JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #96 - April 2015 - 11

manufacturing capacities and capabilities are
available ahead of market requirements.
Sigmatex provides advice to its customers
about how to gain maximum benefit from
using carbon fibre. Its independence means
that it can advise on what is genuinely the
best solution for a customer's requirements,
offering a variety of technologies for composite products, sourcing different fibres if
required.
JCM: What are your impressions about the
start of 2015?

S.T. : 2015 is already extremely busy in

terms of demand and also very exciting
with a number of projects beginning to take
shape from investments in the UK plant
and the new facility in South Carolina,
which are both due to come on-stream in
the year, as well as a number of customercentric programmes that have already begun
for solutions for mainstream automotive
programmes, through to technical performance developments in the sporting goods
markets.
JCM: What motivates you to exhibit at JEC
Americas Houston?

S.T. : The Americas are a key region for our
growth strategy, supported by our decision
to invest in South Carolina, building our
second US facility, and what will be our
largest facility ultimately. We see the JEC
Houston show as being a key catalyst to
further develop and communicate the
innovation, development and progress that
is happening in this market.
JCM: What solutions will you highlight at the
trade show?

S.T. : We will showcase a wide range of
solutions, including:
- 3D fabrics: 3D weaving techniques can be
used to produce near-net-shape preforms.
These preforms can be processed using,
for example, resin transfer moulding, to
produce composite structures extremely
efficiently.
- Spread tow fabrics: The sigmaST range of
spread tow fabrics are very thin and ultralightweight, have near zero crimp and fewer
interlacing points.
- Innegra fabrics: Innegra is a high-modulus polypropylene fibre that can be used
independently or in conjunction with other
fibres to provide weight reduction, excellent

levels of impact resistance and damage
tolerance.
- Recycled fabrics: sigmaRF fabrics contain
reclaimed carbon fibre, resulting in products
that are sustainable and cost effective.
sigmaRF is suitable for many applications
which currently use virgin carbon fibrethermoplastic materials, and is especially
applicable to the automotive, sports and
leisure, medical and energy sectors.
- Unidirectional fabrics: These fabrics have
carbon fibres just in one direction. They are
produced in a wide range of weights with
or without fill fibres that stabilise the fabric
during production.
- Multiaxial fabrics: Very flat, non-crimp
fabrics from 100gsm to 1600gsm, from
two up to nine layers, can be produced, in
widths up to 2540mm. Biaxial, triaxial and
quadraxial fabrics can be tailored to suit
customer requirements.
- 2D woven fabrics: Sigmatex offers these
fabrics in traditional fabric constructions
such as plain weave, twill and satin patterns,
and also more complex designs for aesthetic
and performance applications. n
More information:
www.sigmatex.com

The reinforcement of choice

interview
Andrew Head
CEO
A&P Technology

JEC Composites Magazine: Can
you summarise your expertise in the field of
composites?

Andrew Head : Over the past two

decades, A&P Technology has supplied
braided reinforcements, creating new technologies that increase performance while
reducing the cost of applications in the fields
of aerospace, infrastructure and transportation. By working closely with its customers
to identify problems and limitations with
the industry, A&P has created a leading-edge
approach to material innovation.

JCM: What are your impressions about the
start of 2015?

A.H. : Based on our customer forecasts, the
composite industry seems to be growing
exponentially in all markets including industrial, automotive, recreation, and aerospace.
JCM: How can JEC help with your business?

A.H. : JEC can assist A&P by continuing
to build upon their presence within the
composite industry. The more attention
brought to composites through trade shows,
publications and social media will encourage even more awareness of the benefits
of composites by designers, engineers, and
end-users.

QISO™ quasi-isotropic fabric has the same
amount of material in every direction,
simplifying laminate design and allowing
for a faster, simpler build. It has been chosen
for a wide array of applications including
hockey sticks, radio dishes, primary aircraft
structures, rotorcraft gears, and automotive
parts. n
More information:
www.braider.com

JCM: What solution will you highlight at the
trade show?

A.H. : A&P Technology will be highli-

ghting its QISO™ quasi-isotropic 0, +/-60°
fabric, which is balanced in a single layer.

Radio dishe, made with QISOTM

No96 April 2015 /

jec composites magazine 11
http://www.sigmatex.com http://www.braider.com
JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #96 - April 2015

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of JEC COMPOSITES MAGAZINE - Issue #96 - April 2015
