The IREC 99 in Manchester June 7th-10th 1999 was organised by Crain Communications Ltd to bring together the whole supply chain for the rubber industry in Europe in 1999. A meeting point for the leading executives and decision makers in the European rubber industry and joined by international experts from customer industries; suppliers and other, associated sectors, information to be gained from this book of papers is based around how the sector is developing, and how companies can gain competitive advantage.

This compilation of more than 50 papers

outlines the most up-to-date position on legislation;environmental protection and technology

analyses strategic moves by the big players, and descriptions of how they intend to make their businesses more global

describes the latest materials and machinery

List of Papers

INTRODUCTION AND GLOBAL

Recent trends and changes in the rubber industry

The rubber industry - thinking globally, acting locally

The impact of quality on business growth in automotive markets

Global rubber demand and availability in the new millennium. Any winners or losers

The global tyre market: The next 4 years

The European tire and rubber industry moving into the next millennium

Factors driving the shape of the rubber industry

INRO and price stabilisation

The synthetic rubber industry acting responsibly in the past for our future

Improving the competitiveness of the rubber manufacturing industry: A national perspective

ENVIRONMENT

Natural rubber latex allergy - A problem in perspective Latex allergy

Nitrosamines: A regulatory update and an analysts perspective on the industry response

Nitrosamine free curing systems for modern rubber compounds

Exposure to rubber fume and rubber process dust in the general rubber goods, tyre manufacturing and retread industries

Customer service: From production waste to a raw material

The challenge of recovery of end-of-life vehicles - A European perspective for polymers

Energy management in the rubber industry: The future

Enichem solution SBR range to meet Green tyre market demand

AUTOMOTIVE/MANUFACTURING

Purchasing and supply strategy in a changing world

Requirements on global tyre suppliers

Developments in simulation technology for complex 3D elastomeric components

Non-linear finite element analysis of synchronous belts

Vehicle engine suspensions - solutions without prototypes

Automatic shape optimisation of elastomeric products

TPEs usage in the automotive industry

A new, unique fluoroelastomer with expanded fluids resistance

A technological interpretation of the calendering process

Strategic compounding: Logistics and security

Enter the Internet: Compounding by remote access

Closing the gap between business systems and the manufacturing process

Statistical analysis - a clue to improved quality and lower cost

MATERIALS

Benefits of silicone elastomers in automotive applications

Improved rubber properties by using N-t-Butyl-2-Benzothiazole sulfenimide

Process additives for the modern rubber industry

The influence of mineral processing oils on the peroxide curing efficiency of EPDM

Black scorch in EPDM compounds

New development in polymerization technologies and curing.

Fluorinated and perfluorinated peroxide curable elastomers with improved processability and outstanding physical properties for applications in a wide range of temperatures

New developments in silicone rubber technology - properties, processing and applications

Hot carbon black - Its effects on mixing quality and rubber compound final properties

The use of chemical additives to protect SBS rubbers against ozone attack

High temperature curing of passenger tires by using 1, 3 bis (citraconimido-methyl) benzene

A new apparatus for measuring the thermal conductivity of rubbers, foams and composite materials

Comparison of results and test methods using the Micro IRHD and the micro shore rubber hardness measurement instruments

Surface structure and associated tribological properties of NR/TOR blends