New Castle, Delaware, USA. September 30, 2016 – TA Instruments and The National Elastomer Center at Ferris State University are pleased to announce a partnership. This collaboration is designed to support advanced research concepts and provide innovative solutions to meet the challenges faced by today’s rubber industry.
Speaking on the occasion, Marc Guske, Assistant Professor in the Plastics and Rubber Engineering Technology Program at Ferris State, said, “We are excited to fold in TA’s advanced materials characterization equipment and expertise into the rubber curriculum and coursework here at Ferris State. Access to TA Instruments and their experience in the fields of physical testing and rheology will raise the level of education and provide better research tools for both industry and academia.”
As part of the partnership, TA donated an RPA elite Rubber Process Analyzer and Sample Cutter to support Ferris State in the development of advanced characterization techniques and research. They will specifically focus on rheological measurements as a means to understand raw polymers and filled compounds. These linear and nonlinear viscoelastic characteristics define processability and final rubber product performance. This will also provide students hands-on laboratory based scientific training.
Thomas Raushmann, Rubber Business Development Manager at TA Instruments commented, “We are truly excited about this partnership. It will serve as a foundation for collaboration between the private sector and academia, allowing a better understanding of the problems facing the industry and the ability to meet them head on with innovative solutions.”
TA and Ferris State are in the process of developing the first in a series of seminars and workshops focused on rubber compounding and characterization of polymers and elastomers. The first of the seminars is being planned for later this year.
TA Instruments – a subsidiary of Waters Corporation (NYSE: WAT) – is the leading manufacturer of analytical instruments for thermal analysis, rheology and microcalorimetry. The company is headquartered in New Castle, Delaware, USA, and has direct operations in 24 countries.
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