PPG Introduces New 1K Waterborne Vacuum Forming Adhesives for Untreated Polypropylene Substrates

TROY, Mich., Dec. 2, 2004 -- PPG Industries, Inc., a Fortune 100 producer of chemicals, coatings, glass, fiber glass and many other products, today announced the release of a new line of Corabond single-component, waterborne, heat-activated adhesives for use with untreated polypropylene substrates.

Primarily targeted to vacuum formers in the automotive original equipment manufacturers and aftermarket parts interior components markets, these new waterborne adhesives offer users time- and money-saving production advantages, as well as better compliance with current volatile organic compounds and hazardous air pollutants requirements. Both spray-on (Corabond LSE) and roll- on (Corabond RCA) adhesives are offered to match a range of production techniques.

Interior automotive components such as consoles, instrument panels, door panels and others are commonly constructed by vacuum forming soft thermoplastic cover materials to more rigid substrates such as ABS or fiberboard.

Driven by the desire to lower costs and use more recyclable materials, manufacturers want to use less expensive polymers such as polypropylene for these substrate applications, but many of today's commonly-used high- performance adhesive technologies will not adhere to materials like these without some sort of pretreatment or primer.

PPG's new Corabond adhesives, however, bond tightly to low-surface-energy polyolefins like polypropylene without any primer, adhesion promoter or treatment (flame, corona, etc.). Their waterborne, single-component formulation makes them simpler and easier to apply, either sprayed directly onto the polypropylene substrate or applied by roller onto the polyolefin foam backed vinyl. Coupled with their excellent adhesion and wide processing window, they provide an ideal choice for this type of application.

PPG has been a leader in automotive vacuum-forming technology since its introduction of the first waterborne polyurethane adhesive in the early 1990s. The company's new Corabond LSE and Corabond RCA adhesives for polypropylene substrates demonstrate PPG's continuing leadership in helping the automotive industry solve its challenges for new and improved adhesives.

Pittsburgh-based PPG is the world's leading manufacturer of transportation coatings and a global supplier of industrial and packaging coatings, and a leading producer of architectural coatings, primarily in North America. In addition, PPG manufactures flat and fabricated glass, continuous-strand fiber glass and chemicals. Sales were US$8.8 billion in 2003.