International plastic net manufacturer, EXPO-NET Danmark (hall 5, stand E13) has supplied wind energy OEMs for more than 25 years with custom designed, 100% recyclable, extruded thermoplastic resin flow mesh products. The complete range - including EXPO-NET’s rapid air release tubular resin flow mesh - is being promoted this year at JEC World 2022.
For longer, complex design, infused fibre reinforced plastic (FRP) composite parts, EXPO-NET recommends using a combination of a flat, drapable, fine plastic net with a heavier, wide tubular net for certain sections of a component to improve productivity and quality. The tubular net design not only accelerates resin flow, but also provides a rapid air release channel which speeds up the removal of air from narrower laminate sections and part extremities.
Tubular resin flow mesh is one of EXPO-NET’s more recent product innovations for the composites industry, from a development project with a strategic OEM customer looking to improve productivity even further and reduce overall production costs per blade.
René Balslev Andersen, Nordic & Baltic Regional Sales Manager for EXPO-NET explained: “The use of EXPO-NET’s tubular flow mesh for certain wind blade vacuum infusion processes really helps boost productivity by enabling air to be drawn out much faster. Customers can typically shorten production cycle times and reduce overall manufacturing costs to such an extent that the NPD payback time and added flow mesh material cost is very quickly recovered and results in significantly increasing bottom line profitability. Not just wind bade producers, but anyone infusing large FRP parts can also benefit.”
EXPO-NET’s product designs have proved vital to ensure high-quality vacuum infusion. Customer trials have demonstrated that not using the right design and combination of resin flow mesh flow significantly increases the likelihood of a reject part due to premature resins hardening, resulting in dry laminate sections and trapped air voids.