Extrusion

Processors of stretch film can choose to go the cast-film route or employ a blown-film line but they can also make their product film go further via use of pre-stretch equipment.

Calcium carbonate loadings of up to 50% are possible in a twin-head, three-layer (A/B/A) blown-film line from Kang Chyau Industry (Taipei).

Extrusion machinery supplier Leistritz has set up two of its MAXX twin-screw extrusion systems, and related auxiliary equipment, in its Somerville, NJ lab to process undried PET and directly extrude it in sheet form. Leistritz says only that the result is a quality product with "dramatically less energy consumption."

Only time will tell whether plastics pipes are chosen to replace all of the pipelines in the U.S.'s water and sewage system which need to be modernized and repaired. But as this article  in today's NY Times makes clear, the problem is reaching epic proportions in the country. Justas an example, the nation's capital suffers a water break every day, on average. According to the article, "An E.P.A.

Expanding the scope of recycled materials for the company's environmentally friendly decking and other green building materials, Advanced Environmental Recycling Technologies (A.E.R.T.) opened a new, state-of-the-art polyethylene recycling facility in Watts, OK. The 70,000-ft² facility will allow A.E.R.T. to recover and utilize a wider range of polyethylene materials including plastic film and food packaging and containers.

Corr Plastik Industrial Ltda. has jumped into the top three in the Brazil's PVC pipe processing industry following its recent purchase and installation of five new extrusion lines at a new, 60,0000m² site near Maceió in the northeast of the country.

With sales returning to the levels seen in 2008, the company's best year on record, film and sheet extrusion systems supplier Macro Engineering & Technology Inc. (Mississauga, ON) is planning to expand its production floor space by approximately 40%. The new room will be used mainly for setting up and testing machinery prior to shipment.

In a sign that global investment is picking up in the plastics sector, Taiwanese compounding extruder supplier Sino-Alloy Machinery Inc. (Taoyuan) has scored a number of successes of late in delivery of equipment to Asia, the Americas, and the Middle East.

When a heat exchanger begins to fail or becomes problematic, it may be indicative of various problems ranging from inappropriate mechanical design to unforeseen chemical reactions. But, is it better to replace or to repair a heat exchanger?—By American Power Services (Erlanger, KY)

Swiss extruder manufacturer Maillefer has chosen a new CEO, promoting Peter Roos to the position. His predeccesor, Pentti Hätälä, recently turned 65 but will continue as the chairman of the board of the Maillefer Group.