Archive for the 'K Show 2010' Category

Ceramicx Infrared Heaters enjoys its best ever K exhibition

November 15, 2010 by Frank Wilson
The Ceramicx team (right) and Freek team (left) on their joint stand together at the K 2010 plastics exhibition in Dusseldorf this Autumn

The Ceramicx team (right) and Freek team (left) on their joint stand together at the K 2010 plastics exhibition in Dusseldorf this Autumn

Leading international heating systems specialist and manufacturer Ceramicx enjoyed its best ever K plastics exhibition in Dusseldorf earlier this month.

Over three hundred enquiries were received from all corners of the global plastics market; the company’s new magazine Heat Works sold out from the stand before the end of the show and the Ceramicx infrared heat testing rig for plastics saw plenty of action throughout the eight days of the triennial show.

The bulk of enquiries for Ceramicx products and services were related to the company’s infrared heating technology for the thermoforming of plastics. Ceramicx founder and director Frank Wilson says that ‘it’s still early days, but the international plastics thermoforming community appears to be waking up to the news that energy-per-part produced will be a defining benchmark for manufacturing and consumers from now on. Tomorrow’s heating systems will need to become measurably more efficient and deliver on that score. We at Ceramicx are doing our part by producing the most efficient infrared heating elements and systems available.’

The K plastics show attracted 220,000 visitors – a figure that was 10% up on the numbers expected by the Dusseldorf show organisers. The Ceramicx exhibition experience reflected general global trends in the industry: ‘The internationalisation of plastics manufacturing continues to grow,’ says Wilson. ‘We received increased interest from Far Eastern manufacturing – China and Korea in particular and India currently is clearly a growing force in global manufacturing. The German economy also continues to recover strongly from the credit crunch.’

Ceramicx also received a good spread of applications engineering enquiries for infrared know-how; products and expertise. ‘The manufacturing world still has far to go in its understanding and application of infrared heating,’ says Wilson, ‘but we were very pleasantly surprised at the numbers of innovators – high-end research and development and mass production – that had discussion time with us at the K show. We hope to share news of plenty of new infrared projects in the course of the coming months.’

Machinecraft a good quality family owned Indian Thermoforming Machine producer has been a valued customer of Ceramicx for over twenty years. At K 2010 Machinecraft was very interested to hear about the Ceramicx energy-content-per-part ideas. Machinecraft will now begin to examine the possibility of taking up this energy monitoring approach in the manufacture of their own equipment.

Ureatac Co Ltd a leading thermoforming machinery producer from South Korea was located in a stand close by to Ceramicx and partner Freek. Uretac has been a prime customer of Ceramicx in recent years. Uretac focus mainly on the production of a quartz-based thermoforming machine and again were very receptive to the idea of energy-content-per-part being measured on their machines.

Ceramicx received many good applications engineering enquiries at the K exhibition from companies around the world with significant interest received from India and Germany. Project ideas ranged from industries as diverse as energy conservation, energy production, plastics, food, steel, textiles and many other sectors.

The K exhibition confirmed and supported the Ceramicx ideas and plans for energy-content-per-part being measured on thermoforming machines. Ceramicx’s Frank Wilson believes that this energy monitoring benchmark is shortly set to separate the quality machine producer from the poor-quality producer – ‘and also the quality infrared heater manufacturer from the poor quality infrared heater manufacturer. In our view that day can’t come soon enough.

All further details from Frank Wilson, Ceramicx Managing Director.
www.ceramicx.com Tel. +353 2837510 Fax + 353 2837509    frank@ceramicx.com

Posted in Infrared Quality Assurance, Infrared Testing, k 2010, K Show 2010, K Show 2010 Dusseldorf, Plastics Thermoforming | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Infrared heat for thermoforming demonstrated by Ceramicx at K show

November 3, 2010 by Granite Consulting

 

Infrared heat at K-Show 2010

Infrared heat at K-Show 2010

Tadhg Whooley (red shirt) left explains some of the finer points of infrared heating of plastics to visiting delegation to the Ceramicx stand at the K show. The testing rig has been a central talking point this week – able to prove directly to customers which kinds of infrared heating are most suitable for the thermoforming of their plastics.

Posted in Infrared Heating, k 2010, K Show 2010, Thermoforming | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Ceramicx infrared heaters lead the pack for quality assurance and back up

October 20, 2010 by Frank Wilson

Leading international infrared heating systems specialist and manufacturer Ceramicx has signed off its new product quality control and assurance project, conducted in partnership this year with specialist engineers from the University of Limerick.

Founder and director Frank Wilson believes that his company’s ceramic elements now lead the world – ‘for quality, for product traceability and value for money. Anyone who purchases an element from us is secure in the knowledge that they have also purchased the heat performance metrics for that exact product – and that those product performance metrics are open and available to the customer – online and at any time.’ Ceramicx will be showing the workings of this new QA facility in full on its stand at the K 2010 international plastics exhibition in Dusselfdorf next week. (Hall 11 Stand A01).

And the Ceramicx elements thus produced are currently being reviewed this week as a part of a peer group review of infrared heating elements. The study is being conducted by University of Duisburg Essen in Germany.

‘We are extremely optimistic as to the outcome of this latest Duisburg review – so much so that we are hoping to make the review results part of our sales and marketing strategy at the K 2010 show next week,’ says Wilson. ‘These factors of product reliability and quality are essentials in the infrared heating world,’ adds Wilson. ‘We at Ceramicx intend to consolidate our position of leadership and dependability throughout our world markets.’

The core of the new quality assurance (QA) work centres on developing systems of more closely specified nominal wattage tolerances for the ceramic and quartz electrical elements through the range of Ceramicx products.
The semi automated validation system with closed-loop process-control is now both guaranteeing the product quality – and assigning and recording performance characteristics for each part as it is produced.

Four key validation stages are now part of the new Ceramicx QA system:

The Flash test: This QA test allows the electrical integrity of the insulating materials to be verified and is designed to catch manufacturing defects that could otherwise lead to exposed electrical heating elements and wires.

Nominal tolerance: This QA test will establish the degree to which the actual wattage of a given product deviates from its rated wattage and can assist in reducing large variations.

Load test: For this test, the product is energised with high-voltage electrical power to rapidly elevate its temperature. The measured temperature reached within a given timeframe then allows the functionality of the product to be assessed.

Thermal analysis: After reaching the target temperature, IR images of the product are then recorded in order to provide for a visual inspection of the heating element within. These images are unique for each product tested – are matched to that product’s serial number – and are traceable. These images will also be statistically analysed by the test software to determine the heat distribution across the product – and identify hot or cold spots. And for models with built-in thermocouples, the integrity, operation and placement of these thermocouples will also be validated.

‘We have succeeded in creating a transparent quality and product traceability process here,’ says Wilson, ‘and we are now already setting our sights on other kinds of manufacturing targets and future technical developments.’

Ceramicx and the University of Limerick have been aided by Enterprise Ireland as part of the Innovation partnership program. The work has provided ‘win-win’ outcomes for both organisations. The University has been enabled to take its research and project expertise into the manufacturing and commercial marketplace. Ceramicx has been able to leverage the University’s in-house competencies to research, identify and measure current process variations.

All further details from Frank Wilson, Ceramicx Managing Director.
www.ceramicx.com | Tel. +353 2837510 | Fax + 353 2837509  |  frank@ceramicx.com

Posted in Infrared Quality Assurance, Infrared Testing, k 2010, K Show 2010, K Show 2010 Dusseldorf | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Ceramicx Infrared Heaters to provide free infrared heat testing at K 2010 show

October 13, 2010 by Frank Wilson
Ceramicx Infrared Testing Rig

Ceramicx Infrared Testing Rig

Leading international heating systems specialist and manufacturer Ceramicx has this week completed an infrared heating test rig that will be able to immediately characterise the process heat performance for plastic sheet and film materials. The infrared heat testing service will be available free of charge at the Ceramicx stand for the K 2010 exhibition.

Ceramicx Founder and Managing Director Frank Wilson says that ‘the time is right for many energy and cost conscious plastics processors to make the change to infrared heating of plastics. Many processors will be scouring K 2010 exhibition for heating solutions – and here therefore is a way for them to bring their own sheet and film into us for a free test trial.’ The Infrared heat testing will tell the visiting client what the material is capable of -  in terms of its heat absorption, reflection and transmission.

The K 2010 infrared heating test rig comprises of three sections in order to get the most out of the visitor plastics across three infrared heat sources; ceramic-based; quartz-based and halogen tungsten based. These offer long-wave, medium-wave and short-wave radiation wave lengths respectively – and the effects on the visitors plastic can be witnessed within 90 seconds or so of testing.

All three heat sources will be applied in parallel to three separated plastics test pieces. The Ceramicx K infrared heating test rig is particularly suitable for processors who are changing to an infrared heating source. The most interested parties are likely to be thermoformers needing more performance from their machines – and also needing to reduce energy cost and utility bills. Various factors such as pre-heating; test time and operating temperatures will be able to be set and defined by the visiting user to the Ceramicx K 2010 stand.

Ceramicx is also keen to encourage producers and processors of newer bio-materials and plastics recyclate to approach the free test service with their new materials. Frank Wilson says that ‘we know that K 2010 will be launching some significant new ‘natural’ polymers from the biggest materials players in the industry – and we fully intend to offer our infrared heat testing services to those new biopolymers. In addition, we are here to help those who are make 2nd life polymers from whatever source – helping them to further define what king of effective heat processing polymer recyclate needs in order to enjoy a useful 2nd life as product. In plastics processing, the more process information one has – the better.’

Client samples should ideally be supplied to the Ceramicx stand in a sheet or film thickness range of up to 4mm thick; and 85mm wide and 250mm long.  Plastic cutting and shaping facilities will be available on the stand.

Ceramicx believes that K 2010 is going  to be remembered for its focus on energy efficiency and for other ecological  processing solutions. Many future developments at the company are being prepared with this in mind. Frank Wilson of Ceramicx says that ‘a low carbon future is simply an inevitable direction in manufacturing worldwide. Many of the companies that Ceramicx  wants to meet at K 2010 are those that see energy-useage and monitoring as a major factor.’

Ceramicx routinely promotes  the measurement of  energy content in its own work and also through the encouragement of energy  monitoring ideas throughout plastics thermoforming – including measuring part-energy content.

For further information on Ceramicx and Freek at the K Show  please see www.kshow2010.com

All  further details from Ceramicx, Frank Wilson, Managing Director.  www.ceramicx.com , Tel.  +353 28 37510, Fax + 353 28 37509, frank@ceramicx.com

The 18th K international plastics exhibition takes place in Dusseldorf, Germany from October 27 to November 3, daily from 10.00am to 6.30pm. Ceramicx and Freek will be jointly exhibiting in Hall 11 – Stand A-01.

Posted in infrared heaters, Infrared Heating, Infrared Testing, k 2010, K Show 2010, K Show 2010 Dusseldorf | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Give plastics a break

October 4, 2010 by Frank Wilson

We hear a lot these days about waste and about litter – about over-packaging and about the plastic materials that are supposed to be destroying our environment.

As with most things, you just have to scratch the situation just a little and the picture can then look a whole look different.

Most commodity plastics today are a by-product of the oil and gas industry. The leading companies – suppliers of materials – in both sectors, are often related to each other. And by no stretch of the imagination could they be said to have effectively done a good job of work – either with the environment – or in communicating with the public.

We all can see that alternative energy – hybrid cars – alternative fuel and power sources – is on the rise and rightly so. It seems simply a matter of time – albeit it decades – as the planet reduces a dependence on oil based fossil fuels.

However, and that said, we can only start from where we are: The past few years have seen many misconstrued and knee-jerk measures applied in relation to plastics. These reactions have happened mainly in order to curry favour – votes or money – with the buying public. The measures include plastic bag taxes and much of the fossil fuel energy itself expended in attempts to boost mechanical recycling. Only this month has it become apparent, for example, to supermarket Tesco that it needs to call a halt to the lightweighting of its checkout bags – since the customer shopping is simply just falling through onto the floor.

It never ceases to amaze me that politicians, producers and consumers never want to recall that a ten mile ride in their car is equivalent to one whole year’s supply of checkout plastic bags. Somehow, foregoing the use of the car – to the supermarket – never seems to compare with flaunting a so-called ‘bag for life’ at the checkout.

And looking at the larger picture, plastics and packaging have made possible some large scale and positive resource savings possible in recent years: To look at but one sector – agriculture. Like it or not, the sight of a hay bale wrapped in sileage film is a commonplace. We can be sure that the development is saving the industry resources and money. Wider examples are commonly quoted. For example, it is estimated that some 40% of Russian agricultural output would be wasted, were it not for plastics packaging. And there is nothing more wasteful than the scrapping of finished produce or product.

The truth is that – notable exceptions notwithstanding – the world of industry and commerce is a pretty good taskmaster when it comes to not paying for goods and services that it doesn’t need. That includes packaging – plastics packaging and over packaging.

At Ceramicx, however, we believe that the best is yet to come, and we are playing our part in helping industry to further reduce its scrap and its faulty packaging so that it is truly fit for purpose.

We also believe in stopping energy wastage at source: The less energy – carbon footprint – you put into making a product, the less expensive it will be on the environment and on all of us. One of our key skills – through the art and science of infrared heating methods – is to help manufacturers further reduce the energy content of that packaging.

At the end of October we will be exhibiting these skills at the world’s leading plastics exhibition, K 2010 in Dusseldorf, Germany. We hope to inform and educate the plastics industry gathered there that there is way of making their essential products with less energy.

Meantime, spare a thought for the humble plastic bag. Like all of us, it’s trying to do a good job of work – often taking on more, with fewer resources.

Posted in Frankly Speaking, Infrared Heating, K Show 2010, K Show 2010 Dusseldorf, Plastics Thermoforming | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment