New Managing Director: Kupron Prototypes expands into small series production

Kupron Prototypes has announced the appointment of a new Managing Director, Rob Antwerpen, who is set to build on the company’s well-established position as the leading producer of large representative prototypes for the automotive industry.

Mr. Antwerpen, who joins Kupron after having worked for DSM Polymers and Rockwool International, says he is keen to further strengthen links with the automotive industry: “In addition to our ability to produce representative prototypes of large parts and our recently developed proprietary hot runner technique to simulate the cascade injection moulding process, Kupron will now also focus on the manufacturing of small series for actual production runs.

“Kupron already works with all major automotive players in the world – and we want to continue to do so. The next logical step we want to take is to use our capability as a platform for the manufacture of small series (up to 40.000 plc) for actual production runs. By combining our know-how and production methods, we believe that we can effect significant savings – both in time and investment – over more traditional production methods. We are already talking to various automotive customers and the first production parts are expected to be produced before the end of the first quarter of 2002.”

Rob Antwerpen points to the company’s impressive track record: “In just a few years, we have established a strong reputation for accuracy and speed, both of key importance to the automotive industry.

Using our proprietary Hybrid Mould technology, we are able to create representative prototypes for large automotive parts in record time.

Moreover, we have also perfected our ability to produce large automotive parts in a simulated cascade injection moulding process.”

According to Raymond De Palma, who now holds the post of Sales and Project Manager, this capability was developed specifically to meet demands from the automotive industry: "Increasingly, large automotive parts such as bumpers, spoilers and sills are produced using a sequential valve gating system. Thanks to its major advantages, both in terms of visual and actual product performance, the technique is becoming more widely seen as not just desirable, but as essential."

Sequential valve gating is also known as cascade injection moulding. This technique, in which multiple hot runners open and close in a pre-programmed sequence, is used to prevent flow-lines, giving parts a better finish and greater strength. Flow-lines do not only have optical aspects, but they often also represent a break line in the final moulded product. However, developing a real sequential valve gating injection mould would take significantly longer than the time normally allocated for the production of prototypes.

Meeting the challenge head-on, Kupron Prototypes set out to develop a technique to perfectly simulate the cascade process. For its own Hybrid Moulds, Kupron Prototypes had already developed a proprietary multiple nozzle hot runner technology. Building on this experience, a technology was developed and perfected, using hydraulic valves in a hot runner manifold.