Paper number 1047

BUILDING A COMPOSITES INFRASTRUCTURE

Graham D Sims

Section Head: Composites Design Data and Methods,
Centre for Materials Measurement and Technology,
National Physical Laboratory, Teddington TW11 0LW UK.

Summary

An apparently minor issue having a major impact on the use of composites in new areas is the ease that specifiers and purchasers can order composites to a recognised specification. This is difficult for composite materials due to a lack of international test methods and specifications standards equivalent to those existing for metals. This infrastructure will be needed to show compliance with EU Directives and other regulations. The situation will be substantially improved by work undertaken currently by ISO (International Standards Organisation) and CEN (Comité Européen de Normalisation) to satisfy these needs. Several international test methods published recently provide the building blocks for a database standard, ISO 10350-2, and specification standards for thermosets (eg. sheet moulding compounds, SMC), thermoplastics (eg. glass mat thermoplastics, GMT) and pultruded profiles. These development will bring cost savings, provide new opportunities and confirm the increasing maturity of the composites industry.

Keywords

standards, test methods, specifications, infrastructure, ISO, CEN, ASTM.