Continental Structural Plastics orders new Dieffenbacher D-LFT line 

Continental Structural Plastics (CSP, Auburn Hills, Mich., U.S.), a Teijin Group (Tokoyo, Japan) company and manufacturer of composite components, is expanding its facility in Sarepta, La., U.S. with the purchase of a Dieffenbacher (Eppingen, Germany) direct-long-fiber thermoplastic molding (D-LFT) line that includes a press with a pressing force of 2,500 tonnes (25,000 kilonewtons). CSP says it will use the D-LFT line, scheduled to begin operating in the first quarter of 2022, to produce tailgate covers for pickup trucks.

Prior to this announcement, the company notes, CSP has already been operating three Dieffenbacher D-LFT lines with identically constructed presses in Sarepta for 20 years.

“Our Dieffenbacher lines from 2001 have done an excellent job for two decades. That's why we’ve decided to order another D-LFT line with a 2,500-tonne hydraulic press,” says Dale Armstrong, advanced process engineer at CSP. “In addition, we always feel very well supported by the local Dieffenbacher staff here in North America.”