulcanizate elastomers, all of them pre-compliant with regulations and tested not only for essential physical properties but for handling, processability, and other characteristics that are critical in everyday clinical practice,” said Mr. Hordijk.
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