Plastics processing, rubber and composite materials: the Moselle is a leading European region in this activity sector

► 60 Companies with 4,800 employees
►Nearly 200 Companies with 12,500 employees in the Lorraine region
►Moselle’s plastics and rubber processing Companies achieve export and import turnovers of respectively 620 and 408 million euros.
(Source: Valoris Lorraine).

Two competitiveness clusters dedicated to innovative materials in Lorraine: Materalia and Pôle Fibres • The presence of big international Groups: FICOSA, JKN, REHAU… • A synergy with international chemical giants present in the région: ARKEMA, INEOS, TOTAL • Active research on composite materials and recycling • A training offer directly adapted to industrial needs •

Zoom on ..... SLCA (Safran Group): Lorraine composite materials for Airbus and Eurocopter

Photo: © Safran – Reproduction of photos prohibited – All rights reserved

For 30 years, SLCA (Société Lorraine de Constructions Aéronautiques), a subsidiary of Aircelle – SAFRAN Group, has been manufacturing composite parts for the aeronautical industry, working for Airbus, Eurocopter and Embraer. SLCA produces ventral fairings, cockpit modules, landing gear doors as well as helicopter cowlings. The Company employs 160 people in Florange with a turnover of 37.8 million euros.

Rubber Companies / Key figures

• The Moselle rubber industry totals 9 Companies with nearly 1,500 employees. • CONTINENTAL FRANCE alone employs more than 1,250 people. •

CONTINENTAL

The CONTINENTAL Group invests 65 million € on its Sarreguemines site as part of its “CAP 2014” programme: site extension of 5,000 m², purchase of an extruder "quintuplex" of 100 m length, production objective of 10.8 million tyres in 2011 and 12 million in 2012. Le site intends to reinforce its premium tyre section, by doubling the production of ultra-performance tyres (UHP) of 17 inches and more.

Source : Le Républicain Lorrain – January 2011

Photo : © Continental – Reproduction of photos is prohibited – All rights reserved

Major plastics industry Companies in Moselle

Sources: Eco Lorraine Online, Kompass 2011
Companies with more than 15 employees

A STRONG NETWORK TO ACCOMPANY THE PLASTICS PROCESSING SECTOR

COMPOSITE PARK: a technology cluster dedicated to composite materials

The Composite Park offers high added value services to researchers and industrial Companies in the composite material sector : design ; formulation, simulation, characterization, measurement and testing, prototyping, industrialization of thermoset and thermoplastic matrix composites. It also offers a Non-Destructive Testing (NDT) Centre for large and complex parts. The Composite Park is also focusing on energies of the future: thus the TOTAL Group plans to set up a building of 2,800 m² to produce photovoltaic panels. 100,000 panels a year should come off the future factory’s two production lines and 80 jobs are expected to be created.

THE EASTERN FRANCE PLASTICS PROCESSING CENTRE (Pôle de Plasturgie de l’Est)

The PPE is an international technology transfer centre specializing in the use of composite materials reinforced with long fibers with thermoplastic and thermoset matrixes. The PPE has a team of 20 professionals specializing in the fields of design, development, industrialization, analysis, training for thermoplastic and thermoset matrices, welding and assembly. They are equipped with a material analysis and characterization laboratory, an implementation workshop, a calculation centre, training facilities as well as a prototyping and testing workshop.

ISEETECH, Institut Supérieur Européen de l’Entreprise et de ses Techniques

The European Higher Institute for Companies and their Technologies (ISEETECH) was created by the Moselle Department Council with the aim to reinforce synergies between higher education, research laboratories, technology transfer institutes and industrial Companies in the Moselle Department. It participated in the creation of the Non-destructive Testing Platform, located at the Composite Park site in Porcelette. This platform, unique in Europe, offers original and innovative solutions in the field of non-destructive testing of composite materials. It was implemented by ISEETECH, in partnership with the Welding Institute and the PPE, via the Composite Integrity subsidiary. The non-destructive testing platform is innovative: equipped with specific facilities and expertise in the non-destructive testing field, it facilitates the development of a high level sector with high technological competences. This project allows the implementation of an efficient control system. It will be developed and applied on site, in production and operation, on aircraft parts made of composite materials. The objective is to allow a precise and fast inspection of composite aircraft structures, whether new ones or already in service.

Download our brochure: PLASTICS_COMPOSITES.pdf

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