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ZEOTHERM® TPVs LEAD TO VICTORY FOR THE 2005 FORD MUSTANG CONVERTIBLE

January 19, 2005

Already winning praise from the automotive media and winning over car enthusiasts, the Ford Mustang has won another award – the 2004 Society of Plastics Engineers (SPE) Automotive Innovation Award, Materials category -- for its innovative use of materials in the 2005 Mustang convertible.

In a world’s first, the Mustang convertible replaces a traditional rubber-metal load-bearing touch-off molding with an all-plastic deck lid closeout panel, utilizing Zeon Chemicals’ Zeotherm® thermoplastic vulcanizate (TPV).  The result is a trim piece that visually matches the clean lines and appearance of the Mustang’s other seals while retaining structural rigidity and reducing costs.

The touch-off molding is a multi-shot injection molded part comprised of glass-filled nylon (supplied by A. Schulman) overmolded with Zeon’s Zeotherm 100-series TPV.

In the Mustang application, Zeotherm TPVs provide superior overmold adhesion to nylon even under the demanding sun and heat of the Desert Southwest where conventional thermoplastic elastomers were prone to delamination.  And, because Zeotherm TPVs are based on a plastic phase of nylon, Zeotherm chemically bonds to nylon, providing consistent adhesion from edge to edge along the entire length of the part.

“Zeotherm TPVs continue to push the performance boundaries and open up new applications and material constructions for automotive component designers where conventional thermoplastic elastomers have reached their performance limit,” noted Brian Cail, Business Manager – New Business Development at Zeon.

Sharing in the award are Innatech (custom multi-shot injection molder), CooperStandard (system supplier), A. Schulman (nylon supplier), Dynamic Mold (tooling supplier) and Ford Motor Company.

Zeon produces TPVs under the Zeotherm brand name.  Zeotherm TPVs are the world’s leading thermoplastic elastomers capable of withstanding long-term heat and oil exposure from –40° to 175°C.  For more information, visit www.zeotherm.com or contact Zeon at 502.775.2000.

About Zeon Chemicals L.P.
Zeon Chemicals L.P. is a wholly owned subsidiary of Zeon Corporation of Tokyo, Japan, a world leader in specialty elastomers, polymers and specialty chemicals. Zeon Corporation is one of the top producers of polymers in the world with plants in Asia, North America and Europe, and Research and Development laboratories in Kawasaki (Japan), Louisville (KY, USA) and Barry (UK).

Zeon Chemicals, headquartered in Louisville, is the leading producer of specialty elastomers in the USA. It produces Nipol® NBR, HyTemp® and Nipol ACM, Hydrin® ECO, Zetpol® HNBR and Zeotherm® TPVs, which are used in the manufacture of hoses, seals, gaskets, belts and other parts for automotive, industrial, oil field and printing markets. Customers are served from plants in Louisville, (KY, USA) Hattiesburg (MS, USA) and Bayport (TX, USA).

Zeon Corporation, with combined sales of over US $1.8 billion, utilizes its expertise and basic position in C4 and C5 chemistry to offer a wide range of products. The company employs approximately 2,900 people worldwide.

 

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