A conventional wisdom that continues to be rolled out in manufacturing circles is the inferiority of recycled plastics.  There are plenty of horror stories where a processor used regrind in an application that ended up failing in the field.  However, a closer analysis of these failures would most likely find the root cause to be the processors lack of knowledge of recycled plastics.  Unfortunately in some of these instances it can be attributed to a greedy processor “jammin’ in the regrind” to turn a quick buck.

Opportunity can be found by questioning conventional wisdom, but the most savvy decision makers know they also need to find the right partner when it comes to implementing their recycled plastics strategy.  For over 15 years AGS Technology has been providing OEM’s and Tier 1 suppliers with high quality, functional parts made from recycled plastic.  AGS Technology’s track record has been impeccable and this performance provides us with the confidence and credentials to defend the use of recycled plastic.

In the November 28, 2011 weekly edition of Automotive News, recycled plastic was negatively portrayed as a tactic to reduce cost that inevitably lowered vehicle performance expectations.  George Staniulis, AGS Vice President, challenged this portrayal.  George’s letter to the editor was published in the December 12, 2011 edition and can be read by clicking on the link below.

Automotive News Opinions 12/12/2011

In some cases there is a good reason for specifying the natural color such as a simple visual cue for identifying two different parts that may look identical or to provide a contrast against a dark background for poke-yoke vision systems.  However, based on our experience this line of reasoning seems to be the exception rather than the rule.

The primary reason is the fact that natural, virgin materials often cost less than their black, virgin counterparts.  In the virgin resin world, plastic materials come out of the polymerization reactor in their respective natural color.  For example, natural acetal, ABS, polypropylene, and polyethylene look white in color while natural nylon appears light tan.  In order to make virgin materials black an additional manufacturing step is required which adds cost.

In the recycled plastic world, the bulk of recovered post industrial and post consumer scrap materials have already been pre-colored.  For example, it is not unusual to see orange regrind a few months before road construction season or Halloween.  Black color concentrate is added to these multi-colored feedstocks in order to end up with a consistent looking material.

Surprisingly, the greatest resistance that customers have shown when converting from virgin, natural resin to an AGS Injectoblend recycled alternative is the change to black.  Since the parts has always been molded in natural, there is the perception that there must have been an engineering basis for this callout.  Usually when this issue is  fully investigated the customer finds the decision to use natural color was in fact driven by the same motive driving the conversion to the AGS Injectoblend recycled alternative; lower cost.

The benefits of virgin plastic replacing metal has been marketed and well documented by major resin companies over the years. These include greater part complexity, parts consolidation, weight reduction, electrical insulation, and chemical/corrosion resistance among others at a lower overall cost.  Now that most of these metal to virgin plastic opportunities have been realized the trend over the last decade has been to substitute lower cost, lower performing virgin plastics in the “over-engineered” plastic part.

In the 1980′s and 1990′s it was common to see various automotive exterior, interior, and under-the-hood brackets made from very high performing engineering resins such as Acetal (Delrin, Celcon), Nylon ( Zytel, Vydyne), Polycarbonate (Lexan, Calibre), Polyester (Rynite, Valox), and Polycarbonate+Polyester Blends (Xenoy, Makroblend).  In hindsight, the design/release/material engineer was overly focused on replacing the original metal part with a virgin plastic material having comparable heat, stiffness, impact, etc… properties.  Fast forward to today and this is now the exception as evidenced by the proliferation of filled and unfilled olefin based compounds such as polypropylene and TPO that are formulated to meet the physical, thermal, and chemical requirements of the actual end use environment. 

For example, interiors supplier Prince Corporation (acquired by Johnson Controls in 1996) used General Electric Lexan EM3110 (a modified polycarbonate with excellent heat resistance and cold temperature impact) for practically all of their backplates, bins, and overhead consoles.  Prince had negotiated such an advantageous price for this grade of material it made it easy and cost effective for them to ”drive a semi-truck to pick up a gallon of milk”.  As the cost of bisphenol A began to escalate and the Johnson Controls/General Electric relationship changed, the price of this polycarbonate grade increased.   This led Johnson Controls to systematically validate lower cost virgin plastic options such as polycarbonate+ABS blends and high heat ABS.  This downward ratcheting approach continues today as even lower cost glass/mineral/talc reinforced polypropylene grades make inroads in the automotive interior.

If this was a Hollywood movie it would end happily ever after on this note.  However, as any experienced person in manufacturing knows, life in Hollywood may be plastic, but life in plastics is not Hollywood.  Virgin polymer prices including propylene and ethylene based materials continue to increase at an alarming rate and remain volatile.  What options does an OEM and/or supplier have at this point?  Enter stage right, AGS Injectoblend materials and their injection molding know-how.

The simplest approach to help lower cost is a direct Injectoblend material substitution.  This is a straightforward “apples to apples” replacement of the virgin material with its recycled counterpart.  Several examples of this approach are detailed in the following:     AGS Case Study-STS Bracket     AGS Case Study-Pressurized Sprayer Handle     AGS Case Study-Center Tubes

The more creative approach with the greatest reward potential is cross-polymer Injectoblend material substitution.  When AGS Technology looks to substitute a recycled plastic material for a specific application it does so from a very different perspective.  In many instances, the economics of recycled plastic are such that a higher performing recycled material can replace a lower virgin grade with cost savings.  A good example of this is detailed in the following AGS Case Study-Tank Bases.  In some other instances there are ongoing sources of recycled plastic being generated that are considered “problematic” due to the fact that they may be commingled with another plastic, painted, covered with an adhesive, etc…  Although appearance and some properties may be diminished, AGS’ ability to formulate and then mold a consistent performing part allows for signficant cost reductions as highlighted in AGS Case Study-Challenger OHC Substrate.

Manufacturing is competitive and the pressure to lower cost, reduce delivery times, and improve quality continues unabated.  Since most of the  ”low hanging fruit” opportunities have already been captured, OEM’s and design responsible component suppliers need to look outside of their traditional supply base to help them achieve their goals.  Recycled material and conversion solutions offered by AGS Technology represent a new wave of thinking to help tackle these difficult challenges.

A common misperception is that the shrink characteristics for virgin materials are different than their recycled equivalent.  The obvious concern with a different shrink factor is the need to weld and/or re-cut the steel on the cavities and cores.  For the great majority of structural plastic parts this is simply not the case.  The amount of shrink for any plastic is determined primarily by the crystalline or amorphous nature of the polymer.  This characteristic is inherent to the material type and does not change whether it is virgin or recycled.  Modifiers, fillers, and reinforcements can significantly alter shrink characteristics of a polymer, but once again they behave the same in virgin materials as they do in recycled materials.  The only exception that we have seen is a very slight difference in the flow directon using high glass content materials.  The reason for this difference is the attrition of the glass fiber in a recycled material compared to the virgin glass fiber counterpart.  The result is the recycled part will measure slightly smaller  in the flow direction, but in most cases we are talking about a negligeable amount (0.0005″-0.001″ in/in).  In the 16 years that AGS has been in the injection molding business, we have never had to modify the cavities and cores of  a mold due to shrink.

There are some cases where AGS will modify an existing tool in order to optimize the processing of the Injectoblend material.  These changes are not unique to the Injectoblend material, but simply good tooling practices that will help any plastic material (virgin or recycled) run better.  For example, many existing molds that are transferred to AGS Technology either have no vents, the vents are “cosmetic”, or the vents have been  crushed closed over time and no longer allow air to escape from the cavity.  In these cases, AGS will cut the proper vent depth and land specific to the type of raw material.  The end result is a more balanced fill, less molded in stress, and improved surface appearance since the new vents allow volatiles to escape to atmosphere.

For new tools, AGS has developed its own tool standard that specifies mold build requirements.  The AGS Tool Standard is a living document that captures good tooling practices and “lessons learned” for parts made from virgin or recycled materials.  Every new tool managed by AGS Technology is checked against this tool standard to help ensure smooth part launches.  Click on the following AGS Tool Standard (10-07-08) to view the latest pdf revision.

Injectoblend Rises Above All Challengers:  When a virgin resin is discontinued it presents Engineering with an opportunity to reassess material selection for a given set of components.  How many times has a specific material been carried over simply because that was used in the previous or in a similar type of part?  This case study details how Injectoblend DP3 (40% Glass PP) was developed by AGS to replace a discontinued grade of virgin Dylark .  Not only is the Injectoblend DP3 significantly less expensive, but the formulation can also incorporate automotive headliner PP scrap to help foster long term environmental sustainability.

 Injectoblend Helps Chrysler Defeat Spartan Interior In New 300:  Why do OEM’s specify virgin materials for so many non-appearance, structural parts such as bolsters, backplates, overhead consoles, armrests, etc…?  This practice represents a tremendous opportunity cost that could be used to upgrade features that customers actually see, feel, and care about.  This case study explores how AGS Injectoblend FABSPC003 (ABS+PC Blend) is being used on several non-appearance, structural parts in the new 2011 Chrysler 300.  These types of parts are ideal for using recycled materials and AGS Technology is at the forefront of this initiative by providing customers the best cost to performance payback.

Injectoblend ABS Now Standard On The Cadillac STS:  Ever get the sense that most OEM “Tech Reviews” miss the chance to take advantage of cost save opportunities at the very beginning of a program?  This case study unveils how AGS Technology provides customers with alternative Injectoblend material proposals that can be readily implemented so that cost savings can be captured without delay.  Many Injectoblend raw materials already have formal automotive approvals while others are approved on a part specific basis.  For part specific approvals, General Motors typically issues GM7001M/GM7400M line call outs, Ford uses ASTMD4000 line callouts, and Chrysler prefers outside design & development (O.D.D) performance criteria.  AGS works with both the customer and OEM to determine the best and fastest material approval track so that material cost saves can be realized right away.

In 2009 and 2010, automotive OEM’s and their supply base drastically restructured their businesses in order to make money at an annual sales rate of 10.0 to 12.0 million vehicles. As we close the book on 2010, the news from the automotive industry continues to improve with car sales increasing steadily. The latest predictions for annual sales in 2011 fall within a range of 12.4 to 14.0 million vehicles with 12.9 million as a consensus.

The question now for many OEM’s and large Tier 1&2 suppliers is how do they manage this additional volume without increasing their overhead and capital costs? The obvious solution is to outsource the lower margin parts to reliable, low cost partners.

Over the last 16 years, AGS Technology has developed an excellent reputation as a low cost, dependable supplier. By focusing on the judicious use of recycled materials and constantly streamlining its operations, AGS Technology continues to offer the following benefits:

• Cost Savings
• Performance
• Recycled content
• ISO/TS16949 certification
• Certified minority owned business

For 2011 AGS stands ready to provide these benefits to all new and existing customers.

Below are the latest examples of new launch products where AGS is realizing this commitment.

A relatively new magazine and website called Green Manufacturer showcases stories about manufacturers with successful approaches to sustainable manufacturing. True to its mission, Green Manufacturer has featured AGS Technology in its May/June issue. Editor Kate Bachman spent a day touring and interviewing employees at AGS’ raw material and injection molding facilities. The end result is an article that provides an in-depth report on the background, process, benefits, and people that make up AGS Technology.

To access Green Manufacturer’s website and to read the digital version of the article go to www.greenmanufacturer.net.

For this reason, AGS Technology has always approached recycled plastics from a property performance standpoint, the same way the metals industry has approached their materials. For example, when an engineer specifies a grade of steel, they are expecting a certain performance profile (ie. tensile strength, hardness, etc…). The engineer does not even think twice about the fact that the grade of steel may contain 100% recycled material. As long as the steel meets the specified properties the engineer is satisfied.

AGS Injectoblend plastic materials are formulated using this same line of reasoning. Every grade of Injectoblend has a set minimum, maximum, or range of properties that need to be satisfied in order to be qualified as such. In some cases, AGS may need to use a virgin plastic, additive, and/or modifier, but most of the time the performance profile is achieved using 100% recycled plastics.

This approach has paid off for AGS Technology as evidenced by the increased material approvals within the automotive industry. General Motors and Ford Materials Engineering has approved AGS Injectoblend materials to the following specifications; GMP.ABS+PC.002, GMP.PA66.013, GMP.PP.017, and WSS-M4D926-A2 (PC). Likewise, Chrysler has green lighted AGS Injectoblend materials based on Outside Design & Development (ODD) approvals to the following specifications; MS-DB-200 (ABS), MS-DB-195 (ABS+PC), MS-DB-41 (PA66), MS-DB-145 (PC), MS-DB-100 (POM), MS-DB-500 (PP).

For a complete listing of AGS Injectoblend automotive approvals as of this posting, click on the following link AGS Material Approvals 5-04-10.

http://forums.industryweek.com/showthread.php?p=38291#post38291