CompositesWorld
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NEWS 21 CompositesWorld.com CW Biz Briefs BIZ BRIEFS INEOS Styrolution (Frankfurt, Germany), founded as a 50/50 joint venture of BASF SE (Ludwigshafen, Germany) and INEOS, is bringing to market an innovative thermo- plastic organic sheet for the manufacture of continuous fiber-reinforced composite components. The company claims that StyLight is the first and only thermoplastic composite material created from a styrene foam styrene-acrylonitrile (SAN) matrix with various glass or carbon fiber reinforcing tex- tiles. The processing and molding is carried out in a similar way to other organic sheets on the market, but Styrolution says there are distinct advantages to this material: the SAN matrix has very low shrinkage and its gloss contributes to off-tool part surface quality that requires minimal post-processing. In support of this product launch, INEOS Styrolution is partnering with CIKONI (Stutt- gart, Germany, a development partner for customers in the automotive, aviation, and consumer goods industry known for preforming) and ESI Group (Chartres-de- Bretagne, France) to ensure the availability of the necessary methods and tools for the virtual design of components for customers. Turkey-based Şişecam will invest about US$100 million to build a new glass fiber plant in Balikesir, Turkey. It will have an an- nual capacity of 70,000 MT and is expected to become operational in the second half of 2018. Şişecam , originally Cam Elyaf Sanayii A.Ş., remains the sole manufacturer of glass fiber in Turkey, based in Gebze, Kocaeli, near Istanbul, and supplies customers in 30 coun- tries worldwide. Balikesir, in northwestern Turkey, is very close to the Aegean region industrial cluster where 80% of wind energy manufacturers in Turkey are now located. The new plant will produce the company's current range of E-glass fiber reinforcement products. The Balikesir plant is primarily aimed at serving customers in Europe looking for a reliable supply chain and a more local source of high-quality glass fiber products. Key markets for Şişecam glass fiber include wind energy, automotive, land transportation, marine, industrial, building and construction. To meet the specification requirements of key industry sectors, Şişecam has acquired various DNV-GL, Lloyds Register and FDA compliance certifications.