Cygnet Texkimp builds thermoplastic lab line to support innovation in plastics technology
Cheshire-based fibre handling and converting technology specialist Cygnet Texkimp has installed a lab-scale version of its thermoplastic processing equipment at its Innovation Centre to enable faster development of plastics technology through dedicated customer trials.
The company is making its Direct Melt Impregnation Thermoplastic Composite Line available to help companies develop new materials and material combinations to manufacture thermoplastic prepregs and tapes.
Research and Development Specialist Ben Lloyd said: “We’re enabling manufacturers to explore a new and novel technology, prove out their concepts, and carry out innovative product development before choosing to invest. The fast-moving composites sector needs this kind of dedicated environment to speed up adoption of new technology and support innovation. The response from the market has been phenomenal and we’re completing trials on a wide range of different materials.”
At 5m long and 1m wide, the lab-scale machine is half the size of the full-scale line launched in 2020. It is applicable for polymers ranging from polypropylene to PEEK and can process a range of fibres including carbon fibre, glass fibre and hybrid fibres.
The company is working with organisations from the automotive, aerospace, construction and energy sectors, many of which want to produce their own materials to fulfil their exact needs.
Lloyd added: “This collaborative approach enables both parties to refine and advance the technology to achieve a solution that is tailored to the application and proven in its effectiveness.”
The technology combines standard polymer pellets with a polymer and fibre matrix extrusion methodology to simplify and shorten the process of manufacturing thermoplastic prepreg materials while maintaining the quality of the end product.
It was designed to transform the way high-grade thermoplastic composites are manufactured and make them more easily accessible to high-volume markets.
Thermoplastic parts in automotive applications enable manufacturers to make vehivcles more easily reparable and recyclable as well as cleaner and less expensive to manufacture.
Cygnet Texkimp is also a leading manufacturer of thermoset prepreg machines and began developing its thermoplastic technology as interest in the methodology has grown in line with the expansion of the composites market.