Nov 2 2010
Integral Technologies, Inc. (OTCBB:ITKG) (“Integral”) an emerging leader in electrically engineered conductive plastics, announced today that one of Europe’s premier automakers has ordered, through a Tier 1 supplier of lithium ion batteries, sample parts to be molded from Integral’s proprietary ElectriPlast™ materials.
The ElectriPlast™ component is designed to be part of a new battery assembly that will allow the automaker to meet weight goals for a 2012 model year car, which will begin production in the second half of 2011. The company recently announced a similar delivery of materials to another Tier 1 supplier and automaker.
This delivery of sample parts is the first step towards shipping final product to the Tier 1 for inclusion in the final production model.
According to Integral, its proprietary ElectriPlast™ material has been approved by the Tier 1 as well as by the manufacturer. ElectriPlast™ was chosen for its shielding effectiveness and light weight. The company also indicated that ElectriPlast™ will provide a cost savings to the manufacturer over the metal part targeted for replacement.
William Robinson, Integral’s CEO, commented, “It’s very gratifying that we are gaining traction in the automotive industry. We are now working with two Tier 1 suppliers, each of whom are developing different parts for inclusion into vehicles produced by different automakers. As we’ve mentioned recently, our goal is to have parts made from our material specified in more automobile makes and models, while we work at the same time to increase the number of parts made from ElectriPlast™ within each vehicle. This is a perfect example of how that can happen.“
“As awareness of the unique advantages of ElectriPlast™ grows in the auto industry, we are seeing more inquiries from various manufacturers, relating to a greater variety of parts and makes and models,” Robinson continued. “Our Tier One partners are central to this equation, because they serve many customers with a broad range of parts and assemblies. Upon completion of this particular project we anticipate inclusion on other design platforms provided by this Tier One supplier, to a variety of automakers. With over 60 million automobiles produced annually, worldwide, there is clearly an opportunity to generate substantial growth for our company with just a handful of design wins.”
According to Integral, automobile manufacturers can now, for the first time, replace heavy metal parts for a multitude of applications ranging from battery covers, connectors and fuses, to shielded plugs and connectors, with lower cost, lighter weight and better performing ElectriPlast™ parts. By utilizing ElectriPlast™ for shielding applications alone, manufacturers are able to reduce the weight of a vehicle by fourteen pounds or more, while improving electrical shielding performance and reducing parts cost and shipping weight.
The ElectriPlast™ pellets can easily be used in low cost injection molding or extrusion facilities with little or no change in dies or tooling, to form parts of virtually any shape or size. This translates to design flexibility for engineers, and enables faster development cycles that add to savings for manufacturers.
ElectriPlast™ has a multitude of uses in a variety of markets. Its electrical properties make it ideal for radio frequency antennae of all types, which is increasingly important in our broadband wireless world. Large market segments that share many of the same requirements of automobile manufacturers include aviation and aerospace, where weight, durability, and electrical shielding performance and/or conductivity are always high priority design considerations.