FRIMO Offers New Opportunities for Release Agent-Free PU Foaming with PURe Liner

WIXOM, Mich., March 4, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- FRIMO, one of the leading developers and providers of system solutions for the manufacture of high quality plastic components, announced today that it has secured new automotive business contracts in North America surrounding its innovative PURe Liner – a product that offers new processing opportunities to achieve release agent-free production of polyurethane (PU) foamed interior components.

The recently acquired new business contracts are with Tier 1 suppliers using PURe Liner for support with interior components to be used in upcoming vehicle projects for Ford Motor Co. and Mercedes-Benz.

The company also announced that it will be presenting two technical papers on automotive developments in the area of PU processing at the 2014 UTECH North America conference, held June 4-5 in Charlotte, N.C. Both of FRIMO's papers – Innovations in PU Processing – Seating Systems, and Novel Process for Eliminating Mold Releases – will be presented at the conference on June 5. The company will also be exhibiting at booth #411 on the show floor.

PURe Liner Advantages

Because reactive polymers, such as polyurethanes, exhibit extremely strong adhesion to metallic materials, appropriate measures are required in order to remove foamed articles from the mold without damaging them. Up until now, these measures – such as external release agents – have created a number of disadvantages.

The PURe Liner is a semi-permanent mold liner made of a self-releasing plastic compound. Patented by a German partner company, this process has been further developed by FRIMO with regard to the front-foaming (partial back-foaming of inserted substrates) of polyurethanes. Due to its unique material composition, the innovative PURe Liner permits low demolding forces while remaining in the mold cavity.

The PURe Liner is fitted over the complete surface of the mold and is held in place via vacuum and can be easily replaced within 15 seconds. The use of PURe Liner can not only eliminate the need for a release agent station but it can also reduce cycle times, cut labor costs, eliminate the need for added molds, reduce scrap and save additional investment costs. In addition, the PURe Liner allows for surface textures to be applied directly in the injection molded liner process, which is then transferred to the polyurethane molded article.

The PURe Liner is most often used when processing interior automotive components such as arm rests but FRIMO is actively looking at opportunities to use the innovation in other applications to help produce much larger parts.

FRIMO offers its customers individual PURe Liner concept analysis and cost benefit calculations on a project by project basis depending upon the required parameters. Results from projects in production show cost savings of up to 20 percent over a program life versus the conventional processes that use a release agent.

About FRIMO
The FRIMO Group includes global production and sales locations with more than 1,200 employees in Europe, Asia and America, and numerous representatives around the world. FRIMO is one of the worldwide leading developers and providers of system solutions for the manufacture of high quality fiber-reinforced plastics and supplies tooling and machinery, as well as the respective automation and finishing, e.g. with flexible trimming, joining and assembling. FRIMO's portfolio for the plastics processing industries also covers an extremely wide range of technologies: PU processing along with flexible trimming, punching, pressing and forming, as well as thermoforming, laminating, edgefolding, joining and gluing. FRIMO offers its customers tailor-made tools, machinery and systems as separate or turnkey solutions from a single source. FRIMO North America is headquartered in Wixom, Mich.

SOURCE FRIMO