Polymer Library Doubles Update Frequency

Smithers Rapra is pleased to announce that the Polymer Library will now be updated on a weekly basis, giving subscribers access to the latest information more quickly. The Polymer Bulletin service from the Polymer Library has also increased its frequency to weekly, to ensure its subscribers have timely access to their content.

The Polymer Library team of dedicated information professionals inspect more than 1000 journals and conferences, gathering details of the latest developments on the science, technology and business of polymers. The team collates this information into an update and adds it to the Polymer Library, now once every week. The shift from 26 updates to 51 updates per year represents a near doubling of the frequency of updates, offering the latest information more often and in more manageable portions.

The latest information builds on over 40 years of content; the Polymer Library has well over a million records to search through, offering the most comprehensive abstracts database dedicated to plastics, rubber, polymeric composites and adhesives. The database is also supported by a fast, efficient document delivery service, so the full text of virtually any item listed on the Polymer Library can be ordered direct from the team and delivered to your inbox within 24 hours.

The Polymer Library is available direct on www.polymerlibrary.com, along with various hosts including STN, ProQuest CSA and EBSCOhost. For more information on this abstracts database get in touch with Katharine Smith at kbsmith@smithers.com.

Smithers Rapra Announces 2014 Webinar Series Highlighting Rubber and Polymer Product Testing

Smithers Rapra, a world leader in rubber, plastics and composites testing expertise, announced today that it is launching a webinar series focused on helping companies speed up the development cycle for rubber and polymer products with effective testing programs through a variety of stages; from materials science to whole product testing.

“The 2014 series of webinars is designed to show clients how standard and custom testing protocols for rubber, plastics and composites products can benefit the various of stages of their product development,” said Todd Hain, marketing manager at Smithers Rapra. “These webinars are designed to be a helpful and educational forum to discuss many common challenges facing product development engineers, chemists and product managers and to connect with Smithers’ experts in these areas.”  

The first webinar in the series kicks off with:

• “Predicting the service life of polymers in industrial applications” with Dr. Andrew Hulme, principal plastics consultant, and Jeff Andrasik, product testing supervisor and senior test engineer, on January 23, 2014 at 11 a.m. EST.

This webinar will explore the key external factors that affect the performance of polymers; the benefits of independent and complimentary material tests and full product tests and impact the results can have on critical product development decisions. Polymers are inherently variable in their makeup in addition to being time, temperature, environment and stress dependent. Model of life prediction and post-tests can also be applied to get the full picture of performance.

Dr. Andrew Hulme, principal consultant in plastics at Smithers Rapra, since 2001, provides independent advice on plastics design and manufacturing to all industries, including medical devices. He specialises in providing durability and lifetime predictions for plastic components in their operating environments. This involves providing material selection, design advice on suitability of materials and manufacturing, injection moulding and FEA simulations, dimensional management and the generation and use of long-term design data to improve confidence in designs.

Andrasik has developed and executed a wide variety of test programs including pressure, vibration, and temperature specifications on automotive, industrial, aerospace, nuclear, and consumer products. Andrasik has more than 10 years of experience testing rubber and plastic components, parts and products against common industry and governmental standards including ASTM, ISO, SAE, Fed, MIL, FDA and automotive OEM specifications.

The next topic in the series will cover various tire testing techniques and will be scheduled for the spring of 2014. Other topics planned for the year will highlight various industry verticals and technologies.

Registration for all 2014 Smithers Rapra webinars and additional information can be found atinfo.smithersrapra.com/webinars/.

New Book Provides a Useful Guide to Preparing Molecularly Imprinted Polymers

Smithers Rapra Publishing has announced the release of Handbook of Molecularly Imprinted Polymers 

Molecular imprinting technology has become a relevant tool for the synthesis of polymeric materials with the unique feature of being able to recognise specific target molecules and to bind them preferably among many others. Such an outstanding property makes molecularly imprinted polymer(s) (MIP) well suited for a wide range of applications in fields as diverse as analytical techniques, bioremediation, catalysis or drug delivery. Information regarding MIP has exponentially increased in recent years, being collected in a large variety of scientific journals, monographs and proceedings.

This Handbook provides an overview of the state of the art of MIP by organising the information in an educational and practical way, with useful guidelines for newcomers to the field regarding monomer selection, polymerisation conditions and MIP conditioning for each given purpose. This is accompanied by updated knowledge from papers published over the past few years that may be of interest for senior researchers in the field. An analysis of the historical evolution of MIP, and of their future perspectives and trends is also offered.

The Handbook has been structured in eight chapters written by distinguished experts in the various areas of MIP application. Using a direct language, graduate students and novel researchers may find, within these chapters, friendly pathways to enter the world of molecular imprinting. Trained professionals can also take benefit from the critical review of recent advances on the implementation of alternative approaches to prepare and use MIP, in order to optimise their performance in already established fields, but also to open novel fields of application.

Smithers Rapra China Laboratory Achieves Key ISO Accreditation

Smithers Rapra, a world leader in tire, rubber, plastics and composites expertise and a Smithers Group company, announced today that its operations in Suzhou, China have achieved ISO/IEC 17025 accreditation through A2LA. As the company's customer base in China has expanded, implementing a comprehensive, internationally recognized quality system to meet and exceed customer expectations became a key piece of the strategy for growth.

“We established our China operations in Suzhou to better serve our existing global clients as well as serve a growing market in China for tire, rubber and polymer component testing,” said Jim Dowey, president of Smithers Rapra. “This accreditation requires rigorous processes and procedures that ensure that our operations meet the highest standards for independent testing accuracy and quality.”

The Smithers Rapra Suzhou, China lab joins the Smithers Tire & Wheel Test Center in Ravenna, Ohio in being an ISO/IEC 17025:2005 accredited supplier of dynamic tire testing. Both labs conduct a wide variety of tire testing specifications including SAE, GMW, ASTM and ISO tests.

The Suzhou laboratory has also received significant automotive OEM approvals to provide critical third party independent testing to the global automotive industry and its tire and wheel supply chain. High speed testing, endurance, plunger, beat unseating, wheel cornering fatigue and radial fatigue testing will become available in the next several months as capacity is expanded to meet customer demand.

The following tire testing specifications can currently be conducted:

SAE J1269 – Rolling Resistance Measurement Procedure for Passenger Car, Light Truck, and Highway Truck and Bus Tires

SAE J2452 – Stepwise Coastdown Methodology for Measuring Tire Rolling Resistance

GMW 14996 – Tire Rolling Resistance Test

ISO 18164 – Rolling Resistance Measurement Procedure for Passenger Car, Truck, Bus and Motorcycle Tires

ISO 28580 – Passenger car, truck and bus tires -- Methods of measuring rolling resistance -- Single point test and correlation of measurement results

“Smithers Rapra has been dedicated to establishing an accredited tire and wheel testing laboratory in China that builds on our years of industry expertise in the North American and European markets,” said Derek Read, general manager, Smithers Rapra (Suzhou) Testing Co., Ltd. “With the milestones that we reached in 2013, we can now assure our customers that the independent testing experiences they value in other regions of the world can be provided in China as well.”

Smithers Rapra provides a wide range of testing services to its customers in the automotive industry. From tires and wheels to polymer based components, to automotive components, and the effects of winter conditions on tire traction and vehicle safety systems, Smithers Rapra’s standard and custom testing capabilities are designed to help companies go to market quicker and with higher success rates.

BIO’s World Congress on Industrial Biotechnology and Smithers Rapra’s Biopolymers Symposium to co-locate in 2014

he Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) and Smithers Rapra are pleased to announce the colocation of the World Congress on Industrial Biotechnology and the Biopolymers Symposium in 2014.

The BIO World Congress will take place Monday, May 12 - Thursday, May 15 at the Pennsylvania Convention Center in Philadelphia, PA.  It is the world's largest industrial biotechnology event for business leaders, investors, and policy makers in biofuels, biobased products, and renewable chemicals.

The 9^th annual Biopolymers Symposium will be held Monday, May 12-Tuesday, May 13 at the Loews Philadelphia Hotel in Philadelphia, PA. This market leading event will bring together the key innovators and decision makers in the bioplastic and non-plastic biopolymers industry to examine new technologies and materials, market trends, and developments in applications, guidelines and waste strategies for the biopolymers industry.

“Co-locating the BIO World Congress with the Biopolymers Symposium will grant attendees of both conferences a rare opportunity to establish long-term connections with stakeholders and participants of all sectors of the industrial biotechnology industry,” said Brent Erickson, executive vice president of BIO’s Industrial & Environmental Section. “Both the BIO World Congress on Industrial Biotechnology and the Biopolymers Symposium will showcase the life science, biotechnology and research and development currently flourishing globally and bring the industry together in the great city of Philadelphia.”

“We are very excited to be working with BIO on our 2014 edition of the Biopolymers Symposium,” said Barbara Fowler, conference director for Smithers Rapra. “Both events are dedicated to bringing together key members of the biobased economy to discuss the latest technologies and processes and we look forward to building on these synergies to create a truly memorable experience for all attendees. By collocating, the business executives, R&D leaders, government policy makers, stakeholders, and investors that make up the key audience for both events will have more opportunities to build strategic relationships and greater access to the most current research and information.”                 

The 2013 World Congress on Industrial Biotechnology, held in Montreal, set a record attendance of 1,200 individuals representing 600 companies from 35 countries.  The event hosted 56 breakout sessions and six workshops.  The 2013 World Congress also hosted 600 business partnering meetings scheduled through BIO’s One-on-One system, which provides a web-based solution to arrange meetings between companies and potential investors or partners. 

Attendees at the Biopolymers Symposium will hear from a diverse group of biobased material developers, manufacturers and end-users about current industry drivers; a panel discussion on strategies for the industry; advances in sustainable feedstocks; innovation in resins and monomers; functional non-plastic biopolymers; biopolymers and compostable packaging’s role in zero waste; innovations in processing and performance and much more. For more information on Biopolymers 2014, visit http://www.biopolymersummit.com or follow us on Twitter at http://twitter.com/biopolymers.

For more information on BIO’s World Congress on Industrial Biotechnology, visit http://www.bio.org/events/conferences/world-congress.

Smithers Rapra Announces Investment in New Product Testing Lab at the 2013 Automotive Testing Expo in Novi, MI

Smithers Rapra, a world leader in rubber, plastics and composites testing expertise, announced today that it will add automotive product testing services to its Lansing, Michigan facility, providing enhanced services to the Michigan-based automotive industry. Brad McDougall, an expert in automotive component testing, has been named lead test engineer for the Smithers Rapra Lansing Product Testing Lab, which will open in January 2014.

The announcements were made at the Automotive Testing Expo 2013 North America, in Novi, Michigan, where Smithers Rapra is highlighting its plastics, rubber and composite materials product testing solutions in Booth 7063. Company experts are on hand to speak with attendees about the wide range of testing services offered to the automotive industry. From tires and wheels to polymer based components, to automotive components, and the effects of winter conditions on tire traction and vehicle safety systems, Smithers Rapra will showcase its standard and custom testing capabilities designed to assist companies go to market quicker and with higher success rates.

The new Lansing Product Testing Lab is being added to enhance Smithers Rapra’s existing service to the R&D and engineering labs of major automakers and suppliers in Michigan and the Midwest. It will complement the co-located Smithers Pira package and distribution testing lab, which serves consumer packaged goods and beverage companies, medical device manufacturers, automotive OEMs and Tier 1 suppliers with evaluations of product packaging and how they perform in the reality of the complex supply chain.

“We are focused on investing in innovative, new services to meet our customers’ needs,” said Jim Dowey, president of Smithers Rapra. “Adding Brad McDougall to our product testing team, led by industry expert Jeff Andrasik, I’m confident we will continue to add value to our automotive clients’ product life cycles by helping them solve their development challenges.”

McDougall’s career spans various aspects of the automotive industry. From air bag and seat belt testing to steering wheel and seat engineering, he has led teams focused on testing and evaluating the safety and quality of automotive parts throughout his 20-year career.

Automotive Testing Expo attendees should visit the Smithers Rapra Booth 7063 to learn more or visitwww.smithersrapra.com.

The Smithers Rapra Lansing Product Testing Lab joins the Smithers Product Testing Lab in Akron, OH, Tire & Wheel Test Center in Ravenna, OH, the Winter Test Facility in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and lab in Suzhou, China in serving the global automotive industry.

Smithers Rapra Experts to Speak at 2013 International Elastomer Conference

Smithers Rapra, a world leader in rubber, plastics and composites testing expertise, announced today that Dr. James Popio, Ph.D., general manager and director of engineering, and Sukhy Toot, product manager, medical & pharmaceutical services, will speak at the International Elastomer Conference (IEC) in Cleveland, October 7 - 10.

Popio will present “Development of New Test Protocols to Study Tire Rolling Resistance Using Simulated Driving Conditions” during the Rolling Resistance, Traction and Treadwear III session of the 184th Technical Meeting on October 9, 2013 at 2 p.m. Popio’s expertise in tire evaluation and operations is built on his work at Smithers Rapra as well as Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company and Bridgestone/Firestone. He holds a BS and MS in Mechanical Engineering from The University of Akron, and a Ph.D. in Engineering, also from The University of Akron.

Toot will chair the session, “Testing of Advanced Materials for Healthcare,” and speak about “Consideration of Extractables & Leachables in Medical Materials.” The session is part of the one-day Advanced Materials in Healthcare Conference on October 7, 2013 and part of the overall IEC conference. Toot consults and leads Smithers Rapra services for the new Medical Devices Business Unit, with expert emphasis on extractables and leachables testing, for the pharmaceutical, medical device, healthcare and food industries. She has over 15 years of experience within the pharmaceutical industry as a research scientist, team leader and product manager. Toot has a BSC in Applied Chemistry from Sheffield Hallam University in England.

In addition to its subject matter experts’ participation in the conference, Smithers Rapra will highlight its plastics, rubber and composite materials product testing solutions in Booth 2346 throughout the exhibition. Company experts will be on hand to speak with attendees about the wide range of testing services offered to assist in the various stages of the product development process. From tire and wheel to pharmaceutical and medical, transport, consumer, automotive and industrial products, Smithers Rapra will showcase their standard and custom testing capabilities designed to assist companies go to market quicker and with higher success rates.

Smithers, with a long, trusted history of providing high quality, independent testing, R&D and consulting services to the rubber and elastomer industry, has expanded its expertise into the healthcare market and now provides innovative solutions and analysis in product design, failure diagnosis, material selection, testing of drug delivery devices and assessment of extractables and leachables.

IEC and Advanced Materials in Healthcare Conference attendees should visit the Smithers Rapra Booth 2346 to learn more or visit www.smithersrapra.com.

About Smithers Rapra

Smithers Rapra has been a trusted partner of the plastics and rubber industries for over 90 years. Our business is built around delivering a complete portfolio of rubber and plastic testing services to support a wide range of industry sectors including tire, automotive, polymer products, oil and gas, medical device, pharmaceutical, transport, packaging, industrial, and consumer products. By integrating science, technology and business expertise, Smithers goal is to add value throughout the life cycle of our clients’ products.

Please visit www.smithersrapra.com.