Resin Systems installs filament winding equipment in Calgary facility (September 01, 2005)

Resin Systems Inc., in Edmonton, Alta., through its operating division, RS Technologies, has just completed installation of automated filament winding equipment in its Calgary facility, which boasts production throughput rates of up to 1,000 kg of composite materials per hour.

Filament winding works by winding strands of glass fibre, which are impregnated in resin, around a solid form, or mandrel, according to Resin Systems. After the product solidifies, it is removed from the mandrel.

Resin Systems sells its composite products, which are manufactured using filament winding, under the RStandard name. In particular, the company is marketing its RStandard utility poles as an environmentally friendly alternative to current materials because they emit no volatile organic compounds and hazardous air pollutants, the company said. So far it has completed installs in Vaughan, Ont., Austin, Tex. and in Alberta’s power grid.

After the company installs its second production cell in the fourth quarter of 2005, it will be capable of producing 10,000 metric tonnes of RStandard composite utility structures with heights up to 60 metres.

“When integration is completed and the Calgary facility is officially opened, it will be one of the largest capacity composite materials facilities in the world,” said Greg Pendura, president and CEO of resin Systems. “When the facility is in full production, it has the ability to produce in excess of US$56 million in composite material product annually.”