Plastics News Europe - June 2019 - 29

elastomers

the market, she noted. On the one
hand, there are several mature applications for TPE; examples include
some sports and household applications, glazing and certain footwear
technologies, where Hexpol can leverage its global footprint, supply
management and local technical support to offer the best cost/performance solution. The ability for quick
adjustments and the design of smart
properties by using the latest polymers and raw-materials is also a key
driver.
On the other hand, customers today are looking for suppliers with
high levels of expertise in specific application areas. Here regulatory requirements and standards influence
product development more than ever
and there is increasing importance on
product safety and application specific knowledge. "The medical industry
is a prime example where we have a
dedicated team - with specialist
knowledge of medical device regulations and requirements, such as
traceability, reproducibility and formulation stability," said Bradford.
And, despite the current slowdown in the automotive industry, the
company's operations in Europe, China and the USA are all growing sales
to the automotive industry. "As with
all polymers, any slow-down in the
automotive industry can bring its
challenges. However, because of the
diversity of TPEs they are finding new
applications. The huge changes we're
seeing; with the move to EVs, connected and autonomous vehicles, a

drive for sustainability and tightening
legislator and consumer demands are
also bringing opportunities for TPEs,"
she pointed out.

Preparing for the future
Consumers are becoming more aware
of the origins and sustainability of
products, as well as their chemical
composition and any potential toxicity.
One way in which this is influencing
the automotive market is through
stricter requirements regarding air
quality in the vehicle interior. In a move
to improve passenger comfort, legislation regarding odour, fogging and
VOC/FOG emissions has increased in
recent years, OEMs such as Daimler
and VW have also tightened limits.
Hexpol TPE has addressed this with the
development of a series of TPEs optimised for low emissions, which offer
on average a 75% emission reduction
compared to other TPEs for interior applications on the market. "Plus, they
allow customers to surpass standards
set by OEMs and legislation and prepare for even stricter limits in the future," said Jill Bradford.
And what about developments
outside the industry, such as Brexit -
what effect is that likely to have on
the company?
"Brexit hasn't impacted our strategy. We're continuing to monitor developments closely and are implementing
plans for a range of potential outcomes. Our focus is the continuity of
production at our UK manufacturing
plant and mitigating any risks of delay
in the supply chain," said Bradford.

Hexpol has developed a series of TPEs specifically
for application in the car interior

"We've contracted with key raw material suppliers to hold contingency
stocks in the UK. Our hauliers are
pre-contracted for volume deliveries
into Europe and we have increased the
number of approved haulage contractors for contingency purposes. Besides
the planning in the UK, as we have
other production sites in Europe, we
see ourselves in a good position to
support our customers, whatever happens concerning Brexit."
She concluded: "Soft, safe and
sustainable are three words that succinctly describe what we do. We'll
continue to put our 50+ years' experience into developing new polymer
combinations which meet the demands of today and tomorrow.

Passionate about sustainability

H

expol is increasingly establishing itself as an expert in the field of sustainable materials, including biobased 'soft plastics from plants' and
compounds with recycled content. "This is
a real area of expertise for Hexpol TPE and
one we're passionate about," said Bradford. Sustainability, she added, is at the
'heart of our strategy'. "Both through the
products we develop and how we operate." She had no shortage of examples:
"We launched the Dryflex Green range
of biobased TPEs in 2015, and it's a growing
(no pun intended!) part of our business.
These materials are being adopted for several applications previously using conventional TPEs, both as a drop-in substitution,
without the need for mould or tool modification, and also for new developments. Applications include outdoor equipment, consumer goods, toys, baby products,
automotive interiors and sports equipment.
Since most biobased raw materials in the
market are quite hard on their own, a major
challenge has been to develop compounds

june 2019

with high renewable content at low hardnesses, while at the same time maintaining
mechanical properties at acceptable levels.
With grades from 15 Shore A, Dryflex Green
TPEs divert from other soft thermoplastic
materials on the market, by also including
soft materials with high levels of renewable
content. Depending on the hardness, compounds with a renewable share of over 90 %
(ASTM D 6866) are possible. Dryflex Green
TPEs are fully recyclable."
She added that for applications wanting
a natural look, Hexpol TPE have developed
biocomposite materials using organic fillers
and natural fibres from plants, crops or
trees. These give an organic appearance
and haptics. Products include the Lifocork
compounds, which combine natural cork
with thermoplastic raw materials.
Cork is a natural product which comes
from the bark of the cork oak tree. The removal of the bark does not harm the trees
and the bark is only harvested after the first
20 years of growth. The removal stimulates
a steady regeneration of the bark.

29

And the company introduced the first
compounds based on recycled content in
2005, she continued. These were originally
developed to address demands in the automotive industry, which was obliged to use
increasing quantities of recyclate and operate under the EU ELV Directive to ensure
recyclability at the end of each vehicle's life.
Bradford: "The plastics and recycling industries have changed greatly during this
time, so we've now created our Dryflex Circular TPE portfolio to include grades based
on different sources including PCR
(post-consumer) and PIR (post-industrial).
Grades are available in a range of hardnesses with recycled content up to around 80%
by weight. We can also now offer grades in
clean, natural colours - giving further opportunities for colourability and expanding
use to consumer, sports and household applications.
We have also started several co-lab projects, working with customers to utilise
their 'waste' streams, turning their waste
into new life compounds.



Plastics News Europe - June 2019

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