PETpla.net Insider 01+02 / 2010

NEWS 8 PET planet insider Vol. 11 No. 01+02/10 www.petpla.net New Mocon-certified testing opens in Mumbai, India Mocon, Inc. has partnered with Hemetek Techno Instruments of Mumbai, India to establish a certified test laboratory. Officially opened in January 2010, it is the first independent Mocon-certified site in the world. It will be providing barrier and headspace analysis, leak detection and burst testing for food, beverage and pharmaceutical/medical packaging. The Mumbai lab will be offering a two-day permeation/ packaging training program for people wishing to gain super- vised experience on state-of-the-art Mocon testing equipment. The Mocon-certified lab will be able to provide results faster than Indian companies’ tra- ditional testing institutions, helping companies cut development time and improve speed-to-market. The new lab provides a ‘test drive’ opportunity for companies considering buying Mocon testing equip- ment. New PET Engineering Vostok manager Italian company PET Engineering Srl has appointed Mrs. Yulia Valishina to the position of General Manager of PET Engineer- ing Vostok, the company’s subsidiary in Moscow, Russia. She replaces Mr. Gianfranco Zoccatelli. Mrs. Valishina has held a number of positions in leading bever- age industry companies, including almost 7 years as Area Service Manager for Russia and CIS at SIG Corpoplast Russia. Sustainable production of PET bottles Aachen University institute and industry partners research energy and resource efficiency Experts from different points along the chain have come together to establish a research project that is seeking to improve energy usage, sustainability and resource efficiency of stretch blow mould- ing PET bottle production. The project is especially tailored to small and medium-sized companies and is being financed with funds from the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) in Ger- many. It is supervised by the Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe (PTKA); responsibility for coordinating the research activities and providing scientific supervision lies with the Institut für Kunststoffverarbeitung (IKV) at RWTH Aachen University. The IKV is also supporting the project through the consistent simulation of all the different proc- ess stages. Investigations are focused on a detailed analysis of the energy balance of the stretch blow moulding process. Methods are then developed for assessing the efficiency of industrial stretch blow moulding machines and components. Different approaches are being assessed to increasing the energy efficiency of the heating process and to increasing the resource and energy efficiency of the form- ing operation. Industrial partners are stretch blow moulding machine manufacturer KHS Corpoplast, Hamburg; AdPhos Innovative Technologies; and Bruckmühl-Heufeld, which specialises in thermal processes. Findings are sent to Okertaler Mineralbrunnen, Goslar (Weydringer Group), which adds application technology expertise. Results are implemented on an industrial stretch blow moulding machine, which produces alcohol-free beverages, and evaluated for energy utilisation. PET+ Drink Tech Asia 2010 with Pack Tech Asia The fourth PET+Drink Tech Asia international exhibition and seminar will be running from 27-29 August 2010 at Chennai Trade & Convention Centre, Tamil Nadu, India. It will showcase a wide spectrum of products in the PET drink and packag- ing related sectors. Exhibitors will include manu- facturers and distributors of PET injection and stretch blow moulding machines; sheet extruding machines; recycling, washing and label separator equipment; refrigeration and ventilations technol- ogy; sterilisation systems; water treatment and automation and packaging technology. Visitors to the third edition, held in Mumbai in October 2009, included CEOs and heads of research involved in PET products and technologies; drinks industries; edible oils and spices; processed food; pharmaceu- ticals, cosmetics and chemicals. Pack Tech Asia 2010 which showcases developments, machinery and technologies in packaging, will run concurrenty with the PET+Drink Tech exhibition. Chinaplas 2010 Chinaplas 2010 will take place at Expo Centre, Pudong, Shanghai, P.R. China from April 19-22, 2010, integrating advanced technology into everyday life and accelerating development of plas- tics and rubber. The 24th International Exhibition of Plastics and Rubber Industries will showcase leading sourcing platforms and introduce innovative applications of plastics and rubber technolo- gies for various industrial sectors. CHINAPLAS will host a series of concurrent activities under the theme of ‘Green Plastics – Our Goal; Our Future’. These will focus on how the 3Rs (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle) can be adopted to current and future plastics and rubber industries. An industrial forum on Green Technology will be held on the first three days. 1,900 exhibitors from 35 countries and regions, including 10 country/region pavilions, will welcome an expected 75,000 profes- sional visitors from China and worldwide. www.chinaplasonline.com New Husky facility in India Groundwork has begun on a new facility in Chen- nai, India, for Husky Injection Molding Systems. When it is finished, the 3,300 square meter (35,520 sq ft) facility will accommodate sales, customer support, manufacturing and sourcing teams. It is intended to support Husky’s growing business in the region by providing local hot runner and mould refurbishing, to reduce lead times. Husky first entered the Indian market in 1999 and its local office was opened in 2001. The Chennai facility is expected to be opera- tional within one year. Other recent investments in new markets include a larger technical centre in Yoko- hama, Japan, expansion of the technical centre in Shanghai, China and the establishment of a new PET and hot runner refurbishing centre in Moscow, Russia.