Technological watch

Despite the global context, the past 2 years have been a turning point for MARCHANTE in terms of innovations and growth, and resulted in being very exciting years in the company’s history. MARCHANTE has decided expand its service to its customers by investing in a 2 000 square meters Research & Development Centre in its main offices in France.

The company announces the launching of the MIC, Marchante Innovation Centre, unique in France, dedicated to the development of films for the applications of rising markets. At the heart of the French Alps, 1 hour from Geneva and Lyon, the MIC is already equipped with a CastLab, 7 layer pilot cast extrusion line; and a StretchLab, a stretching simulator very close to industrial biaxial orientation processes for stretching trials, part of a project supported by the Auvergne Rhône Alpes Region in France, and designed by MARCHANTE engineers.

How does it operate?This technology allows to study the stretchability of film developments under processing conditions very close to industrial conditions, but with a parameterisation that goes further than what already exists on the market.

Accurate reproduction of the film's industrial trajectory:

• The sample is placed at the inlet, minimum size 75 mm x 75 mm
• It will travel 5 independently adjustable zones for heat setting, stretching, annealing or relaxing
• These 5 independent zones are adjustable in terms of temperatures, sample speed in each zone, air flow
• You can apply a wide variety of stretching patterns to the sample, while reproducing the angles of an industrial tenter frame, or MASIM : MD only, TD only, MD then TD, TD then MD, Simultaneous, Asymmetrical, Relaxation, Annealing...
• You can stretch up to 10 times per side
• Stretched sample is collected at outlet of the machine, on the opposite side

What can you test ?Any type of film as a sample of 75 per 75 millimeters at inlet (PP, PET, PA, PE, bio-based materials, or any film structures you are working on), but also nonwoven materials.

Why choose the StretchLab?Choosing the StretchLab, but more broadly the MIC, is not just about testing your development ideas. Above all, it means being accompanied and advised on the direction of your research to achieve your objectives. We make our measurement tools available to help you industrialise your film developments.

Why is the MIC important for our industry?Mr. MARCHANTE has been working on the development of biaxial stretching technologies since 1979, and his management team has more than 20 years of experience in this sector. It is now our responsibility to pass on this heritage to our young experts in order to serve our customers in the best possible way and continue to develop solutions that will meet the challenges of tomorrow.

MARCHANTE as a Company is convinced that technical, industrial and food packaging films will find their added value through the performances that biaxial stretching will provide where it was not done in the past, thus meeting today’s market requirements in terms of recycling, circular economy and new product developments.

This is why MARCHANTE wishes to support its customers in all their film research and development projects through the StretchLab, the CastLab, but above all the MIC, which aims to become a research and development reference dedicated to film & polymer research.