Fakuma 2021

We were there!

From 12-16.10.2021, the Fakuma plastics trade fair in Friedrichshafen invited visitors to take part in expert discussions.

Exciting ideas from lids to innovative plastic products were presented.

You could come and visit us in Hall B4 at the Community Stand 4103. We were very happy to be part of it this year.

Due to the pandemic, the fair was cancelled last year. So of course we were particularly pleased to be able to talk to you in person. Exchanging ideas is more exciting and interesting that way.

We thank you for the many visitors and the great exchange. Many new ideas and projects were discussed and may now take shape.

From the first idea to analyses and tests to the finished product, we accompany, support and develop with you.

Svismold stands for innovation – stronger together. For this purpose, classic injection moulding is combined with composite technology. This results in extremely stable cost- and material-efficient products. As a metal substitute, composite products are comparatively more stable and durable. During production, 100% camera testing is carried out to ensure consistent quality.

The sourcing of the material allows for customisation of strength and flexibility. This gives the process a creative freedom – from the surf fin to the hockey stick to the tine cutter – there are virtually no limits to the shape. The fibres are inserted into the plastic with pinpoint accuracy and reinforce exactly where it is needed. The additional carbon layer provides more stability and makes the end product even more robust.

Thermoplastic composite technology combined with old-fashioned injection moulding technology gives tradition new forms – more stable, more durable and all this in a material- and cost-efficient way.

Surfing through the crisis with Swissness and innovation

Surfing through the crisis with Swissness and innovation

Linkedin Facebook Instagram Whatsapp

When the Corona pandemic paralyzed everything worldwide in March 2020, the Rheintal-based plastics specialist svismold also braced itself for hard months

However, a production process developed shortly beforehand together with OST Ostschweizer Fachhochschule and the combination of short supply chains with Swiss partners with automated production in Switzerland proved to be success factors in the crisis. Slumps in orders were fully absorbed by the new product – a high-tech surfing tiller. The Swiss surf squad also tested the Finn for the 2021 Olympic qualification.

This time it was not to be, but we wish the team all the best and keep our fingers crossed for the next qualification.

How it all began

March 2020, everything was perfectly prepared: The factory-fresh high-tech surfing equipment had been delivered to the Australian surfing outfitter FCS, the surfing season was just around the corner, and the planned Olympics in Japan had introduced surfing as a discipline for the first time. A perfect promotional event for the market launch of the latest product from svismold® – a brand for particularly high-quality products from Kunststoffwerk AG in Buchs, Sankt Gallen.

But then came the pandemic. Trade shows were canceled, customers suspended their orders, the Olympics were on the brink and eventually canceled, borders were closed, supply chains around the globe suddenly cut off. “At the market launch of our latest product, of all things, into which more than two years of work had gone, things looked quite bleak,” recalls svismold® Managing Director Martin Rudolph. Since 2017, the Institute of Materials Engineering and Plastics Processing at OST has been working with svismold® to produce carbon fiber-reinforced surf fins fully automatically in Switzerland, thus bringing production of the fins, which were previously handmade in Asia, to Switzerland – with success.

Robust supply chain and high demand

More than a year after the start of the pandemic, it is clear that the timely innovation for new products and the partnership with Swiss suppliers for plastic raw products and machinery paid off: “Our customer FCS took delivery of around 40 percent more surf fins than planned, and we were even able to develop and produce a set of smaller surf fins for special applications at high speeds in the middle of the pandemic in September 2020,” says Rudolph. This made it possible to offset the corona-related slump in orders in other areas. “The success of the surf fin in the global market took FCS from new customer to largest single customer in less than a year – commercially, it was a highly welcome success for both parties.”

This continuous development is also possible because, despite its strong international orientation, svismold® focused on the shortest possible supply chains and Swiss suppliers. As a result, the company has been able to maintain high production utilization rates even during periods when others have struggled with replenishment issues due to disrupted supply chains around the world. A model that may become more popular again after the pandemic is over.

Instead of short-time work and fear of the future, svismold® is currently even going one step further and is already tinkering with the next products together with the researchers at OST, investing money and time in new projects co-funded by the Swiss innovation agency Innosuisse. “The process we were able to develop with OST for the production of surf fins also offers opportunities for other lightweight construction applications, such as in aviation, shipbuilding and sanitary applications,” says Rudolph. He definitely wants to continue the successful cooperation with the IWK, the Institute for Materials Technology and Plastics Processing.

2 years after market launch for the World Cup

In 2021 they did not go to the Olympics but in 2022 the FCS H4 Finn still became world champion.

Brazilian Filipe Toledo won his first world championship title with the professional fin produced by svismold®. 

FCS H4 Surf Fin

FCS H4 Surf Fin

Linkedin Facebook Instagram Whatsapp Youtube

In 2020 developed svismold® together with the Australian surf equipment supplier FCS the perfect fin.

100% Automatic Camera Control

Constant high quality

The development phase took about 1 year

In one month svismold® could produce up to 6'000 fins

The Main Goal

Other than in many other projects, the leading goal was not to reduce the weight, but to garanty a constantly high quality throughout the production.

Many surf fins are made by hand so the stability, flexibility and other factors can vary immensely through the same series of fins.

FCS

FCS is an australian surf euipment supplier. They are well known for their well-equipped selection of surf fins.

Surf fins made by hand are never the same.

Each set will differ and each fin will differ from each other. Hence, surfer can never completely trust that the set they buy will work exactly like the one before. This is extremely frustrating, especially for proffessional sports.

FCS goal was to achieve constant high quality throughout the serial production. Asking a Swiss company was not an obvious choice. Switzerland and surfing? This country is rather known for its incredible chocolate and cheese. However, svismold’s combination of traditional injection molding with innovative technology seemed like the perfect choice. And svismold® did not disappoint.

Hand-made fins are not accurate enough

Each fin is different. The flex and speed, therefore, differ from one product to the other. Especially for professional use the users need to be able to expect the same high quality from each set.

We needed the perfect fin with a constant high quality.

FCS

Our solutions

We used FEM analysis to figure out what the perfect fin would look like.

Flexibility and Strentgh

Within a fin there are different areas that need precise tape placement. Due to unidirectional tape it was possible to define the flexible edges but strong body of the high-end surf fin.

A surf fin needs to be strong enough to withstand the powerful water currents but also flexible enough to ensure a smooth maneuvering.

Hence, the choice of polypropylene as the injection plastic with inlain glass fibers strenghtend with carbon unidirectional tape was the perfect match.

The analyses have shown the best results with these materials.

Aerodynamic Form

The fin must glide through the water effortlessly. At the same time it must withstand enormous water currents. Moreover, the user needs to be able to control his board.

Flexibility and Strength

Flexibility and strength are extremely important for a surf fin to be controllable, fast and yet robust.

Material

The materials to make the perfect fin were crucial. We decided that the unidirectional carbon tape strengthened the body of the fin the best. Due to the precise placement of the fibers the flexibility and strength could be pinpointed to the areas where they were needed.

Smoothly Surfed through the Pandemic

Thanks to the high quality surf fins, svismold® did not face too many financial obsticles through the pandemic. With the helpful holding technique that was developed beforehand and the swisswide short support chains plus the automated processes order burglaries were completely outbalanced.

Used by Professionals

Professional surfers admit that the flex and curve of this H4 surf fin is phenomenal. In 2022 Filipe Toledo won his first World Surf Championship title with his set of FCS H4 Surf Fins.

Talk to us!

We are looking forward hearing from you.
Contact us

Or contact us through our social media 

Linkedin Facebook Instagram