PVC-coated polyester fabric is a mass product that can be found in a variety of applications like bill boards, tents, roofing membranes and tarpaulin for covering trailers. Although its production process is already highly efficient, this can be surpassed by using the same ingredients for making a crossply laminate. Instead of weaving the polyester fabric… Read more
As Van Wees also embraces the growing awareness of environmental sustainability, a bio-based composite must be included in its range. Flax was chosen as natural fibre for a composite particularly attractive for interior applications because of its warm and elegant appearance. Although thermoplastics are available that should be CO²-neutral, polypropylene was selected as matrix material… Read more
My first participation in JEC was in 1986. JEC was a small trade fair for an industry which was expected to grow very fast. At that point I had a small company that manufactured composite products and worked together with Eurocarbon, which was also based in Tilburg, the Netherlands. These companies were acquired by DSM,… Read more
Within the framework of the “Future Bridge” project, and its successor “Trans-IND”, Van Wees has developed a process for production of glass/polypropylene crossply laminate. This composite will be used for building lightweight bridges on-site as an alternative for traditional materials for building infrastructure. Essential for making UD from continuous glass rovings is a facility to… Read more
Thermoplastic composites made from UD tapes and tailored blanks. A perfect material for high volume production of parts for the automotive sector and other applications. After having recently made their breakthrough in the aviation industry, carbon based composites will easily find their way into other applications in the automotive sector, sports and defence in the… Read more
A unique machine for the technical textiles and composite industry in our Research and Technology Center. In a Uni-Directional laminate or UD the individual fibres are oriented parallel to each other and kept in this aligned position by a matrix material. This is realized by unwinding the roving, tow or untwisted yarn from a creel… Read more
In the previous Specs, number 5, we have described the status of the airbag developments. At that moment we were investigating the possibilities and we can now say that we have an interesting proposal for the market. We have made a number of bags and the bags can withstand a high static pressure. We are… Read more
In the Specs section you have read about the new UD600 machine we have built for the development of UD materials. Next step is the building of a Crossply machine with multi axial placement possibilities. The working width of this machine is still to be decided and dependent on feed-back from discussions with our customers… Read more
At van Wees we believe that a number of process steps for making side curtains for trucks can be integrated. We have asked Max in Rotterdam to study this matter and they have come up with interesting and profitable proposals. The present method of making a curtainsider for a truck or trailer is time consuming…. Read more
Making UD materials in the best possible ways guarantees a good Crossply product. It forms the basis of the successful products in ballistics, sails, airbags and all other area’s we are working in. After the sale of the UD machine from our Pilot Plant, we had to build a machine that would fully support future… Read more