ElectriPlast Corporation, a wholly owned subsidiary of Integral Technologies, Inc. and makers of the ElectriPlast line of electrically conductive resins, recently announced that it has been selected by Tier 1 automotive supplier, Lear Corporation (NYSE: LEA), to provide ElectriPlast conductive plastics to the Fisker Karma plug-in hybrid electric vehicle project currently under way in Valmet, Finland and scheduled to run through 2016. Lear, a leading global supplier of automotive seating systems and electrical power management systems, has designed a new generation of electrical connectors for Fisker utilizing ElectriPlast’s patented line of conductive resins. ElectriPlast and Lear are also working jointly to develop future technologies incorporating ElectriPlast composites into next-generation automotive components and devices.
Shipments of the ElectriPlast resins for the manufacturing of the new lightweight electrical connectors began in November 2011.
“[This] announcement follows months of testing and trials in which we proved the significant benefits of incorporating ElectriPlast conductive resins into the next generation high voltage and high power electronic connections,” commented Paul Mackenzie, Director of Global Sales for ElectriPlast Corporation. “ElectriPlast, with its superior performance, offers engineers flexibility to simplify component design providing reductions in parts, weight and life cycle costs.”
The Fisker Karma is billed as the world’s first premium plug-in hybrid electric vehicle and the embodiment of Fisker Automotive’s commitment to creating environmentally conscious vehicles with passion, style and performance. Designed and engineered in California, the four-door, four-passenger Karma is a series plug-in hybrid that combines the zero-emission benefits of an all-electric car with the full driving range of a conventional car. It will offer a responsible alternative to those in the market for traditional full size, fully equipped luxury cars, say the companies. The ElectriPlast recipe used in the Fisker Karma was the result of close collaboration between the engineers at Lear and ElectriPlast. It represents just one of 80 available recipes that can be custom designed to replace metal parts and otherwise meet a range of engineering demands and previously unsolvable engineering needs.
“We are pleased to be selected by Lear Corporation for such a high profile vehicle program in the Fisker Karma," added Herbert Reedman, President and CEO of ElectriPlast Corporation. “The Fisker Karma represents a change from main stream automotive technology with an eye toward an entirely new generation of electrically powered vehicles; this is exactly where we want our ElectriPlast products to be.”
Applications for ElectriPlast include; wire, power electronics, EMI shielding, antennas, capacitors and mobile devices. Interested industries include consumer electronics, aerospace, military, automotive, lighting and heavy industry. For more information, visit www.electriplast.com.
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