Brussels, Belgium--Four winners walked off with top prizes in Montell's Worldwide Innovation Awards. The winners represent transportation, consumer, industrial, and packaging industries.
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Montell launched the inaugural program earlier this year under the theme "Partners in Innovation." The purpose: "to promote close collaboration between the polymer manufacturer, the converters, and the end-user to optimize the innovation process." The winning entries:
Worldwide Transportation Sector--McCord-Winn Textron Inc. (Lavonia, GA) for developing a patented RITec(TM) family of products that combines the washer bottle, coolant reservoir, and fan shroud in a one-piece, blow-molded component. The winner selected Montell's Pro-fax(reg) SD-613 resin to give the product consistent dimensional stability, high melt strength (HMS), and extended draw ratio, all of which contributed to a highly productive process, according to the judges. In the final analysis, however, the resin's "superior heat distortion temperature (HDT) performance and environmental stress crack resistance (ESCR) overshadowed high-density polyethylene (HDPE) as a candidate material."
Worldwide Consumer Sector--Walker Bay Boats (Woodinville, WA) for injection molding of an 8-ft (2.5m) boat that can be rowed, sailed, or motor-driven. The project called for 46 lb (21 kg) of a custom, high-melt-flow ProFax SG-714 resin formed in a 6,500-ton injection-molding press. The one-component boat is said to exhibit good impact resistance and UV stability. The process also resulted in a finish that resembles the traditional wooden lap strike design, but enabled glossy and textured finishes to be incorporated.
Worldwide Industrial Sector--Nylex Polymer Products (Mentone, Australia) for the development of a membrane and associated water stop extrusions used to waterproof a road tunnel that forms part of the Melbourne City Link road project. The choice of Montell's Astryn(reg) CA-721, a resin from the Catalloy process, allowed the same polymer to be used for a number of products and processes. It also offered the designers a very long service life, as well as installation, performance and environmental benefits, such as high puncture resistance and ease of welding, the judges noted.
Worldwide Packaging Sector--TiroPak-Convenience Food Systems (Romont, Switzerland) for a microwaveable frozen-food package in HMS PP foam. The material provides "standup" display possibilities and insulation properties for the consumer. HMS Pro-Fax PF-814 resin permitted extrusions of unthermoformed foam sheet to make better use of PP's "memory effect." The system "epitomizes current market trends, microwaveability, long shelf-life, space-saving storage, high-quality printed lidding film and environmental savings," according to the judges.
The awards jury consisted of the president of a U.S. plastics company, a former professor of architecture and design consultant from Italy, the scientific director of an industrial design academy in Italy, the co-founder of a London-based product and industrial design and development firm, and several editors and publishers of leading plastics publications from around the world.
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