Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics L+S GmbH to Exhibit at CTI Symposium USA and Promote Expansion of Local Meldin Polymer Part Production for US Automotive Market

Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics L+S GmbH will be exhibiting at the CTI Symposium USA to display their high-end Meldin thermoplastic polymers for the automotive market as well as promote awareness of  their Bristol, Rhode Island, manufacturing site becoming production-ready to serve the local US automotive market.  Expanding on its existing capabilities, the site will now produce critical parts for core transmission systems such as seal rings, thrust washers, pushrods and bearings; steering systems such as ball joints and guide bearings; and brake system structural parts.

The decision to upgrade the Bristol site was due to global customer feedback to maintain the expected high level of quality and 0 ppm requirement needed for critical applications.  Previously, the Bristol site manufactured Meldin thermoset polyimide parts for not only the automotive industry but also aerospace, industrial and life sciences.  Therefore, the business used the site’s existing strengths in efficient operational performance and years of past technical expertise to naturally move forward in supporting North American customers’ current and eventually future needs.

State-of-the-art equipment was installed to produce, handle and pack the parts.  Updates did not just include improving shop operations but also the vision control process so that each part is checked and quality is tracked digitally.

“With these additional investments, we increase our automotive footprint in the North American market,” said Peter Werger, Automotive Market Manager. “We can then be even closer to our customers in order to provide them better service and turn projects around much quicker.”

Some key advantages of offering a local source for automotive polymer parts include:

• Reduced overall costs in transportation and material as products are purchased and sold locally
• Less storage required in scrap as suppliers and customers are closer
• Quicker response in customer service and delivery time as suppliers are more flexible and have greater control

The local production site is complemented by the business’ technical sales and application engineering teams who are based in Detroit “Motor City.”

Aside from the CTI Symposium, Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics L+S GmbH is scheduled to exhibit at ATZ Chassis to share braking system solutions, Dritev to focus on electric vehicle propulsion technologies, and Automotive Engineering Exposition to connect with engineers for co-development.