Bernhardt Design Picks GE Advanced Materials’ LNP* Verton* PCA Compound for New Orbit Stacking Chair

BERGEN OP ZOOM, THE NETHERLANDS — May 3, 2005 — Bernhardt Design, a leading innovator in residential and business furniture design based in Lenoir, N.C., has selected GE Advanced Materials, Plastics’ new LNP* Verton* PCA-F-7004 EM compound to create a lower cost alternative to the currently offered ash and zebrawood veneers on the company’s new satin gloss-painted Orbit stacking chair.

Bernhardt Design wanted to find a more economical material that would simplify manufacturing and reduce costs so that the company could offer its unique chair design at a lower price point, opening opportunities in new market segments. The chair, designed by Ross Lovegrove, currently entails a complex and expensive manufacturing process that requires the three-step-processing of wood veneers that are only available in Sweden.

The solution - LNP Verton PCA-F-7004 EM compound - is a new long glass-fiber polycarbonate/ acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (PC/ABS) composite that offers many advantages over typical glass-filled engineering resins. Compared to short glass-fiber products, the new GE compound delivers superior tensile strength and stiffness at low glass loadings, yielding a resin-rich surface finish that can be painted without priming. This high-flow PC/ABS material also provides easy molding – making it an excellent candidate for gas-assist injection-molded parts – and helps deliver enhanced long-term properties such as creep resistance.

Bernhardt Design selected LNP Verton PCA-F-7004 EM compound to meet the stringent, structural requirements of the Orbit chair. The compound also provides exceptional strength, a specific degree of flex for seating comfort, excellent surface finish, and good paintability to achieve the desired high-gloss appearance. Further, LNP Verton PCA-F-7004 EM compound passes twice the normal load requirement of the Business and Institutional Furniture Manufacturers Associate (BIFMA) back test, with no sign of fatigue or failure.

Because LNP Verton PCA-F-7004 EM compound provides a superior surface for painting, Bernhardt Design is able to manufacture chairs in small runs using custom colors. The elimination of priming helps the company reduce secondary manufacturing steps and costs. And, although molding the unique chair design initially presented a challenge, the high-flow characteristics of LNP Verton PCA-F-7004 EM compound enables the use of gas-assist injection molding, which produces a stable, high-quality part without compromising the design.

Zack Lyon, project engineer, Bernhardt Design, says “Thanks to the exceptional properties of the LNP Verton PCA compound, we are able to offer a designer piece that’s economical and can appeal to a broader range of furniture segments, such as educational, stadium, and cafeteria-style seating. By delivering premium performance with outstanding quality and appearance at a cost-effective price, this product is helping our company expand beyond our core markets.”

David Cooper, LNP Verton product manager, GE Advanced Materials, Plastics, states, “Today’s consumers expect outstanding product design. By replacing traditional materials such as costly woods with innovative new materials like LNP Verton PCA-F-7004 EM compound, manufacturers may, as in this case, be able to produce upscale designer goods that are also affordable. We are proud to offer manufacturers like Bernhardt Design new material options that can help expand their businesses and reinforce the image of superior quality.”

Mack Molding – a full-service contract manufacturer specializing in plastics design, prototyping, and molding – is the molder of the Orbit chair and is headquartered in Arlington, Vt. The molder’s innovative use of gas-assist molding technology enabled the Orbit chair to maintain its unique design and contour.

“The gas-assist molding process used on this chair is very unique given the size and length of the gas section,” says Brian Sumpter, business development director, Mack Molding Company. “Successfully molding this chair and managing the aesthetics, function,

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