Ringwood, Illinois – The Elastomers team at Huntsman is celebrating 45 years since the launch of its KRYSTALGRAN® surface protection products. The anniversary coincides with Huntsman increasing the manufacturing capacity of its Ringwood, Illinois site, where it produces its KRYSTALGRAN® non-optical aliphatic thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) pellets and its range of KRYSTALFLEX® optical aliphatic TPU films.
Earlier this year Huntsman opened a brand-new, state of the art building at its Ringwood plant. The purpose-built facility has been fitted out with the latest automated manufacturing equipment – increasing Huntsman’s production capacity and its ability to run customer trials. The investment is the latest milestone in Huntsman’s rich history of supporting the safety glazing and surface protection markets:
- 1975: Huntsman introduced KRYSTALGRAN® PE192, an optical aliphatic technology
- 1992: KRYSTALGRAN® PE102 is introduced for the protection of wind turbine blades
- 1993: KRYSTALFLEX® PE399 is introduced – a primer-less optical aliphatic for safety glazing applications
- 2004: KRYSTALFLEX® PE501 is introduced as a higher strength anti-ballistic film
- 2020: Huntsman expands production capacity at its Ringwood, IL facility to further support the safety glazing and surface protection industries.
Huntsman’s KRYSTALGRAN® and KRYSTALFLEX® TPU products are widely used in surface protection and safety glazing applications worldwide – with KRYSTALFLEX® films renowned for setting the standard for interlayer laminating applications within the glass industry. The materials are used to strengthen anti-ballistic glass used in military vehicles, banks and government buildings. KRYSTALGRAN® products, which are sold as pellets, are used to enhance paint protection in the automotive industry; in electronic film applications; in signage projects; and to protect the leading edge of helicopter and wind turbine blades.
Tom Baird, Huntsman’s Plant Manager at Ringwood, said: “Huntsman has a long history of developing innovative products for surface protection and safety glazing industries. Our first KRYSTALGRAN® product was created in 1975. Today, the portfolio is the broadest technology platform of its kind and is used across a wide array of industries. Our established track record in markets such as renewable energy, consumer displays, and paint protection films, combined with our new manufacturing capabilities, will enable us to keep innovating in parallel with our customers – supporting their manufacturing requirements through our long-established proven product platforms.”
Huntsman’s surface protection products offer a wide range of shore hardness options. Key KRYSTALGRAN® products manufactured at Ringwood include:
- KRYSTALGRAN® PE 102 for leading edge (wind turbine / helicopter blade) applications
- KRYSTALGRAN® PN 03 for paint protection film and graphics applications
- KRYSTALGRAN® PN 60 for graphics and electronics applications.
