Technology

Elval Technology Centre: develops customised alloys, highly resistant special products with non-skid properties, extra flat sheets with top-quality lacquer-coatings, products made of 100% recycled aluminium and deep drawing and extrusion products. 

Symetal Technology Department: develops technologies that introduce and ensure innovative surface design and enhanced mechanical characteristics. These technologies allow high aluminium foil affinity control for laminates and coatings, as well as flawless forming. Symetal also focuses on the development of battery foil, which is used in the automotive rechargeable batteries industry. Symetal Battery Foil (SBF) resides at the core of Li-ion batteries, as one of its core electrodes. The technical and quality requirements for such a product are extremely high. At the same time, the reduction of rolled aluminium thickness to as low as 11 microns, allows next generation batteries to achieve a significant increase in the amount of energy stored. SBF special alloying and innovative production process is the result of extensive testing with established European rechargeable battery cells manufacturers.

Elval Colour R&D department: in collaboration with architects and material suppliers the department develops colours through identification and experimentation to create new pigments, innovative surfaces and designs. The department also digitizes colour measurement for quality control; develops coating technologies in cooperation with equipment and coating suppliers to investigate coating processes that are more environmentally and consumer-friendly, consume less energy and contain lower or no VOCs; develops polymer compounds for faster productivity and higher fire-resistance, and explores material recyclability and material functionality. It also develops in-house and in-joint R&D projects, and new methods for the identification and analysis of material long-term performance. Elval Colour participates in numerous ongoing projects with universities relating to material performance evaluation methods, market research, and the long-term impact of coating materials on the environment. It also participates in European Technical Committees for standards’ publications and updates.

Halcor Tube Heat Transfer laboratory (located within Halcor’s Oinofyta plant): is where Talos^® Inner-Groove Tubes (IGT) and Talos^® ACR tubes are manufactured in line with international standards and customer specifications. IGT seamless copper tubes feature internal grooves which significantly enhance the amount of heat transfer. Typical applications of IGT copper tubes include fin-and-tube condensers and evaporator coils for air-conditioning, refrigeration, chiller, and heat-pump applications. Halcor's production technology for Talos^® IGT copper tubes enables the manufacture of advanced innergroove designs in a complete range of sizes, from 16mm outside diameter down to the latest microgroove™ tubes with an outside diameter of 5mm or less. Halcor is one of the few manufacturers in the world with this capability. 

Sofia Med Product and Process Development Department (Technology Department): The main responsibilities of the department include developing new products, establishing the methods for producing the highest quality material at the lowest possible cost, maintaining the highest level of quality, providing excellent customer service and successfully homologating new customers.

A team of highly skilled engineers uses advanced software tools and modern testing facilities to conduct applied research focusing on product development, innovation, redesign/optimization of existing products. Additionally, it provides technical support to three industrial units, two in Greece and one in Romania. These efforts further empower Hellenic Cables' broader strategy for more sustainable products with less environmental impact. At the same time, it enhances internationally the technological profile of Hellenic Cables through the uninterruptible participation of the R&D department's engineers in technical committees of the cable industry (CIGRE, IEC) as well as through the continuous publication of innovative ideas in scientific journals with high impact factor and peer-reviewed conferences.
Beyond the R&D personnel, Hellenic Cables has several state-of-the-art testing laboratories in its factories. Particularly, at the Oinofyta compounding plant, there is the testing polymer laboratory. The main focus of the laboratory is the development of new recipes for non-conductive cable components, chemical analysis and identification of raw materials, with emphasis on quality control and thorough analysis of polymers for underground high and extra-high voltage cables as well as submarine cables. The laboratory is also involved in the research and development of new plastic and elastomer compounds. In addition, the cable production plants have also testing laboratories with a full range of testing equipment, capable of carrying out complete mechanical and electrical tests of products in accordance with international standards.

Corinth Pipeworks R&D Centre: optimises a large array of pipe manufacturing and coating processes by (a) continuous internal trial productions and (b) modelling of specific processes, aiming to develop products for extreme applications (e.g. sour service, offshore, high strain applications such as reeling); improves working range to achieve enhanced product uniformity and broaden each mill’s production range; develops advanced destructive, corrosive and non-destructive specialised testing techniques providing state-of-the-art solutions.