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'Nian gao' is property agent's best asset

This time of year, the property agent swaps the pens and the contracts for moulds and steamers to make nian gao.

His sticky rice cake is in demand locally and in Singapore.

The 43-year-old father of three has been making nian gao every year for the last 10 years.

He learnt how to do it while working at a Chinese-owned nian gao manufacturing factory back in the 1980s.

When the factory shut down, Balamurali became a property agent as nain gao is only popular during the Chinese festive season.

The traditional item, made of glutinous rice flour, syrup and brown sugar, is offered to the Kitchen God at this time of the year.

Folklore has it that a week before the Lunar New Year, the Kitchen God returns to heaven to with the year's report of the family's good and bad deeds to the Jade Emperor.

The Chinese community hence offers the nian gao to the Kitchen God's so that he would not be able to talk with his mouth full of sticky rice.

Customers have a choice of nian gao made using plastic-lined moulds or the traditional and pricier banana leaf-lined  mould. 

The moulds are placed inside a giant steamer.

Balamurali, who runs his business from NYCC Enterprise at 70, Jalan Bakawali 52 in Taman Johor Jaya, sells the cakes at between RM3.20 and RM8.50 each.

With the help of 30 part-time workers, Balamurali produces over 1,500 cakes a day.

IMD answers multiple choice questions

Wilhelmsdorf, Germany based plastic processor Jacob Plastics Group has developed the MultiDecoMolding process that it says offers new design possibilities for decorative automotive interior applications. Designers can deceive the eye, Jacob Plastics maintains, by using MultiDecoMolding to produce components in one piece that "look like they're assembled from different parts".

The MultiDecoMolding process has already found a commercial application on the latest Opel Astra car, for the cover of the central console, as part of the trim covers for the Delta 2 platform.

The process is used to stunning effect on the Opel Astra parts that Jacob Plastics supplies via Johnson Controls. Of the various Astra models for which Jacob Plastic moulds the central console covers, the Cosmo, GSI and Sport versions are probably the most exacting, involving a combination of different structures and contrasting colours.

MultiDecoMolding was developed by Jacob Plastics specifically for these kinds of demanding tasks. The company says that its process produces better quality parts than the previous painted Astra central console covers, without some of the difficulties incurred with painting.

Key to the MultiDecoMolding process is a form of in-mould application of different decorative elements to a single moulded component. Jacob Plastics says the technique overcomes "creative limitations" such as diffusion, blurred interfaces at points of colour change in multiple-colour parts and the problem of clearance when changing film motives in outline and border areas.

Jacob Plastics said a previous drawback with decorative elements that were close to or interconnected with each other was that, often, in practice, they were separated by gaps, instead of being "closely affiliated".

This has been overcome with the new technique, which uses back injection moulding to apply and combine films or other decorative elements with different motives, structures or in different materials to the moulded substrate within a single moulding process. This eliminates the need to apply these features in separate post-moulding bonding operations with clips, welding or adhesion.

Jacob Plastics says that one of its future plans is to use MultiDecoMolding to apply electroluminescent foil as a functional element under a wood appearance surface dcor. This would allow a park distance control to remain invisible while driving normally, yet become visible through the dcor when making parking manoeuvres.

As Jacob Plastic Group is also a thermoformer, it produces the three thermoformed FIM insert films itself. These are placed into Reis positioning equipment with precision down to tenths of 1mm. A Reis multi-axial articulated robot then places the insert films held in the positioning equipment into a 550 tonne Engel injection moulding machine to mould the complete decorated covers.

The MultiDecoMolding trademark was registered in the EU trademark database by Manfred Jacob Beteiligungen on 27 November 2008, with expiry date 25 October 2017.

Cheese mould, a new sanitary sterilizer?

Since the days of the ancient Romans, humankind has relied on mould to craft pungent, tasty blue cheeses like roquefort, gorgonzola and stilton.

Now, researchers have harnessed that edible fungus, Penicillium roqueforti, to create a self-cleaning foil that contains an embedded mould that eats away at food spilled on it.

The product is still rudimentary – it took the mould two weeks to digest half a teaspoon of sugary broth.

But it is one of the first times scientists have combined living organisms and a material component. The researchers foresee complex future applications such as weaving toxin-producing mould into fabric to create a self-sterilizing surface.

The research team, from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich, has published its findings in the Jan. 3 issue of the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America.

The project’s inspiration was the French cheese camembert, said one of the researchers, Lukas Gerber.

A soft-ripened cheese, camembert has a white, downy rind – or as the research paper calls it, “a living, functional biomaterial.” The rind, which is inoculated with the Penicillium camemberti mould, acts both as a ripening agent and a protective surface against other micro-organisms.

“Now, we want to take such a function from a living body and incorporate it into an artificial material,” Mr. Gerber said in a telephone interview. “It’s the first time [people] have designed a flat surface combining these two domains, the plastic and the micro-organisms.”

The foil they created was like a three-layered sandwich, with two polymer films encasing a thin coating of gelatinous culture holding the fungi.

The layer at the bottom was made with polyvinyl chloride, the material used in plumbing pipes and fake leather. The fungi, suspended in an agar mixture, were spread on that layer, then covered by a porous polycarbonate plastic membrane.

The researchers analyzed two sizes of the self-cleaning material, one about the width of a dollar coin and the other as large as a sheet of letter paper. A sugary broth made from potatoes was dropped on the samples. Within 14 days, the fungi consumed the spill until the sugar dropped “below detection limit,” Mr. Gerber said.

“That was cool; that was what we expected.”

Once the food was consumed, the fungi switched to a dormant state until another spill activated them.

As long as the material was kept from severely drying, the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology mould remained active, even after the foil was rubbed with alcohol hand disinfectant or scrubbed with dishwashing soap.

This showed that the material had a shelf life and might survive standard hospital washing routines.

The research opens the door to future applications that combine the benefits of micro-organisms with flat surface materials, Mr. Gerber said. For example, penicillin-producing fungi could be used to create antibacterial fabric that would generate antibiotics only in the presence of germs. Or large surfaces such as skyscraper facades could be coated with algae, which transform carbon dioxide to oxygen, to improve air quality.

“We wanted to show how easy it is to combine micro-organisms and polymer science,” Mr. Gerber said.

Miliy Balakirev. Alexander Scriabin. Tamara Gverdtsiteli

We have entered the new year of 2012 – something I would like to congratulate you all with, yet again! And now its time for us to take a look at the memorable historical dates of the opening month of the year.

The first significant date is the 175th birth anniversary of Miliy Balakirev.

In Russian music history Miliy Balakirev occupies a very special place. An outstanding composer, public figure, he was a highly authoritative individual throughout an entire epoch, and brought up a brilliant pleiad of composers, who joined forced to create a unique artistic association. Russian critic Vladimir Stasov dubbed the latter “The Mighty Handful, or “The Mighty Five” as they were known in the west.

Miliy Balakirev was born January 2nd 1837 in Nizhny Novgorod in an impoverished gentry family. From an early age he displayed a profound interest in m music, and having gained access to the richest music library of one of his compatriots, started mastering the music scores of the classics at amazing speed. A photographic memory and phenomenal ear for music helped him soon become one of the best-educated musicians of Russia.

When the young, enthusiastic, impassioned Balakirev found himself in Petersburg, he immediately started drawing young musicians like a magnet. Thus, he formed a circle, members of which were warrant officer Modest Mussorgsky, scientist-chemist Alexander Borodin, Military Academy Professor Caesar Cui and naval officer Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov. Balakirev, who took it upon himself to enlighten these amateur music enthusiasts, transformed them into brilliant professionals – each with their own distinctive flair.

Miliy Balakirev himself did not write all that many compositions, overtime finding himself in the shadows of his charges. But we must not forget that it was his aesthetics, his creative art that determined the original, typically national direction taken by Russian music art.

And another striking name – Alexander Scriabin. A rebel at heart, who possessed a vivid imagination and truly cosmic energy. A man who dreamt, in the manner of God, to mould his own Universe, following the orbit of the arts. A composer endowed with a colour hearing, and ample imagination, who conceived a grandiose Mysterium, uniting music and art, architecture and dance, plastic movement and scents and aromas. Alas, Scriabin did not have enough time to realize all his astounding projects – he was fated to die at just 43.

Alexander Scriabin wrote either for the orchestra, or for the piano. He was an excellent pianist himself and possessed a particularly delicate touch which left the audience in raptures. Crowds of devoted fans called his playing divine.

The recordings of Scriabin playing that have survived to our time unfortunately do not do justice to the magic he was able to wield, driving audiences to ecstasy.

Moscow Philharmonic Society is celebrating its 90th anniversary. Russia’s leading concert association regards January 29th, 1922 as its birthday. That night there was a wealth of congratulatory speeches, and afterwards – the music took over – Beethoven’s 9th symphony.

Today Moscow’s Philharmonic, most probably, is unrivalled in quality and quantity of concerts. It has to its credit over 100 monthly concerts in Moscow’s central concert venues and many hundreds of literature and music programmes for children and the youth.

The capital’s Philharmonic society gathers under its wing the best musicians of Russia and invited numerous foreign celebrities. Annual philharmonic season-tickets are sold out in mere days.

And now we are shifting over to a different genre – songs. And with good reason, too: the jubilee of our popular vocalist Tamara Gverdtsiteli.

When still a girl she became soloist of the greatly-loved all across the soviet country children’s ensemble from Georgia “Mziuri”. Growing up, Tamara swiftly soared to the big solo stage, her art an embodiment of indelible ties linking Georgia and Russia.  Her striking talent, inherent musicality, artistic charm, easily recognizable voice made Tamara Gverdtsiteli a star that numerous acclaimed composers, the best orchestras and ensembles of Europe are eager to collaborate with. Her birthdays are traditionally a festive event, where beauty and harmony reign.

In our final theme for  today we are recalling Valeri Obodzinsky, an iconic soviet singer of the 1960s, 70s and 80s. January 24th would have been his 70th birth anniversary. Just 70! Alas, the singer has long since died.

Valeri Obodzinsky possessed a remarkably beautiful voice. However, even in the most carefree songs he performed there was always a hint of sadness. His songs were shrouded in a sensuality that the “virtuous” soviet censorship waged such a relentless war against, and the vocalist was not always granted the “green light”. Besides, Obodzinsky never performed loud and blustering songs about the Motherland and the party, something that could not fail to alert the powers-that-be and render them suspicious in his regard.

The artists’ fate was by no means an easy and smooth one. At the end of the 1970s he left the stage and it required a huge effort from him to return 7 years later. However, he was fated to live no more than three years.

Black Mould Removing Products and services

Black mold or mildew (stachybotrys) can be an really dangerous sort of fungus that grows within areas where there may poor quality of air; generally thriving inside homes and even on many other materials which have suffered critical water destruction. It is particularly attracted to anything that contain cellulose.

Those unlucky enough to breathe in the spores frequently experience head aches and physical weakness and pain in the mouth, throat not to mention sinuses that can result in severe coughing and other allegic side effects say for example a allergy plus sneezing. In the most unfortunate occasions, breathing in the mold can also lead to intense feeling sick and heavy vomiting, as well as blood loss in the nasal area plus lungs, and possibly death. Therefore, it is imperative that it is removed as quickly and securely as possible.

A lot of householders generally discover that black mold, which basically seems either black or green, developes on home window sills in kitchens and bathrooms, as well as cellar locations by reason of they are most susceptible to types of conditions for instance moisture, darkness in addition to deficiency of adequate air flow. Nonetheless, it can occur anywhere if the right conditions are reached. Believe it or not, household mildew may generally be found in any dark, dank, or warm places including any plumbing locations, attics and other crowded storage area spaces both indoors and outdoors. Garages and back garden sheds exposed to a lot of rain or snowfall could also be perfect breeding grounds for fungus to blossom, and should be looked over all the time.

Exposure to bright sunlight could actually help stop its growth, as can sustaining appropriate ventilation. If needed, don’t forget to install a good ventilator fan in any room of your house, wherever mildew happens to be found.

It is also smart to run the ventilator (or at least keep a window open a bit) while taking a shower or bathing to move the humidity out of the washroom plus maintain air flow moving in order to avoid mildew build-up. Actually, since mildew tends to form first on window sills, it is a good idea make sure that you open up the windows every few days to make sure that every window protecting, which includes curtains together with blinds can certainly air out before they’ve got a way to turned into breeding grounds for spores. It is usually wise to run ceiling fans and / or easily transportable fans in any place where water has collected from either leaks or possibly spills to dry it out sooner.

A majority of people believe they might get rid of black mildew with the help of chlorine bleach, they’ll soon find that using it simply serves to “mask” its appearance giving them a wrong awareness of security. In most cases, chlorine bleach is not really powerful sufficient to destroy the mildew at its roots, and it can still develop and distribute regardless of the dousing. This is because chlorine bleach, itself is done generally of water, which unfortunately ends up encouraging a lot more growth soon after initial cleanup. Aside from that, chlorine bleach is just not strong enough to penetrate solid wood and/or drywall, therefore while the exterior may appear clear, the spores are able to continue to reproduce inside them.

Preferably instead, it is advisable to make use of a few of the newer organic removal products for black mold
at this time in the marketplace that not only eliminate the fungus, but avoid it from moving back by “starving” it of the nutrients essential for it to survive. They are also less hazardous for both people in addition to animals, since lots of household cleansers available on the market can also be dangerous in their own right. These kinds of could easily be found in housewares stores, equipment outlets and online.

To begin with, make use of a rag or maybe spritzer to be able to dampen down the infected place, then apply the mildew killing solution as per recommendations on the sprayer. At the same time, be sure to remove just about any harmed wallpaper, textile materials (including rugs) together with books, newspapers together with other moldy papers and eliminate all of them instantly. If they can be things you prefer to keep, be sure to allow all of them dry out totally in sunshine soon after applying any mildew killers to them before they are put back in your home or perhaps business office. Be sure there is certainly lots of air flow anywhere you might be doing work. Additionally, it is advisable to cover your nose area and mouth area using a mask to avoid inhaling both the spores together with toxins being exercised, and keep children together with pets away from them to prevent them from getting to be sick.

Global weakness hammers Chen Hsong earnings

China’s slowing manufacturing economy and difficult conditions in export markets in North America and Europe hammered Chinese injection press maker Chen Hsong Holdings Ltd., sending revenues for the first half of its fiscal year down 27 percent, to HK$964 million (US$123.8 million).

“Weaknesses in Europe and the U.S. hammered China’s export sector, with dwindling orders and low capacity utilization directly suppressing needs for purchasing new equipment,” Hong Kong-based Chen Hsong said in a Nov. 28 filing to the Hong Kong stock market. “In the first half of this financial year, winter appeared to have fallen for the export sector.”

Profit in the first half of its fiscal year, which ended Sept. 30, fell 54 percent to HK$104 million (US$13.3 million), compared with the same period in 2010.

In addition to export weakness, Chen Hsong also said conditions worsened markedly in China’s domestic market, with industries that were “red-hot” last year, like automotive and household appliances, facing overcapacity and mounting inventories.

The Chinese government’s attempt to rein in inflation, overheating and asset bubbles by tightening credit put many small and medium-sized manufacturers in a liquidity squeeze, Chen Hsong said: “Many customers could not obtain the necessary financing from banks to continue daily operations, expand capacity or upgrade production equipment.”

Business in China, whether for export-oriented or domestic-focused customers, took the brunt of the company’s losses, down 35 percent overall, to HK$656 million (US $84.3 million).

Chen Hsong’s figures match other estimates from Chinese plastics industry officials, including the Hong Kong Mould and Die Council, which estimated in September that 20 percent of the factories in South China’s tooling and molding industry could close down, although it said smaller, less well-capitalized factories were most at risk, with larger firms faring well.

Chen Hsong said its sales outside mainland China, on the other hand, fared OK. Sales to Taiwan and direct exports of its molding machines to international markets dropped only marginally, down 1 percent to Taiwan and 3 percent to overseas markets.

Taiwanese sales held basically steady at HK$84 million (US$10.7 million) because its processors were “strongly competitive” globally in their core markets of high-end electronics, mobile phones and computer.

And internationally, continued growth in emerging markets like South American and Southeast Asia fueled direct sales of machines, even if orders from its Chinese customers focusing on exports were down sharply. Sales internationally were HK$224 million (US$28.7 million).

“Sales turnover was affected by the depression in developed Western countries in Europe and the U.S.,” the company said.

Chen Hsong said it remained cautious regarding the rest of its fiscal year, but said it was looking to its strategic cooperation announced earlier this year with Japan’s Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Plastic Technology Co. Ltd. to fuel future growth.

The company said the new 2000 MMX ultra-large tonnage machine it’s developing with Mitsubishi to be made in Chen Hsong’s factories, completed its prototype and passed quality assurance tests.

Chen Hsong said it planned next year to finish an expansion of a factory in Shenzhen, Guangdong province, for manufacturing medium-to-large tonnage machines.

That expansion will help alleviate under-capacity that has forced the group turn down orders for such machines, it said.

BMW designers lean on plastics for zero-emission cars

In an interview at the recent Business of Design Week in Hong Kong, Adrian van Hooydonk, senior vice-president of BMW Group Design, said he was excited by the creative possibilities opening up with the new lightweight materials, including traditional plastics, carbon fibre reinforced plastics and aluminium.

But he also urged materials firms to continue making advancements, as car companies come under more environmental pressure, and had some specific advice for plastics companies.

“[Reducing vehicle weight] is getting more and more important because we are going into I think an era of quite a lot of change in the automotive field,” said van Hooydonk, who is responsible for the design development of the BMW, Mini and Rolls-Royce brands. “We are going to zero emission mobility.”

BMW, for example, plans to roll out what it calls “zero local” emission or low emission models in 2013, its all-electric i3 for urban driving and its hybrid i8 sports car.

Van Hooydonk, who worked as a designer for GE Plastics Europe in Bergen Op Zoom early in his career, said both of the new i Series cars use all-plastic body panels, a carbon fiber plastic composite structure and aluminium substructures. They’re all needed to cut weight to accommodate the heavy batteries these next-generation cars need, he said.

In its press materials for the i Series, BMW said CFRP is at least as strong as steel but 50 percent lighter.

“We are looking into all sorts of materials,” van Hooydonk said, in an interview with Plastics News before his speech at the Hong Kong event, a week-long series of related conferences from 28 November to 5 December. Plastic Mould “You probably know we are looking into carbon fibre but we are also looking into all sorts of plastics.

“Governments around the world are pushing for cleaner cities; this is understandable,” he said. “They are putting legislation in place to get cars with lower emissions.”

BMW is particularly interested in CFRP materials, and is working to fully commercialise what he called “industrial” carbon fibre manufacturing that can be mass-produced quickly.

He contrasted that with the current carbon fibre manufacturing technology it uses, which is similar to that used to make race cars, a very slow process.

“We’re pushing very hard to make that happen but it is a new territory,” he said. “I think we are at the forefront of that technology, from what I know. In two years’ time we can say that we have done it but at the moment we can say we’re developing it.”

BMW opened a joint venture carbon fibre manufacturing plant in Washington State in mid-2011.

Van Hooydonk’s comments about weight reduction and the key role of new materials echoed other auto designers at the Hong Kong event, including Olivier Boulay, head of Mercedes-Benz’s new Advanced Design Centre in China, who agreed that the environmental pressures on car companies are pushing new materials.

“You can go with plastic, you can go with aluminium, carbon fibre, whatever,” Boulay said. “We need every day to go with lighter and lighter but also strong … materials.”

Beyond weight, van Hooydonk said these materials open up design possibilities.

“Of course as a designer I like working in these new materials because it offers a lot of sculptural freedom,” he said. “Typically in those kinds of materials, you can create very nice shapes, complex shapes, [and] you can create sharp lines as well as soft surface transitions. Those are all things that are important to us at BMW.”

He also had some specific advice for plastics companies for research.

In-mould colouring processes need to be improved so they can stand up to the performance requirements of the auto industry, and let car companies use parts from the mould for a class A, high gloss surface without needing to be painted, he said.

“I know it’s not easy,” he said. “Cars are not like vacuum cleaners, [they] get into real accidents and they have to be used outdoors.”

He also said more work should be done with in-mould metallic finishes that do not show the flow lines: “I know this is a tricky topic but this is something I’d like to see more development of.”

A treasure trove of pleasures

It took two hands to wrap around the width, and the tip almost reached my eye level.

“Oh, I know, it’s massive isn’t it?” said a blonde woman standing beside me.

“I just like to put it on display in case people ask what the biggest size we have is.”

The 12.5 inch, very realistic-looking dildo sits on the counter of Fredericton’s downtown sex store, Pleasures N’ Treasures, if you ever want to take a peek.

Theresa Theriault, manager of the shop, says although she gets a fair amount of people coming in to try larger sex toys, she highly recommends the smaller “bullets” and “egg” vibrators for beginners.

The area with smaller vibrators is much more friendly looking than the wall of bigger ones, shaped like complicated plastic torpedoes.

The bullets come in every colour, and most are pocket sized and discreet looking enough to be confused for a large battery, if it ever manages to escape your purse or book-bag.

Smaller models like these are popular for those just starting to experiment with sex toys, because you can use them for clitoral or anal stimulation as well as in a vagina, so they work for every couple or gender.

“Every 16 year-old should be getting one of these on her birthday,” Theriault says as she taps the package of a purple bullet. “They’re great stress-relievers.”

The prices are also reasonable, starting around $17 for the cheapest and going up to $40 if you want one with a lot of power.

Couple toys are also popular, especially the small purple “We-Vibe,” which sex-expert Sue Johanson is known for praising.

“I always say it’s a “We-Vibe” and then if he’s gone, it’s a “Me-Vibe,” Theriault laughed.

Besides dildos and vibrators, Pleasures N’ Treasures has a little bit of everything X-rated to spice up your next sexual experience, whether solo or with a partner.

There’s a popular fetish section with hand cuffs and whips, and lots of hand-held vaginas. Some are physical moulds of famous porn stars’ lady-bits, so if sex with one of those actresses is a dream of yours, here’s a realistic way of doing it.

There’s also a product called “Clone A Willy”, which is very popular among army wives, said Theriault.

Is your man is heading off to war for months on end? Are you in a long-distance relationship, perhaps? You might want the familiar shape and width of your man, which you can have if you make a mould of it and create your own home-made sex toy.

If sensual, romantic massages and lingerie are more your thing, you can find great oils and lubricant for under 20 bucks a bottle, and there’re a whole section of the main room for corsets, garters and stockings as well as leather outfits for guys.

And of course, there’s porn. Lots and lots of porn. The whole back room is filled with racks of erotic films, and it’s just one dollar a rental for two nights.

Most importantly, no matter how nervous and giggly you think you might be about dropping in, by the time you leave the store you’ll be feeling happy and comfortable, thanks to the friendly people working there.

Theriault says she makes it a priority for her and her staff to approach everyone who walks in, and make them feel at ease by joking around or offering advice. “I really just love helping people,” Theriault said, “It’s just about easing the stresses of everyday life, because we can just get too uptight sometimes.”

Nolato expands medical moulding in Hungary

Strong healthcare market growth has prompted Swedish injection moulder Nolato to expand manufacturing capacity at its medical products division plant at Mosonmagyaróvár in north western Hungary.

In addition, the company’s industrial division is launching a new small manufacturing plant in the Prahova district of southern Romania to mould products for the hygiene sector.

The start-up of the unit was carried out at Nolato’s Hungarian factory and the company is transferring the operation to the Romanian site to increase capacity so that it will be closer to the customer, Nolato reported.

Torekov, Sweden-based Nolato is investing €7m to broaden the product range at the Hungarian facility. The project involves the conversion of its existing warehouse to clean room moulding space to make products such as disposable plastic components for dialysis machines.

The polymer systems developer and manufacturer is constructing a new 3,700 m2 automated warehouse facility at the plant. Production in the new moulding area is set to start by early 2013 and the project will lead to the overall addition of 50 employees to the 400-strong plant workforce, Hungary’s MTI news agency quoted Nolato director Norbert Meleg as announcing.

Nolato, which has received EU grant aid to the tune of €1.4m for the scheme, is focusing on the production of plastic parts for high tech medical equipment.

The Swedish injection moulder reported “good growth” for its medical and industrial products divisions for the first nine months of 2011, but its telecoms offshoot Nolato Telecom continued to see “weak volumes”.

Nolato Medical increased its sales against the same period last year by 9% to more than €159m. Its operating income for the period was just over €19m. “Volumes remained good during the quarter and in line with market growth,” commented Nolato president and CEO Hans Porat.

Last year, the Swedish group, which has a total workforce of some 7,500, recorded annual sales worth almost €371m. It has other production plants in China, India, the US and Sweden.

Hampton Park resident is flooded with apprehension

THE past nine months have come close to breaking Trevor Goyal. At one stage, the Hampton Park resident felt so ill he didn't know if he would wake up in the morning.

"I couldn't breathe. I was lying in bed and I didn't know if I would ever get up again. I had infections in my ears and throat. I couldn't eat. I had diarrhoea. I lost a lot of weight."

Like many other members of a Casey flood support group, Mr Goyal believes his sudden deterioration in health is a direct result of the floods that swamped Hampton Park early this year.

On February 5, at the height of the floods, he had sewage bubbling out of his shower and through his Robjant Street house.

Afterwards, he did his best to clean up.

"I had heard how so many people got sick after the New Orleans floods so I tried to hose everything down.

"I was using a bucket and disinfectant to try to stop the mould growing."

A study of New Orleans after the 2005 floods found that mould grew in almost half the houses that survived the floods.

The health impacts appeared many months afterwards, ranging from upper respiratory infections and asthma to irritable bowel and behavioural changes.

Mr Goyal suffered two serious chest infections, the first in March and the second a few weeks later.

By May, three months after the floods, he was still waiting for his insurance company to assess his claim.

"I knew if I waited any longer I would die. I finally rang Allianz - I was just bawling my eyes out - I spoke to a woman and said, 'Can you do something for me?'

"She said 'Yes, we're going to issue you with a cheque'. I got the cheque and I've been cleaning up ever since."

When Mr Goyal removed plasterboard and skirting boards he could see mould growing up the walls and he's still tackling that with fans and disinfectant.

He has no floor coverings and little furniture. He has also amassed a lot of bills while he has been ill and doesn't know how he will pay them.

But his health is improving gradually. He can eat more and is beginning to put back some weight.

Joining the flood support group has also helped.

"Instead of concentrating on what I haven't got, I've been trying to concentrate on what I have got.

" I get up in the morning and I try to think my health's good.

"But there's a long way to go, not just for me but for a lot of people."

Bay could drive titanium industry

They call it the super metal. Titanium. It is strong and lightweight, it is anti-corrosive and withstands high temperatures, but it is expensive.

It is associated with high-quality, whether it's the latest golf clubs or spacecraft components.

New Zealand, and particularly Western Bay, has the opportunity to become a world frontrunner in the development of new and cheaper titanium products using cost-effective powder metallurgy - a process of blending fine powdered materials and fabricating intricate components.

Titanox Development, which has established a production plant in Newton St, Mount Maunganui, is producing fine titanium alloy powder following 10 years of research and development.

It is one of the few producers of titanium alloy powder in the world.

Across the city, the Titanium Industry Development Association (TiDA) - based in the Engineering Block on Bay of Plenty Polytechnic's Windermere campus - has installed the latest powder metallurgy equipment and is bringing interested parties and (engineering) companies together to develop exciting new products based on the Titanox powder.

A powder metallurgy expert, Germany's Professor Bernd Kieback, this week told the New Zealand group that development should first focus on a niche market such as the medical sector - the titanium alloy powder can be used in artificial hip and knee joints, bone screws and plates, heart valves, pacemakers, orthodontic bracelets, and surgical devices.

Professor Kieback, who heads the leading powder metallurgy research laboratory in Europe, said TiDA had made a good start by forming a partnership between academia and engineers involved in titanium powder activities.

"This partnership has developed rapidly and collaboration is strong.

It's better than having individual activity," he said.

Asked if the Western Bay could host a $1 billion industry on the back of the titanium alloy powder, Professor Kieback said: "It's possible ... if you are ready to make the right things. You have to keep the development at the very high level and you need to have research and development funding to find new solutions as the market moves."

Professor Kieback, who signed a collaboration agreement with TiDA, is the director of Fraunhofer Institute's Manufacturing and Advanced Materials branch lab, and is also director of Dresden Technical University's Institute of Materials Science.

He will be sending PhD students to Tauranga, and he said: "TiDa is interested to include our knowledge into their concepts."

This week Professor Kieback gave a lecture on the advances in powder metallurgy during a symposium organised by TiDA at the Bay of Plenty Polytechnic.

He said more titanium products, made from powder metallurgy, could be used in the industrial, aerospace, automotive and medical sectors.

The two main techniques used to form and consolidate the powder are laser sintering and metal injection molding.

The material is pressed into a desired, often complex, shape and heated in a controlled atmosphere to bind together.

A popular form is titanium foam, and the new products can be created without intricate machining, reducing cost and making the price more attractive.

Professor Kieback said only 100,000 tonnes of titanium metal was produced in the world, compared with 1.45 billion tonnes of steel and China used a third of that production.

"You don't want to compete with China," he said.

He believed the demand for titanium could grow by about 10 per a year, up from its present 4 per cent.

"There are new applications for titanium and more opportunities to move into new markets. In Germany, there are 160,000 hip operations a year, costing 10,000 euros each. Imagine what sort of business that is, using titanium.

"If you think about steel, you need a lot of money to build up a steel company. With titanium, you can start with a little bit of money and a lot of knowledge. In 10 to 20 years, titanium will be much more important than its present 100,000 tonnes."

He had talked to Volkswagen about using titanium in their car exhaust systems.

The vehicle manufacturer wouldn't take that step until the price of titanium was reduced - if VW made the step, it would have helped add 15,000 tonnes a year to world titanium production.

Professor Kieback said there were 50 million cars in the world.

"If the titanium is only going into the exhaust systems, then production would reach one million tonnes a year. That's the potential with new titanium development."

He was impressed by the quality of the Titanox titanium alloy powder. "What is fascinating is that the powder is in small particle size and it has the right properties to go into the new technologies, and advances.

"Titanox has been a pilot plant but it can now scale up to a production level.

" I wouldn't go into the aircraft sector straightaway - they will push the price down.

"Its powder can be sold at the highest possible price and it's better to start with the medical sector," Professor Kieback said.

Titanox is aiming to start commercial production at 20kg a day or five tonnes a year.

The powder can sell for up to $1000 per kg and five tonnes would produce $5 million a year.

Professor Kieback said long term, the New Zealand industry didn't have to just rely on the amount of powder Titanox produced.

"With what I see happening here, you can build your competence in the titanium application sector, and I see no problem that in a few years, the powder can also come from other parts of the world.

"The technology developed here can then be used to produce new, exciting titanium products for the world market," he said.

Struktol Company of America Introduces New Lubricant for Nylon 6 and 66 Compounds

Struktol Company of America has unveiled STRUKTOL® TR 063, a unique lubricant which has been designed to reduce compound viscosity, significantly improve metal release, and enhance dispersion of mineral fillers and reinforcing agents in nylon 6 and 66. The product boasts a novel chemistry which makes it highly compatible with polyamides and superior in performance to alternative lubricants, according to Mike Fulmer, Struktol's Product Manager for Plastic Additives.

"TR 063 provides compounders and processors with a cost-effective, versatile process additive that can significantly improve throughput and efficiency," said Fulmer.

The company reports dramatic decreases in die build-up during compounding and extremely good overall processing, both in extrusion and injection molding of the finished compounds. "The metal release provided by this product is as good as we've seen," added Fulmer.

Strand pelletizing of nylon 6 and 66 compounds often results in die build-up after a short time. STRUKTOL TR 063 added at 0.5% to 1% loadings minimizes this type of build-up, allowing the processor to run longer and more efficiently without concern for contamination or discoloration. This is especially important in natural or light color compounds. At the same time, physical properties are minimally affected by TR 063, unlike competitive lubricants which can present concerns.

In filled or reinforced compounds, TR 063 provides a balance of viscosity reduction and dispersion improvement which leads to more consistent processing and maximum physical properties. The lubricant has been shown to have minimum interaction with coupling agents often used with reinforcing products such as glass fiber.

STRUKTOL TR 063 is designed to work in the temperature processing range of nylon 6 and 66 compounds. It can be added directly at the compounding stage or by the processor during part manufacturing. In pellet form, it can be easily added to extrusion or injection molding machines.

Struktol Company of America, headquartered in Stow, Ohio, is a leading manufacturer of process additives for the plastics and rubber industries. The privately-held company provides Intelligent Additive Solutions for a variety of polymer-based products and compounds for the consumer, industrial, packaging, and automotive industries. The company's technical specialists, R&D chemists, and compound laboratory are dedicated to creating innovative solutions to meet the exacting demands of an ever-changing polymer industry. Struktol's R&D center, technical service center, and manufacturing plant are located in Stow, Ohio. The company's additive solutions keep customers ahead of the competition with increased productivity, better quality parts, and lower overall costs.