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'World's Lightest' PET Bottle for Edible Oil Sidel, the French builder of stretch- blow molding machinery (U.S. office in Norcross, Ga.), collaborated with Algar Agro of Brazil to produce what's said to be the world's lightest 900-ml PET bottle for edible oil. The joint effort succeeded in reduc- ing bottle weight by 22% from 18 to 14 g. Sidel tested the new design at its Packaging & Tooling Centre in Guadalajara, Mexico. With the purchase of two Sidel Matrix reheat stretch-blow machines, one for each of its plants, Algar Agro believes it is the first oil producer in Brazil to integrate PET preform injection and bottle blowing. The Matrix machines are installed in bottling lines producing 25,000 filled bottles/hr. 678-221-3000 • sidel.com IBM Researchers Discover New Way To Recycle PC The Digital Age has produced an extensive e-waste problem, and IBM believes it has discovered a new process to help deal with it. Researchers from IBM's Almaden research lab in San Jose, Calif., have discovered a one-step chemical process that recycles polycarbonate into plastics safe for water purification, fiber optics, and medical equipment. IBM Researchers (research.ibm.com/labs/almaden) added a fluoride reactant, a base (similar to baking powder), and heat to old CDs to produce a new plastic with temperature and chemical resistance reportedly supe- rior to the original PC. "Polycarbonates are common plastics in our society, especially in consumer electronics in the form of LED screens, smartphones and Blu-rays, as well as every- day eyeglass lenses, kitchen utensils, and household storage gear," notes Gavin Jones, research staff member at IBM Research-Almaden (photo). "We now have a new way of recycling to improve how this prominent substance impacts the world's health and environment." "While preventing these plastics from entering landfills, we simultaneously recycle the substance into a new type of plastic—safe and strong enough for purifying our water and producing medical equipment," notes Jeanette Garcia, another staff member at IBM Research-Almaden (photo). Renolit Brings Long-Glass Polyolefin Sheet to U.S. Exhibiting at our Thermoplastic Composites Conference for Automotive in mid-June was newly established American Renolit Corp., Troy, Mich. (renolit.com). Present in the North American market for less than a year, the firm offers Renolit Tecnogor extruded composite sheets based on polyolefins (primarily PP) and 50% long-glass fiber. Available in sheets and rolls, they combine high stiffness, light weight, and low environmental impact. German-based Renolit dates back to 1946, and has a strong presence in Europe, as well as joint ventures in China and India. Stephen Fore, technical sales manager, notes that auto interiors are a key market, with applications such as parcel shelves, load floors, door trim, trunk trim, and seat backs. The extensive product line ranges from sheets containing wood flour and other natural fibers to high- stiffness versions, lightweight sheets, and honeycomb structures. It also supplies "fashion style" sheets developed with automotive OEMs, as well as a number of films for soft-touch and embossed effects. Tecnogor sheet also can be used in building and construction applica- tions such as wall reinforcements and aesthetic, embossed, and thermoforming sheets for furniture in several colors. Other potential markets include campers and boats. Davis-Standard Expanding In Connecticut North America's leading supplier of extru- sion machinery is expanding. Davis-Stan- dard, LLC has announced it will be adding 15,000 ft 2 of manufacturing space and hiring more than 30 people over the next two years at its headquarters in Pawca- tuck, Conn., which currently employs over 400. The expanded facility will house manufacturing and precision machin- ing of advanced multi-layer blown film dies. It will also enable Davis-Standard to move all blown film manufacturing for its Gloucester Engineering product line from Gloucester, Mass., to Pawcatuck. Notes Jim Murphy, Davis-Standard president and CEO, "Bringing Glouces- ter's manufacturing capabilities to our Connecticut site makes sense for several reasons. One of those reasons is to integrate technology; together we are now the largest manufacturer of seven to 11-layer blown film dies." 860-599-1010 • davis-standard.com 10 AUGUST 2016 Plastics Technology PTonline.com T E C H N O L O G Y A N D I N D U S T R Y N E W S St ar t ing Up