Thermoformer Portage Plastics closing Wisconsin facility
A total of 71 people will lose their jobs when the plastics company shutters Dec. 31, according to a court-appointed receiver.
International Space Station’s BFF 3D Prints Human Tissue
The BioFabrication Facility (BFF), a 3D printer capable of printing human tissue, is returning to the International Space Station as soon as this month. First deployed in 2019, when it successfully printed a partial human knee meniscus and human heart cells, it will evaluate the printing of knee cartilage tissue using bio-inks and cells on this latest mission. The upgraded BFF-Meniscus-2 will be part of the payload on the Northrup…
Huntsman Develops Breakthrough Bio-based Polyurethane System
Huntsman has launched Acoustiflex VEF BIO — a visco-elastic foam containing up to 20% bio-based content derived from vegetable oils for molded acoustic applications in the automotive industry. This new solution can lower the carbon footprint of automotive carpet back-foaming by up to 25% compared with existing Huntsman systems for this application. The technology can also be used for dash and wheel arch insulation. The Acoustiflex VEF BIO system addresses rising…
Engel’s US-based apprenticeship program attracts 1,275 applicants
Graduates in the training program tweaked for North America get paid, earn nationally recognized journeyman’s certificate and receive a full-time job offer from Engel upon completion.
K 2022: ‘We’ve Been Waiting 40 Years!’
Erema’s Dr. Gerold Breuer, head of marketing and corporate development (3rd from right), said this recycling-themed K fair was the show they had been awaiting for 40 years. (Photo: Erema Group) If you’ve been following the news about the just-completed K 2022 show in Düsseldorf, then you are well aware that overarching themes of the event were sustainability and the circular economy. The vast majority of the 3037 exhibitors (down…
Point of Pivot: 3D Printing vs. Injection Molding
3D printing first made headlines as a half-Star Trek, half-everyman technology that brought science fiction to the kitchen table. Gassed-up media reports positioned the technology as an “anyone can make anything” process. Unsurprisingly, no such process exists with push-button precision. Mainstream perceptions dimmed, dismissing the technology. Today’s 3D printing is an indisputably industrial suite, though, with attainable production-level efficiency. Together with the processes, the ways in which we refer to…
Medical Manufacturing Technologies Adds Confluent Medical’s Equipment Manufacturing Group to Portfolio
Medical Manufacturing Technologies (MMT), a supplier of an array of products and services to medical device OEMs through several brands, has acquired Confluent Medical Technologies’ equipment manufacturing group. The Confluent group develops and manufactures balloon-forming equipment, as well as related testing and catheter production systems, and it will be rebranded Interface Catheter Solutions, a nod to its historic roots. Interface was acquired by Nitinol Devices & Components Inc. in 2015,…
At Novoloop, chemists take on tech bros with recycling
Think Menlo Park, Calif., and you’ll likely think of digital technology. The city is famous for its cryptocurrency-hawking tech bros and its games development houses. It’s not a place you’d readily associate with groundbreaking technology for the chemical upcycling of waste plastics.
Infiltrator adding 13 injection presses in Kentucky
Infiltrator Water Technologies LLC continues to expand its operation in Winchester, Ky., this time adding 13 injection molding machines. It has invested $140 million at the site over recent years.
Rugged Grenadier 4×4 Features Tough ASA Polymer from Ineos
Ineos Styrolution’s acrylonitrile styrene acrylate (ASA) polymer Luran S has been selected by sister company Ineos Automotive as the material of choice for the front grille of its upcoming Grenadier 4X4. Ineos Automotive was established to meet demand for a rugged and uncompromising off-roader. The Ineos Grenadier, which is on track to begin series production in the fall, is designed to be a capable, durable, and reliable working tool, while also…