JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #33 - June 2007 - 20

INNOVATIONS cutting system. The piloting software also offers performance and activity reports that make the cutting system’s integration within the production site more efficient and reliable. The system’s intelligence provides a revolutionary response to manufacturers’ demand for secure processes and maximum uptime. Non-combustible polymer concrete High-performance 2D/3D design software Lectra also presented DesignConcept TechTex, its 2D/3D design and industrialisation solution entirely dedicated to industrial fabrics. This application provides powerful tools to facilitate the analysis of product feasibility, finished product quality, and cost, thus enabling companies to make key decisions in the product development phase and thereby minimise costs. By associating DesignConcept TechTex with pattern design, marker making and specification software, Lectra ensures global management of product development through a complete software suite backed by a value-added service offering to optimise processes and guarantee quality. making application offers state-of-the-art fabric optimisation technology and functions. It embeds 1) easy, fast and effective interactive marker making for prototyping, 2) costing and production, and 3) fully automatic marker making based on the market’s latest technologies and the most powerful algorithms. Multi-axis production winding New booster on board www.lectra.fr DiaminoTechTex ensures optimised markers for guaranteed material savings and high productivity. This interactive, automated marker- Due to its innovation and research policy, the Mäder Group has revolutionised the world of polymer concrete. Composed of a mix of mineral granulate bound with polymers, polymer concrete is more lightweight, resistant and attractive. It used to have one major disadvantage, however, and that was smoke emission in the event of a fire. The Mäder Group’s research laboratory has developed an M0 Class polymer concrete that does not burn and, therefore, does not give off smoke. Called Giralithe PETRA GL 0006, this concrete has already been chosen to produce the split gutters that equip the tunnels of the A8 motorway above Nice. It took the Mäder Group 3 years of research and development to develop the first noncombustible polymer concrete application, in collaboration with Polycomposites, a company located in Cernay, near Mulhouse. Giralithe PETRA GL 0006 is a polymer concrete in which the mineral-filler and granulate surface becomes organic, making it compatible with polyester resin. As a result, the viscosity is lower and it becomes possible to put in much less organic binding. Future applications for this non-combustible polymer concrete will be found in interior equipment for road and railway tunnels, drainage equipment, façade panels or even city furniture and equipment. www.mader-group.com JEC Composites Magazine / No33 June 2007 McClean Anderson exhibited the Cyclone Winder, a “workhorse” for multi-axis production winding that can be configured with 3 to 4 axes of computer-controlled motion and which employs all-digital AC servo technology. The Cyclone Winder is driven by powerful Windows®-based Flexwind and Composite Designer pattern development software and is well optioned to meet specific winding requirements. It offers 3 to 4 axes of computer-controlled motion, can be configured with 1, 2 or 3 spindles, has a modular horizontal carriage bed (3m increments) and can accommodate various part geometries. www.mccleananderson.com Pumping system www.mt-aerospace.com INNOVATIONS success of this launch. For the first time, the newly developed booster (welded, and therefore lighter) was used for a commercial launch. As well as being cheaper to produce, this booster is considerably lower in weight, so the Ariane 5 can carry approximately 200 kg more in payload. With this advanced development, MT Aerospace not only proves its technological expertise, but also helps considerably to increase the profitability of the European Ariane 5 launcher. As the producer of 10% of the hardware, MT Aerospace is the largest Ariane supplier outside France. It also manufactures essential structures as well as tanks, tank bulkheads and thermal protection components. The Ariane 5 launcher made an exemplary start on the evening of 8 December 2006, when it took off from the spaceport in Kourou/French Guiana with the AMC-18 and WildeBlue-1 communication satellites on board. MT Aerospace AG, Augsburg played a decisive role in the Patriot™ is a versatile pumping system that addresses many of the problems currently experienced in production control. During testing, Patriot™ turned in an amazing catalyst to resin variance of less than 1%. With precision like that, many of the quality issues that currently face composites manufacturers can be dramatically reduced. Those issues include porosity, prerelease, post-curing, gelcoat cracking, alligatoring, inconsistent thickness, and more. While there are other factors that can contribute to these quality issues, an improved performance in the meter/mix system can result in a significant reduction of these problems. www.mvpind.com

http://www.lectra.fr http://www.mt-aerospace.com http://www.mccleananderson.com http://www.mader-group.com http://www.mvpind.com

JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #33 - June 2007

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #33 - June 2007