Papurex pneumatic hoses based on Irogran to improve crop equipment

AgrarPur hoses are designed to carry compressed air to power specialist harvesting and pruning equipment. Employed widely across farming (prevailing wine or fruit growing), forestry and professional horticulture in America, the Middle East, Europe and Australia, these machines include vibrating rakes – used to knock fruit and nuts like olives and pistachios off trees – and pneumatic powered shears, secateurs and chain saws for cutting back and trimming branches.

AgrarPur hoses are said to be up to 15 % stronger under pressure than conventional polyurethane hoses. They can tolerate high-pressure levels of more than 40 bars and have a standard working limit of 16 bars. Irogran also makes it possible for Papurex to make hoses that are up to 10 % longer, enabling farmers to harvest much larger areas at any one time.

AgrarPur was developed after Papurex decided to extend its existing agricultural hosing range. With 25 years experience in the farming sector and a track record of producing 26 million meters of polyurethane tubing every year, the team knew exactly what they needed from a TPU. Andreas Geyer, Financial and Commercial Manager at Papurex explains more: "When we began enhancing our agricultural hose portfolio, the opportunity arose to work with Huntsman Polyurethanes. In the past we had heard excellent things about the breadth of the company's TPU offering so knew they would be able to identify the very best possible solution for us to use. When the team introduced us to Irogran, we knew instinctively that we had chosen the right supplier."

Franz Michel, TPU Account Manager at Huntsman Polyurethanes said: "Typically used in mechanically challenging applications, Irogran has been widely adopted across the hoses and tubes market as a core raw material that can be easily extruded. We believe that AgrarPur sets a new standard for hoses used in pneumatic agricultural applications and are delighted that Irogran has played such an important role in its development."