News for October 2009

News Archive

High Modulus opens sales office in USA

High Modulus, a supplier of composite technology headquartered in New Zealand, has opened a sales office in Gloucester, Massachusetts, USA, to continue growing its presence in the American market.

BMW and SGL form carbon fibre joint venture

BMW Group and SGL Group have formed a joint venture to manufacture carbon fibres and fabrics for the automotive industry.

ETI launches £8m project to unlock wave and tidal energy

An £8 million project that will produce tools capable of accurately estimating the energy yield of major wave and tidal stream energy has been approved by the Energy Technologies Institute (ETI).

EURECOMP project investigates thermoset composites recycling EURECOMP project investigates thermoset composites recycling

A European project aimed at developing a novel recycling route for thermoset composites is underway in Europe. The EURECOMP project will focus on the solvolysis process.

SP appoints distributor for Greece

SP, the marine business of Gurit, has appointed A. Anagnostopoulos & Co as the sole distributor for SP branded products in Greece.

£18m investment for UK renewable energy

The Carbon Trust is to inject up to £18 million in additional funding into the UK clean and renewable energy sector, providing a booster for clean tech start-ups and Britain's move to a low carbon economy. The additional money has been provided by the Department of Energy and Climate Change.

Experiment paves way for more reliable wind turbine design Experiment paves way for more reliable wind turbine design

Risø DTU has just concluded a large full-scale experiment on a wind turbine taking detailed measurements of the load distribution on a 40 m long wind turbine blade under natural wind conditions, thereby providing a very accurate picture of the wind flow over the wind turbine blade surface.

Vestas to supply 102 MW of wind turbines to Mexico

Vestas has received an order for 51 units of the V80-2.0 MW wind turbine for the Oaxaca I project to be located in the municipality of Santo Domingo de Ingenio, Juchitan de Zaragoza, Oaxaca, Mexico.

Solar electric industry poised for strong growth in USA, suggests poll

Professionals within the US solar electric industry value chain predict strong growth for their businesses over the next two years, and say more favourable legislation and heightened marketing will be key to their expansion.

Wind could provide quarter of India’s power by 2030

Wind could also attract US$10 billion in investment every year and create 213,000 green collar jobs, says the industry.

Renewable energy takes 5% of Asian Development Bank funding

Renewable energy projects receive 5% of the financial assistance provided from 2001 to 2008.

New England wants to develop “vast and untapped” renewable energy resources

Governors of six US states have approved a renewable energy blueprint for their region, and now want President Obama and Congress to support their development of these resources.

US lab opens largest wind turbine R&D study

A 2.3 MW wind turbine will be the centerpiece of a multi-year US project to study the performance and aerodynamics of large wind turbines in a major government-industry research partnership for wind power generation.

Boeing and HAL sign composite flaperon deal

Boeing and Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) have signed an agreement to work together on the production of composite flaperons for Boeing's 777 series aircraft.

Carbon composite seat post offers more comfort for cyclists Carbon composite seat post offers more comfort for cyclists

Carbon fibre composites are not only helping with the lightweight construction of cars and aircraft, they can also benefit bicycles. At COMPOSITES EUROPE 2009, Fraunhofer will present a spring-loaded bicycle seat post made of carbon composite which offers greater comfort at lower weight.

BWEA31: UK wind reaches 4 GW

The UK wind industry has seen the installation of 4 GW of wind energy capacity, the British Wind Energy Association (BWEA) announced at BWEA31 in Liverpool on 20-22 October.

BWEA31: Wind farm planning approvals slump to new low of 25%

Local council approvals of wind farm applications in the UK have fallen to a new low of just 25%, the British Wind Energy Association (BWEA) said at BWEA31 in Liverpool on 20-22 October.

Updated: QinetiQ and Vestas test 'stealth technology' for wind turbines Updated: QinetiQ and Vestas test 'stealth technology' for wind turbines

QinetiQ and Vestas Wind Systems claim the successful trial of a radar mitigation technology for wind turbines that significantly reduces the radar signature of individual turbines, making them 'invisible' to air traffic control, military and other radar based systems.

Renewable energy can reduce 20% of world goal for GHG emissions

Renewable energy could reduce global greenhouse gas emissions by 2741 Mt by 2030 under accelerated environmental policies, according to the International Energy Agency.

Renewable power market in US moves to non-residential customers

Total sales of electricity from renewable energy facilities in the USA increased by 35% last year, dominated by an increase of 50% in sales of green power certificates to non-residential consumers.

BWEA31: NaREC getting ready for Round 3 and offshore renewable energy

The New and Renewable Energy Centre (NaREC) in the UK is helping the country reach its 20/20 targets for renewable energy with offshore marine and wind energy research and testing.

US business group calls for more support to renewable energy

The United States government should focus on the development of renewable energy as well as traditional energy sources, says one of the country’s more influential business groups.

Arizona dedicates first commercial wind project

The 63 MW Dry Lake wind farm has been dedicated as the first commercial-scale wind power project in the state of Arizona.

ACMA backs Obama's proposal to help small businesses ACMA backs Obama's proposal to help small businesses

The American Composites Manufacturers Association (ACMA) has commended President Barack Obama’s proposal for new measures to help small businesses access credit and create jobs.

Assuring quality in lightweight construction

Cars, boats and aircraft rely on lightweight construction, but to make sure that lightening the load does not come at the expense of safety, Fraunhofer researchers are working on new quality assurance systems for materials testing. At COMPOSITES EUROPE 2009 Fraunhofer will demonstrate a new kind of non-destructive diagnostic procedure.

IBEX boat show relocates to Kentucky in 2010

The International Boatbuilders’ Exhibition and Conference (IBEX) will move to Kentucky in 2010, following seven years in Miami Beach, Florida.

Firehole Technologies acquires CompositePro

Firehole Technologies Inc, a supplier of composite analysis and simulation software, has acquired the CompositePro software from Peak Composites Inc.

Cytec announces third quarter 2009 results

Cytec Industries reports net earnings for the third quarter of 2009 of US$12.5 million and net sales of $740 million.

Second JEC Asia held in Singapore

Around 7000 visitors are reported to have attended the second JEC Asia exhibition, which was held in Singapore on 14-16 October 2009.

BWEA 31: UK research aims to solve wind problem on radar screens

The UK will fund £5.15 million to research to solve the problem of radar interference from wind turbines.

FiberCore Europe and DSM Composite Resins unveil composite bridge in China FiberCore Europe and DSM Composite Resins unveil composite bridge in China

FiberCore Europe and DSM Composite Resins have developed a composite bridge that is reported to surpass conventional steel and concrete bridges in terms of weight and load-bearing ability.

Composittrailer changes name to ACROSOMA

Composittrailer NV, a specialist in large composite structures, has changed its name to ACROSOMA NV.

Lectra exhibits at COMPOSITES EUROPE 2009 Lectra exhibits at COMPOSITES EUROPE 2009

Lectra, a supplier of cutting systems and software for composite materials, will exhibit at the COMPOSITES EUROPE trade fair in Stuttgart this month.

DuPont Engineering Polymers increases prices

DuPont Engineering Polymers is increasing prices for its standard grades of its Zytel® polyamide, Minlon® mineral reinforced polyamide and Zytel® HTN high-performance polyamide.

LM Glasfiber announces capacity expansion in China

Wind turbine blade manufacturer LM Glasfiber is expanding its operations in China.

PPG reports third quarter 2009 results

The difficult global economy continues to impact year-on-year sales, but PPG Industries sees some business improvement over the first two quarters of 2009.

E.ON says half of foundations and first cables ready for Rödsand II offshore wind farm

E.ON Climate & Renewables has laid half of the 90 offshore wind turbine foundations and the first cables at Rödsand II between the German island of Fehmarn and the Danish island of Lolland in the Baltic Sea.

UK equipment scrappage scheme gives renewable energy industry £2m cash boost

The Carbon Trust has called on UK renewable energy equipment suppliers to take advantage of a £2 million sales opportunity from its equipment scrappage scheme: The Big Business Refit.

People

New appointments and staff changes – Exel Composites, Dieffenbacher, Umeco, Vermont Composites Inc.

Reinforced Plastics at COMPOSITES EUROPE 2009 Reinforced Plastics at COMPOSITES EUROPE 2009

Reinforced Plastics magazine will be exhibiting at the COMPOSITES EUROPE trade show in Stuttgart this month.

ZPM launches nano-enhanced adhesives for aerospace market

Zyvex Performance Materials (ZPM) claims its Epovex Adhesive™ line of two-part epoxy adhesives are stronger and less expensive than conventional aerospace adhesives.

SAERTEX and KEMROCK form joint venture for Indian aerospace industry SAERTEX and KEMROCK form joint venture for Indian aerospace industry

German reinforcements producer SAERTEX and composites manufacturer KEMROCK Industries and Exports Ltd of India are planning to establish a joint venture company to manufacture composite components for the Indian aerospace industry.

BASF expands epoxy systems lab BASF expands epoxy systems lab

BASF has expanded its application lab for epoxy resin systems at its Ludwigshafen site in Germany.

GKN Aerospace invests in microwave equipment for composites research

GKN Aerospace has purchased an industrial microwave oven to continue its research into the microwave curing of composite structures.

Universities show increased use of renewable energy

Twenty-six universities and colleges across the United States received a grading of A- for their use of renewable energy on campus.

ASTM publishes standards on testing of aerospace composites

A series of standards on the non-destructive testing (NDT) of aerospace composites has been developed by the ASTM.

Siemens awarded wind turbine orders in North America worth over €600m

Siemens Energy will be supplying wind turbines totalling over 565 MW and worth more than €600 million for six onshore wind farms in North America.

AMSC’s superconductor electricity pipelines to be adopted for USA’s first renewable energy market hub

American Superconductor Corporation (AMSC) will supply its Superconductor Electricity Pipelines to the Tres Amigas Project, the USA’s first renewable energy market hub.

ATK delivers Composite Crew Module to NASA ATK delivers Composite Crew Module to NASA

Alliant Techsystems has delivered a full-scale crew module made of composite materials to NASA for testing.

Switch to epoxy offers weight reductions for boat builder Switch to epoxy offers weight reductions for boat builder

Focusing on the need for weight efficiency and durability, Italian boat builder Cantieri di Baia has made the switch from polyester and vinyl ester to SP’s epoxy resin on its latest edition to its Baia 50 range of performance boats.

Structural health monitoring of composite aircraft

At COMPOSITES EUROPE 2009, the Fraunhofer Institute for Structural Durability and System Reliability LBF is presenting a 4 m high exhibit – a mock-up of a light aircraft wing equipped with the latest sensor technology.

Hexcel opens sales office in Malaysia

Hexcel has opened a sales office in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, to support its composites business in the Southern Asia Pacific region.

Chem-Trend expands availability of Chemlease CPR release agent

Chem-Trend has announced that its Chemlease® CPR semi-permanent release agent will be available in Europe and Asia before the end of 2009.

PPG introduces glass fibre roving for LFT

PPG Industries' TUFROV 4575 glass roving for long fibre thermoplastic (LFT) applications is now available to customers worldwide.

Small wind turbine manufacturer homes in on Ontario

WindTronics plans to assemble residential and small commercial wind turbines, and conduct research and development in Windsor, Ontario, Canada.

Cyprus welcomes its first wind farm Cyprus welcomes its first wind farm

Cyprus’ first wind farm has begun construction in the Orites area of Kouklia (Paphos district).

UK legislation still penalises waste streams that could provide energy UK legislation still penalises waste streams that could provide energy

UK renewable energy provider Living Fuels, a subsidiary of AIM listed REG Bio-Power, is appealing to the UK Government to draw attention to discrepancies between renewable energy strategy and current UK legislation, which the company says is holding back renewable technologies like waste to energy.

RES acquires 500 MW of wind power projects in Turkey

RES has acquired a portfolio of 500 MW of wind power projects in Turkey.

Ocean Power Technologies to develop wave power station in Japan

Ocean Power Technologies, Inc. will develop a demonstration wave power station in Japan together with a consortium of the three Japanese companies Idemitsu Kosan Co., Mitsui Engineering & Shipbuilding Co., and Japan Wind Development Co.

Cement industry purchases boost scrubber market

The market for industrial stack gas scrubbers has historically been small compared to those used in coal-fired power plants. But, thanks to proposed regulations for the cement industry, the world industrial scrubber market could now reach US$6 billion in 2012, forecasts the McIlvaine Company.

Siemens and Airtricity sign 350 MW onshore wind farm contract

Siemens and Airtricity, the renewable energy development division of Scottish and Southern Energy (SSE), have signed a contract on the supply of wind turbines for a 350 MW onshore wind farm in Southern Scotland.

E.ON opens 780 MW wind farm in the USA

E.ON has opened what it calls the “world’s largest wind farm” in the USA. The wind farm in Roscoe, Texas, USA, consists of 627 wind turbines with an installed capacity of approximately 780 MW.

Goodrich extends cooperation with Composites Technology Research Malaysia (CTRM)

Composites Technology Research Malaysia (CTRM) and global aerospace supplier Goodrich Corporation have signed agreements that establish CTRM as a centre of excellence for composites manufacturing, providing nacelle components for multiple commercial aircraft programmes.

ACMA's Composites 2010 – show preview

Is your company exhibiting at the American Composites Manufacturers Association (ACMA) trade show in Las Vegas on 9-11 February 2010?

FiberSIM software heads into space FiberSIM software heads into space

Vistagy Inc’s FiberSIM® software is being used by Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX), to reduce the design time and enhance the efficiency of the composite development process on its Dragon spacecraft.

Paste products for large tools

RAMPF Tooling and Amber Composites have developed a new system of tooling paste which is reported to deliver significant reductions in time and cost for manufacturers of large composite parts.

Yacht builder diversifies into renewable energy

Christensen Shipyards spin-off Renewal Energy Composite Solutions LLC (RECS) has received a US$1 million grant to cover the costs associated with transitioning a portion of a boat manufacturing plant to production of wind turbine components.

Huntsman offers customers REACH help

Huntsman Advanced Materials is offering information on the Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH) legislation via a new REACH web portal.

EuPC launches REACH Club

The European Plastics Converters (EuPC) trade association is launching the REACH Club, a networking platform for anyone interested in REACH and its impact on the plastics industry.

Lantor introduces flexible infusion core Lantor introduces flexible infusion core

Lantor BV is introducing a reinforced 3D flexible core material for use in the vacuum infusion and RTM Light processes.

Owens Corning increases European production of dry chopped strand glass reinforcements

Owens Corning is increasing production of dry use glass chopped strands (DUCS) at its Chambery, France, facility by nearly 50% in the 2009 fourth quarter.The company says this is in response to signs of improving business activity in Europe.

'World's lightest' notebook has carbon fibre casing 'World's lightest' notebook has carbon fibre casing

Sony claims its VAIO® X Series is the world's lightest notebook computer. It is housed in a lightweight carbon fibre chassis.

nidaplast presents infusion core at COMPOSITES EUROPE

nidaplast composites will present its new ROVIpan™ core material designed for infusion processes at COMPOSITES EUROPE 2009.

Intelligent Energy unveils multi-functional fuel cell system for Airbus

The UK-based fuel cell developer Intelligent Energy has provided the European aircraft manufacturer Airbus with a multi-functional fuel cell auxiliary power unit (APU), intended for onboard power and other loads in future commercial airliners. The Intelligent Energy APU system was unveiled at the recent opening of the Aerotec Fuel Cell Test Center in Hamburg, Germany.

Northrop Grumman awards F-35 contract to Turkish Aerospace Industries Northrop Grumman awards F-35 contract to Turkish Aerospace Industries

Northrop Grumman Corporation has awarded a contract to produce composite air inlet ducts for the F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter aircraft to Turkish Aerospace Industries Inc (TAI).

China and USA energy and climate change comparison

China has long since been criticised by the West as being intransigent on its response to climate change issues. But a new analysis by NGO Greenpeace compares various aspects of China's policy and energy landscape with that of the USA, and it reveals some interesting findings.

Fibre reinforced core obtains DNV type approval Fibre reinforced core obtains DNV type approval

Nida-Core Corporation has announced the type approval of its NidaFusion SXO core material by Det Norske Veritas (DNV).

Spirit AeroSystems breaks ground on French facility Spirit AeroSystems breaks ground on French facility

Spirit AeroSystems Inc has broken ground on a new facility in Saint-Nazaire, France, at which it will assemble the composite centre fuselage section of the Airbus A350 aircraft.

Quatro Composites supports Insitu in developing unmanned aircraft systems Quatro Composites supports Insitu in developing unmanned aircraft systems

Quatro Composites has become a technology partner of Insitu, supporting development of composite components for its next generation of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS).

MVC acquires Fibermaq’s gel-coat equipment

MVC, a supplier of composite components to the Brazilian automotive sector, has acquired Fibermaq´s equipment for the application of gel-coat.

XAC to become majority owner of FACC AG

Xi'an Aircraft Industry (Group) Company Ltd (XAC) of China is to acquire the majority of shares in FACC AG, a supplier of composite aircraft components based in Austria.

Reinforced Plastics launches LinkedIn Group

Reinforced Plastics magazine has established a Group on the LinkedIn professional networking site.

EuCIA publishes latest newsletter

The European composites industry association EuCIA has published its latest newsletter.

Gurit acquires majority stake in China Techno Foam Co Ltd

Gurit has confirmed the closing of the acquisition of a majority stake in Chinese structural foam company China Techno Foam Co Ltd.

Dormer researches composites cutting technology Dormer researches composites cutting technology

Cutting tool supplier Dormer has created a Research Technology Centre (RTC) to address the machining issues presented by composite materials.

Prepregs open up sunroof applications Prepregs open up sunroof applications

A line of rigid, lightweight and aesthetically pleasing sliding carbon fibre toughened glass sunroofs have been developed using Variable Temperature Moulding (VTM®) carbon epoxy prepregs from Advanced Composites Group (ACG) Ltd.

UK wave and tidal energy prototypes get £22m

Wave and tidal developers can now bid for £22 million in government funding to accelerate the commercial development of marine energy in the UK, the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) has announced.

AMSC and Sinovel sign US$100m electrical components contract for 3 MW wind turbines

American Superconductor Corporation (AMSC) and Beijing-based Sinovel Wind Corporation have signed a follow-on contract worth more than US$100 million for core electrical wind turbine components.

September's top 5 stories September's top 5 stories

The following five articles were the most popular on our website during the month of September.

Wasatch Wind sells 4400 MW offshore wind project to Canadian Hydro Developers

Wasatch Wind, a wind developer based in the Western USA, is selling the rights to a 4400 MW offshore wind project in Lake Erie, 5-30 km off the Ontario coastline, to Canadian Hydro Developers.