By Reinhard Haumer, member of the development team

My motivation to learn this profession

  • A job with a future: “Plastic is everywhere”
  • Wide range of activities
  • Challenge to learn something completely new and different from most other typical jobs in the region
  • Diversity of tasks

My current tasks

  • Troubleshooting
  • Assistance in the development of new or existing products
  • Process optimisation
  • Technical support (Slovakia, Poland)
  • Material testing
  • Training of colleagues
  • Problem solving on machines
  • Development of process parameters
  • Planning of series production processes
  • Project support

My professional qualifications

  • Apprenticeship plastics engineer at Asma
  • Polytec Elastoform (casting, custom-made products)
  • Ligum Slovakia (support in starting the production of polyurethane)
  • Asma (Development)

 

„The secret of ability lies in wanting“

Guiseppe Mazzini

„A job with a future: “Plastic is everywhere”

Reinhard Haumer

Did you know?

WHAT IS THE CHEMICAL STRUCTURE OF PUR?

Polyurethanes are elastomers which are most commonly formed by reacting with a typical urethane group (NH-C-O) linking the molecular units.

This group is the result of the chemical reaction between a hydroxyl group (-OH) mainly built from linear polyols with an isocyanate group (NCO). Adding a cross-linker (from a chemical point of view, this is a chain extender linking the monomeric components to build macromolecular chains) finally leads to the creation of a regular molecular structure. This is the structure that is responsible for the outstanding mechanical properties of polyurethanes and especially their elasticity.

Polyurethanes are therefore somewhat related to rubber elastomers, however, they are superior to rubber as they can be tuned to offer a wide range of special features: from soft elastomers with rubber-elastic properties up to rigid or hard types of plastic.

Depending on the kind and type of components used in the synthesis of polyurethane, asma is able to design the properties of the final material and to tailor them to the particular field of application.

Depending on the type of polyol, there are two main groups of polyurethanes: polyester polyurethane (asma brands: asmaprene A, BE, Asmathane) and polyether polyurethanes (asma brands: asmaprene L, Baytec Reaktiv).

Additionally, various types of isocyanates (MDI, TDI, NDI etc.) and chain extenders or cross- linkers resp. (diols, triols, amines) are used to design the particular properties of each polyurethane.