KraussMaffei Wins Renowned AVK Innovation Award
KraussMaffei wins this year’s AVK (German Federation of Reinforced Plastics) Innovation Award for fibre-reinforced composites in the Processes & Methods category. The award was given to the newly developed CFP (Chopped Fiber Processing) technology. The new technology for direct compounding of chopped fibre in the injection moulding machine yields significant material and energy savings.
With this new CFP technology, KraussMaffei is substantially simplifying the production of chopped fiber-reinforced plastic components. Compared to conventional continuous-fiber-reinforced technologies, CFP significantly saves material and energy costs. Depending on the element, up to 46 percent of material costs and approximately 0.8 kWh per kilogram of processed material can be saved.
Transport and storage costs are also reduced. The investment costs for precompounding are unnecessary. In particular, reducing energy consumption during processing and the reduced transport routes significantly reduce the CO2 footprint.
For the greatest possible cost-saving effect, huge shot weights are preferred, i.e. large-volume PP-GF components. Conceivable applications are, for example, in the automotive industry in the interior and the engine compartment, for example, for door modules, front ends, dashboard panels, fan frames or engine covers, and in other industries such as technical parts and packaging and logistics. Another advantage of the new CFP technology: Recycled materials can also be processed safely.
1st place in the Processes & Methods category: At the JEC DACH Forum in Salzburg, AVK jury heads Gerhard Lettl, C.F. Maier GmbH (left) and Prof. Jens Ridzewski, IMA Materialforschung und Anwendungstechnik GmbH (right), presented the AVK Innovation Award 2023 for the new CFP technology to Felix Weitmeier and Lazlo Giesgen KraussMaffei.
Photo: AVK/JEC
Patented Screw for Easy Retrofitting
The heart of the new CFP technology is a screw specially developed and patented by KraussMaffei that ensures a high degree of blending of fibres and polymer matrix and prevents fibre clusters. The patented screw can be retrofitted without any problems. The fibres are metered directly into the plasticising unit with the polymer granulation and additives. Thus, precompounding is no longer necessary.
The new CFP technology makes it possible to manufacture fibre-reinforced components from chopped fibre with the same component properties as those from continuous fibre processing methods. This is associated with significantly reducing machine, material and energy costs.
“Thus, the new process has the potential to replace the use of more expensive processes for continuous fibre processing in many cases,” explains Felix Weitmeier, Process Engineering Team Leader at KraussMaffei.
The option to create its recipes optimised for the respective application makes it possible for Wirthwein to produce customised products for its customers.
“This minimises overengineering of the materials and thus cuts costs and CO2 emissions, boosting competitiveness significantly.”
Said Jan Wiedemann, Head of Innovation and Materials at Wirthwein, explaining the benefits of the new CFP technology.
Renowned AVK Innovation Award
The renowned Innovation Award for fibre composite plastics of the AVK– Industrievereinigung Verstärkte Kunststoffe, a German plastics industry interest group, is given annually in three categories for outstanding composite innovations. An expert jury composed of engineers, scientists and industry journalists evaluates the submissions based on criteria such as level of innovation, degree of implementation and sustainability.
Contact KraussMaffei now and learn how you can make the most of their innovations here.
+44 (0) 1925 644100
Website
Email
