RotoFlex Project Partners

RotoFlex Partners

	493K Limited www.493k.com \| office@493k.com Description 493K Limited design and manufacture products for the rotational moulding industry. We specialise in mould temperature & pressure control systems, enabling moulders to: > adjust for changes in the ambient conditions > improve process control & efficiency > optimise cycle times > identify faults & machine inefficiencies > reduce new product set-up times > balance spiders. With a wide range of products available, suiting all needs and budgets, we aim to help the industry get the most out of their businesses. Information on all our products and how to get in touch with us can be found on the company website at www.493k.com.
	Association of Rotational Moulding (ARM-CE) www.rotational-moulding.de \| info@rotational-moulding.de Description The association represents the rotational moulding industry within the German speaking part of Europe. Besides working on research and development projects specific to rotational moulding, the organisation of meetings and conventions, the main objective is to promote and increase the public awareness of rotational moulding.
	Assocomaplast www.assocomaplast.org \| info@assocomaplast.org Description Founded in 1960, ASSOCOMAPLAST, is a non-profit Association, which now represents 198 important companies, Italian plastics and rubber machinery, ancillary equipment and moulds manufacturers. The main aim of ASSOCOMAPLAST is to promote worldwide the knowledge of the Italian plastics and rubber processing technologies that are at the top of the world market, in terms of production and export outputs.
	Maus GmbH www.maus-gmbh.de \| info@maus-gmbh.de Description Since the early sixties, MAUS has specialised in the manufacture of cast aluminium rotational moulds. The expertise developed over that time, together with the investment the company has made in state-of-the-art technology, facilities and equipment, enables it to produce “production ready” moulds of the highest possible quality at competitive prices. Being focused entirely on the manufacturing of rotational moulds, the company is widely acknowledged as a professional and reliable partner by leading rotomoulders throughout Europe. From early design assistance through to the production-ready mould, it offers a complete service. MAUS is a key member of ARM-CE and the BPF rotomoulding group.
	Queens University Belfast http://www.qub.ac.uk \| Description Queen's University of Belfast has established a multi-disciplinary Polymer Processing Research Centre (PPRC) with assistance from the Industrial Research and Technology Unit (IRTU) in Northern Ireland. The Centre provides the necessary technological infrastructure to support the activities of the plastics industry. The PPRC provides the expertise and facilities required to undertake fundamental and applied research in polymer processing, reflecting the priorities of the plastics industry. The purpose of the PPRC is to carry out leading edge, industrially exploitable, fundamental and applied research, which will demonstrably improve the competitiveness of the plastics industry.
	Smithers RAPRA www.rapra.net \| info@rapra.net Description Rapra Technology is Europe’s leading independent plastics and rubber specialist organisation, providing research, technology and information services for the polymer industry and for industries using polymers in their products or processes. Rapra Technology is a wholly owned subsidiary of The Smithers Group.
	Sorcerer Machinery Ltd. http://www.sorcerermachinery.com/ \| sorcerermachinery@tiscali.co.uk Description Sorcerer was originally formed in 1993 by Andrew Prentice. It is based in Somerset (SW England) and employs a small team that co-ordinates, designs and supervises the construction of the sometimes large fabrications that go to make up a production system. It currently manufactures plant with a moulding capacity up to 6 m long × 2.5 m diameter. SORC provides custom-built rotomoulding solutions to a wide range of moulders and is active in developing the process and equipment through involvement with collaborative research programmes and its own innovations. SORC is a member of the BPF rotomoulding group.
	Tecni-Form Ltd. www.tecni-form.com \| admin@tecni-form.com Description The company was formed in 1970 to produce Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) squeeze bulbs by rotational moulding and subsequently were the first company to rotationally mould Polyethylene in the UK. We are now one of the best known technical rotational moulders in the UK and recently acquired Neale Plastics to further strengthen our technical capability. We specialise in the trade moulding of technical parts for a wide range of applications. We still use Polyethylene (in all its forms including cross-linkable), and PVC, but increasingly we are using other materials such as Polypropylene, Nylon, and Polyester. In recent years we have fully embraced 3D cad for the design of mouldings and tooling, and 5 axis CNC machining for post moulding finishing. We export to most countries in Europe and many around the world.
	The British Plastics Federation http://www.bpf.co.uk \| Description The British Plastics Federation (BPF) is the leading trade association for the UK Plastics Industry, with over 400 members and 1200 affiliated members.
	University of Minho http://eng.uminho.pt/english/DEP.htm \| Description Department of Polymer Engineering (DEP) of University of Minho DEP is a department of the Engineering School of University of Minho (Portugal), devoted to teaching and research in the fields of polymer engineering with special emphasis on modification, characterization, processing and design with polymers and polymeric composites. DEP has 25 academic staff members with PhD degree, 135 researchers (including 20 post-doctoral fellows and 65 PhD students) and 10 administrative and technical staff members. The activities of DEP include teaching (in several graduation and post-graduation projects), research and technological development. The R&TD activities are performed in an extended collaboration with national and international institutions (universities, research institutes and technological centres) and industrial companies.
	Vlaams Kunststof Centrum (VKC) \| info@vkc.be Description The Flemish Centre for Plastics Processing (Vlaams KunststofCentrum) is a technological centre of expertise, founded by, and supportive towards the plastics processing industry in Flanders. VKC is specialised in the technical support of companies in the field of plastic processing, with major activities in the field of injection moulding and extrusion. The centre was founded in 1996 and has been locatad at the site of KUL at Kortrijk, since 2001. It is a non profit-organisation with 17 co-workers and 8 freelance experts, with the mission to offer support and stimulate the growth of the plastics industry in Flanders. The target group encloses plastics converters, as well as plastics manufacturers, trading companies, mould manufacturers, suppliers of analysing equipment, etc. The main activities of the VKC include: Technological support with the appropriate equipment and skilled human recources. Construction and transfer of knowledge towards industry. Stimulation of innovation and offering support in R&D. Networking towards industry and other centres of expertise (e.g. WTCM, KUL,…).