#158 How can cutting-edge technology and sustainable practices transform the composites industry? Insights from my interview with Johannes Martin at JEC World 2025
22.04.2025 17 min Staffel 5 Episode 116
Zusammenfassung & Show Notes
Imagine a world where high-performance composites are not only innovative but also eco-friendly. Learn how Biesterfeld Group, one of the world's leading distribution and service companies in the field of plastics, rubber and specialty chemicals, is making this vision a reality
During the JEC World 2025, I had the pleasure of interviewing Dr. Johannes Martin, Market Manager Composites and Tooling at Biesterfeld.
Our conversation explored the latest advancements in the composites industry, focusing on innovation, technology, and sustainability.
Innovation: Johannes highlighted Biesterfeld's commitment to innovation, showcasing their broad product portfolio including high-strength fibers and formulated resin systems from long-standing and renowned partners. These materials are designed to meet the evolving demands of industries such as aerospace and automotive, offering enhanced performance and durability. A standout innovation is the use of Kraibon, a rubber elastomer from Gummiwerk KRAIBURG GmbH & Co. KG, which integrates with composite parts to provide superior sound dampening.
Technology: Biesterfeld is at the forefront of technological advancements, representing a range of state-of-the-art products as well as providing superior technical application services and manufacturing process support. Johannes discussed their collaboration with Roboze and the investment in the Argo 1000, the world's largest pellet extruder for high-performance polymers. This technology enables on-demand production of complex, high-performance parts, reducing the need for traditional tooling and lowering costs.
Sustainability: Sustainability is a core pillar of Biesterfeld's strategy. Johannes outlined their support of initiatives to reduce environmental impact through sustainable sourcing and eco-friendly production methods. The distribution of ExxonMobil Proxxima™ Polyolefin Thermoset Resin Systems™, a polyolefin-based thermoset resin from ExxonMobil, exemplifies their commitment to sustainability. Proxxima offers recyclability and a low CO2 footprint, providing an end-of-life solution for the industry.
Demo area at the booth: In a separate segment, Stig Eines, Head
of Sales at Biesterfeld Norge AS, shared insights into the future of composites. He emphasized the importance of collaboration and innovation in driving the industry forward. Stig highlighted several projects from Biesterfeld’s partners worldwide, that are focused on developing sustainable solutions and integrating advanced technologies, underscoring the need for continuous improvement to meet the growing demands for eco-friendly and high-performance composites. See for example the carbonfibre rim from South Africa.
YouTube Episode: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zfyUjDeqY5Q
During the JEC World 2025, I had the pleasure of interviewing Dr. Johannes Martin, Market Manager Composites and Tooling at Biesterfeld.
Our conversation explored the latest advancements in the composites industry, focusing on innovation, technology, and sustainability.
Innovation: Johannes highlighted Biesterfeld's commitment to innovation, showcasing their broad product portfolio including high-strength fibers and formulated resin systems from long-standing and renowned partners. These materials are designed to meet the evolving demands of industries such as aerospace and automotive, offering enhanced performance and durability. A standout innovation is the use of Kraibon, a rubber elastomer from Gummiwerk KRAIBURG GmbH & Co. KG, which integrates with composite parts to provide superior sound dampening.
Technology: Biesterfeld is at the forefront of technological advancements, representing a range of state-of-the-art products as well as providing superior technical application services and manufacturing process support. Johannes discussed their collaboration with Roboze and the investment in the Argo 1000, the world's largest pellet extruder for high-performance polymers. This technology enables on-demand production of complex, high-performance parts, reducing the need for traditional tooling and lowering costs.
Sustainability: Sustainability is a core pillar of Biesterfeld's strategy. Johannes outlined their support of initiatives to reduce environmental impact through sustainable sourcing and eco-friendly production methods. The distribution of ExxonMobil Proxxima™ Polyolefin Thermoset Resin Systems™, a polyolefin-based thermoset resin from ExxonMobil, exemplifies their commitment to sustainability. Proxxima offers recyclability and a low CO2 footprint, providing an end-of-life solution for the industry.
Demo area at the booth: In a separate segment, Stig Eines, Head
of Sales at Biesterfeld Norge AS, shared insights into the future of composites. He emphasized the importance of collaboration and innovation in driving the industry forward. Stig highlighted several projects from Biesterfeld’s partners worldwide, that are focused on developing sustainable solutions and integrating advanced technologies, underscoring the need for continuous improvement to meet the growing demands for eco-friendly and high-performance composites. See for example the carbonfibre rim from South Africa.
YouTube Episode: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zfyUjDeqY5Q
Transkript
So wonderful.
Good morning, dear LinkedIn community.
This is day two at JEC World 2025
and I have the honor
to host now an interview
with Doctor Johannes Martin
of Biesterfeld SE,
which is a first time exhibitor
on JEC World. Welcome to JEC World.
-Thank you. Happy to have you here.
Johannes, we have known each other now
for, I think
two to three years.
And we decided now finally,
that we come together
and put the fantastic solutions
of the composites division of Biesterfeld
in front of our community.
Can you explain us in a few words,
what is your role
as a Market Manager Composites
and Tooling at Biesterfeld SE
and explain us
what Biesterfeld SE actually is doing.
In the end, I came to the Biesterfeld
company 7 to 8 years ago.
I started here as a sales manager
for the field of composites and tooling,
and over the years I had several roles.
And since one and a half years,
I am leading
our full global strategic activities
in the field of composites and tooling.
That means supplier management,
relationship management,
making decisions to grow strategically
with the Biesterfeld Group
and the market sector
of composites and tooling.
-As far as I understand, Biesterfeld
SE has different divisions or departments.
Can you explain us
the department you are in is called P.P.?
P.P. stands for?
Performance Products.
So the Biesterfeld Group is next year
celebrating its 120th birthday.
We are founded in 1906.
We are a family owned company
who is strategically working
with long standing partnerships,
and we are having partnerships
of more than 50 years with our suppliers,
and we have seven business units.
And inside the business unit industrial,
the so-called segment of our team
PP is located.
PP stands for Performance Products.
Inside Performance Products
we have formulated products
that are ready to use for our customers.
So talking about composites and tooling,
we have already formulated resin systems.
We have already formulated
gelcoat systems. We have tooling systems
like tooling prepreg,
tooling boards
from valued suppliers in the market.
And our goal is to supply our customers
with everything
that is needed from the very first idea
producing master models, producing molds
and the final parts the end customer
is then using in his part
he wants to produce.
-So, as you know, dear community,
our three content pillars are innovation,
technology and sustainability.
And I've decided now with Johannes
to move a bit
around the Biesterfeld booth,
because there are very nice eyecatchers
us here, I will say,
and we will start with innovation
now with the doors of a car.
Now every one of you know
that the carbon composites
have a very light and high
(acoustical) tone.
But in the car, when you close the doors,
you want an elegant sound
when closing those doors.
And we will demonstrate you
now how you can do that.
But before we do that,
I will ask now, Johannes,
to explain us
how they are achieving this classic
and more elegant tone.
-Thank you for this very
nice question, Ilkay.
We are doing this with a rubber elastomer.
It is an uncured rubber elastomer
from the company Kraiburg.
It's named Kraibon,
and with this material,
we can connect the very good properties
of a rubber elastomer
together with the very good properties
of a composite part.
So how do we do this?
This rubber elastomer
is ready to use product
which could be directly integrated
into the composite layup.
It co-cures with thermoset resins
and immediately transform
any composite part to a higher level.
So due to the fact
that it is a rubber elastomer,
it turns energy, impact energy
or vibrations into deformation energy.
And with this transformation
into deformation energy,
we can, for instance,
achieve very good properties
of the composite part.
One very good property
we were talking about now
is that we have a sound dampening effect.
We are showing here some doors
made of a carbon material,
and with just adding a little bit
of the Kraibon material,
we can achieve the fact
that the sound dampening of this door
is much, much higher, about 20 dB(A).
What happens
is that in the automotive industry,
sound dampening is very often achieved
with very heavy aluminium butyl.
With this material,
we can have almost exactly
the same effects on sound dampening
with just adding a little more weight
compared to aluminium butyl.
Okay, the upper door
is the door without Kraibon,
but has a weight of 5.47kg
and this is the sound.
So you are very much familiar
with the sound of this carbon material.
And here you see the same door
with the same carbon layup,
adding just a little bit
of the Kraibon material.
This door has a weight of 5.75kg.
And this is the sound.
So this is our second part
of our interview
at the Biesterfeld interview
here on the Biesterfeld booth
here at JEC World 2025. The second part,
we've talked about innovation
(on the prior first part).
The second part is now technology.
And I have with me
now a colleague of Johannes Martin,
which is Stig Eines, and he's from Norway,
the Oslo region,
where, of course,
Biesterfeld is also active.
And yes, they have found
a very great new technology.
And Stig will explain you
how that technology is going.
We have a very shiny surface here.
As you know, I like
these shiny carbon surfaces.
It's very lightweight, you see?
Like a feather.
Yes, totally like a feather.
So, Stig, what is this?
-This is an automotive part for Corvette.
This is made as an example
of the new technology
coming out of ExxonMobil,
representing the new thermoset technology
under the brand of Proxxima.
And what is Proxxima?
Proxxima is the latest innovation
coming out of ExxonMobil.
It's a polyolefin based thermoset resin
showcasing some incredible
new performances,
not only mechanical, but thermal chemical,
and also a solution
that paves the way in terms
of recyclability and low CO2 footprint.
So this is the new
future solution for sustainability
in the advanced composites field.
And what is all important here?
Really, the really,
really key message here
is that ExxonMobil,
with Proxxima
is bringing an end of life solution
to the industry.
Proxxima has the capability
to be recycled back into original material
by low temperature pyrolysis.
And the fraction you get out of this,
the oil residues, they are so clean.
There are no nitrogen, no oxygen,
no hydrogen in there.
That leaves us with a really,
really clean, raw material
that can go directly back
to produce new Proxxima,
or can be used upstream in other processes
to produce lubes
and lubricants for industrial purposes.
So by this, ExxonMobil
is giving the industry
a solution for end of life.
So what do we have here at the stand today
to show you guys?
Biesterfeld, we are
a technical distributor.
We are a consultant advisor,
but we have products here on the stand
showcasing from you
everything from the early,
early ideal all the way
through to the final part and beyond.
So there will be products here
for the prototypers,
for the mold makers,
for the part production companies
and later on for the assembly companies.
Here we have a part
that represents the marine industry,
where we supply carbon
pre-pregs products
for lightweighting applications
and structural requirements.
Further on, in the marine industry,
we represent Maridur from OBO Werke.
These are thermoformable,
very durable, water
resistant products for interior
into the marine industry.
Further, we can move on here.
We go over to infrastructure.
Where we are also present
with composite resins from Huntsman
to producing the next generation
of composite poles
for the high voltage industry.
Moving on,
we walk over to the automotive sector.
This is a part
for the racing car industry.
We represent Kraiburg in this case
for dampening
and vibration resistant applications.
Moving from a very rigid part
over to another part,
you need to, in this case,
reduce the vibration. Deeper on our stand
you find a nice piece here
from South Africa,
where they are doing lightweighting
the automotive industry for carbon wheels
(rims). That's very interesting
for the motorsport industry.
-So that was a fantastic tour
from Stig Eines
and now I'm back with Dr Johannes Martin.
And you see here is a final department,
a final solution
that we would like to address with you,
because this is one
of the trends in the future.
Without 3D printing,
additive manufacturing, we are losing out
on many, many opportunities.
So Johannes, what is your value addition
for the community on 3D printing?
You're right, 3D printing
will play a crucial role in future.
And in fact,
also Biesterfeld would like to cover
all the three pillars
that you have chosen sustainability,
innovation and technology.
And here we are talking about technology.
We are super proud
that we started a collaboration
with Roboze
and recently the Biesterfeld group
Who invested
in the world's biggest pellet extruder
for high performance polymers.
The Argo 1000,
which has a printing chamber
of one cubic meter
and the printing speed
of two kilograms per hour.
How do customers benefit
with such technologies?
All of our customers will have immediately
on demand production.
With 3D printer,
they can print very complex,
high performance parts with a carbon PA
with super polymers
like Ultem or PEEAK,
and you reduce the workload
and the cost you have and you don't need
the traditional tooling anymore.
That's also very additional
and very useful information, Johannes.
So we are coming close
to the end of our interview
here at JEC World 2025.
My question to you is how was JEC World
as a first time exhibitor so far for you?
-So this is today, the second day.
Yesterday I never have seen
such a super first busy day at JEC World
in my entire career,
and I am visiting the JEC World
now for the last eight years.
Today, we just started the second day.
I am very happy to see
what this day will bring
and for sure
we will be there next year again.
We've talked about Biesterfeld.
Their different departments,
dear community. We've covered innovation,
technology and sustainability.
As Composites Lounge,
we are creating sustainable value,
but not only content
for the purpose of the content,
we are finding the facts of the market
in order to serve you
and be a resource for you.
Thank you so much, Johannes
and your colleagues for this interview.
Thank you very much for having us.