A. Schulman Wins 'Grand Award' for Automotive Innovation

The new multi-layer co-extruded in-color Formion® ionomer film is used on the bumper fascia of the Chrysler Neon. The ionomer film provides a high-gloss, class A surface in 10 non-metallic and metallic colors that match the body paint of the car. It was developed as an alternative to painting, which reduces cost, eliminates volatile organic compounds, increases manufacturing flexibility, and improves performance such as weatherability and durability.

The extruded film bumper fascia was the winner in the "Process/Enabling Technologies" category. Then, it was chosen for the "Grand Award," besting 30 entries from five other categories. The awards were announced on Monday, November 18, at the 32nd Annual SPE Automotive Division Innovation Awards Banquet, which was attended by more than 800 OEM engineers, automotive executives and industry media.

"It is truly gratifying to accomplish such an important technological innovation through a total team effort, which included engineers from DaimlerChrysler, Mayco Plastics, Build-A-Mold, Exxon Mobil and A. Schulman. These are like the Academy Awards for the automotive plastics industry," said Alain Adam, vice president, International Automotive Operations for A. Schulman. "Finally, there is a solution to eliminate the need for paint by using a system that is more durable and environmentally friendly."

The molding process consists of thermoforming the film and injection molding TPO behind the film. A. Schulman developed the film materials and color concentrates. The co-extrusion process, as well as the thermoforming of the film, is done by Mayco Plastics of Sterling Heights, Michigan. The injection molding and trimming of the final bumper fascia are performed at the DaimlerChrysler Belvidere (Illinois) Neon Assembly Plant.

The multi-layer co-extruded film utilizes Formion® ionomer resins as a high-gloss, durable, scratch-resistant top layer, with color concentrate added to the second layer. A third layer consists of adhesive to bond to the polypropylene back layer. This class A film construction is designed for forming large complex parts with deep draws.

About A. Schulman Inc.

Headquartered in Akron, Ohio, A. Schulman is an international supplier of high-performance plastic compounds and resins. These materials are used in a variety of consumer, industrial, automotive and packaging applications. The Company employs about 2,400 people and has 13 manufacturing facilities in North America, Europe, Mexico and the Asia-Pacific region. Revenues for the fiscal year ended August 31, 2002 were approximately $967 million. Additional information about A. Schulman can be found on the World Wide Web at www.aschulman.com.

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