Norwegian manufacturer Selstad has access to a new material that opens exciting possibilities for the development of fishing gear and aquaculture equipment.
Selstad has signed a deal with Chinese producer Baotou Zhongyuan New Materials Co. Ltd for its Sundless material to produce netting and ropes at Selstad’s Måløy factory.
‘We have already produced both netting and rope in this material, and using these components we have now also completed the first net bag for use in Norway,’ said Selstad CEO Hans Petter Selstad.
‘This is a material with enormous potential and we see great opportunities to produce netting and ropes with unique properties through this collaboration.’
Selstad’s R&D department has conducted extensive testing of the material for the new collaboration partner, following a co-operation agreement being signed by the two partners.
‘We have been testing raw materials from existing and potential suppliers for a number of years, and this looks really promising,’ said R&D manager Knut-Steffen Solvåg.
‘It has a capacity, durability and weight that make it very favourable for the production of ropes and netting. The combination of the strength of UHMWPE netting, extreme abrasion properties and cut resistance makes this material completely unique. In addition, it is recyclable, as well as the only UHMWPE material that can be produced without the use of solvents. This means that the environmental benefits of choosing equipment made of this material are significant throughout its entire life cycle.’
Selstad manager Steinar Hansen commented that the product is still in the development phase and that Selstad is now spending extra resources on following up on deliveries both in the production phase and the usage phase.
‘Here we are dealing with a significantly lighter material, and this will provide obvious benefits in many areas,’ Steinar Hansen said.
‘We are having conversations with several of our customers and hope to be able to place a significant number of net cages into the sea during the next year. Our industry has always been good at seizing opportunities that have presented themselves to improve operations, profitability and environmental impact. Here we have been given another such opportunity.’
