APPLICATIONS

TPEs can be used in numerous demanding applications in the medical, automotive, personal care, sporting goods and footwear, consumer goods and industrial construction sectors.

Medical

Safe and non-toxic, high clarity, non-allergenic characteristics and easy processability, TPEs deliver excellent quality for applications and have many favorable features. They have none of the critical disadvantages of PVC or latex and are less expensive than silicone. Products made of medical grade TPE can be sterilized by various standard methods. The material offers high sealing performance and adhesive strength.

Automotive

Thermoplastic elastomers are used in a wide variety of parts in the automotive industry, e.g. tires, interior parts (soft parts, injection molding solutions for dashboards and instrument panels etc.), exterior parts (covers of exterior mirrors, roof rails, spoiler etc.) and the engine area (hoses, nozzles, rubber linings, connectors etc.), which contribute to safe, comfortable and emission-reduced driving with properties such as reliable functionality, reduced weight, durability and wear resistance and contribute to achieve sustainability goals.

Personal Care

Personal care products need to be hygienic and comfortable. Soft-touch compounds help achieve both, while ensuring easy processing. With its flexibility and elasticity, thermoplastic elastomers are used in personal care applications. These include disposable hygiene materials, adult incontinence products, personal wipes, and many other products where comfort and performance are crucial. These compounds can be processed successfully on standard TPE compounding equipment and do not require extra drying for processing. Their compatibility with both non-polar and polar materials allows broad design flexibility. This is critical in the converting and production processes such as over-molding, co-extrusion, and lamination.

Sporting Goods and Footwear

Thermoplastic elastomer compounds offer significant benefits in sporting goods and footwear products. These products are more efficient, more comfortable and give them an optimal sustainability profile.

Consumer Goods

Thermoplastic high-performance elastomers for TPE compounding are characterized by the combination of very high softness and elasticity. Compounds for consumer goods based on styrenic block copolymers achieve excellent mechanical properties at lower weights than conventional materials.