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Sustainability / Environment
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increasing use of composites and improvements in
production processes.
Across the world some 550,000 people earn their
living in the composites industry.
These figures were provided by JEC Composites,
which has extensively charted the ‘rich and
complex’ world of composites. JEC (Journals,
Exhibitions & Composites) has set itself the task of
promoting composite materials worldwide. JEC’s
global network connects more than 250,000 people
who are professionally involved in composites.
The composites industry is highly innovative. This
innovative attitude is also essential, as the
composites industry faces a number of challenging
tasks, including automation (making production
processes faster and cheaper through for example
robotization) and the development of new raw
materials, resins, and glass and carbon fibres. ‘Each
link in the value chain has a contribution to make to
this’, Frédérique Mutel (Chairman and EO of JEC
Composites) told us. ‘This makes all the players in
the value chain mutually dependent.’
innovations
The demand for carbon fibre will increase between
2009 and 2012. Aerospace and industrial
applications are showing the strongest growth.
The innovation of resins and additives involves for
example low-emission resins, bio-resins, improved
18 txtures | number 4 | winter
prepregs and carbon and glass fibres with greater
strength. When it comes to process innovation, the
terms simulation and prototyping are often heard.
‘Computers allow you to simulate anything. You can
design a product on a computer; you don’t need to
build a scale model to do it. After rapid prototyping
you can immediately start on serial production.
Also, you can simulate the ageing process of
composites.’
Apart from the focus on new raw materials and
materials, attention is also given to obsolete
products: recycling. Who does the collecting, who,
the removal and who, the recycling? As far as
regulations are concerned, Japan and the EU are to
date the most progressive in this process. EU
legislation for the recycling of cars and electrical
equipment provides opportunities for the
composites industry. In the US regulations relating
to materials, chemicals and recycling are
continually improving. ‘Recycling is a great
challenge for the industry and will become ever
more important.’
Collective
One of the specific qualities of the composites
industry is its collective knowledge. ‘The market
wants products that don’t rust and require little or
no maintenance. Companies in the value chain are
constantly working together to find the best
solution.’ There is also internal competition within
the sector: between thermosets and
thermoplastics for example, whereas the real
competition is taking place outside, in other
materials. She feels that not all the companies can
see the big picture. ‘JEC Composites plays an
important role in this by uniting all the families,
representing the sector and coming up with various
solutions. The collective challenge is to expand the
composites markets and you can’t do that with
forty different families and poor arguments and
resources.’
Following on from that, JEC Composites wants to
increase the visibility of composites and
communications about them. ‘There are too many
expressions for the same sorts of materials. All the
links in the value chain talk about composites, and
as a result there are too many confusing terms. The
industry is relatively young so we must present
ourselves far more clearly and, with the backing of
a strong industry, show end-users and markets
what you can do with composites and be efficient
in conveying their advantages.’