MSC (formerly known as Hexion Specialty Chemicals, Inc.) is a global thermoset material supplier and has built a position in automotive lightweight composites. MSC opened the Transportation Research and Application Center in Duisburg, Germany, in 2012 where custom lightweight structural composite solutions for clients in the automotive, aerospace and mass transportation markets are supported with testing and application development.

The Fraunhofer Project Center (FPC) at Western University is a not-for-profit partnership between Western University and the Fraunhofer Society, which is Europe’s largest research and development organization for composite materials and their associated manufacturing technologies.

This partnership makes new processes such as HP-RTM [high-pressure resin transfer molding process] or D-SMC [direct sheet molding compound] lines much more accessible to the North American automotive industry as both the state-of-the-art systems and equipment will be available.

—Rich Myers, chief technology officer, MSC