Three main themes for Lanxess at ACLE
20/07/2012
The focus will be on the company’s new modular finishing system for upholstery leather, UP, on a new cationic finishing range, and on its X-Lite technology for producing lightweight leather.
Furthermore, Lanxess will present a comprehensive range of proven inorganic and synthetic tanning materials, preservatives, fatliquoring agents, dyestuffs, tanning and finishing products. Jürgen Hackenbroich, head of marketing in the Asia Pacific region for the company’s leather business unit, said in the build-up to the exhibition: “We see it as our duty to offer tanneries innovative products with which they can produce leather of outstanding quality to meet the requirements of tomorrow, with respect to profitability and environmental protection.”
Weight reduction is one of the prerequisites for new forms of mobility, Lanxess has said. X-Lite technology for the production of lighter upholstery leather for cars, planes and trains, is based on expandable microcapsules that are introduced into the fibre structure during retannage. These microcapsules are activated through a new process about which Lanxess has revealed few details. “After thermal expansion, it produces upholstery leathers that are no different from normal leather in terms of appearance, texture or wear resistance,” the company has claimed, “but are up to 20% lighter, leading to greater fuel efficiency, higher load capacity and lower carbon emissions for cars, planes and trains.”
UP’s name comes from upholstery. This range enables leather manufacturers to satisfy the individual wishes of each customer without the need for complicated procedures, Lanxess said before the Shanghai event. UP consists of two compounds for base coats and four different top coat components to set the exact gloss level and surface touch required. As regards the two base coat compounds, Euderm Compact UP-SC is a general-purpose product that is especially suitable for full grain leathers, while Euderm Compact UP-E is the product of choice for corrected grain or embossed leathers. All the components in the UP range are NMP-free, simple to use, compatible and environment-friendly, Lanxess said.
Its new cationic pre-bottom range is for the production of soft, natural and elegant leather for shoes, handbags and garments. “The particular advantage lies in the fact that these products are perfectly matched,” said Bianca Verstegen, head of global product management finishing in the leather business unit, in the weeks before ACLE. Finishes with a variety of effects, high transparency and a natural feel can be achieved through the combination of various cationic polyurethane dispersions, waxes, oils and protein binders. When used together, these products offer good hiding power for small to medium-size defects.
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