Adcomp – Advanced Composites for Niche Vehicles
Project ADCOMP based in the Midlands, and part funded by Advantage West Midlands, is aiming to develop the technology to enable thermoplastic composite materials to be adopted for electric and other vehicles. Rapid, high quality forming technologies are being developed for two demonstrators using supply chains based in the West Midlands.
Warwick and Birmingham Universities form part of the collaboration to bring new parts to OEMs JCB and Airbus UK, via a supply chain including MNB Mould Services Ltd, DELCAM plc, Ten Cate Advanced Composites BV, Victrex plc and composite manufacturing specialist EPM Technology Group.
Project manager, Roger Wise from the National Composites Network described the initiative as, “An exciting opportunity for the region to develop new markets in a technology closely allied to an existing strength in moulding of polymer parts. The market for thermoplastic composites is growing at about 5% per annum at the moment and the polymer component industry present in the region has a great opportunity to capitalise on the added value that composites bring to a range of markets, including electric vehicles”.
Thermoplastic composites benefit from a range of excellent properties including high specific stiffness, toughness and inherent recyclability (via melt reprocessing). Project ADCOMP has been running for approximately 1 year and has recently generated its first demonstrators. Further awareness and dissemination events are being planned but in the meantime, further information is available at the website www.adcomp.co.uk or from the project manager, Dr Roger Wise, at TWI (Tel: 01223 899000, roger.wise@twi.co.uk).
Back to News