SO.F.TER. GROUP: NATURAL FIBERS IMPROVE
PERFORMANCE AND LIGHTNESS
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The Polifor NF product line, based on polypropylene reinforced with natural fibers, offers sustainability,
lightness and improved performance for a wide range of industries, from automotive to design.
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Forlì, September 8, 2015 - Polifor
NF products are based on polypropylene reinforced with various
vegetable fillers derived from renewable sources. Born to meet the market demand for sustainability, they
proved to be highly versatile and possess very interesting technical characteristics: they offer the same
rigidity as polypropylene compounds with the same percentage of talc, but are much lighter because of
lower density (-8%), provide better resistance to high temperatures (+ 17%) and offer a significantly higher
impact resistance (up to + 67% in the notched IZOD test).
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These qualities make the Polifor
NF composites
very attractive to the automotive industry: possible
applications include interior and exterior parts, both structural and aesthetic, such as the cowl vent grille,
internal consoles and pillars, structural dashboard carrier and various parts of the luggage compartment. The
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Polifor NF composites can withstand operating temperatures up to 110-120 °C and therefore can also be
used for under-the-hood applications such as the air filter box.
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The excellent impact resistance of Polifor NF products makes them suitable also for the production of
external casings, even aesthetic, or for covers and protective housings of technical parts. More applications
in the field of furniture and design are under development.
The vegetable fillers used by SO.F.TER. come from FSC or PEFC certified cultivation, which adopt
responsible management systems which have no negative impact on the environment, territory and local
communities.
SO.F.TER. Group is one of the largest independent compounders worldwide. The product range, among the
widest in the industry, extends from thermoplastic elastomers to engineering plastics. Thanks to its
technological know-how applied to a wide range of materials, SOFTER can offer its clientele innovative and
customized solutions with a strong specialization in the automotive, household appliance, electric/electronic,
construction and sports footwear sectors. With sales in over 60 countries, the SO.F.TER. Group has four
production sites in Europe, three in America (the United States, Mexico, Brazil) and a sales office in
Germany. For more information: www.softergroup.com