JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #46 - January/February 2009 - 14

COMPANIES COMPANIES AS Composite Inc.: an enterprise in the making AS Composite is a young company whose development is closely tied in with a major innovation enabling the production of thermoplastic composite panels by continuous processing, with many and varied potential applications. S Composite Inc. (“ASC”) is a Quebec-based company that specialises in the development and manufacture of products made of composite materials. The company has developed a sandwich panel – the ASC panel – that offers two major innovations: a skin made of a continuous fibre-reinforced thermo-plastic composite, and a continuous manufacturing process that allows longer panels to be produced cost-effectively and competitively. In November 2006, ASC won the 2006 prize for innovation from ADRIQ (Association de Recherche Industrielle du Québec – “Quebec Industrial Research Association”). This prize came on the back of the regional prize for Quebec Manufacturers and Exporters, under the category “New Technology”, awarded the previous month. A ASC research partners NRC/IMI (Industrial Materials Institute of the National Research Council in Canada): ASC’s research work has been carried out on the premises of the IMI/NRC under the supervision of their research team. NRC/IRAP (NRC Industrial Research Aid Program): In addition to the technical support of the IRAP consultants, ASC has obtained substantial financial aid from IRAP. University of Sherbrooke: At the request of the Quebec Ministry of Transport, interested in ASC's bridge decks and road safety barriers, the tests for these applications were carried out in close co-operation with the laboratories of the civil engineering faculty of Sherbrooke University. direct competition worldwide capable of producing panels with identical characteristics. What is more, the technology is internationally exportable. As such, ASC is world leader thanks to its thermoplastic matrix composites processing technology. Other innovative aspects are being added to the current manufacturing technology (profiling, forming, panel core in recycled materials, higher-productivity production machines, etc.). All this progress is sure to enable ASC to consolida-te its position as leader. such as polypropylene or aluminium honeycomb, wood or balsa, polyurethane or expanded polystyrene foams and other materials; - Various inserts used for panel reinforcement or attachment; - Various surface films for perfecting the aesthetic appearance, increasing fire resistance, better preventing environmental effects and other considerations associated with the application. A second patent is pending concerning the use and composition of panels employed in the construction of affordable housing or their components such as façades, partition walls, floors, roofs, etc. These panels can also be used for emergency housing, shelters and lodgings in areas where the construction of traditional houses is problematic. Houses built using these panels have superior mechanical and physical properties to those using traditional materials. Model homes have been assembled in a single day in the USA and Quebec. Besides their price benefits and the speed of their construction, these homes offer numerous advantages: - Resistance to various loads such as strong winds or earth tremors; Major innovations Over recent months, ASC has submitted three patent applications. The first concerns the entirely automated process that allows continuous manufactu-ring of composite sandwich panels while remaining fully compliant with the strictest of environmental standards. The first ASC machine, which is currently in service, allows solid or sandwich panels to be manufactured, consisting of the following elements: - External skins or sheets covering the panel core made of thermoplastic matrix composites reinforced with continuous glass, carbon or Kevlar fibres; - Core in various lightweight materials Prototype built on blocks in four days. A favourable environment The potential market is global and vast. Today, there is a genuine need for this type of panel, and the list of possible applications for the ASC panel and its variants is long indeed. The continuous manufacturing process is innovative, unique in the world, and has three patents pending (PCT). ASC has no 14 jec composites magazine / No46 January-February 2009

JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #46 - January/February 2009

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #46 - January/February 2009