NOX Corporation, Korea, one of the largest producers of luxury vinyl tiles (LVT) worldwide, has recently started operation in a new facility in Fostoria, Ohio, USA. The factory is equipped with several calenders and complete assembly lines. A PWE 250 planetary roller extruder from battenfeld-cincinnati Germany is used for the production of top-layer sheet and decorative sheet. The planetary roller extruder, with outputs between 1,600 and 2,200 kg/h, manufactures transparent or opaque PVC sheet with thicknesses of 120-300 µm. The transparent sheet is used as top-layer against scratch marks, while the opaque, mainly white sheet is printed with the decoration. Afterwards, all layers are laminated and embossed together onto a basis material highly-filled with chalk.
NOX Corporation's Integrated Vertical Production (IVP) system has enabled the company to commit to offering its customers consistent quality standards and innovative products. NOX Corporation was the first to market "LVT click" in 2005 and "loose-lay LVT" in 2006.
"LVTs are very sophisticated and technically complex products. We have been working successfully with battenfeld-cincinnati for many years and appreciate the high quality of the machines. For our new factory in the USA, it was especially important to have local service support from the US facility of battenfeld-cincinnati. By opening its LVT manufacturing facility in the USA, NOX Corporation expects to improve customer service. As the only OEM/ODM LVT plant in the USA, it will give customers access to a wide range of high-quality products," says Dan Koh, CEO and President of NOX Corporation.
LVTs are PVC decking laminated from multiple sheet and installed in a similar fashion to laminate flooring. The sheet used is produced with calenders. LVTs have captured a substantial market share in the past years in the area of decking and their share in the segment currently has two-digit growth rates.
The planetary roller extruder system features good mixing properties, short residence times and high surface renewal. battenfeld-cincinnati is the only manufacturer that produces all machine components in a grinding process and thus achieves precise geometries as well as high-strength, wear-resistant components.
battenfeld-cincinnati has been offering planetary roller extruders for many decades, with about 450 machines currently working in the field in more than 50 countries worldwide. Beside the classic machines for PVC sheet production, battenfeld-cincinnati successfully introduced the STARextruder for direct extrusion of PET sheet to the market a couple of years ago. A planetary roller part for degassing the PET melt is an integral component of this extruder.
