 | Trials by Krauss-Maffei Demonstrate Benefits
Of Milliken Hyperform® Nucleating Agent
Machine Productivity Increased by 91,000 Parts Per Year
Krauss-Maffei, a leading manufacturer of injection molding machinery, recently achieved a 10-percent cycle time reduction in the production of 33-gallon polypropylene containers. The production trials, which involved the company’s 1,300-ton injection molder processing a masterbatch resin incorporating Milliken & Company’s high-speed nucleating agent, Hyperform®, took place during a special open house event at Krauss-Maffei’s U.S. headquarters in Florence, Kentucky.
“Hyperform causes the polypropylene to crystallize faster, reducing the overall cycle time from 30 to 27 seconds,” said Peter Lipp, national sales manager for Krauss-Maffei. “This process improvement translates into an overall production rate improvement of 91,000 additional parts per year per machine.”
Trials were run on Krauss-Maffei’s newest and largest machine, the 1,300-ton injection molder, KM1300-12000MX, which has a 1,430 US tons clamp force and a shot weight of 14 lbs. The machine was equipped with a Krauss-Maffei linear robot, which is fully integrated in the molding machine controller. Milliken’s Hyperform concentrate, HI5-5, was added to the resin at a 1% loading.
“Due to the success of these trials and interest from the industry, we anticipate hosting a similar trial and industry open house event in May of 2005 at our Florence, Ky., facility,” Lipp said. “We look forward to partnering with Milliken again to demonstrate the benefits of high speed nucleation with Hyperform.”
Hyperform is a high-speed nucleating agent for polypropylene that promotes extremely fast crystallization, resulting in improved processing speed and productivity. Hyperform also enhances product quality through improved dimensional stability, isotropic shrinkage, top load performance and physical property balance.
Hyperform applications for injection molding include storage totes, closures, automotive parts, lawn furniture, returnable plastic packaging and appliance parts.
Krauss-Maffei AG came into existence in 1931 when the locomotive builder Krauss & Comp. (founded 1886) acquired the rival Munich company, J. A. Maffei (founded 1838). The company is strongly customer-oriented, in machine design and also on the service side. Customers benefit from on-site installation and training together with prompt response to their service and spare parts needs.
 Strong international orientation means that exports make up around 66% of total sales, with North and South America and South East Asia as chief foreign markets. In 2000 Krauss-Maffei Kunststofftechnik GmbH employed around 2193 people, in Germany and abroad and generated sales of EURO 449 million.
Headquartered in Spartanburg, S.C., Milliken Chemical is a division of Milliken & Company, one of the world’s largest privately held textile and chemical corporations. With technical service and application development centers worldwide, Milliken serves a broad array of markets, providing products and services that enhance the performance, appearance and durability of consumer and commercial products.
Milliken Chemical is a market leader in additives for plastics, including Millad® 3988 clarifying agent, Hyperform® nucleating agents, ClearTint® polymer colorants and ClearShield® UV absorber. For further information, visit www.millikenchemical.com
ClearTint®, Millad®, Hyperform ®, ClearShield® and Milliken® are registered trademarks of Milliken & Company.
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