NTPT and GMV-Richard Mille open new cleanroom facility

North Thin Ply Technology (NTPT, Renens, Switzerland), lightweight prepreg materials and process automation technology company, announced on Sept. 4  the opening of new laboratory facilities and a 300m² cleanroom production area at its headquarters in Renens.  This new development is a step forward in the long-term collaboration with GMV-Richard Mille, which includes the exclusive supply of lightweight Thin Ply materials and solutions to Richard Mille horology, jewelry and writing instrument designs.

The production facility is a state-of-the-art cleanroom dedicated to the manufacture of Quartz and other non-carbon fibre materials. The new NTPT-designed prepreg line features antistatic bars, a suction unit and a new creel system, to prevent contamination and to ensure optimum quality output. The new one cubic meter autoclave has a maximum pressure of 10 bars, a maximum temperature of 260˚C and the capacity to produce 7500km of fiber and more than 7 tonnes of Thin Ply composites annually.

The R&D equipment has been upgraded and includes: Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC), Dynamic Mechanical Thermal Analysis (DMTA), Viscometer, Microscopes, and an Instron mechanical bench test.

While exclusive to GMV-RM for horology, jewelry and writing instrument applications, NTPT welcomes inquiries from companies with other applications that also require a high level of contamination-free composite material.