JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #72 - April/May 2012 - 8

point of view: expansion

in the United States, Toray’s fibre manufacturing unit Carbon Fibers America has now incorporated PAN production. (Editor’s note: Toray Composites America is a supplier for Boeing, in particular prepregs for the 787 Dreamliner.) It was logical for the Toray Group to consider that the time was ripe, given the circumstances. Toray is investing in Europe to keep up with the European aerospace market, and has started to set up a complete supply chain for Airbus.
JCM: When should the PaN production begin?

B.M. : The project has just

JCM: You mentioned the first stage in PaN manufacturing. What is the second one? Prepreg production?

B.M. : You know that Toray

Composites America, which is established near Seattle, has been manufacturing prepregs for Boeing for a number of years. We have expertise in the

chain for Torayca® carbon fibre and to expand the business by installing new raw material (precursor) and prepreg production lines for future aircraft applications, and also to allow CFE to expand its carbonization capacity. CFE will purchase around 160,000 m² of land at Lacq from Total S.A., the world’s 5th leading petrochemical

8 jec composites magazine / No72 April - May 2012

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started in a practical way. The monomer for PAN, acrylonitrile, will be supplied and production should start by May 2014, with the first kilograms of PAN produced around mid-2014, followed by a ramp-up of the unit. We will be the first ones in Europe to produce small-tow PAN. I think that it is important to stress that. Toray is a leader and wants to stay one, so it is making the necessary decisions, including for PAN production.

technology. We are already in the certification process for products made in Japan for Airbus. Toray was approached at first concerning the A350 programme for the initial versions, and then they asked us to make changes to our product (which already matched the specifications) to add conductivity properties in the Z direction. Which we did – and things are moving along in the right direction, the products appear to be highly appreciated. Obviously, the goal is to produce the prepregs in France, not import them from Japan. For that, we would have to be certain that our products do meet the Airbus technical specifications, and that we have a contractual guarantee, to allow preparations for building a prepreg line. The certification process is not quite finished, but I think that some time in 2012, we will have results that will let us make a decision on that project, too. To get back to our strategy, first of all, it involves keeping up with market demand in our traditional carbon fibre manufacturing business. That means that in future, we will continue to increase our carbon fibre production capacity at the Abidos site. We are determined to increase our capacity in our current European business (carbon fibre manufacturing) and integrate the upstream production of PAN, to develop, to become a downstream prepreg supplier, and also to greatly expand – and this has already

started – our composite business in Europe.
JCM: Do you have other targets besides aerospace for prepregs, and for carbon in general?

B.M. : A project like our

carbon fibre winding at the end of the manufacturing process

all these investments are going to generate needs in terms of jobs

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prepreg one definitely focuses on aerospace and on Airbus. That is our way in, which will enable us to set up our prepreg unit. The day we are capable of delivering prepregs to Airbus, and as a function of our capacity and of Airbus’s needs, we will probably approach other aerospace customers in Europe. The Airbus certification will no doubt be an advantage for us. But our goal is to become a prepreg supplier for other markets than just aerospace, even if that is our core target. We will definitely have to review the opportunities in more detail, in the sense that we have to target markets and applications that match up with the products that we are – or will be – capable of producing. One given is that for the moment, the large markets like wind energy require low-cost products. Toray’s product range is currently in the upper price range. The products closest to these large industrial markets do not really meet the requirements. In Japan, we are also in the development stage for products targeted at these markets. As a global leader, we are interested in all markets, though of course we have priorities. The day we really have a suitable product, a fibre, to

company, to build a precursor production facility. This will be the Group’s third facility in the world, in addition to the plants in Japan and the U.S. CFE is currently importing precursor from Japan but will switch to its own precursor once the facility becomes operational. It also plans to supply fibre to Toray Advanced Materials Korea Inc. (TAK).

JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #72 - April/May 2012

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #72 - April/May 2012