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07 Dec 2004  -  Germany

Breakthrough Thermoplastic Composite Sheet from GE & AZDEL Improves Safety & Performance for Passenger Train Components

COLOGNE, GERMANY

Like a train on a well-run railroad, new product technology from GE Advanced Materials, a unit of the General Electric Company (NYSE: GE), and AZDEL, Inc. has arrived just in time to address rising demand for safer, higher performing materials in the passenger rail industry. The new product, called AZDEL* Rail-Lite* composite, is a low-pressure, thermoformable, lightweight composite sheet that exhibits excellent flame, smoke, toxicity, and heat-release performance in large semi-structural panels for train interiors. GE unveiled the new product technology here today at the Railway Interiors Expo and is exhibiting its complete line of high-performance thermoplastic materials for the rail industry in booth C135. AZDEL, Inc. is a 50/50 joint venture of GE and PPG Industries, based in Lynchburg, Virginia, USA.

Comprised of long glass fibers, AZDEL Rail-Lite composite enables sturdy, lightweight components with approximately half of the specific gravity as lower performing composite materials. Roughly half the volume of an AZDEL Rail-Lite composite structure is comprised of air, giving the new material exceptionally low weight. This may help reduce the weight of finished parts - and, therefore, help reduce fuel consumption - for potentially significant cost savings. The new product technology is translatable to other industries, such as aircraft and building and construction. New products based on this technology are now under development at AZDEL and GE.

"Materials technology for passenger trains and other transportation segments has turned a corner with the commercial launch of our new AZDEL Rail-Lite composite," said Melanie Cook, GE Advanced Materials' marketing director for Transportation. "No other product that we know of available today can deliver the same outstanding balance of flame, smoke, and toxicity performance with the light weight and excellent mechanical properties of this new material."

According to Ken Forden, president, AZDEL, Inc., "The synergies of GE's materials expertise, PPG's fiber technology, and the patented wet chopped fiber process pioneered by AZDEL, have enabled us to develop a whole new family of advanced composite materials that meet growing global demand for improved flame, smoke, and toxicity performance. AZDEL Rail-Lite composite has been very well received and is the first of several new high-performance products AZDEL and GE plan to introduce in the future."

When parts formed from AZDEL Rail-Lite composite are exposed to flame, it quickly chars while emitting very low levels of smoke. The char and glass fibers also create a surface barrier to the flame, similar to that of a ceramic material. Because of this, AZDEL Rail-Lite composite will not catch fire and drip, like lower performing competitive products or thermoplastic sheet type materials. This quality is quickly becoming essential for applications on trains, subways, and other mass-transit systems where fires have claimed many lives in the past.

"There have been a number of mass-transit fires around the world that have drawn attention to the need for materials with improved flame, smoke, and toxicity performance," said Benny David, global industry manager - Transportation Composites, GE Advanced Materials. "The London underground fire in 1987 that killed 31 people; last year's subway fire in Daegu, Korea where an estimated 120 people perished and more than 130 were injured; and other similar fires, were all tragic events that no one wants to see repeated. Add to this the increasing threat of global terrorism and it's clear that newer, better flame-retardant materials for trains and other mass-transit systems are needed."

In addition to its outstanding flame, smoke, and toxicity performance, new AZDEL Rail-Lite composite offers excellent strength, stiffness, and a low coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE). It also provides good ductility, unlike traditional fiber-reinforced plastic (FRP) materials or sheet-molding compounds (SMC). In situations when loads on an AZDEL Rail-Lite composite part exceed the material's strength, the glass fibers on the surface of the part tear away from the glass-resin matrix. As this occurs, the part can still support some force, creating a ductile-type failure unlike most glass-filled products, which can fail in a brittle manner. Furthermore, because of the foam-like character of the Rail-Lite composite, it also exhibits good sound absorption and heat-insulation properties.

New AZDEL Rail-Lite composite is already on the express track to widespread application in China: GE Advanced Materials today announced a joint development agreement (JDA) with Beijing-based China Railway Long Dragon New Composite Materials Co., Ltd., China's largest OEM supplier of train interiors. Under the agreement, GE and China Railway Long Dragon plan to use multiple grades of ADZEL Rail-Lite composite for applications in passenger train interiors. According to GE, the rail infrastructure in growing economies such as China and India presents tremendous potential opportunities for lightweight materials like the new composite that could enable weight reduction to allow rail operators to potentially add extra cars to existing trains.

OEMs and tier converters for passenger train interiors and other transportation segments will find a number of potential high-performance applications for AZDEL Rail-Lite composite. These include window masks, ceiling panels, seat backs, arm rests, tray tables, stow bins, luggage racks, valances, partitions, and other interior trim components.

The new composite material can be thermoformed at relatively modest pressures, and with lower cost tooling, unlike high-pressure tooling typically required for alternative composite materials that need compression molding techniques. Furthermore, in-mold attachments and fixtures can be applied to the part during the primary thermoforming step, which can help reduce excessive labor costs associated with secondary operations. Unlike thermoplastic sheet, AZDEL Rail-Lite composite does not require drying prior to thermoforming and, due to its low thermal expansion coefficient, tooling can be designed for zero-shrinkage.

AZDEL Rail-Lite composite meets U.S. FRA 49 CFR Part 238 flammability and smoke emissions standards for train passenger cars and locomotive cabs and complies with toxicity standard BSS 7239. It also meets Germany's DIN5510, Part 2 (S4/SR2/ST2 rating). Specific formulations are also able to pass the stringent requirements for the British Rail Standard BS 6853 Category 1A. Because of its low weight and excellent flame, smoke, and toxicity performance, the new material is an excellent candidate to replace polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polyester, vinyl ester, or phenolic FRP materials used in many interior train applications.

About GE Advanced Materials

GE Advanced Materials is a world leader in providing materials solutions through engineering thermoplastics, silicon-based products and technology platforms, and fused quartz and ceramics. Among its businesses are:

Plastics - which is a global plastics materials supplier and distributor, serving customers in a variety of industries including aerospace, appliances, automotive, building and construction, data storage and optical media, medical, electrical and electronics devices, telecommunications, computers and peripheral devices, outdoor vehicles and devices, and packaging.

Silicones - which includes GE Toshiba Silicones in the Pacific region and GE Bayer Silicones in Europe, offers silanes, specialty silicones, urethane additives, adhesives, sealants, resins, and elastomers for a variety of industries such as personal care, automotive, tire and rubber, construction, healthcare, electronics, household and institutional, agriculture, textiles, appliances, bedding and furnishings, foam control, and consumer (http://www.gesilicones.com).

Quartz - which provides high-purity quartz and advanced ceramic materials for the semiconductor, telecommunications, lighting, electronics, personal care, water purification, and various other industries (http://www.gequartz.com).

GE (NYSE:GE) is a diversified technology, media, and financial services company dedicated to creating products that make life better. From aircraft engines and power generation to financial services, medical imaging, television programming, and plastics, GE operates in more than 100 countries and employs more than 300,000 people worldwide. For more information, visit the company's website at http://www.ge.com.

About GE Advanced Materials Specialty Film & Sheet

GE Advanced Materials' Specialty Film & Sheet business is a leading supplier of high-performance engineering film and sheet products to global industry. Through this business, GE Advanced Materials offers a variety of film materials for display films, graphic films, coated products, electrical and electronics applications, specialty products, and a range of others. The company's sheet product line includes an array of high-performance structures - from single- and multi-wall sheet, corrugated materials, and coated sheet products to laminates and combinations of each - to serve customers in several key global sectors.

About AZDEL, Inc.

AZDEL, Inc. is a joint venture of GE Advanced Materials and PPG Industries. The AZDEL business was established in 1972 by PPG, and the 50/50 joint venture was set up with GE in 1986. AZDEL is a global leader in the manufacture and supply of high-performance composite materials serving a wide variety of markets and industries including automotive, transportation interiors, large truck, materials handling, heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC), and building and construction.

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* AZDEL and Rail-Lite are trademarks of AZDEL, Inc., a 50/50 joint venture of General Electric Company and PPG Industries.