Specialist Technical Moulder at the Forefront of Innovation

Hove, UK – 17^th March 2020 – Tecni-Form Ltd, the recognised industry specialist in rotational and RIM moulding, celebrates fifty years of commitment and service in a wide range of sectors. Since its foundation in 1970, the company has evolved and changed, but its reputation for superior quality and technical excellence has remained constant.

It was Tecni-Form that pioneered the concept of grained finish for rotational moulds, was the first to investigate CNC and Robotic finishing of parts, the first to commercially rotomould Polyamide 11 &12, and an early adopter of CAD design and CNC machined moulds.

“A lot has changed within the technical moulding industry and we have been honoured to be part of that change.” stated Chris Fecher, MD of Tecni-Form. “We have an ongoing commitment to investment in continuous development of manufacturing processes and materials to better serve our customers.”

In fifty years Tecni-Form has designed and manufactured a huge variety of products to technically challenging designs for a wide range of major industries including construction and agricultural vehicles, prestige sports and luxury cars, healthcare, leisure, furnishing, electronics, audio-visual, domestic and industrial water treatment, gas and oil storage, defence, nuclear, maritime….. the list goes on.

“We recognise that behind our success is our customers’ loyalty and we strive to create ever greater value for them“ says Chris Fecher. “Another key to any company’s success is its staff and their commitment to serve the customer. It is no coincidence that a high proportion of staff have long service with the company”

Over the years Tecni-Form has acquired and absorbed seven rotational moulding companies, each acquisition leading to additional diversity. The current location of the Tecni-Form manufacturing facility is in Stone, Staffordshire.

Mr Fecher added “As we celebrate our 50th anniversary, we also have exciting plans for the years to come. 2020 will see the introduction of two new technologies enabling a versatility of application never previously achieved on rotomoulding.”

“We are fortunate to reach this special landmark, achieved as a result of the long-standing relationships with our customers, employees, suppliers and partners in the UK, and around the world, for the last 50 years — To them – Thank you!”

Tecni-Form provided constant support whatever the subject was: manufacturing, design or prototyping – Mr Hesnard, Director of Baby Point

Baby Point Ltd is the main provider of baby changing facilities for mainstream retailers, shopping centres, airports and leading attractions in the UK. Baby Point Ltd has tasked Tecni-Form with the design and manufacture of a wall mounted baby changing table with a high load-bearing capabilities (upto 125kgs) and an antibacterial surface to meet health and safety regulations.

The first wall mounted baby changing tables developed by Baby Point and Tecni-Form, optimised the available space even in small washrooms and are an extremely well engineered products complying with both safety and hygiene regulations

Outstanding Strength and Hygiene by Design – The Solution

To achieve sufficient strength it is essential that the right resin was selected. The Tecni-Form team suggested a high rigidity polypropylene for the rotational moulding process, the first time this polymer has been used for this application.

Furthermore, to both guarantee strength under load and provide a hinge system for wall mounting, an assembly of reinforcing steel is moulded into the cantilever style structure with the durable rotomoulded hollow moulding filled with a rigid PU foam.

Hygiene is another important factor that needs to be taken into account at the design stage. Polypropylene offers higher hygiene standards than the medium or high density polyethylene used for other makes of baby changing tables. With its polished surface it is easy to maintain and by adding anti-microbial additive to the polypropylene compound it provides outstanding hygiene and guards against bacterial spread.

Excessive levels of noise and vibrations are a major obstacle to the comfortable operation of industrial vehicles – but designing with the appropriate materials and techniques will help OEMS’ push on through

Off-highway vehicles are, by their very nature, noisy. Most industrial design team will face a constant battle to provide increased power and capability, while simultaneously furnishing the vehicle operator with a comfortable environment in which to work. The vehicle cab answers this need; and reducing the level of noise and vibration inside is important in achieving the objective. The main drivers for this activity are, of course, legislative requirements and the need to prevent temporary and permanent hearing loss.

How Sound Waves Travel in the Cab

The cab can be viewed as an enclosure. Sound travels from the source by vibrating the particles within adjacent and subsequent mediums and is propagated as waves of energy. Sound will enter the cab through any holes compromising the integrity of this enclosed space, and via transmission through the metal and glass panels. These panels will also respond to air borne sound incident on their surface, as well as vibration through cab mounts and other solid connections, exciting resonance in the panels and transmitting sound into the cab.

The interior noise level generated will be of a broad frequency range, while the level and frequencies at which the noise is most prominent will be a function of the original source, the mediums through which the sound passes, and the resulting environment.

That is to say, it will depend on the original sound power levels of the engine along with other sources and their operating conditions: the mass, size, shape and stiffness of the cab structure and how its different elements are connected; and the size and reverberation quality of the enclosure. The resulting noise level is further complicated by the weighting scale necessary to adjust for the way in which we perceive the sound, while the length of time of exposure to noise will also have a bearing on hearing loss. The operator may also feel vibration through the seat, floor and controls.

4 Steps to Consider to Minimise Cab Noise

The new baby changing table has met all of the technical & market expectations thanks to very strong support from the Tecni-Form team – Mr Hesnard, Director of Baby Point Ltd

Baby Point Ltd is the main provider of baby changing facilities for mainstream retailers, shopping centres, airports and leading attractions in the UK. Over the last 15 years, the company has developed its range of baby changing products with Tecni-Form as its manufacturing partner. When Baby Point decided to launch a brand new mobile all-in-one commercial baby changing table to meet new market trends, it was no surprise that they reached out to the Tecni-Form team as their products required technical expertise from design stage to manufacturing.

Summary of the Product Requirements – The Challenge

Tecni-Form Delivering Engineering Excellence – The Solution

The new portable baby changing table is assembled from six polyethylene and one polypropylene rotomoulded parts with high dimensional accuracy. The design incorporates optional components, such as bins and lockable castors, with all assembly carried out by Baby Point to customers’ individual specifications.

The stylishly formed baby changing cradle is manufactured from a new grade of high impact polypropylene, the weight being supported by the base structure. To achieve the necessary rigidity without metal reinforcement, the new CAD design was modelled using Finite Element Analysis (FEA) and incorporates a number of invisible moulded features to enhance the necessary support to the structure.   

The design with its polished surfaces and rounded edges, ensures a safe and comfortable environment for babies, and this is enhanced by the cradle incorporating an anti-microbial additive to increase hygiene standards further.

The flexibility of Tecni-Form’s rotomoulding process enables rapid colour changes giving the option to supply even single batches in any colour, say to match corporate or authority identity.

Excessive level of noise generated by machines in the construction and agricultural industry is inevitable, however if ignored can cause hearing loss, stress and fatigue in both the operator and people nearby. It is no surprise that today both employers and manufacturers put great effort into protecting its operators from machine noise in the workplace.

David Delaney, PU Operations Manager at Tecni-Form, has previously assisted noise testing on a range of acoustic mat compositions at Salford University testing facility. The results indicated that a well-engineered composition (elastomer) provides exceptional transmission loss and mass dampening capabilities suitable for creating noise reducing floor coverings and other cab interior mouldings.

Rotomoulding Shaping the Furniture Industry

Largest Industrial Vehicle Technology Expo in Europe!

24-25th June, Cologne, Germany

The industry leading iVT Expo in Cologne is a must attend event. It showcases the exterior and interior components, services and technologies from Europe, and beyond, that go into making the next generation of industrial vehicles. Learn more about this event

Tecni-Form, specialist in rotational and RIM moulding, will demonstrate a variety of products from the latest acoustic floor mats, industry specific tanks, roofs and fenders to ergonomically designed cab interiors. Contact us to schedule a meeting

Click here to view our product examples for different sectors in the vehicle industry:

• Construction Vehicle
• Industrial Vehicle
• Agricultural Vehicle