With advances in technical properties and a growing number of manufacturers and materials, we are seeing bioplastics move into new application areas and playing an increasingly important role in the evolution of the plastics industry. Grund GmbH & Co. KG is one of the companies expanding their traditional product offering by using Dryflex Green thermoplastic elastomers from HEXPOL TPE in their new generation bed slat holders.
Dryflex Green is a family of biobased thermoplastic elastomers (TPE). They are opening up previously unreachable design solutions to the biobased thermoplastic market by covering a wider range of hardnesses, including softer grades from 20 Shore A through to 55 Shore D, while incorporating high levels of renewable content to over 90%. The biobased content derives from raw materials such as polymers, fillers, plasticizers or additives. HEXPOL TPE has also developed compounds using organic fillers from plants, crops or trees; these give additional organic appearance and haptics. The biobased content is achieved by use of truly sustainable raw materials and feedstocks with recognised certifications such as ISCC+.
For the bed slat holders it was important that the TPE was efficient to process, with good flowability. It needed to be easy to colour and the compression set properties also needed to be considered.
Jan Grund, Managing Director at Grund GmbH & Co. KG, commented “We see customer demand moving towards sustainable materials. They want products that give the performance they need while also being environmentally friendly and responsibly produced. Dryflex Green TPEs give us the properties we were looking for. The team at HEXPOL TPE also supported us with customisation and compound adjustment to suit our processing requirements and specification. We had an open discussion with them about the source of the renewable raw materials – this allows us to present our products in the correct way”.
Thomas Köppl, Manager Central Technology & Development Center HEXPOL TPE, commented “We are working with several customers that want to add a ‘green’ line to their existing portfolios. We can see that Dryflex Green TPEs are giving manufacturers of applications such as household goods, sports equipment, toys and infant care new opportunities for sustainability”.
