Jeco Plastic Products--designer and manufacturer of plastic pallets and containers for the worldwide printing and automotive industries since 1973--recently received a research grant from Purdue University under the IN-Mac program to study how thermoplastic composites with continuous internal fibers in either single or multiple directions develop wrinkles when being molded with multiple cavity thermoforming tools. Currently, thermoset composites are used in such applications, but these increase weight and impose severe design limitations.
Announcing the grant, Craig Carson, Jeco Plastic Products President and CEO, commented: "Jeco was the first manufacturer selected by Purdue University to receive a grant under this program. Critical to the Jeco selection was our large thermoforming machine, which recently was used to develop a thermoformed door liner for a cryogenic container to be used by NASA on the Space Lab. The Purdue grants are tailored to assist companies extend existing technology. Our grant focuses on the Jeco ability to design sophisticated multiple cavity thermoforming tools for molding complex structures that cannot be manufactured using any other technology."
