Press

Fürth/Germany, September 30, 2021: The fully electric IntElect injection molding machine from Sumitomo (SHI) Demag is efficient, precise, and fast. Visitors to the 27th Fakuma trade fair, which will take place from October 12 to 16 this year in Friedrichshafen, Germany, will see a demonstration of this machine. Together with LEONHARD KURZ, the experts in innovative plastic decoration solutions from Fürth, Sumitomo (SHI) Demag, the specialist for machines for plastics processing, is presenting a pioneering application of In-Mold Decoration for the vehicle exterior of tomorrow. In live production, the highly efficient ‘IMD second surface’ process will be demonstrated at the machine manufacturer’s booth B1-1105. This process creates an automotive design badge for the front or rear of the vehicle. In addition to KURZ and Sumitomo (SHI) Demag , KURZ subsidiary BAIER, where the cleaning station in the machine comes from, is also jointly responsible for the successful overall concept presented at Fakuma.

Fuerth/Germany, August 23, 2021: Every year, the IMDA Award recognizes outstanding innovations in the areas of In-Mold Labeling (IML), In-Mold Decoration (IMD), and In-Mold Electronics (IME) in the USA. With its new metallization option indium, which the company presented for the first time in 2020, LEONHARD KURZ was able to impress the judges and won the award for exemplary use of In-Mold technology in component production. Indium offers many advantages, particularly in the automotive, consumer electronics, and household appliance industries, and gives almost unlimited design freedom. KURZ showcases the decoration using an automotive door trim concept.

Fürth/Germany, July 26, 2021: From vehicle interiors to the smartphones we hold in our hands every day, and even washing machine control panels: As consumers, we place high demands on the technology that surrounds us. Manufacturers therefore face the particular challenge of combining smart features with excellent design – while at the same time keeping production cost-effective and sustainable. What sounds challenging can be made reality with the help of an innovative process devised by LEONHARD KURZ. The thin film expert is working with the KURZ subsidiary PolyIC and its partners Wittmann Battenfeld and Georg Kaufmann Formenbau in the implementation of the groundbreaking decoration technology IMD VARIOFORM^® with In-Mold Labeling (IML). As a result, customers benefit from bundled expertise.

Fürth/ Germany, June 3rd, 2020: The plastics industry is currently under considerable pressure as a result of the problems caused by plastic waste. Plastics manufacturers and processors are required to quickly develop effective concepts for reintegrating materials in the resource cycle. Numerous companies have already developed effective recycling concepts and increased recycling quotas. Can recyclability be made impossible due to the application of decorative or protective coatings? Do mono-materials become composites when coated, meaning that they can no longer be mechanically recycled? Then all efforts would be in vain. As the industry requires clarity on this issue, a manufacturer of transfer finishing products has now examined it. 

Packaging for short-lived consumables must be collected in accordance with country-specific regulations and returned to the waste management cycle if possible. In Germany, consumer packaging is collected in the yellow bag or yellow bin, and then sorted and recycled by recycling companies. Whether or not a plastic generally remains recyclable following the application of a decorative transfer finishing depends on two factors: Firstly, the transfer finishing must not impede the processes of the recycling company. As a general rule, the packaging is sorted, ground, washed and extruded. All of this must be possible without any disruptions. Secondly, the resulting extrudate must be of the same quality as a recyclate consisting of uncoated mono-materials. 

LEONHARD KURZ in Fürth has commissioned an institute specialising in the classification, assessment and testing of packaging and goods recyclability to test a sample decorated with a transfer finishing from KURZ. The institute has developed a comprehensive catalog of requirements and assessments for EU-wide certification, which is used to assess product recyclability. The submitted small PP bottle with silver coating was certified by the institute as 100 % recyclable.

Fürth/Germany, April 15, 2021: Flexibility and problem-solving skills are the keys for your business success. Just like you, we are pursuing the goal of supporting our customers with innovative solutions for their plastic products at this challenging time. Despite the restrictions due to Corona, we want to offer you new initiatives for surface decoration and invite you to our online seminars for the plastic decoration industry. Learn more about our latest KURZ innovations and trends for automotive, consumer electronics, home appliances, and sustainability topics from our experts. These are our topics:

Fürth/Germany, February 1st, 2021: Pioneering progress from Fürth: Thin-film expert LEONHARD KURZ has been awarded the 3rd main prize of the Bavarian Innovation Prize for the ‘IMD VARIOFORM® with Functional In-Mold Labeling (IML)’ process. This technological solution bundles the four processes of thermoforming, decorating, integrating a sensor, and punching directly in the injection molding tool in a single processing phase. For the first time, this innovation allows touch sensors to be deformed in three dimensions, injected with plastic and integrated into geometrically sophisticated and decorated components.

Fuerth/Germany, 11/01/2021: LEONHARD KURZ will once again be presenting innovations in the field of plastic decoration at this year's all-digital CES innovation show, which will take place online due to the coronavirus pandemic. The company is literally breaking new ground at CES: Under the name New Ground, Kurz is presenting an antibacterial surface treatment and metallization options with indium.

Fürth/Germany, January 1st, 2021: Life Cycle Thinking is anchored in KURZ's corporate goals. The commitment to sustainability and the active advancement of the circular recycling economy is now clearly reflected in this year's appearance of the company at the all-digital CES innovation show. Under the theme Earth Attraction, the global player from Fürth in Germany is showing product and design innovations, plus addressing sustainable and highly effective solutions for a variety of industries. The new design concept Gravity Forces, inspired by the elements of fire, water, earth and air, as well as environmentally friendly plastic decoration innovations, presented under the name New Ground, pay homage to nature, which KURZ aims to preserve. With Circle of Life, the company also shows its commitment to sustainability at all levels, from production to waste recycling.The KURZ vision is a holistic recycling progression with a high degree of design freedom, while simultaneously being cost efficient. In order to make this idea a reality, the experts at Leonhard KURZ are continuously researching new products and processes.

Fürth/Germany, January 07, 2021: Simply appealing – LEONHARD KURZ will be presenting all digital design concepts in addition to innovations in plastic decoration at this year's CES innovation show, which will take place online due to the coronavirus pandemic. The company focuses on nature, presents new techniques and looks under the name of Gravity Forces, inspired by shapes and patterns from the environment, thus developing a special appeal. All surface designs are created using KURZ decoration methods.

KURZ's entire appearance at the world's largest technology trade fair CES will take place under the theme Earth Attraction and will address sustainability, and at the same time, highly effective product solutions for a variety of industries in different ways. The innovation focus at CES is on the fields of Consumer Electronics and Automotive.

Fürth/Germany, 21 December 2020: The U.S. technology company Cypress Semiconductor has included KURZ subsidiary PolyIC in the so-called Design Partner program and will list the company on the Cypress website in future (https://www.cypress.com/design-partner-program/partners). The intensification of the cooperation, which has already lasted almost ten years, is based on PolyIC's proven expertise in the technology fields of capacitive keys, touch screens, multi-touch sensors and domed surfaces.

Fürth/Germany, October 5, 2020: Touch sensors from KURZ subsidiary PolyIC have been integrated into capacitive volume controls from the automotive supplier Preh. The control is located on the center console of the new Audi A3, model AU380. It can be conveniently operated by the front passenger and controlled either via a mechanical push function or capacitive touch function. The PolyTC^® brand name sensor ensures the reliable functioning of the capacitive touch operation – even after multiple uses, as proven by the rigorous testing of the automotive industry. PolyTC^® sensors meet the stringent service life requirements for components according to the VW standard and the specifications of other premium manufacturer.

Fürth/Germany, September 23, 2020: Concept vehicles of auto manufacturers increasingly exhibit car cockpits with no mechanical switches or buttons. The solid, seamless and gently curved surfaces are equipped with functions that are activated by touch. Concealed under the uniformly decorated surface are control elements that only become visible when required. The automotive interior designs convey an elegant lightness despite the highly complex underlying technology. The coating manufacturer LEONHARD KURZ has developed an HMI (Human Machine Interface) concept panel with a forward-looking design that fully exploits the technical possibilities. This high-end plastic component was realized in collaboration with KURZ subsidiaries and partners.

Fürth/Germany, July 9, 2020: LEONHARD KURZ has developed a process for recycling residual PET materials. This enables the carrier foils from KURZ transfer finishing products to be returned to the material cycle. The recycled material can be used as an injection molding material for high-value applications.

In the beginning it was merely a vision for KURZ: to be able to return the residual PET material from hot stamping, cold transfer or digital transfer to the material cycle. This vision has now become reality. The company has succeeded not only in recycling the residual material, but also in turning it into a high-quality, injection moldable material. While recycled plastics are usually used for simple secondary applications such as exercise mats, park benches or flowerpots, the PET material developed by KURZ can be utilized for sophisticated injection molding applications.

KURZ had spent three years and a total investment of several million euros working on the PET recycling concept. Thanks to the joint efforts of all the environmental and process specialists from the graphics and plastics industries at the company’s headquarters in Fürth, the breakthrough has now been achieved. From the residual PET material of KURZ transfer products, they have produced a new injection molding material that will be available in future for industrial applications.

Fürth/Germany, July 7, 2020: LEONHARD KURZ has won an award at the Automotive Brand Contest 2020 for an automotive front panel concept. KURZ received the design prize in the Future, Mobility and Parts category. The company had already won a prize in the same category in 2018 with its decorative trim concept. This time the jury was impressed by an exterior front panel that was designed for electric cars and points the way to the future of automotive front-end design.

Fürth/Germany, May 11, 2020: Using the know-how from four industries to drive innovation in the area of household appliances: that was the objective of the Swiss kitchen specialist V-ZUG AG when it took three companies on board for a joint project. Included were the coating specialist LEONHARD KURZ in Fürth, Germany, the injection molding experts at A. & J. Stöckli AG in Switzerland, and the machinery maker KraussMaffei in Munich, Germany. Their task: to create a new look for the control panel of V-ZUG’s new premium oven. As already customary in the automotive industry, the aim was to visually enhance the panel while at the same time making it more efficient to produce. This was expected to be achievable using In-Mold Decoration (IMD) technology – a method that combines two processing steps (injection molding of the part plus decoration) into one. IMD technology is already being employed in many industries. The joint project by V-ZUG was the first of its kind in the Swiss household appliances industry.