Strong Partnership for Solid Plastics

23 Oct 2008 • by Natalie Aster

LEVERKUSEN -- The geba Kunststoffcompounds GmbH, Ennigerloh, Germany, will in future be developing and producing reinforced thermoplastic polyurethanes (TPU-R) based on Desmopan® from Bayer MaterialScience - this is the centerpiece of a collaboration agreement that the two companies concluded. Reinforced thermoplastic polyurethanes combine high wear and impact resistance, even at low temperatures, with excellent heat resistance and linear coefficients of expansion on the scale of aluminum. The new members of this family of materials are being marketed by geba under the name Desmovit®.

The thermoplastic polyurethane Desmopan® has so far been familiar to users primarily as an elastic, impact-resistant and halogen-free material with excellent scratch and abrasion resistance, low-temperature flexibility and sought-after haptic properties ("soft-touch effect"). Soft grades of Desmopan®, which are used in applications such as dual-component injection molding, back-injected films and slush skins, can also be produced without using plasticizers. By using appropriate fillers for reinforcement, the material can also perform impressively in applications that were previously dominated by other engineering plastics. Other advantages of Desmovit® include excellent coatability and a level of noise reduction that is unusually good for plastics. Flowability and accurate reproduction of detail are also excellent and molded parts made of Desmovit® are ideal for printing. Possible areas of application include production of housings for the electrical and domestic appliance industries that are subjected to heavy use and functional parts for the sports goods and toy sectors, where high reliability levels are expected. Further areas of application in which the wear resistance and outstanding mechanical properties of Desmovit® are demanded include the agricultural machinery, industrial and automotive engineering sectors. In developing new, reinforced grades of Desmovit®, the main focus is initially on combining Desmopan® with glass fibers. However, using glass beads and other reinforcing materials such as talc, chalk, iron powder and carbon fibers is conceivable and is planned in the medium term.

The geba Kunststoffcompounds GmbH was founded in 1986 and employs more than 190 people. The company has extensive experience in compounding an extraordinarily wide range of engineering plastics. The geba Group has its own storage capacity and flexible logistics with a 24-hour emergency service and its own carrier. Particular emphasis is placed on customized compounds. geba has therefore gained an excellent reputation, first and foremost in intelligent additives and rapid provision of plastics that are colored in accordance with customer needs. Its specialties include high-gloss metallic compounds that remove the need for time-consuming coating processes. geba Kunststoffcompounds thus has the necessary highly specialized plant engineering, efficiency and market knowledge to make the application-related benefits of the new Desmopan® specialty Desmovit® available to a wide range of users.

The close collaboration now agreed is not the first between Bayer MaterialScience and geba. Since 2003 there's a collaboration agreement concerning the compounds sector for the production of automobile slush skins.

About Bayer MaterialScience

With 2007 sales of EUR 10.4 billion, Bayer MaterialScience is among the world's largest polymer companies. Business activities are focused on the manufacture of high-tech polymer materials and the development of innovative solutions for products used in many areas of daily life. The main segments served are the automotive, electrical and electronics, construction and the sports and leisure industries. At the end of 2007, Bayer MaterialScience had 30 production sites and employed approximately 15,400 people around the globe. Bayer MaterialScience is a Bayer Group company.

Source: Bayer MaterialScience