MOSCOW (MRC) -- KRAIBURG TPE is highlighting its market-driven and customer-oriented development expertise at the 26th International Trade Fair Fakuma held from October 16 to 20, 2018 at Friedrichshafen Exhibition Center. In addition to current applications for its thermoplastic elastomers (TPEs), the company will also be showcasing two advanced new material series that provide excellent properties for automotive interior and consumer applications, as per the company's press release.
"Fakuma is the largest trade fair specializing in plastics processing in Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA)," emphasizes Franz Hinterecker, CEO of KRAIBURG TPE. "With our comprehensive materials expertise, sound knowledge of the market and consistently close customer relations, we'll be offering visitors to the fair a comprehensive demonstration of competence covering every aspect of thermoplastic elastomers."
With FG/SF, the new THERMOLAST K series and latest innovation for the automotive industry, KRAIBURG TPE is expanding its portfolio in this growing market segment. The series comprises several compounds in the Shore A hardness range between 50 and 80 with excellent surface properties for automotive interior parts - properties that include reliable adhesion to polypropylene (PP) and good abrasion resistance. The materials can be processed at relatively low pressures. Along with the standard black and natural colors, customer-specific colors are also available.
The new FG/SF compounds also comply with all common OEM standards for components used in automotive passenger compartments in relation to emission and smell as well as UV-resistance. The target applications range from floor mats and anti-slip mats with complex geometry that require enhanced surface quality to decorated surfaces and functional parts with a pleasantly soft touch, such as thumb wheels and switches.
The new compounds in the FC/AD/PA THERMOLAST K series are aimed at manufacturers in the consumer and food industries. These materials have been developed specifically for food contact and feature excellent adhesion to polyamides. The natural-colored compounds are available in hardness degrees ranging from 40 to 80 Shore A. They are not only characterized by easy processing and colorability, but also by high tensile strength and elongation at break.
This makes the TPE family particularly suitable for a wide range of applications with direct food and mouth contact such as container and packaging seals, and parts of kitchen utensils and tableware. Other applications include sports items and cosmetics, as well as seals for hearing aids.
As MRC reported earlier, in December 2017, Kraiburg TPE presented a new series of thermoplastic elastomers from its Thermolast K family that was specially developed for excellent adhesion and UV resistance in two-component applications with ethylene-propylene-diene rubber (EPDM). The new compounds are intended for automotive applications such as EPDM window trim and sealing profiles with moulded TPE corner joints and end elements.
Kraiburg Rubber (Suzhou) Co. Ltd. was established in 2005 and is part of the Waldkraiburg-based German company Kraiburg Holding GmbH & Co. KG. The company produces a wide range of standard rubber compounds (based on NR, EPDM, CR, AEM, SBR, FKM, etc.) for automotive, building and construction applications, and other industrial markets as well as highly customised products for all kinds of industries at its Suzhou site. The compounds are produced on highly automated and fully process-controlled mixing lines, based on state-of-the-art technology. The company has 130 employees.
MRC