Extrusion International 2-2018

12 Extrusion International 2/2018 INDUSTRY NEWS PLA is a versatile bioplastics raw material from renewable re- sources. It is being used for films and rigid packaging, for fibres in woven and non-woven applications. Automotive industry and consumer electronics are thoroughly investigating and even al- ready applying PLA, PLA-blends and compounds. Newmethods of polymerizing, compounding or blending of PLA have broadened the range of properties and thus the range of possible applications. That‘s why bioplastics MAGAZINE is now organizing for the fifth time this congress. Experts from all involved fields will share their knowledge and contribute to a comprehensive overview of today‘s opportunities and challenges and discuss the possibilities, limitations and future prospects of PLA for all kind of applications. Like the four con- gresses before this congress will also offer excellent networking opportunities for all delegates and speakers as well as exhibitors of the table-top exhibition. The conference is being held on the 29th and 30th of May 2018 in Munich, Germany and will cover subjects such as: • Latest developments • Market overview • Circular Economy • High temperature behaviour • High impact PLA • Applications (packaging, bottles, automotive, electronics etc) • Welding of PLA • Foaming of PLA • Reinforcing wirth PLA yarns • Reactive extrusion • Sustainability • Recycling More Information on the conference is available at: 5th PLAWorld Congress www.pla-world-congress.com 25-26 June 2018, Atlanta, Georgia, USA. This new joint conference has been created to meet the needs of the PET industry for open discussion on innova- tion, technology and business opportunities. With the combined knowledge, industry experience and contacts, The Packaging Conference LLC and PETnology/tecPET GmbH are in the best position to collaborate on this new, premier PET event in the US. The one-and-a-half-day event will focus on technical, market and environmental presentations by top-level executives, insightful panel dis- cussions along with a range of networking opportunities and exhibitions during the entire event. The Packaging Conference: This annual event has been guided by its defining mission: “where business opportu- nities and technology meet”. The Packaging Conference is material neutral and focuses on presentations, exhibi- tions, and attendees representing all forms of packaging, equipment, technology, processes and packaging materi- als. PETnology Americas 2018 PETnology/tecPET GmbH www.petnologyamericas.com EUROMAP interfaces for Industry4.0 The plastics industry is one step closer to a unified standard for communication between extrusion lines and MES systems. In a meeting held at the headquarters of Austrian automation specialist B&R, the EUROMAP 84workinggroup specifiedanewset of defini- tions for communication between extrusion lines and MES systems based on the open OPC UA standard. As manufacturing machinery and processes grow ever more com- plex, the limitations of existing hardware interfaces become in- creasingly evident. The EUROMAP 84 working group is therefore developing new interfaces based on OPC UA. Standardized inter- faces are a fundamental requirement for effective and efficient networking of machinery and plants. In the age of Industry 4.0, it is not enough to simply define OPC UA as the transmission technol- ogy. It is also necessary to develop information models that define whichmachine and process data is transferred andwhich functions are provided. EUROMAPworking groups will be presenting numerous new inter- faces over the coming year. K 2019 is an important milestone for presenting their first batch of accomplishments. B&R Industrie Elektronik GmbH www.br-automation.com The EUROMAP 84 working group is currently working on a specification for communication between extrusion lines and MES systems based on the open OPC UA standard