Extrusion Solutions

VOLUME 2
ISSUE 1
JU NE 2 0 1 4
JUNE 2014 EDITION
Extrusion Solutions
T HE
L AT E ST
E XTR U D I N G
N EWS
FRO M
E NT E K
CHOOSES
ENTEK Provides Turnkey Support To Help MacDermid Successfully Engineer,
Install, and Commission a Multimillion Dollar Production Line
friendliness, that ENTEK brought to the
table.” Dean Elliott, ENTEK’s Lab Manager,
even created a unique, custom screw
design to better process MacDermid’s
challenging formulation.
ENTEK supplied MacDermid with a new
103mm twin-screw extruder, chosen
because of its high volume capacity
and customization ability. In addition
ENTEK was contracted to engineer all the
electrical and controls for the extensive
tank farm, multiple liquid injection systems
and pellet delivery to the extruder. This
included designing and assembling
multiple electrical enclosures to service
the fully automated material supply
systems. ENTEK was also responsible for
laying out the power distribution for the
entire line.
The Right Process
MacDermid Printing Solutions, based
in Atlanta, GA, is a global leader in the
production of photopolymer products like
packaging, publication and coating plates
that can be used for printing on paper,
film, newsprint or corrugated material.
They are widely regarded as one of the top
producers of printing plates in the industry
because of their superior quality and
innovative company mentality.
In 2012, when MacDermid had decided
to expand capacity at its Morristown,
TN plant for the production of flexible
packaging printing plates, company
officials attended the NPE 2012 show in
Orlando looking for twin-screw extruder
suppliers. It was there that MacDermid
originally connected with ENTEK.
“We were impressed by their 103mm
twin-screw extruder they had on
display, but even more impressed with
their ability and willingness to assist
with project management,” said Gary
Markhart, Director of Engineering at
MacDermid. This turnkey approach made
the difference, and MacDermid decided to
give ENTEK a try.
The Right Machine
Initial lab trials at ENTEK’s headquarters
in Oregon proved to MacDermid that
they could successfully process the
application. “The lab trials were
extremely important, as the extruder
had to process a challenging mixture
of low viscosity resin, synthetic rubber
plasticizers, photo-initiators, and oil,” said
Markhart. “Right away we saw the kind
of technical capabilities, and customer
EXTRUSION SOLUTIONS is an ENTEK publication. Visit us at www.entek.com
Beyond supplying great equipment,
ENTEK was also able to provide turnkey
support to help integrate that equipment
into the rest of the production line that
MacDermid was developing. Al Bailey
of ENTEK was brought in to oversee the
electrical installations for the entire line,
and was onsite at MacDermid for six
months to help manage the project.
In addition to the twin-screw extruder, the
production line included a tank farm, a
calender, a cooling tunnel, vision system,
laser marking machines, and UV lighting/
treatment. ENTEK was asked to manage
the integration of all of these into a single
control system and they came through,
creating custom screens for control of all
line operations.
(continues on page 3)
JUNE 2014
PAGE 1
Executive’s Corner
A New Look
Welcome to the latest issue of
Extrusion Solutions.
You’ll notice a new look and feel to this
issue of our newsletter. ENTEK has proudly
launched a new company brand, which
includes a new logo and website that brings
all three of ENTEK’s divisions together
under one banner. We’ve done this to bring
our multi-faceted company together as
one, giving us a stronger global image and
positioning us for continued growth in new,
emerging markets.
Who We Are
“
What’s changing with
the new rebranding
of ENTEK is a closer
operating relationship
between the three
company divisions, to
better serve all of
our customers.
”
You know ENTEK as a supplier of twinscrew extruders, replacement wear parts,
complete extrusion systems and turnkey
plant services support. What you may
not know is ENTEK is also the leading
worldwide producer of microporous battery
separator technology.
ENTEK’s lead-acid battery separator
technology provides industry leaders
with reliable high-quality products for
automobile SLI (starting, lighting and
ignition), automobile start-stop, golf cart, and
industrial applications; and its lithium-ion
separators are designed for rechargeable
lithium batteries in portable electronics and
vehicles as well as disposable lithium cells.
The company’s world-class co-rotating twin
screw extruders and systems are used not
only to manufacture a wide range of goods
from compounding colors and masterbatch
formulations, food products, decking
materials and medical applications, but also
its own separator products.
EXTRUSION SOLUTIONS is an ENTEK publication. Visit us at www.entek.com
What’s Changing – and What Isn’t
Besides the new logo and look, what’s
changing with the new rebranding of ENTEK
is a closer operating relationship between
the three company divisions, to better serve
all of our customers. While the divisions
have always worked together, we are in the
process of more closely aligning to make
better use of our combined resources.
What isn’t changing is the level of service
you, our customers, will receive from
ENTEK. In fact, the only thing you’ll notice
may be an even higher level of response
from us. We fully expect that by combining
our resources, ENTEK will be better able to
provide you with the products and expertise
you need to succeed. We expect this to be the
case for all of our customers, those of you
who use ENTEK twin-screw extruders and
replacement wear parts, as well as those
who use ENTEK’s services for complete
turnkey systems and plant services project
support.
Stay tuned for more news in future issues
of Extrusion Solutions on how ENTEK can
better serve you and help you improve your
operations.
As always, I encourage you to contact me
anytime at [email protected].
Sincerely,
Dr. Kirk Hanawalt
President, ENTEK Extruders
JUNE 2014
PAGE 2
Extrusion Solutions
MacDermid Chooses ENTEK
(continued from p. 1)
An important part of ENTEK’s turnkey support included
providing training to MacDermid’s engineers and line operators
to bring them up to speed on system operation.
“We love the fact that they offered so much more than just the
extruder,” said Markhart. “We saw true turnkey service and
support from them, and it helped make our installation a real
success story.”
The Right People
Overall, the entire process went better than MacDermid could
have expected. Above all else though, the quality of the people
working for ENTEK was what impressed them the most.
“The biggest positive of the many we took away from this
whole experience was the plethora of top-notch people that
work for ENTEK,” said Markhart.
Right on schedule, MacDermid’s new production line started up
in February. ENTEK’s Bill Petrozelli was onsite at MacDermid
for the startup, providing invaluable processing knowledge
and assistance. The line is now in its qualification stage, and
MacDermid is successfully shipping product to its customers.
“Everyone from the President of the company to the engineers
that came and helped us install the system brought a positive,
can-do attitude, were easy to work with, and developed a great
camaraderie with our own employees.”
This project showed how ENTEK’s turnkey project services
combined the company’s top-quality twin-screw extruders with
engineering project management, and exceptional customer
service, to help a customer succeed.
ENTEK Extruders’ Dean Elliott a Featured Speaker
at First Annual AMI Compounding World Forum
Dean Elliott, lab manager at ENTEK
Extruders, appeared as a featured speaker
at the first annual AMI Compounding World
Forum in Philadelphia, PA. The forum took
place from December 10 – 11, 2013 and
featured 21 presentations from speakers
hand selected by Compounding World’s
editorial team. Thirty-seven exhibitors were in
attendance with representatives from over 50
compounding companies there for the event.
Dean’s presentation, titled “Extrusion of
Polymers and Fillers Derived From Plants,”
primarily focused on how to optimize a
co-rotating twin-screw extruder line for
the processing of bio-plastics and natural
fiber plastic composites (FPC’s). He did this
through an explanation of five main extrusion
processing limitations, temperature,
EXTRUSION SOLUTIONS is an ENTEK publication. Visit us at www.entek.com
power, volume, moisture, and pressure,
and how they relate to biopolymers and
natural fibers. Dean then went through each
limitation individually and discussed different
strategies for how to optimize the extruder’s
ability to cope with them.
“It was exciting for me to be given the
opportunity to speak at what was such a
successful event,” said Dean. “Overall, I think
it went great and I know the organizers were
very pleased with the turnout.”
If you would like to receive a copy of this
paper, please send an e-mail to Dean at
[email protected] with your request.
He will respond promptly!
JUNE 2014
PAGE 3
In-House Lab
Lab Notes
As we mentioned in our last issue of Extrusion Solutions, the ENTEK
in-house development lab has been equipped with an all-new
ENTEK 53mm twin-screw extruder. We’re happy to announce we
have also added a new ENTEK 27mm twin-screw extruder to the
lab. This will help us keep up with the increased demand we’ve seen
recently for lab trials.
We Make House Calls
Did you know that ENTEK’s Lab Manager, Dean Elliott, is available to
travel to your plant? While we encourage customers and prospects
to come to ENTEK’s headquarters in Oregon to take advantage of
our in-house expertise and run trials, we understand that’s not
always possible.
“We’ve received numerous requests from customers asking if we
would be willing to run trials at their facilities, instead of them
coming to ENTEK,” said Dean Elliott. “The answer is yes!”
Interested in a lab trial, either at ENTEK or at your facility?
Contact Dean at [email protected] for more information.
R&D update
When ENTEK’s customers talk, ENTEK listens.
In its continuing effort to provide the products and
services its customers want and need, ENTEK has
recently developed some new products that are
helpful in improving fast changeover times on its
twin-screw extruders.
Fast changeovers are an all-important, but not always
easy task. Many compounders run small lots of
materials, and frequently need to change screw sets
in order to process different formulations. Changing
screws and/or barrels can be a time-consuming
process, and with most compounders, downtime is not
an option.
With this in mind, ENTEK continues to work on
changeover systems that are fast and foolproof,
something that machine operators can do without
having to bring in a specialist. “We are looking at how
the screws couple back into the gearbox, for example,
and how easy it is to access the couplings,” said John
Effmann, ENTEK Director of Sales and Marketing. “
Then there’s the strand die plate; if we can make it less
expensive and easier to change, it may make more sense
to take it off and put in a new one, rather than clean it on
the machine.”
Need Advice on Fast Changeovers?
Call ENTEK Today!
While all of these are works in progress, ENTEK has some new methods
it has developed to help its customers with fast changeovers. These include
a new coupling system that allows for faster twin-screw removal, and a new
barrel cleaning device (see photos). Call ENTEK today for more information.
“Every application is unique, and everything the customer is doing – what
materials they’re running, how often they change colors and formulations,
the abrasiveness or corrosiveness of the materials, etc. – needs to be
taken into account,” said Effmann. “That being said, we encourage our
customers to contact us to discuss their specific needs – we are confident
we can help.”
EXTRUSION SOLUTIONS is an ENTEK publication. Visit us at www.entek.com
JUNE 2014
PAGE 4
Wear Parts
ENTEK Replacement Wear Parts
Tammy Straw
ENTEK’s replacement wear parts business has steadily grown
over the past few years. Sales have reached record levels in both
2012 and 2013, and 2014 has started out just as strong. Demand for
ENTEK-built screws, barrels, and other parts for both ENTEK and
non-ENTEK brand twin-screw extruders have never been greater.
Leading the replacement wear parts effort are Tammy Straw
and Stephanie March. Now in her 15th year at ENTEK, Tammy
is ENTEK’s Business Development Coordinator, responsible for
directing wear parts sales and customer support. Stephanie is
ENTEK’s Sales Project Engineer, providing price quotes for wear
parts and in-house customer support.
New – Gearbox Rebuilding Services!
A recently added service provided by ENTEK is its gearbox
rebuilding program. The gearbox is the ‘heart’ of any twinscrew extruder, and a major part of the machine’s success.
Traditionally, a worn or damaged gearbox meant significant
downtime for the extruder, as most gearbox suppliers are
overseas and repairs or even new orders could take months.
Stephanie March
ENTEK can now repair gearboxes in much less time. Contact
Tammy or Stephanie at ENTEK for further details.
Replacement Parts for Large Twin-Screw
Extruders
Another recent development at ENTEK is their production
of replacement wear parts for very large non-ENTEK brand
extruders. Screws and barrels have recently been supplied
for 104mm, 160mm, and 250mm size non-ENTEK machines.
“Customers love the fact that we make all our parts here in
Oregon and we ship them faster than they can get them from
their machinery suppliers,” said Tammy. “We keep many ENTEK
and non-ENTEK replacement parts here in stock, and some are
available for next day shipment.”
We value our customer relationships and will work with you to
have your spare parts available, and in stock when you need
them. For more information on customizing a parts program
for your company, contact Tammy at [email protected].
ENTEK Welcomes John Gillespie as Director of Engineering
ENTEK is pleased to announce it has hired John Gillespie to the newly-created position of Director of
Engineering for the company. In this role, John will manage, support and provide leadership direction to
ENTEK’s mechanical and control engineers.
John comes to ENTEK from Imperium Renewables of Grays Harbor, WA, where he most recently served
as Vice President of Operations. Prior to that he worked for Momentive Specialty Chemicals for 18 years
in a variety of roles, most recently as Director of North American Production & Project Engineering in
Columbus, OH. There he was responsible for the production and project activities of 20 plants throughout
North America. He holds a Bachelors’ in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Dayton.
“I’m excited to be joining ENTEK and am looking forward to helping the company continue its excellent
performance and growth,” said John. “It’s also great to be coming back to Oregon, where I have lived and
worked in the past.” From 1998 – 2007, John worked at plants in Springfield and La Grande, OR.
EXTRUSION SOLUTIONS is an ENTEK publication. Visit us at www.entek.com
JUNE 2014
PAGE 5
When in Oregon
Who to Contact
SUMMER
A Great Time to Visit Oregon
ENTEK
PO Box 39, 200 Hansard Avenue
Lebanon, OR 97355
Tel. 541-259-1068
FAX 541-259-8018
http://www.entek.com
Dr. Kirk Hanawalt
President
E-mail: [email protected]
John Effmann
Director of Sales & Marketing
E-mail: [email protected]
Tammy Straw
Business Development Coordinator
E-mail: [email protected]
Stephanie March
Sales Project Engineer
E-mail: [email protected]
Dean Elliott
Lab Manager
E-mail: [email protected]
North America
It’s almost summer – the best time of
the year to visit Oregon! Many of our
customers who make the trip out to
ENTEK to run lab trials and visit our
facility stay a few extra days to sightsee and visit some of the great places
our state has to offer. Side trips to the
rugged Oregon coast, Mt. Hood, Crater
Lake, Oregon wine country, or the city
of Portland are common, and that’s just
for starters.
and Wear Parts business, but our
impressive battery separator production
facilities next door. Our world-class
factories were all designed and built by
ENTEK – an excellent example of our
company’s turnkey capabilities.
If you’re thinking of visiting ENTEK, give
us a call - we will be more than happy
to help you plan your trip, offer tips on
where to stay, what to do, etc.
While here, ENTEK will give you a guided
plant tour to see not only our Extruders
Bill Petrozelli
Regional Sales Manager
Tel. 541-259-1068 ext. 8117
FAX 541-259-8018
E-mail: [email protected]
Linda Campbell
Regional Sales Manager
Tel. 541-259-1068
FAX 541-259-8018
E-mail: [email protected]
Europe
John Effmann
Director of Sales and Marketing
E-mail: [email protected]
Asia
Tay Hwa Beng
Asian Sales Manager
Tel. +65-997579621
E-mail: [email protected]
EXTRUSION SOLUTIONS is an ENTEK publication.
Visit us at www.entek.com
JUNE 2014
PAGE 6