April 1, 2021
Toyoda Gosei Receives Award for Composite High Pressure Hydrogen Tanks
Toyoda Gosei Receives Award for Composite High Pressure Hydrogen Tanks
Toyoda Gosei received an award from Toyota Motor Corp. for its development of a composite high pressure hydrogen tank
Toyota Motor Corporation has awarded their Technology and Development Award to Toyoda Gosei for their high pressure hydrogen tanks on the new 2021 Toyota Mirai fuel cell vehicle (FCV). The new Mirai uses three high pressure tanks to hold hydrogen compressed to about 700 atm. The tanks, produced at Toyota’s Inabe plant, were developed by Toyoda Gosei in relationship with Toyota.
The new pressure vessel include three layers: a plastic liner, a carbon fiber reinforced plastic layer (CFRP), and a glass fiber reinforced plastic layer (GFRP). Improvements were made to the carbon fiber-reinforced plastic layer materials as well as production methods. By decreasing the thickness of the CFRP layer, Toyoda Gosei increased the storage efficiency of the hydrogen tanks by 10%.
Read more about the new high pressure hydrogen tanks here.
Nathanial Evans from BHC can assist you with composite pressure vessel testing.
The new pressure vessel include three layers: a plastic liner, a carbon fiber reinforced plastic layer (CFRP), and a glass fiber reinforced plastic layer (GFRP). Improvements were made to the carbon fiber-reinforced plastic layer materials as well as production methods. By decreasing the thickness of the CFRP layer, Toyoda Gosei increased the storage efficiency of the hydrogen tanks by 10%.
Read more about the new high pressure hydrogen tanks here.
Nathanial Evans from BHC can assist you with composite pressure vessel testing.
April 2, 2021
Stanley Black & Decker Partners with Structur3d for Inj3ctor Injection Molding/3D Printing Combination
Stanley Black & Decker Partners with Structur3d for Inj3ctor Injection Molding/3D Printing Combination
Stanley Black & Decker is partnering with Structur3d to support the company’s Inj3ctor additive manufacturing platform
Stanley Black & Decker is partnering with Structur3d to support the company’s Inj3ctor additive manufacturing platform. Inj3ctor is an additive manufacturing system that combines injection molding with 3D printing to help manufacturers create custom rubber or silicone parts. According to Charles Mire, Structur3d’s CEO and co-founder, “The Inj3ctor platform brings desktop injection and 3D printing together to deliver a feasible solution for manufacturing functional parts. This approach, combined with the professional quality materials, means the models are viable for every step of manufacturing, from prototyping to production.”
Inj3ctor uses material cartridges to inject 2-component materials in any shape a manufacturer wants. Previous to this technology Mire said, “manufacturers have either hand-casted or invested in expensive mass production tools—if they didn’t choose to forgo the part altogether in design. As such, this development stands to impact many industries, including automotive, industrial products, aerospace, energy, medical and various consumer products where the buyer can customize some portion of the design.”
You can read more about this new injection molding 3D printing combination here.
BHC Associate Jacob Bertrand can assist with 3D printing of specialty plastics and atomic layer deposition on additive manufacturing parts.
Inj3ctor uses material cartridges to inject 2-component materials in any shape a manufacturer wants. Previous to this technology Mire said, “manufacturers have either hand-casted or invested in expensive mass production tools—if they didn’t choose to forgo the part altogether in design. As such, this development stands to impact many industries, including automotive, industrial products, aerospace, energy, medical and various consumer products where the buyer can customize some portion of the design.”
You can read more about this new injection molding 3D printing combination here.
BHC Associate Jacob Bertrand can assist with 3D printing of specialty plastics and atomic layer deposition on additive manufacturing parts.
April 3, 2021
Shortages In Plastic Resins and Feedstocks Affecting Processors
Shortages In Plastic Resins and Feedstocks Affecting Processors
Shortages of plastic resin is forcing prices higher and causing manufacturing cuts
In the March 22, 2021 edition of Plastics News Material Insights, editor Don Loepp examines the production of resins and feedstocks following Winter Storm Uri that impacted so many Texas and Gulf Coast production plants. It is estimated that 75-80% of the Gulf Coast production is back online now after four weeks of reduced production due to the storm. Shortages are starting to catch up to processors now, reflecting in higher prices for commodity resins. The price per pound for polyethylene has risen $0.32 since January 2020 and polypropylene has risen $0.61 since December 2020.
According to Plastics News, many plastics processors are making cuts to their production now or may have to in the next few weeks due to the shortages. Honda and Toyota have already announced production cuts due to supply chain issues. Dow Chemical expects their Texas assets to be operating at 80% capacity by the end of March and back to full production by the end of April. Frank Esposito, Senior Staff Reporter for Plastics News, says he expects impacts to continue through at least the end of April 2021 and possibly through the first half of 2021.
To watch the video update for yourself and hear additional market insights, click here.
According to Plastics News, many plastics processors are making cuts to their production now or may have to in the next few weeks due to the shortages. Honda and Toyota have already announced production cuts due to supply chain issues. Dow Chemical expects their Texas assets to be operating at 80% capacity by the end of March and back to full production by the end of April. Frank Esposito, Senior Staff Reporter for Plastics News, says he expects impacts to continue through at least the end of April 2021 and possibly through the first half of 2021.
To watch the video update for yourself and hear additional market insights, click here.
April 4, 2021
GE Renewable Energy Announces New Offshore Wind Turbine Blade Manufacturing Plant
GE Renewable Energy Announces New Offshore Wind Turbine Blade Manufacturing Plant
GE Renewable Energy announced a new offshore wind turbine blade manufacturing plant
GE Renewable Energy, located in Paris, France, announced a new offshore composite wind turbine blade manufacturing plant in Teesside, England. The site will be operated by LM Wind Power from Kolding, Denmark to produce blades used for offshore wind turbines. The blades, measuring 107 meters long (351 feet), will be used on GE’s Haliade-X offshore wind turbine. The new plant is expected to create up to 750 direct jobs and should be completed in 2023.
The United Kingdom has a goal of reaching 40 gigawatts (GW) of offshore wind power by 2030. The Dogger Bank Wind Farm will be the chief beneficiary of the new blade plant and, when the farm is completed in 2026, will have a generation capacity of 3.6 GW, enough to power six million households in the UK. GE hopes this plant, along with its other renewable energy investments, will make it a key player in the offshore wind industry for the region.
Read more about the plant and GE’s renewable energy goals here.
BHC works with a technology for Microwave Non-Destructive Examination of Plastics and Composites.
The United Kingdom has a goal of reaching 40 gigawatts (GW) of offshore wind power by 2030. The Dogger Bank Wind Farm will be the chief beneficiary of the new blade plant and, when the farm is completed in 2026, will have a generation capacity of 3.6 GW, enough to power six million households in the UK. GE hopes this plant, along with its other renewable energy investments, will make it a key player in the offshore wind industry for the region.
Read more about the plant and GE’s renewable energy goals here.
BHC works with a technology for Microwave Non-Destructive Examination of Plastics and Composites.
April 5, 2021
Plastikos Medical Doubling Medical Injection Molding Space
Plastikos Medical Doubling Medical Injection Molding Space
Plastikos Medical is doubling the size of its medical manufacturing operation
Erie, Pennsylvania based, Plastikos Medical, announced plans to double the size of its medical manufacturing operation. The medical mold design and injection molding manufacturer says construction on the expansion will begin in March 2020 and is the second phase of their plant expansion. The first building was completed in 2019 and added 10 medical injection molding machines.
This new building will double the size of the medical injection molding ISO-7 clean room area to 24,000 square feet and is expected to house an additional 15 medical injection molding machines. The company will increase quality assurance and production through industry 4.0 principles and more automation. In addition, the parent company, Plastikos, Inc., is renovating space to create a stand-alone ISO-8 cleanroom to house an additional 8 injection molding machines.
You can read more about the new expansions here.
BHC has an injection molding team ready to assist with all your consulting needs.
This new building will double the size of the medical injection molding ISO-7 clean room area to 24,000 square feet and is expected to house an additional 15 medical injection molding machines. The company will increase quality assurance and production through industry 4.0 principles and more automation. In addition, the parent company, Plastikos, Inc., is renovating space to create a stand-alone ISO-8 cleanroom to house an additional 8 injection molding machines.
You can read more about the new expansions here.
BHC has an injection molding team ready to assist with all your consulting needs.
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