Adligenswil, Switzerland, October 2019 – Sekisui Alveo, European manufacturer of high-quality polyolefin foams, has introduced a new low-emission block foam, designed to meet the demanding emission requirements of the automotive industry. The new product is ideal for challenging applications such as spacers, fenders, gaskets, thermoformed parts and other automotive interior components.

Ideal for automotive applications requiring emission and odour compliance
Alveobloc NA LV AB 3650 can be used for automotive applications, which require low emissions and odour ratings according to VDA278 (2011) and VDA270 C3 test methods. With VOC emissions <100ppm, and Fog <250ppm, the new product surpasses Mercedes' DBL 5455 and Volkswagen’s VW 50180, just to mention two well-known standards within the industry. The foam also meets requirements for chemical resistance, low moisture absorption and temperature stability.

New product combines two areas of expertise
Low-emission foams are nothing new to Sekisui Alveo. The Swiss-based company has been producing continuous roll foam versions successfully for many years, mainly for interior trim applications in the automotive sector. Sekisui Alveo is also a leading provider of block foams. Their various grades of Alveobloc are well-known throughout Europe. The foam specialist has now combined these two proven areas of expertise to produce the new Alveobloc LV.

Ideal as packaging material
The main applications for Alveobloc LV are foam packaging and spacers for sensitive devices and goods, particularly in the automotive industry. The material is ideal to be used in transport cases, display packaging, spacing & cushioning as well as clamp-and-squeeze elements. Both sides of the boards are smooth, and the skin is easily cleaned. The robustness and durability of the foam make it the best choice for reusable packaging solutions.

Saving time and processing costs
Sandro Glanzmann, Application Development Manager at Sekisui Alveo, points out the advantages Alveobloc LV offers to converting companies: “With the development of Alveobloc LV we can offer once more a foam which is ready-for-use, without any pre-processing or preparation. This minimises the conversion costs, which is a key benefit for optimal production processing. Due to the constantly high and consistent quality also from batch to batch, the material eliminates various downstream processing problems.” As a ready-to-convert product, Alveobloc is the best material to be used in highly standardised and automated production processes.

Versatile family of block foams
The new foam grade shares the same technical attributes for which the Alveobloc family of foams is well-known, including attractive surfaces, the ready-to-use product concept, homogeneous density with stable long-term technical properties and performance. Other foams in the Alveobloc family include NA, the standard grade, NT, available in stiff and semi-stiff qualities, and NA CO III, the electrically conductive grade for special applications. In terms of physical characteristics, Alveobloc NA LV is identical to Alveobloc NA.

Ready for converting
Alveobloc is delivered ready for processing. The boards come neatly trimmed and the material can be used up to the edges with no minus dimensional tolerance. Both sides show an attractive smooth finish. There are no pinholes, voids or cavities, and there is no need to skive and dispose of a process skin prior to conversion. The boards can be taken directly from the pallet and be converted using a wide variety of methods, such as laser engraving and cutting, water-jet cutting, milling, skiving, die cutting, contour cutting, sawing, plotting, lamination, gluing and hot-air welding.

Strong technical support by Sekisui Alveo
As a leading European provider of high-quality foams, Sekisui Alveo offers a wide standard product range and also supports customers by developing specific product solutions. The ISO-certified supplier can provide technical and safety data sheets as well as certificates of conformity for its products regarding REACH, RoHS, and other EC directives and regulations. Sekisui Alveo’s in-house Application Service Laboratory is a technical competence centre that is unique in the European foam industry, offering customers a wide range of specialised services such as co-engineering, application-specific product development, support regarding conversion techniques, production of prototypes, application-related testing and transfer of processing know-how.

The new low-emission block foam from Sekisui Alveo is ready to be converted using a wide variety of methods in order to efficiently produce high-quality elements such as spacers, fenders and gaskets.