New Recycling Process from Hematite Holds Promise for Auto Industry
11 November 1998
New Recycling Process from Hematite Holds Promise for Auto Industry CHICAGO, Nov. 11 -- A new recycling process for automotive
plastics could reduce the amount of plastic dumped into landfills in North
America by more than 120 million pounds per year and further improve the
recyclability of today's cars and light trucks, a Canadian recycling expert
said here today.
Kasper Van Veen, a product development executive at Hematite Manufacturing
in Guelph, Ontario, Canada, told recycling industry officials attending the
annual Automotive Recycling Conference '98 (ARC '98) at the Hotel
Inter-Continental in Chicago that Hematite has developed a low-cost process
for recycling plastics used in automotive bumpers and bodyside moldings for
use in other automotive components.
Plastics used for bumpers and bodyside moldings (primarily thermoplastic
polyolefins or TPO) are difficult to recycle for use as exterior or interior
decor components because of paint contamination. Less than five percent of
the plastic bumpers produced today, for example, are recycled. As a result
millions of pounds of automotive TPOs are scrapped and dumped into landfills
throughout the U.S. and Canada annually, according to Van Veen.
He said Hematite recently began pilot production of parts using recycled
TPO for a variety of automotive applications, including sound deadening
material, as well as wind- and air-management components. The company has
manufacturing operations in Wixom, MI, and Guelph, and recently expanded
operations into Poland to support its global customer base. Products using
Hematite's new recycling process for TPOs could make their way into new-model
cars and light trucks as soon as the 2001 model year.
"The cost and performance characteristics of recycled TPO components are
equal to or better than other recycled plastics," Van Veen said. "This new
process also provides auto manufacturers with an exciting opportunity to
increase the percentage of recyclable material on future cars and light
trucks."
He added that TPO products could generate more than $10 million in sales
for Hematite within the next several years. PVC and EVA have been "materials
of choice" for sound-barrier applications because of their flexibility and
propensity to increase a component's specific gravity.
Van Veen noted that components made from recycled TPO can be manufactured
through a variety of production techniques, including extrusion, injection
molding, and vacuum forming. In addition, the physical characteristics of TPO
are suitable for automotive applications in both high- and low-temperature
environments.
"There is a large supply of post-consumer TPO available today because
paint contamination has affected its use in most current applications," he
said. "The vast supply means relatively low raw material costs for
closed-loop recycling companies such as Hematite."
Hematite, a division of Pavaco Plastics Inc., supplies the auto industry
with high-quality, cost-effective components manufactured from 100 percent
recycled and recyclable materials. Founded in 1978, the company has annual
sales of $40 million and employs more than 250 people at eight facilities in
Canada, the U.S. and Europe.
The company's unique closed-loop manufacturing systems produce components
from a variety of materials, including remanufactured polyvinyl chloride (PVC)
and recycled high-molecular-weight, high density polyethylene (HMWHDPE), for
auto companies and their Tier One suppliers. Hematite has proven expertise in
a variety of manufacturing processes, including injection molding, inline and
rotary vacuum forming, sheet extrusion and die cutting.
The company's growing list of automotive OEMs now includes
DaimlerChrysler, Ford Motor Company, General Motors Corporation, Jaguar, Mazda
and Saturn.
Automotive components produced by Hematite include seatback insulators,
door water shields, barrier assemblies, body seals, radiator air deflectors,
splash shields, shield assemblies and valance panels.
