A weekly look at new products, innovations

Editor's Note: Each week, Rubber & Plastics News will take a look at some of the rubber industry's new products and innovations on www.rubbernews.com. Does your company have a new product or new innovation? To be considered for inclusion in this recurring feature, email [email protected].

Orion Engineered Carbons S.A. has unveiled rubber carbon black products that the firm said creates more fuel efficient tires in response to consumer demand and federal standards for vehicle fuel economy.

The grades offer reduction in rolling resistance via narrow particle size distributions and lower sidewall hysteresis and lower air permeation through the inner liner for better tire inflation consistency, according to Orion.

Jose Briones, Orion Engineered Carbons marketing manager, said treadwear improves by up to 13 percent as compared current carbon black compounds.

Blending Orion's Ecorax S 204, for sidewall applications, with N300 series grades can reduce sidewall hysteresis significantly, the company said, lowering rolling resistance and improving fuel efficiency while maintaining other key tire properties. Each compound can be optimized for the best compromise, the company said.

According to Briones, Orion's Ecorax S 206 reduces air permeation through the inner liner by up to 25 percent while maintaining air pressure, critical to tire life, in addition to fuel efficiency.

For more information, contact Briones at [email protected]; Lin Bradley, technical market manager, rubber, at [email protected]; or visit www.orioncarbons.com.

APS Elastomers is touting is Zythane 4045D and 4060D lines as a cost-effective thermoplastic polyurethane material for injection molded dunnage required for the shipment and handling of automotive parts.

Shipping finished products requires dunnage that has superior flexibility and elastic memory to insure parts arrive secure and intact, the company said, and this product offers good tear, cut and abrasion resistance, excellent hydrolytic stability and superb elastic memory.

Automotive dunnage products include trays, totes, containers, racks, separator bars, flippers, conveyor hooks, support brackets and cushion bumpers.

Zythane 4045D and 4060D are polyester-based TPUs available in natural or colored pellets, with a shore hardness ranging from 95A-62D, the company said. Due to its formulation, Zythane TPU allows for faster processing and lower power requirements because of easier flowing characteristic, APS said.

In addition to dunnage, other applications include shoe soles, ski and skate boot shells, caster wheels, animal tags, couplings, gaskets and seals, tool handles, industrial parts, mobile phone cases, armrests, golf disks and mining screens.

For more information on Zythane for dunnage or other applications, call 734-710-6700; email [email protected]; or go to www.apstpe.com.

Comau, a manufacturer of flexible, automatic systems and integrating products, processes and services, has released SmartDriveComau 800L, a machining center the company said is designed to answer the needs of the automotive sector and its demands for fast, precise and flexible mechanical processes.

SmartDriveComau 800L is a horizontal machining center that covers primary manufacturing needs, both as a single machining center or integrated within a highly flexible production line, Comau said. This machine, the latest from Comau Powertrain Machining & Assembly, is a new generation of a model already largely used in the market.

SmartDriveComau 800L is equipped with linear motors, which the firm said guarantees more competitive cycle times, thanks to its high processing speed. This method decreases the number of machining centers required, Comau claimed, resulting in a reduced cost per piece. It also reduces the space occupied by the machines, thereby optimizing the plant layout, the company said.

The new center can perform processes with flexibility, thanks to its circular interpolation, Comau said, allowing the machining of bores with a standard high-speed cutter. It uses the same tool for manufacturing bores of different dimensions, which Comau said saves time and costs. Its renovated ergonomic design, compared to previous models, ensures easier and faster management and maintenance, according to the firm.

The operator can interact with the machine more easily because of the Get Help icon, Comau said, resulting in reduced time required for diagnostics and, consequently, optimizing production.

The SmartDriveComau 800L is available in a minimum quantity lubrication version that helps meet market needs of processes with low environmental impact, and to operate in compliance with the machining modalities of lean manufacturing, the company said, in which through-tool oil mist replaces the coolant traditionally required by the cutting process..

The new design of the working chamber allows a more efficient disposal of shavings, Comau claimed, while the vacuum and air filtration system guarantees more internal cleanness. The MQL version includes an integrated system to monitor the temperature of the pieces and the machine, which guarantees greater process quality and the complete conformity of the pieces, Comau said. The design saves 15 percent more energy than previous versions, the company said.

For more information, go to www.comau.com