Thermoplastic polyester elastomer on the piste
A
DuPont (UK) product story
Edited by the Engineeringtalk editorial team
Jan 29, 2008
Austrian manufacturer Atomic now uses Hytrel thermoplastic polyester elastomer in the baseplates of its skis.
Skis produced by Austrian manufacturer Atomic for use in the more demanding forms of the sport, such as giant slalom and downhill, are now equipped with baseplates made of DuPont Hytrel thermoplastic polyester elastomer.
The engineering polymer facilitates the particularly cost-efficient production of the thick-walled parts, and, due to its high impact strength, even at temperatures as low as -35C, provides a high degree of safety.
Creating the link between the boot of the skier and his ski, the baseplate plays a major role in both comfort and handling.
"The skis equipped with the new baseplates made of Hytrel are particularly smooth-running", explains Harald Scheikl, Assistant Manager R and D Bindings at Atomic.
"Thanks to the pronounced damping characteristics of the material, impacts are better absorbed than with conventional plates made from polyolefin-based polymers".
"Moreover, the high stiffness of this particular grade of Hytrel provides the skier with precise directional control".
Prior to the product upgrade, the baseplates were machined from semifinished parts, which cost both money and time.
"As part of this innovation, we wanted to introduce the more cost-efficient injection-moulding process, yet retain the dimensions of the original plates", continues Scheikl.
"This required us to achieve wall-thicknesses of up to 7mm and long flow distances of up to 300mm".
"DuPont recommended the use of Hytrel and provided support in both part design and optimisation of the injection-moulding process".
"As a result we can produce moulded parts with a very high degree of dimensional accuracy during very short cycles".
"In turn, this has led to a significant reduction of our production costs".
A further property of Hytrel noted by Scheikl is its high dimensional stability over a broad temperature range.
This facilitates the exact assembly of the binding parts and ensures that only low levels of internal strain occur within the baseplate regardless of temperature change.
In combination with the high flexural fatigue strength of Hytrel, this facilitates long-term usage without damage to the baseplate.
Following Atomic's favourable experience with the material during both manufacture and deployment of the initial baseplate, the company is developing further models made of Hytrel for other forms of ski-sport applications.
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