25 Sep 2006
William Levene Shakes up the Kitchenware Industry with GE’s Xylex* Resin
Blending Performance, Custom Colour, and Durability in a Stylish Design
Established for nearly 60 years, William Levene is a premier supplier of kitchen products, cookware, and gadgets throughout the UK. The firm also exports to 42 countries worldwide. Known for clever and innovative designs, William Levene worked with well-known television Chef Jamie Oliver to commercialize his invention of a gadget for quickly preparing flavorful marinades and rubs for foods. To meet the requirements of the Flavour Shaker application, William Levene selected Xylex* resin from GE Plastics.
GE Plastics & William Levene
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
The Challenge: Innovative Plastic for an Innovative Kitchen Gadget
The Flavour Shaker, which is designed to replace a traditional mortar and pestle with a faster method of crushing, mixing, and extracting flavour from whole spices, was originally the brainchild of Chef Jamie Oliver. He took the idea to William Levene and the company came to GE Plastics for a materials solution as well as value-added services needed to commercialize the product.
The unique application design created material challenges. Inside the shaker is a hard ceramic ball that crushes ingredients as it repeatedly beats against its walls. A high-performance material was necessary to withstand this constant force. From a usability standpoint, the shaker needed to be see-through so cooks could observe the results of the blending process. Further, a resin with many colour choices was needed for different product versions and special promotions. Due to its use with food, the shaker needed to be dishwasher safe as well as able to store food under refrigeration.
The Solution: GE’s Xylex Resin
William Levene selected Xylex resin, a polyester alloy compliant with U.S. and EU regulations for food applications, to meet the design and functional demands of the Flavour Shaker. The application requirements included clarity, high impact tolerance, moldability, chemical resistance to many common food ingredients, and strong adhesion.
Further, Xylex resin can be produced in a wide range of shades using GE‘s colour-matching services provided by the company’s Colour Innovation Centre in Bergen op Zoom, Netherlands. This capability was important to enable William Levene to quickly manufacture special colours for different seasons and holidays.
“Xylex resin had all the properties we needed to create a product with the quality our customers have come to expect from us. In our opinion, it was simply the best materials solution for this application,” says Andrew Thornton, Technical Manager of William Levene.
The Value-Added Services
GE provided a number of value-added services to William Levene, including global application development support and rapid delivery of the resin to speed up commercialization. GE conducted several lab and field tests, including mold flow analysis, chemical and dishwasher resistance testing, and commissioned the tools needed to make the application.
To accommodate William Levene’s specific colour requirements, GE provided on-the-spot matching. “They brought in a colour they needed and we matched it right away,” said Gabrie Hoogland, Xylex Global Program Manager, GE Plastics.
GE Plastics is an industry leader in colour-matching and management services. Highly skilled in-house colour specialists can help designers to develop custom colours and textures.
In addition, GE helped the customer with identifying local molders to speed up penetration into the European marketplace. Using a local molder eliminated long lead times for shipping and helped William Levene bring the Flavour Shaker to market more rapidly.
The Benefits: Exceptional Aesthetics and Performance
GE’s Xylex resin provided key benefits in the Flavour Shaker application, beginning with its compliance with U.S. FDA and EUFC regulations. The material offers both clarity and impact resistance, unlike competitive resins that forced designers to choose one or the other. The outstanding high impact resistance of Xylex resin makes the shaker a durable device that can keep performing. Further, it has been optimized for chemical resistance to common food items such as olive oil and vinegar as well as staining food items, including curry and tomato. This property helps prevent breakdown, cracking, or staining.
It also has great detergent stability, enabling it to withstand up to 500 dishwashing cycles.
Xylex resins are used in many other industries such as electronics, automotive, sports, safety, recreation, and telecommunications.
Details at:www.williamlevene.com
Reader enquiries
GE Plastics
Plasticslaan 1
4600 AC Bergen op Zoom
Netherlands
Notes for editors
About GE Plastics
GE Plastics (www.geplastics.com) is a global supplier of plastic resins widely used in automotive, healthcare, consumer electronics, transportation, performance packaging, building & construction, telecommunications, and optical media applications. The company manufactures and compounds polycarbonate, ABS, SAN, ASA, PPE, PC/ABS, PBT and PEI resins, as well as the LNP* line of high-performance specialty compounds. GE Plastics, Specialty Film & Sheet manufactures high-performance Lexan* sheet and film products used in thousands of demanding applications worldwide. In addition, GE Plastics’ dedicated Automotive organization is an experienced, world-wide competitor, offering leading plastics solutions for five key automotive segments: body panels and glazing; under the hood applications; component; structures and interiors; and lighting. As a Worldwide Partner of the Olympic Games, GE is the exclusive provider of a wide range of innovative products and services that are integral to a successful Games.
* Xylex, LNP and Lexan are trademarks of General Electric Company.
Editorial enquiries
Helen Vandebovenkamp
GE Plastics
Tessa Vroegop
Marketing Solutions NV
Also available in