Plastics & Rubber World - July/August 2019 - 23

plastics ireland

Irish division, here in Athlone, came to
us with some concepts they wanted to
mould. Their colleagues in the US had expressed concerns about part complexity
and efficient production, but what it really
came down to was time limitations on inhouse R&D."
The company asked APT to carry out a
'design for manufacture' investigation for
the part, which included development of
a prototype tool. Using a micro-moulding
machine the lab produced 200 examples
and, in addition, APT suggested some
marginally different polymers which could
deliver improved results.
In all, three batches were tested in the
US and those parts are advancing towards
a market launch. That success has set up
APT as the defacto R&D site for injection
moulding testing at Teleflex.
"The value we gave to them was working directly with the team of designers
and the confidence that we could create
prototype products with very short lead
times," says Hopkins.
"We see that a lot," adds Gately. "Companies might have all the designers and
mechanical engineers, but they don't have
the specific polymer material knowledge.
We can bring that to the table and help
them to innovate."

History and funding

The Athlone Institute of Technology was
set up as a regional technical college in
the 1970s. Soon after, a polymer undergraduate course was added to the curriculum. This proved highly successful
until the Irish boom in the early 2000s
drew potential applicants into other industries.
"Research has been done here since
the '80s. That served as the basis for the
Materials Research Institute," says Noel
Gately. "Through the 2000s, we started to
determine how best to work with industry,
address their needs. In 2013 this resulted
in the Technology Gateway receiving funding from Enterprise Ireland."
While the facility has about 40
post-graduate students currently enrolled, the majority of staff carrying out
the research are Level 10 course graduates (master's degree or PhD).
The APT Technology Gateway has three
primary areas of investigation: process capability (moulding, extrusion, etc.), design
services (prototyping, manufacturability),
and contract analytical services (material
studies).
The facility features a series of machine
brands, but the majority are from Arburg
UK. "We've worked closely with Arburg, we
recently purchased two 60-tonne electric
injection moulders," says Gately. "I think
it's important for machine suppliers to
be represented here. As graduates move
into the industry, perhaps they will look to
buy the same machines they used to do
course work."
There are other ways having a machine
brand at APT can help. "We are a centre

of excellence for the polymer industry, we
run tests on the machines which validates
them beyond most standard applications.
That data can help to increase industry
confidence in the technology and promote them in a competitive market."

Building for tHe future

Dr. Gately says that APT is currently looking at setting up a centre of excellence for
a moulded packaging. Like the moulding
machines, this would validate process execution of the related equipment, including automation.
"We've got a number of companies
which want to house their equipment
here, create a display area. That machinery gains exposure, from other companies visiting the centre, while graduates
can train customers about best practise.
In turn, the centre benefits from having
state-of-the-art equipment to use on industry projects," he says.
While cycle times and overall process
speed are of concern, Hopkins says reduced energy consumption is another
critical goal. Looking at from another angle, the company would use the installation to promote their machine's energy
efficiency to potential customers.
"There are so many machines competing
in the same category. With this type of installation, the company can bring their customers here and demonstrate exactly why
they should invest
in their machines
over a competitor,"
says Gately.
To
enhance
such arrangements,
Gately says that APT
is looking to develop plans for a new
building. "It's a longterm plan," he explains. "This building
is a stop-gap. We
set up [ATP] in 2013
in just one room
and it's expanded
exponentially over
the past four or
five years, we can't
expand any further
without
investment."
Walking outside
at the end of the
meeting, Michael
Hopkins
looks
back at the building. "We're funded
in part by the Irish
government and I
understand there
are a lot of financial demands. But
I don't think the
buildings
reflect
the
impressive
work that's done
here."

laboratory and classroom buildings
at ait

aPt features a series of injection
moulders supplied by arburg uK

july/august 2019 | WWW.PRW.COM

http://www.hte.ie http://WWW.PRW.COM

Plastics & Rubber World - July/August 2019

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Plastics & Rubber World - July/August 2019