Xenia® thermoplastic composites in the new Salewa® Ortles Couloir mountain boot
Only 725 grams. This is the weight of the newly designed, lightest, fully crampon-compatible mountain boot Ortles Couloir: the new high-tech creation of the Italian eagle brand Salewa®.
The Ortles Couloir boot carries the name of its own theatre of operations: the Ortles Mountain. Boasting a height of 3.905 m, the Ortles is the highest peak of the Rhaetian Alps and it is well known for its very challenging trails.
After winning ISPO Gold Award 2021 in the Outdoor Equipment Mountaineering Boot category, Salewa®’s Ortles Couloir will make its appearance in stores from Fall 2021. Among the cutting-edge materials used to realize this boot, there are also Xenia® Materials’ thermoplastic composites. The toecap is, indeed, produced on a polymeric base supplied by the Italian company leader in the engineering and production of thermoplastic composites reinforced carbon fibre. This carbon solution offers and guarantees both stiffness and flexibility.
The processing of last generation’s carbon reinforced thermoplastic composites and the injection moulding process allow the standardization and realisation of structures with improved and optimized thickness, which would otherwise turn out to be very expensive and difficult to achieve through the traditional lamination process. Thermoplastic composites are, furthermore, easily and efficiently recyclable.
The compact, solid and agile design, characterized by a narrowed toe area, provides the Ortles Couloir with more precision while climbing both rock and ice. The boot’s frame has been brilliantly designed in carbon fibre in order to offer both lightness and stiffness. Moreover, its hinged joint closure ensures greater comfort while walking and more grip while climbing.
«This new boot was inspired by the Dolomite Mountains, our home, – explains William Starka, Senior Product Manager Footwear & Equipment of Salewa® – the absolute innovation in the alpine boots market is represented by its neat design, which allowed us to obtain great precision, total freedom of movement and an excellent stability for rock and ice climbing. To ensure a long-lasting performance, we selected durable and high-quality performing materials. The Ortles Couloir boot has brought the development of alpine boots into a completely new dimension». «Working with Salewa® and its partners has represented a great and exciting challenge. We began by developing a specific customization process which led to the selection of the polymer and a well-defined percentage of carbon fibre. This tailor-made project made us so happy and pleased» adds Enrico Mancinetti, Xenia® Materials’ Sales Manager.
To study and design together with the outdoor footwear brands the best applications of the thermoplastic-based composites, Xenia® Materials has recently started Xenia Footwear Materials Lab project which offers a turnkey service to the footwear industry companies and supports them step by step; from the choice of the material and co-design phase until the testing process and simulation of the footwear in specific circumstances.
XECARB® thermoplastic composites: the carbon fibre which provides lightness and stiffness to the two-time MTB Marathon World Champion sole
After winning in Grächen (CH) 2019, Leo Páez has conquered, with another outstanding performance, his second World Championship title in Sakarya, Turkey.
At his feet he was wearing Nox, the shoe specifically designed by Vittoria Cycling Shoes, an Italian company leader in the production of mountain bike cycling shoes.
Nox’s sole is entirely realised in XECARB® 1-C30, a thermoplastic composite engineered and produced by Xenia® Materials.
The collaboration between Xenia® Materials and Vittoria Cycling Shoes started a few years ago, when Edoardo Vercelli sensed the possibility to substitute the prepreg epoxy matrix carbon – used in the high-quality cycling shoes’ soles – with XECARB® carbon fibre reinforced thermoplastic composites.
This turned out to be a winning choice, not only because the weight of the shoe significantly decreased, but also because it has been reached the perfect balance between the necessary stiffness to transmit force/power on the pedals and the right flexibility that allows the best comfort on walking routes. This great combination is the key of Nox’s success.
The soles, produced in XECARB® thermoplastic composites, are guaranteed overtime and they have been precisely designed to facilitate the process of mud clearance and cleat connection, possible thanks to the wider shape of the cleat connection area.
Established in 1976 by the professional cyclist Celestino Vercelli, Vittoria Cycling Shoes is an Italian company specialised in the realisation of cycling shoes, 100% made in Italy.
After 40 years of innovation, the origins of the company are as clear as they were in its early days. The technological evolution allowed the company to adapt to change and to exploit new opportunities, maintaining untouched its peculiar curiosity. Vittoria Cycling Shoes is projected towards the future. High-quality products, innovative technologies and continuous studies are at the core of this company.
XELIGHT™, the new ultra-light composites family developed by Xenia® Materials, based PEBAX® Thermoplastic Elastomer
Xenia® Materials introduces the new ultra-light composites family entirely developed on Pebax® thermoplastic elastomer, reference polymer in several flagship sports applications.
Due to their exceptional density value, which is below 0,90 g/cm3, XELIGHT™ grades stand out for their incredible lightness. At the same time, they feature a great impact strength, especially at low temperatures, great flexibility and high energy return, still maintaining the peculiarities of the base polymer.
The XELIGHT™ grades combine a good hydrolytic resistance and dimensional stability to a great processability and thermal resistance, furthermore, they are all colourable and available in biocompatible grades.
These new lightweight thermoplastic composites are the perfect solutions for many applications in the footwear world, especially where exceptional lightness, low density and great flexibility are required, always maintaining their excellent impact strength value.
Xenia® Materials and Jiejiayou (Shenzhen) Material Technology Co., Ltd together for the distribution in China of the products of the Italian company
Xenia® Materials, Italian company specialized in the development and engineering of high-performance thermoplastic composites reinforced fibres and additives, announces a new partnership agreement with Jiejiayou (Shenzhen) Material Technology Co., Ltd.
Thanks to this dedicated partnership, Jiejiayou (Shenzhen) Material Technology Co., Ltd will distribute Xenia® Materials thermoplastic composites families, XECARB®, XEBRID™ and XEGLASS™, within the whole Chinese territory.
The next Chinaplas exhibition, world’s leading trade fair dedicated to plastics and rubbers, that will take place in Shenzhen from the 13th until the 16th April, will serve as the opportunity for Xenia® Materials and Jiejiayou (Shenzhen) Material Technology Co., Ltd to present the main and latest news regarding thermoplastics and applications from the industrial sector to the sport system one.
XECARB® SL composites. The new super light structural family is born
XECARB® SL composites are the newest Xenia Materials family of Carbon filled, super light structural compounds developed in partnership with Arkema.
With a flexural modulus reaching 11000 MPa and a density equal to 1,00 g/cm3, the pioneer grade of this family was designed using Rilsan® PA 11. This polymer is obtained from renewable sources and is characterized by an outstanding toughness at low temperatures and great resistance to stress cracking.
These new compounds stand out for their high ratio between tensile strength at break and density, presenting an easy processability together with an excellent dimensional stability and great resistance to weather, UV rays and ageing. XECARB® 20-C15-SL grade reaches tensile elongation at break over 4% thanks to the intrinsic flexibility of the base polymer.
The XECARB® SL composites family embodies the perfect solution for special applications in drones, UAV’s and cobot industries, as well as for the most outstanding applications in the sport system sector.
PEBA and glass fibre. The flexible, structural and colourable polyamide
After years of experience with PEBA based products reinforced Carbon Fibre, Xenia Materials finally introduces in the market a new family of compounds PEBA reinforced Glass Fibre: XEGLASS 17.
PEBA is a flexible polyamide, plasticiser free, which distinguishes itself by outstanding dynamic features able to damp vibrations and noise, even at high frequencies. This low friction polymeric base is characterised by high creep resistance, low density, excellent flexibility, high energy return and impact strength over a wide temperature range.
The glass fibre reinforcement allows the achievement of mechanical features, much greater than the ones of the pure polymer. The glass fibre emphasises the high chemical resistance and the great impact strength at low temperatures. Furthermore, XEGLASS 17 composites have low hygroscopic absorption and dimensional stability, they are colourable and they are available also in bio-compatible grades.
By combining the outstanding aesthetic quality and the easy processability, XEGLASS 17 grades meet the requirements of sport, consumer and industrial goods sectors.
