Highly reinforced polyamide for shaving head carriers and blade holders on razors

Hard on stubble, soft to the skin

·	Robust thanks to high stiffness and toughness 
·	Dimensionally stable and resistant to moisturizing creams
·	Outstanding surface quality despite high glass fiber content

Cologne – For many men, a good, clean shave first thing in the morning makes for the perfect start to the day. So it’s no wonder that electric razors have become high-tech products designed to give men the very best in thoroughness, comfort and care. Numerous models from a major international manufacturer feature shaving head carriers and blade holders made from the high-performance technical plastic Durethan DPBKV60H2.0EF from LANXESS. “Our polyamide 6 fulfills the strict requirements regarding rigidity, toughness and dimensional stability and ensures high-quality surfaces,” says Marc Marbach, head of the E&E sales segment of the LANXESS High Performance Materials (HPM) business unit. Another benefit of this compound – which features 60 percent by weight glass-fiber reinforcement – is that thanks to its outstanding flow characteristics, it can even be used for highly complex components and processed cost-efficiently in large-volume production.

Drop test passed

The fully assembled razors have to withstand being dropped from a height of one meter without sustaining any damage. “Despite its high filler content, our polyamide 6 is so tough that the components made from this material do not break when they hit the ground,” says Marbach. The material absorbs very little water and remains exceptionally dimensionally stable throughout the entire lifetime of the razor. Thus, these low-warpage components stay within the tightest of tolerances, which ensures that the blades fit accurately in the device. 

Easy to paint and metallize

The shaving head carriers and blade holders are available in black as well as in painted or unpainted versions. They also feature a skin comfort coating, which contains metal pigments and allows the shaving head to glide smoothly over the skin. Marbach: “Our compound creates smooth and attractive surfaces that are easy to paint and exhibit good paint adhesion. Another benefit is the polyamide’s strong chemical resistance to the ingredients used in shaving creams, soaps and care emulsions.”

Despite the high glass fiber content, the flow characteristics and processability of the thermoplastic are comparable to a polyamide 6 with 30-percent glass fiber reinforcement. This makes it especially ideal for shaving head carriers and blade holders, because both these components are very thin with complex geometries.

Well-established material for structural components

Durethan DPBKV60H2.0EF has become well established as a material in the series manufacture of structural components of all sizes and can be seen, for example, in the production of transmission housings in motorized brushes. It is also widespread in lightweight automotive construction as a material for frontend carriers, luggage compartment recesses, oil sumps, oil filter extraction tools, transmission housings and chassis-strengthening structural inserts. Electric vehicles offer enormous application potential, including in battery housings and carriers for electrical and electronic modules.

LANXESS is a leading specialty chemicals company with sales of EUR 7.2 billion in 2018. The company currently has about 15,400 employees in 33 countries and is represented at 60 production sites worldwide. The core business of LANXESS is the development, manufacturing and marketing of chemical intermediates, additives, specialty chemicals and plastics. LANXESS is listed in the leading sustainability indices Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI World and Europe) and FTSE4Good.

Cologne, 	September 20, 2019
mfg/rei		(2019-00083e)

Forward-Looking Statements
This company release contains certain forward-looking statements, including assumptions, opinions, expectations and views of the company or cited from third party sources. Various known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors could cause the actual results, financial position, development or performance of LANXESS AG to differ materially from the estimations expressed or implied herein. LANXESS AG does not guarantee that the assumptions underlying such forward-looking statements are free from errors nor does it accept any responsibility for the future accuracy of the opinions expressed in this presentation or the actual occurrence of the forecast developments. No representation or warranty (expressed or implied) is made as to, and no reliance should be placed on, any information, estimates, targets and opinions, contained herein, and no liability whatsoever is accepted as to any errors, omissions or misstatements contained herein, and accordingly, no representative of LANXESS AG or any of its affiliated companies or any of such person's officers, directors or employees accept any liability whatsoever arising directly or indirectly from the use of this document.

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