11,8oo square metres on the Melaten campus Technical centres, laboratories and systems for the plastics technology of the future

The state-of-the-art injection moulding technology centre in the Plastics Innovation Center (PIC 4.0) at IKV offers excellent facilities for public and bilateral research and development. With 10 injection moulding machines with a clamping force of 30 to 240 tonnes, a wide range of applications is available. The additional 60 injection moulding tools available allow the production of simple and standardised test specimens through to application-oriented demonstrators.

In addition to the injection moulding machines, state-of-the-art technology is also available, including dryers, hot runner systems and temperature control units. The digitalised systems and customised production cells enable maximum precision and efficiency, which are supplemented by various control systems. In addition, various processes such as injection compression moulding, thermoplastic foam injection moulding, metal-plastic composite technologies and optics offer a wide range of possible applications.

This broad spectrum of technologies and equipment makes our technical centre an ideal partner for public and bilateral research and development projects.

In the technical centre for rubber processing, we offer a wide range of options for producing customised rubber compounds and optimising various mixing phases in the rubber internal mixer. By recording compound-dependent fingerprints, such as temperature, torque and power, we optimise the mixing time and filler addition. The compounds produced can then be further processed in a heating press or in the technical centre for extrusion and rubber processing. In addition, analyses and measurements such as viscosity, Shore hardness or surface topography provide detailed insights, for example into filler distribution in the material, and thus contribute to quality assurance.

In addition to thermoplastic-based processes, a particular focus is on rubber processing using extrusion and injection moulding. Here, for example, vulcanisation processes, tool developments and the production of foamed elastomer components are developed and optimised.

In the field of polyurethane technology, the technical centre offers an excellently equipped research environment for the development of innovative polyurethane applications. With industrial processing machines – including high- and low-pressure dosing systems (2K and 3K) and mould carriers with clamping forces of 20 to 400 t – it enables the practical production and analysis of a wide range of components. The focus is on determining process-related material data and inline quality assurance. The technical centre also supports industrial partners in the optimisation of processes and materials and offers students practical training. Through close co-operation with industry and interdisciplinary research, it creates optimal conditions for application-oriented innovations and the further development of polyurethane technology.

The Centre for Plastics Analysis and Testing (KAP) is equipped with comprehensive and modern facilities for testing the mechanical, physical, chemical and morphological properties of plastics. Thanks to many years of expertise in materials and processing technology, solutions for challenges in plastics technology are provided quickly and efficiently.

An interdisciplinary team of physicists, chemists, engineers, technicians and materials testers makes it possible to work on a wide range of problems in both breadth and depth.

Testing and analysis