Case Studies

Williams Refrigeration was one of the first companies to use a zero ozone depletion potential blowing agent foam insulation for the complete range of commercial refrigerators. This 'green' foam was hailed as a 'major breakthrough in the development of CFC-free products'.

Manufacturers MK Refrigeration needed an HCFC-free insulation system to meet a set of most exacting environmental specifications. The resulting custom-formulated chemical system exhibited excellent foam flowability with mechanical properties to match.

A foam insulation system was required to meet the low global warming specifications of this manufacturer's customers. This was accomplished whilst retaining other important foam properties, particularly low foaming pressures during application.

Domestic doors are produced using a foam with very low global warming insulation materials. IFS Chemicals optimised its range of environmentally acceptable products to be used in narrow cavity applications, such as doors. These new products also enabled much high door production rates to be achieved.

The very first use of a CFC-free polyurethane insulation in a building application was implemented by Portakabin in 1988. The company has continued to be a leader in the technical and environmental aspects of building materials.

This application required a foam with a particularly good flow, coupled with a fast demould time. IFS Chemicals developed a material which satisfied all technical requirements, including the ability to increase production levels by 40%.

Flat roofs in Saudi Arabia were insulated on the outside using a fast reacting spray foam. This process minimised the disruption to the dwellings and had the added benefit of producing a joint-free insulation blanket.

IFS Chemicals has supplied large amounts of custom-formulated materials for use as an insulation material on hot pipes within deep sea environments. The insulation is applied using a controlled rotational casting technique; it has included the simultaneous application of up to four separate materials.

The latest safety specifications necessitated the development of a high-impact bumper. A modified polyurea chemical system was developed by IFS Chemicals, enabling the bumper to be manufactured in a low-cost tool using a spray-applied, high performance material.

A custom-formulated polyurethane was developed for the manufacture of the range of Peugeot steering wheels. The mouldings needed to be blemish-free and be capable of being demoulded within four minutes. This was achieved using a high density integral-skin moulding grade.

These are produced using a specially developed re-inforced foam system from IFS Chemicals. The technical requirements for these products were significant, and the company was able to meet these demands as well as achieving fast processing times.

A spray-applied, high performance elastomer was developed by IFS Chemicals, and this has been successfully used to manufacture many hundreds of large buoys, fenders and anchor pendants. Due to the harsh environments in which they are used, the polyurethane needed to conform to exceptionally high specifications.

These were first developed by IFS Chemicals in the 1980s. The company has continued to be a leader in this industry, with continually improving materials in terms of impact properties, low shrinkage and high heat distortion grades.

Self-lighting road studs require a crystal-clear polyurethane resin suitable for embedding delicate electronics. The brief was to provide a material which would develop a low exotherm during manufacture and resist the effects of traffic over a long period of time. Again, IFS Chemicals custom-formulated a suitable material.