EconCore licenses technology for thermoplastic honeycomb panels to a leading non-woven manufacturer

The manufacturer of a variety of high-quality non-woven solutions is licensing EconCore’s technology in order to add value to the manufactured goods and to extend the range of commercial applications. Thermoplastic honeycomb cores, combined with non-woven thermoplastic skin layers, produce not only light and rigid sandwich panel, but also enhanced acoustic performance, both with regards to noise insulation and absorption. The acoustic absorption is a result of a combination of a thermoplastic honeycomb core with high ability of energy reduction and air-permeable skin layers, where sound energy is allowed through, for further dissipation within the honeycomb cells. These advantages are very much appreciated, amongst others, in automotive and building applications.

For a sandwich panel of such a high performance, perhaps one of the most unexpected ingredients of the technology is its low manufacturing costs. This is achieved thanks to the patented EconCore’s honeycomb production process, allowing efficient integration of direct skin lamination onto the continuously produced sandwich core, as it is being made.

EconCore’s technology allows for the production of honeycomb cores and sandwich panels in a fast, continuous and in-line process, directly from a thermoplastic granulate. Due to its high efficiency the unique technology is applied typically in larger volume market applications allowing reductions of product’s cost and weight and consequently reductions of CO2 emissions.

A number of sector leading companies around the globe license the technology from EconCore, producing honeycomb sandwich panels with thermoplastic, composite or metal skins. Tier 1 and 2 automotive suppliers benefit from good thermoformability of such panels producing light, strong and functional components of automotive interiors. Other licensees primarily design and use the sandwich panels for applications within building, industrial packaging, trucks and trailers, amongst others.