Issue link: https://nebusinessmedia.uberflip.com/i/1107127
16 Hartford Business Journal • April 22, 2019 • www.HartfordBusiness.com By Gregory Seay gseay@hartfordbusiness.com I nside Henkel USA's gleaming Rocky Hill headquarters building, lab-coated engineers demonstrate some of the new ways in which the German maker of adhesives, sealants and coatings is translating and sharing its technology and materials expertise with customers. Engineer Daniel Papka shows how Henkel, maker of Loctite brand and other adhesives, partnering with printer maker Hewlett-Packard, devised a 3D printer using H-P's ink-jet technology to "print'' plastic lightweight, precision parts. Another engineer, Darryl Small, shows off his to-scale version of a robotic station for precisely applying an adhesive to bond a tempered glass panel to oven doors. Replacing metal brackets and screws with adhesive saves produc- tion time, weight and money, Small said. Henkel's new, 2,200-square-foot, state-of-the-art lab — one of three the company has worldwide — officially debuted April 3 and is among nearly a dozen specialized corporate labora- tory, research and development and innovation hub spaces to pop up in Greater Hartford lately. The goal for these companies is to develop new and better ways to use their products and services to help them- selves or their customers solve problems, improve efficiency and/or cut costs. It also gives Connecticut and the region a chance to catch up to innovation and startup powerhouses like Boston and New York City, which aren't only com- peting for the best and most innovative companies, but also the brightest minds who can come up with the next big idea. On April 10, New Britain global Industry 4.0 Hartford region sees growth in innovation hubs, but still trails major tech cities HBJ PHOTOS | STEVE LASCHEVER Henkel USA engineer Daniel Papka in Rocky Hill displays several 3D-printed components that showcase how the German maker of sealants and coatings is leveraging its expertise in materials composition to help customers innovate product-development and production-line solutions. (Below, left) Bryan Desroches oversaw set up of and runs Henkel's OEM Application Center. (Right) An engineer uses a laser to quick-set adhesive for medical needles.