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2006-10-24 News Release

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Azdel, GE Plastics, and RocTool molding reduce cycle times

Azdel further hones its competitive edge with exclusive RocTool license for high speed thermoforming and thermo compression plastics molding of exterior transportation panels.

Azdel, Inc. has acquired an exclusive license from RocTool to use the latter’s high-tech Cage System* to produce exterior body panels for planes, trains, RVs, and other transportation vehicles with a Class A surface using AZDEL** thermoplastic composites. The announcement comes as the result of a two-year effort by Azdel, Inc., GE Plastics, and RocTool to reduce cycle times by a factor of 30 (under three minutes for a hood). The three companies’ ultimate goal is to enable customers to capitalize on the estimated 50-percent weight savings using Azdel’s material solutions while minimizing financial impact.

Find Information and Suppliers of flexible packaging.

The Cage System was chosen by Azdel, Inc. as the best technology to process AZDEL thermoplastic composites for high-volume production of Class A exterior body panels that are ready to be painted straight from the mold. Thermo-compression and thermoforming are the processes used.

RocTool’s High Tech Cage System. Click Go for High resolution image. photo: GE Plastics/RocTool

The Cage System from RocTool is a patented molding technology which heats the tool surface by induction. The mold is then cooled down rapidly with water cooling lines which are placed closed to the tool surface. This unique process achieves a very fast cycle time thanks to the induction, which heats only the tool surface. This technology is dedicated to high volume production and is a good solution for thermoplastic and thermoset materials. (shown at right) -> ->

During the initial development period, the three companies designed and commissioned three exterior body panel tools ranging from a 1/16-scale automotive hood tool to a 1/1-scale hood tool, showing that the technology is scalable to real-size parts. Further development is underway to reach targeted cycle times and a Class A surface.

Here are a few of the technologies RocTool is currently developing:

. New induction molding technologies
. Cage System improvements
. Fast material preheating technology
. Composite tube / pipe molding technology
. High temperature molding technology

The Cage System, an innovative, high-speed composite molding technology developed by the RocTool Company of France, allows instantaneous heating of the mold surface only, leaving the rest of the mold cold. This technology involves passing an electrical current over the surface of the mold by means of inductors that are placed around it to form a cage.

Azdel Inc. is a 50/50 joint venture of General Electric Company and PPG Industries, based in Lynchburg, Va. It produces AZDEL composite sheet materials for a wide range of industries.

* Cage System is a registered trademark of RocTool Company.
** AZDEL is a trademark of Azdel, Inc., a 50/50 joint venture of General Electric Company and PPG
Industries.

Find more information about GE Plastics.

Read a recent press release about - Working closely with GE Plastics, OPEL created the Feel Good interior and panorama sunroof using GE resins with versatile molded in color for the 2007 Corsa.

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