#Composites

2021-07-01

Toray opens Resins Technical Center in Europe

Toray’s Resins Technical Center is opening its doors on the premises of its Automotive Center Europe (AMCEU) near Munich, Germany. The new facility will support Toray Resins Europe GmbH, which markets and sells high performance resin compounds.

The main mission is to support customer application development by swiftly providing technical data, assisting with part design optimization through CAE simulation and innovative material and defect analyses and evaluations. With this facility Toray will address the fast-expanding adoption of digital design for resin products by bolstering long-term durability data and highly accurate mechanical property data that materials require. It will increase capabilities for advanced simulation of fiber reinforced parts, notably to factor in their unique anisotropy.

The new Resins Technical Center will offer materials with high tracking performance and heat cycle resistance and provide support analysis on crack prevention. This is to address such issues as cracking from heat cycling during cooling and heating of molded resin products for insulating high-voltage parts with metal inserts. That problem has increased in line with the emergence of electric vehicles.

In the automotive sector, the Technical Center will collaborate with automotive customers together with AMCEU, whose molding, analysis, and assessment capabilities take full advantage of Toray's advanced materials. These include fibers, films, resins, and carbon fiber composites. Toray will thus be able to reinforce technical solutions catering to European needs by offering construction techniques and structural design features matching its materials and engaging in joint development with European automakers and parts manufacturers.

Europe’s automotive sector is accelerating a development resource shift to electric vehicles and automated driving technologies amid increasingly strict environmental regulations, including to cut carbon dioxide emissions through better fuel efficiency. Demand for high-performance resins should thus keep growing amid an expanding market for electric power control and communication-related components. Demand for high-performance resins that match thermal, electrical, and chemical resistance requirements is also expanding in industrial applications, notable for electrical and electronic equipment and housing parts.

The new Resins Technical Center will enable Toray to swiftly identify local needs and formulate solutions to enhance customer satisfaction in Europe and accelerate the global expansion of its plastics business, particularly in automotive applications.

Toray has made expanding in growth fields a key priority in Project AP-G 2022, its medium-term management program. In Europe, which leads the world in initiatives to materialize economic sustainability, Toray will contribute to communities by locally developing and supplying high-performance resins in keeping with its commitment to innovating ideas, technologies, and products that deliver new value.

Toray develops recycling technology that retains carbon fiber strength and surface quality

Toray Industries, Inc., announced today that it has developed a recycling technology that can decompose diverse carbon fiber reinforced plastics (CFRP) made from thermosetting resins while retaining the strength and surface quality of those fibers. The company drew on this technology to create a nonwoven fabric employing recycled carbon fibers.

HEAD launches more sustainable(1) BOOM RAW racquet on Earth Day by using Toray’s bio-circular carbon fibers

HEAD continues to innovate with the launch of the BOOM RAW tennis racquet, an encouraging development in the search for a more sustainable future for racquet sports. All of the carbon fibers are bio-circular carbon fibers in the limited-edition and highly innovative BOOM RAW racquet, which offers the same explosive power - along with the same fun, feel and easy playability - as the regular, in-line BOOM racquet. The bio-circular carbon fibers are manufactured by Toray and its subsidiary Toray Carbon Fibers Europe.

Toray develops durable reverse osmosis membrane

Toray Industries, Inc., announced today that it has developed a highly durable reverse osmosis (RO) membrane (see glossary note 1). This innovative offering guarantees the long-term provision of high-quality water. It also maintains the superior removal performance of Toray’s existing membranes vital for reusing industrial wastewater and treating sewage.

Engineering depth and diversity for composites

Airbond is the latest member of the British Textile Machinery Association (BTMA) to receive recognition for contributions to the composites industry. The engineering firm based in Pontypool, South Wales, has just received the Make UK Energy and Sustainability Award for its Lattice 3D Printing project.

Sustainable, lightweight, and sound absorbing: Polyester-based front trunk solution for BEVs

As car manufacturers look to further reduce their carbon footprint, Autoneum has developed an innovative front trunk solution for battery electric vehicles (BEVs), made entirely from polyester-based textile. The Ultra-Silent Frunk offers significant weight reduction, improved acoustic and thermal insulation, and uses up to 70 percent recycled material, supporting sustainable and efficient vehicle design. Autoneum, global technology leader in acoustic and thermal management for vehicles, has already received orders for the new frunk from three major OEMs in Asia and Europe to be built in three BEV models. Series production for two BEVs has been underway in China and Germany since last year.

Modern testing methods for raw cotton

The 38th International Cotton Conference Bremen will take place from 25 to 27 March 2026 at the Bremen Parliament. This conference has traditionally stood for in-depth expertise and international exchange. The program will focus on technical innovations, market trends, and regulatory frameworks across the entire value chain – from agriculture to the circular economy. With high-profile speakers, the conference is regarded as the key meeting point for the global cotton industry. Today’s focus: Cotton quality and testing methods.

Rieter responds to higher raw material prices

Global political and economic developments have been leading to rising raw material and energy costs for some time. The textile machinery industry is also affected by this trend. Rieter machines and components consist to a large extent of steel, copper, aluminum and electronics. These materials in particular have seen higher demand and higher prices in recent months.