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Gurit’s latest product and technology innovations include:
Ampreg 31FR – New Fire Retardant Epoxy Wet Laminating System
Ampreg 31FR has been specially formulated to meet BS476 Part 7 Class 1 FR rating, and does not require a secondary fire retardant coating. With an impressive six hour working time, Ampreg 31FR can be used on its own for laminating small to medium sized structures or in conjunction with Ampreg 21FR for larger structures. Ampreg 31FR has been designed to give excellent mechanical and thermal properties from both ambient temperature cures, and moderate temperature post-cures (50⁰C / 120⁰F). This wet laminating system is available with a standard and slow hardener speed. Ampreg 31FR’s main benefits include:
- Meets BS476 part 7 class 1
- Low initial mixed viscosity for fabric wet-out
- Low exotherm
- Up to 200 minutes working time at 25⁰C / 77⁰F
- Ideal for laminating small to medium composite structures using lightweight fabrics
- Can be used in conjunction with Ampreg 21FR to achieve longer working times
Long Shelf-Life Resin Technology which no longer requires chilled storage
The need to transport and store prepregs in cooling containers and chilled storage rooms has in some cases been a barrier to the adoption of prepreg technology, with cost a considerable factor. Gurit’s latest break-through in prepreg resin technology extends the shelf-life of unchilled prepregs to over two months at temperatures of up to 35⁰C / 95⁰F. Main benefits include:
- Over 2 months out-life at 35°C / 95⁰F
- Over 8 months out-life at 20°C / 68⁰F
- Ideal to reduce transportation, storage and ambient temperature control costs
- Now available with SE 84LV and Sparpreg™
ILATECH™ Tooling Coat
ILATECH™, a new surface coating for Gurit moulds, developed in conjunction with ILAG Industrielack AG, not only creates a perfectly smooth, strong and durable surface, but also enhances the life span of the mould, speeds up cycle times and reduces process costs for Gurit’s customers. The improved surface quality greatly reduces the required release force when the finished parts are de-moulded. Its superb chemical resistance makes it more durable. Easier, quicker de-moulding translates directly into a safer process: the risk of damaging the finished parts is greatly reduced thanks to the new coating. Benefits include:
- Protection coating with thickness of 20 to 40 microns
- High chemical resistance
- Much smaller peel force for de-moulding parts
- Retention of required surface roughness and gloss
Balsaflex® UVOTEC™ – Low resin uptake technology
Gurit has developed the next-generation of Balsa core materials for the manufacture of ever lighter and lower-cost sandwich panels. A unique chemistry modifies Gurit’s Balsaflex® surface topography in such a way that it significantly reduces the quantity of resin absorbed during the infusion process, without negatively compromising the skin adhesive properties. The lower resin uptake of UVOTEC™ allows users of Balsaflex® to reduce the net weight of infused structures without having to change the infusion processing methods they are familiar with. In addition, the lower resin uptake is also a considerable saving in terms of material cost for Gurit customers.
- Up to 1.3kg reduction in resin uptake / sqm
- Potential to engineer weight / cost reduction out of sandwich laminate
- Suitable for all balsa composite processes
CBS 200 Press Technology for finished carbon car body parts
As the result of extensive in-house research, Gurit has now developed a press process to reduce the labour and time needed to manufacture high-performance A-Class composite car body panels. With a curing time of under 10 minutes, the refined process allows for the manufacture up to 40,000 parts per year from a single tool set. “At this production volume a higher level of material performance is required to access new market niches, leading to the development of CBS 200 – a new product which is thermally stable to over 200⁰C / 390⁰F,” says Dr Damian Bannister, Gurit’s Chief Technology Officer. “The new product uses a similar laminate structure as the current CBS product to reduce the panel weight, but with higher temperature resistance enabling the panels to go down a high temperature paint-line at an OEM. The new composite parts are therefore fully compatible with existing mass production painting and assembly methods.” CBS 200 takes automotive parts production to the next level. Dr Dan Jones, Gurit’s Automotive Technical Development Manager will be presenting a paper on CBS 200 Press Technology, in the Automotive forum at JEC Europe 2013, on Wednesday 13th March, between 10am-1pm.
Further product and technology innovations highlighted at JEC
Gurit will also be showcasing its new fire retardant PET foam, G-PET™ FR, with superior Fire, Smoke, Toxicity (FST) performance as well as its new core technology for PET, G-PET™ LITE, which reduces resin uptake, whilst retaining peel strength and bulk core properties. In the prepreg product segment Gurit will be presenting Airstream™ coating technology, a specialised prepreg developed to enable the economic manufacture of very high quality unidirectional carbon spar caps without the requirement of a temperature controlled factory environment.
Members of the Engineered Structures team will be available at the show to discuss how Gurit’s expertise can be applied to solve engineering challenges in all markets. Engineered Structures rigorously addresses new market opportunities for composite applications, bringing together Gurit’s global capabilities in engineering, materials science, prototyping and manufacturing, and offering any combination of these skills to realise the most advanced composite structures.
Further product information is available at www.gurit.com.
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