GE ADVANCED MATERIALS TRANSPORTATION BACKGROUNDER

 GE Advanced Materials (www.geadvancedmaterials.com) is a world leader in providing materials solutions through engineering thermoplastics, silicon-based products and technology platforms, and fused quartz and ceramics. Headquartered in Pittsfield, Mass., GE Advanced Materials is the combined entity of GE’s former Plastics, Silicones, and Quartz businesses.

 GE Advanced Materials serves the global transportation industry with a broad portfolio of advanced engineered thermoplastic resin, sheet, and film materials. These include products developed for both interior and exterior use, representing a total solutions approach to meeting this industry’s rapidly expanding needs with proven materials technologies. They include the following:

• ULTEM* sheet – An extruded polyetherimide (PEI) material, based on GE’s ULTEM resin technology, offering excellent flame, smoke, and toxicity performance in combination with superior strength, heat resistance, modulus, and chemical resistance. New grades of this material are being validated in several key interior application areas in the rail and aircraft sectors. ULTEM R16SG00 sheet, for example, is finding increased use in train window masks and other interior parts due to its design flexibility, outstanding mechanical properties, and flame, smoke, and toxicity capabilities. It meets FRA 49 CFR Part 238 flammability and smoke emissions standards for train passenger cars and locomotive cabs and complies with toxicity standard Bombardier SMP 800C. ULTEM R16SG00 sheet can be thermoformed, pressure formed, twin-sheet formed, or used in flat or cold-formed applications. Another product, ULTEM 1668A (29) sheet, meets FRA 25.853 and OSU 65/65 heat-release requirements, as well as toxicity standards BSS7239 and ABD0031.

• ULTEM resin – An amorphous thermoplastic PEI that is inherently flame-resistant with low smoke emission. It offers outstanding high heat resistance, high strength, modulus, and broad chemical resistance. Grades of ULTEM resin meet U.S. Federal Rail Administration (FRA) requirements and are suited for use in a broad range of transportation interior applications. Two new grades in particular – ULTEM 9075 and ULTEM 9076 resins – are especially good candidates for use in aircraft applications such as personal service units, air valve panels, and other interior components. They are available from GE Advanced Materials in a range of custom colors. Other high-performance ULTEM resins for transportation interiors include ULTEM 8015, ULTEM CSR5001, ULTEM 2100, and ULTEM 1000 resin grades.

• AZDEL* Rail-Lite* composite – A new, breakthrough product technology that provides light weight and excellent flame, smoke, toxicity, and heat-release performance in large semi-structural parts for the global rail industry. This low-pressure thermoformable product offers great strength, stiffness, and a low coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE). Unlike traditional fiber-reinforced plastic (FRP) materials or sheet-molding compound (SMC), AZDEL Rail-Lite composite has good ductility. It also provides a potential solution for sound and heat insulation properties. Rail applications include window masks, ceiling panels, seat backs, arm rests, tray tables, partitions, and other components where flame, smoke, and toxicity performance in combination with light weight and impact resistance are required.

• LEXAN* sheet – An extremely durable product based on GE’s LEXAN polycarbonate (PC) resin that is currently finding use in an array of interior components. LEXAN F6000 sheet, for instance, is an opaque FRA-compliant product, offering the transportation interiors industry flame resistance, low smoke and toxicity, and high-heat performance. It can be formed into complex shapes using standard thermoforming equipment. LEXAN MRAC sheet and LEXAN FMR604 sheet are optical-grade products with a proprietary hard coat for maximum service life. These products are excellent potential choices for window covers, lens covers, and visors. LEXAN F2100 sheet and LEXAN 9600 sheet are uncoated

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