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DuPont sets out its stall for technology innovation May 31, 2007
New technology in metals replacement and polymer production from sustainable sources is promised by DuPont in the first of many revelations of new technology expected from leading polymer companies between now and the opening of the K2007 exhibition in October. The surprising thing about the announcements from DuPont in Prague this morning was the imminent timing, with start-up or commercialisation of a number of projects scheduled for the next couple of months and years.
DuPont was one of the early proponents of bio-sourced materials with its research into 1,3 propanediol (PDO), the monomer used to produce the polyester poly(trimethylene terephthalate), or PTT, announced in 1998. Since then DuPont has gone on to set up a joint venture with sugar giant Tate & Lyle and towards the end of last year started shipping the first bio-PDO for conversion into its Sorona PTT for commercial sale.
Now a second technology string is to be brought into play. Work so far has been on producing PDO from corn grain. But grain has value as a food product and supplies must have their limits, so DuPont is now exploring the use of what's left over after the harvest - the stalks and leaves, otherwise known as corn stover. This is a cellulose-rich product and DuPont is investigating the refining of the corn stover to sugars for processing into PDO. The real prize here is that it takes bio-sourcing of polymers out of corn, and into any plentiful source of cellulose. And this brings in a geographical dimension in that regions away from the USA, where grain is not a major crop, can produce feedstock for BDO. Next year DuPont plans to build a pilot refinery in association with POET - formerly the biomass pioneer Broin - and is also planning a bio-PDO plant with a partner in China.
The Sorona polyester which is one of the eventual products from bio-PDO - DuPont is also researching polyols production - has so far been channeled into fibres to generate the volumes needed to support the development programme. But now DuPont is talking seriously about it as an engineering plastic, and says a car incorporating a Sorona part giving it 'green content' will go on sale early next year.
It has always been DuPont's intention to use bio-sourcing for its Hytrel polyester elastomer, and now a pilot plant has been scheduled for start-up later this year with product available early in 2008.
In its other new technology announcements DuPont focused on getting more performance out of more conventional materials. One route to this is through nanotechnology while the other explores more efficient methods of polymer reinforcement. DuPont has already shown the improvements to mechanical properties that can be made by augmenting glass fibre reinforcement with small amounts of nanoclays - a 30 per cent glass fibre filled PET plus 1 per cent nano reinforcement is equivalent in performance to a 45 per cent glass reinforced PET, but at lower weight. But there are other ways of adding strength and DuPont is investigating engineered fabric composites with the aim of getting their performance up between that of aluminium and steel while at the same time improving the economy of production.
In the nanocomposites field DuPont is also experimenting on electrical and thermal conductivity. A number of companies have achieved conductivity improvements though compounding in conductive nanofillers, but DuPont is also aiming to use the technology to trade off one property against the other. Thermal conductivity is not always wanted to bring with it electrical conductivity, and DuPont is researching the use of additives such as boron nitride, glass-coated copper particles and coated ceramics to add thermal conductivity, but retain the material's dielectric properties.
In a parallel development the company has used nanotechnology to improve the mechanical properties of plated parts. Plating can create surface stress concentrations as the metal particles grow. DuPont has developed a process using nanoparticles which do not grow as they are deposited, but simply build up the surface with more like particles. Commercial announcements in this field are expected even before the doors open in Düsseldorf.
Radici introduces engineering plastics for blow moulding May 31, 2007
A series of engineering plastics specifically for automotive blow moulding is to be introduced by RadiciNovacips. The blow moulding grades are to be added to the company's Radilon nylon and Heraflex polyester elastomer ranges.
Radilon S BMX and S BMV have working temperatures high enough to resist those encountered in petrol (120 - 140 degC) and diesel (140 - 160 degC) engines, and resistance to diesel, petrol and exhaust gas. Radilon S BMX is a non-reinforced nylon 6 and BMV has 15 - 20 per cent glass fibre reinforcement.
Heraflex E BMX elastomers combine the characteristics of thermoplastic rubber - mechanical properties that remain constant with changes in temperature - and the chemical resistance of polyesters, with potential in air ducts and high performance tubing for the automotive sector, as well as for other industrial applications.
Radici's BM products have been formulated with high melt viscosity to prevent sagging and give good control over part wall thickness distribution.
Polypipe to buy Terrain May 31, 2007
The Terrain business making non-pressure piping systems at Aylesford in Kent is being bought by Polypipe. Geberit of Switzerland is selling the business for a reported £42·5 million. Last year's sales were £25 million.
Polypipe says the purchase, effective July, will strengthen its position in the European plastic piping and sanitary systems market. 'The Terrain business covers a broad portfolio of non-pressure piping systems and is the leading name in the UK for above ground drainage products in commercial applications.' With the acquisition Polypipe expects to expand its presence in the commercial piping systems market and further penetrate the professional contractor and engineer base. 'The acquisition gives Polypipe the leading brand position in each of the residential, civils and commercial markets in the UK,' said Polypipe chief executive David Hall.
'Save the DTI' say polymer associations May 31, 2007
The British Plastics Federation, speaking for eight polymer-related trade associations, has urged the government to save the Department of Trade and Industry. In a letter to secretary of state Alastair Darling the eight associations refer to 'continuing speculation in the media that the DTI may be broken up, or key functions removed from it' and the 25 per cent cut in DTI staff in March from which 'the effect in terms of contact with industry and support is noticeable'.
The letter urges the government to 'create a strong Department for business and enterprise which is able to authoritatively pursue policies across Government that nurture diverse wealth creation with support for: science and innovation; increasing export and trade development; growth sectors; improved skills and employment practices and small businesses.'
The letter also calls for responsibility for the country's energy policy to remain with the DTI. 'It should not be placed with DEFRA (Department for Farming and Rural Affairs), whose environmental focus will be an obstacle to the key decisions that must be quickly made on: replacement of our nuclear capacity; more gas storage; more energy from waste.'
The eight associations are: the British Plastics Federation, the British Rubber & Polyurethane Products Association, the British Coatings Federation, the Packaging & Films Association, the Gauge & Toolmakers Association, the Polymer Machinery Manufacturers & Distributors Association, the Scottish Plastics & Rubber Association, and the Northern Ireland Polymers Association.
Owen Mumford increases capacity for drug delivery devices May 31, 2007
Medical devices moulder Owen Mumford has extended its Chipping Norton plant in the Cotswolds, more than doubling capacity for the production of drug delivery devices. More than 100 new jobs will be created at the family-owned firm.
At Chipping Norton Owen Mumford moulds, assembles and packs automatic injection devices, used to administer pharmaceutical products from pre-filled syringes or cartridges. It makes its own branded products as well as developing products on behalf of pharmaceutical and diagnostic companies.
The expansion includes a class 9 clean room and cold chain management facility, for the manufacture of drug device combination products. A significant part of the new space will be devoted to fully-automated assembly equipment, for high speed, high volume manufacture of new devices.
UK subsidiary saves Yushin's European profits May 31, 2007
Japanese robot manufacturer Yushin is planning to set up new subsidiary in India and reinforce its Slovakia subsidiary to counter rising raw material prices and uncertain foreign exchange rates. The company has just reported a year-on-year sales growth of 9·2 per cent. Sales were up in North America (by 8·6 per cent) and in Asia (by 10·4 per cent) but in Europe sales fell 17·8 per cent to just over £1 million. Despite this Yushin's profits in Europe increased 6·6 per cent to around £54,000 'due to an improvement of operations at the UK subsidiary'.
Russian ethylene investment in Portugal May 31, 2007
An unidentified Russian company is reported to be planning to build an ethylene plant at Sines in Portugal. The news agency Novosti, reporting 'a Kremlin source', released the story to coincide with an official visit to Moscow this week by Portuguese prime minister Jose Socrates. The plant will cost around Eur 65 million and is being linked with other growing trade between the two countries. Portugal takes on the EU presidency in the second half of this year, and a Russia-EU summit is due to be held in Portugal in October.
Degussa to make composite core foam in the USA May 31, 2007
Degussa is to build a plant in the USA to make its Rohacell polymethacrylimide foam, which is used as a core material in sandwich construction composites in which the foam is bonded between two cover skins of carbon- or glass fibre-reinforced plastics. At present the company only makes Rohacell in Darmstadt in Germany, but in mid-2008 its Inspec Foams subsidiary will start production in Mobile, Alabama. Degussa is investing around $10 million in the project.
Applications for Rohacell include components of the Airbus A 380, helicopter rotor blades, and sports equipment such as skis.
SABIC to make plastics in China May 28, 2007
SABIC of Saudi Arabia is planning to make plastics in China. The company has just opened two more offices there, in Beijing and Shenzhen, and says that over the next three years most of its new petrochemical capacity will be allocated to the Asian markets, of which China is the most important. SABIC's chairman Prince Saud bin Abdullah bin Thenayan Al-Saud said: 'Asia is a region where SABIC not only wants to supply products, but is also a region that SABIC regards as a strategically important location for future manufacturing of its products. Within the Asia region China is clearly the best location for this manufacturing to take place.'
Ticona, already a manufacturer of plastics in China, has announced plans to build a customer application development centre in Shanghai as part of its global support network that includes similar centres in Kelsterbach, Germany, and Auburn Hills, Michigan, USA.
Arkema sells UF business May 28, 2007
Arkema's urea formaldehyde business has been bought by Hexion Chemicals of the USA, the company formed out of Borden Chemical in 2005 with the aim of becoming the world's biggest thermosets company.
The business, which has annual sales close to Eur 100 million, is based at Leuna in Germany and since the closure of the French production unit at Villers-Saint-Paul offered very little synergy with Arkema's other activities. Arkema had marked it for disposal as part of the rationalisation of its business when it was created from Total's chemicals operation in 2004 and the sale to Hexion has been in the pipeline since last September.
Victrex invests to make PEEK film in volume May 28, 2007
A £5·3 million film plant has been built by Victrex at its Thornton Cleveleys site in Lancashire to make film from the company's Victrex PEEK polyaryletherketone. PEEK has been used in high performance films for several years, by both Victrex and its customers, and the decision to install a volume production line followed an increase in requests for Victrex-made and branded films for specific needs.
The Aptiv brand name covers a wide range of film grades offering a combination of properties, including resistance to high temperatures, chemicals, abrasion and scratching and radiation, with high levels of mechanical strength, and barrier and electrical properties. Other characteristics are hydrolysis resistance, high purity, good flammability without the use of flame retardants, low toxicity of combustion gases, and low moisture absorption, in a film that is FDA- and RoHS-compliant. The range is expected to grow in the coming years as application needs arise.
Aptiv films will be produced in both filled and unfilled crystalline and amorphous grades, up to 1·5 metres wide and at thicknesses ranging from 6 to 750 microns. Current uses are in many sectors, from electronics and aerospace, to wire and cable insulation, and in semi-conductor and automotive applications. These include speaker diaphragms for mobile phones and consumer speakers, electrical wire insulation and cable wrapping, pressure transducer and sensor membranes, industrial and electronics wear surfaces, electrical substrates, and aerospace insulation blankets.
The APTIV film production line has a custom-designed extruder, roll stack and winder. The winder was designed to be able to handle very thin film. The facility also includes equipment for off-line slitting, rewinding, and atmospheric plasma surface treatment which gives higher surface energy levels and higher stability of the treated film than corona treatment systems.
New plastics exhibition to be repeated May 28, 2007
The Plastics Innovations exhibition held in Coventry last week is to be repeated in May 2009, and may take place in Ireland next year. Organiser easyFairs is skipping 2008 for a UK event because the calendar is already full with both Interplas and Plastics Design and Moulding running in the same year.
Visitor numbers to the event at the Ricoh Arena were below those suggested by the pre-registrations, but an exit poll indicated that many of the visitors had not previously been to British plastics exhibitions, and exhibitors in the main were content with the attendance in the light of the low cost nature of the exhibition.
Now RTP links with Impact Colours May 28, 2007
US compounder RTP Company has set up its second British alliance in a matter of weeks. In mid-month it appointed Azelis to distribute its compounds, and now it has linked with Impact Colours UK of Rushden for Europe-wide masterbatch distribution.
Both companies use the same universal masterbatch formulations, and will present themselves as one in selected European markets using the RTP Company brand name UniColour and the Impact brand name MaximUM for both custom and standard colours.
Thompson expands roto moulding capacity at Bridgend May 28, 2007
A 3·5 m Caccia shuttle rotational moulding machine has been installed at Thompson Technik's Bridgend factory in a £250,000 investment which includes new compressors and factory ring main for improved energy saving. The machine gives the company the capacity to produce larger mouldings and has already brought £¾ million of new business in the drainage sector and a £¼ million access chamber contract. The investment was made with the support of a 30 per cent grant from the Welsh Assembly.
The Thompson Plastics Group acquired the Bridgend rotational moulding operation, then called T&D Plastech and subsequently ARM Plastics, in 2000.
Gerresheimer to go public May 28, 2007
German drug packaging company Gerresheimer, which bought Wilden earlier this year, is to go public in a flotation in early June. The share offering, which is tipped as being the biggest in Germany this year, is expected to make up to Eur 1·1 billion. Chief executive Axel Herberg said this should 'enable us to speed up organic growth through specific acquisitions'.
Gerresheimer was a listed company until JP Morgan bought it in 2003, and sold it to current owner Blackstone two years later.
Arkema's copolyamide production to double in China May 28, 2007
Capacity for Platamid copolyamide powders is to double at Arkema's Nanhui site in China. The move follows the relocation to China of many of Arkema's customers in the textile interlining sector in Europe, the USA, Korea and Japan.
Lanxess emphasises investment in China with increased compounding capacity May 22, 2007
A second compounding line for engineering plastics is to start up at Lanxess's Wuxi plant in China later this year, doubling capacity for Durethan nylons and Pocan PBT to 40,000 tonnes. As with the opening of the plant last year Lanxess has coincided the announcement with the Chinaplas exhibition. It has also taken the opportunity to set out its plans for investment in China as part of its 'Lanxess goes Asia' initiative.
At Wuxi, as well as expanding the compounding of engineering plastics, the Lanxess Semi-Crystalline Products business unit has opened a development centre for high-tech plastics and in the next couple of months the company will start up a line exclusively for specialties and customer samples. At other sites in China Lanxess's Technical Rubber Products business unit plans to set up a rubber research centre at Qingdao in the province of Shandong - the centre of around 60 per cent of China's rubber industry - and Nanjing and Ningbo are being assessed along with other sites in Asia as candidates for a new facility producing ion exchange resins.
The Wuxi compounding plant is costing around Eur 20 million and with the commissioning of the second line Lanxess will be 'one major step closer' to its goal of increasing global sales of Durethan and Pocan by 50 per cent in the next five years.
Basell introduces PPs tailored for injection stretch blow May 22, 2007
A family of polypropylenes formulated specifically for injection stretch blow processing has been introduced by Basell. The Stretchene series materials are currently described as 'developmental' and are said to outperform standard polypropylene in terms of rigidity, transparency, impact strength and production output. They address typical customer requirements for applications in food and household chemical packaging as well as hot-fill packaging - historically the domain of traditional materials such as PET or glass. Basell also plans to introduce a Purell version for use in medical and pharma applications.
So far there are just two grades. They both weigh in at 0·9 g/cm³ - significantly lower than glass and lighter than PET. One grade has an emphasis on rigidity for top load strength and a heat deflection temperature of 109 degC. The other is said to surpass standard polypropylene in terms of clarity and has the high transparency needed for cosmetics packaging.
Stretchene has up to eight times the water vapour transmission resistance of PET, and has no acetaldehyde traces, making it suitable for the packaging of dried foods, milk powders and beverages. Its stress cracking resistance makes it suitable for household chemical packaging.
In production terms Basell is claiming savings over PET bottles in that bottles produced using Stretchene can be made at much lower pressures than PET, and the equipment that processes polypropylene does not require such a high pressure compressor. Since the material can be processed at low pressures, and does not require drying, it can save costs in floor space and energy consumption.
General Electric and SABIC confirmed today that SABIC has bought GE Plastics for $11·6 billion. The usual regulatory approvals have yet to be obtained and the deal is expected to go through in the third quarter of this year.
GE Chairman and chief executive Jeff Immelt said: 'This transaction will transform the plastics industry by combining SABIC's low-cost materials position and global reach with GE Plastics' strong marketing and technology capabilities.' Hinting at the background to the deal which priced GE Plastics much higher than the original $10 billion estimates Mr Immelt said: 'This transaction is also good for other GE businesses. GE has long-standing relationships with SABIC and others in Saudi Arabia who buy many energy, healthcare, aviation and high-technology products. SABIC has committed to strengthen its relationship with GE, which is good for our businesses and employees that make these products.'
After taxes GE will receive around $9 billion from the sale. It will put most of the money into a share re-purchase plan, with the rest used to fund restructuring across its businesses.
Brian Gladden, currently vice president of GE Plastics' polymers business, will be president and chief executive of the new business, which will be renamed on completion of the transaction. Charlene Begley, currently president and CEO of GE Plastics, will move to a corporate role focused on closing the transaction.
SABIC - Saudi Basic Industries Corporation - is the largest public company in the Middle East, ranked by market capitalization (currently $80 billion), one of the world's 10 largest petrochemicals manufacturers and the fourth largest polymer producer. Its plastics interests are primarily in commodity materials - polyethylene and polypropylene and to a lesser extent polystyrene and PVC, with a growing capacity in PET. It has already made moves into polycarbonate, but the purchase of GE Plastics and its Lexan business takes it at stroke into this major engineering plastics sector and far beyond. Mohamed Al-Mady, vice chairman and CEO of SABIC, said in the joint announcement 'This business is complementary to our existing business without any overlaps. SABIC's intention is to grow the business globally. SABIC is well-positioned to do this, while adding high-performance plastics to the product range SABIC currently offers to customers.'
As the row over the proposed sale of some US sea ports to a Dubai-based company showed last year, the US can be touchy over selling control of national assets to companies from less stable parts of the world. The SABIC statement on the sale emphasised its long-term commitment to US operations, having operated there for more than 20 years, and its existing long-term partnerships with prominent companies like ExxonMobil and Shell. 'SABIC has deep roots in America and extensive experience in operating in the US as a leading chemical company,' emphasised Mr Al-Mady.
Ineos to buy Hydro's PVC and sell its own E-PVC business May 21, 2007
Ineos is buying and selling PVC businesses. It has agreed to buy Norsk Hydro's polymer business, and is selling its emulsion PVC business to Vinnolit.
The acquisition of Hydro's polymers activities, recently renamed Kerling, will give Ineos an enhanced position in its chloralkali, polymer and compounds businesses, as well as a half share in the Noretyl ethylene cracker at Rafnes, Norway, which is a joint venture with Borealis.
Kerling has production facilities in Norway, Sweden and the UK and interests in joint ventures in Norway, Qatar and China as well as a shareholding in the Portuguese PVC Producer CIRES. Ineos chief executive Jim Ratcliffe described the Eur 670 million deal as 'a very good strategic fit with the Ineos portfolio'.
Hydro has been working on a way out of polymers for some years and in December last year said that it in order to divest its non-core assets it was considering a public listing or divestment of the polymers business.
Ineos and Hydro nearly came together in 1998 when a merger was proposed between EVC (now Ineos Vinyls) and Hydro but the project was abandoned a few months later.
In a separate announcement Ineos ChlorVinyls said it is to sell its emulsion PVC business to Vinnolit. The value of the deal is not disclosed. The sale consists of the commercial goodwill of the Ineos ChlorVinyls E-PVC business along with its E-PVC production facilities at Hillhouse and at Schkopau in Germany. The deal will also include Vinnolit entering into an off-take agreement for the entire E-PVC output at Porto Torres in Italy. The E-PVC business has an annual turnover of approximately Eur 150 million.
Ineos ChlorVinyls retains its European VCM and suspension PVC businesses at Runcorn and Barry in the UK; Wilhelmshaven and Schkopau in Germany; and Porto Marghera, Porto Torres and Ravenna in Italy.
Nova Innovene explores futures buying to stabilise PS market May 21, 2007
Nova Innovene is seeking stability in the polystyrene market by exploring futures buying options with its customers. The company's business director for polystyrene Pierre Minguet told a meeting in London today that it was seeking ways of overcoming the instabilities in the PS market caused by fluctuating prices for ethylene and benzene which, because of the low margin in the polystyrene business, meant that PS prices had to swing as well.
Over the past few years polystyrene producers in Europe have suffered from over-capacity with consequent lower-than-optimum utilisation rates, and inevitable market pressures to limit their ability to react to fluctuating feedstock prices. Closures by several producers cut the 3 million tonnes capacity in 2005 by around 13 per cent by the end of last year and plant utilisation has climbed from around 79 per cent in 2005 to more than 90 per cent. Nova Innovene is running at better than 95 per cent and has filled its order books.
There are still changes to come in the European PS market, said Mr Minguet. He predicted a 0·4 per cent annual growth rate for polystyrene over the next few years, but in that there would be growth in demand for GPPS at the expense of a decline in demand for HIPS, and he predicted a switch in production of some HIPS capacity to general purpose product.
SABIC buys GE Plastics - allegedly May 20, 2007
All week the financial commentators have been jostling to get the closest to announcing the buyer of GE Plastics, with short lists getting shorter and speculation that it's SABIC at $11 - $12 billion getting stronger. At the weekend, with still no direct statement from GE or SABIC, the speculation changed to a certainty with the Daily Telegraph reporting on Saturday that 'General Electric is offloading its ailing plastics division in an $11 billion deal that is the largest ever completed in the Gulf. The division is being bought by Basic Industries of Saudi Arabia, one of the world's largest chemicals companies, which is 70 per cent owned by the Saudi government.'
Basell and private equity firm Apollo Management were quoted as contenders up to this week, but the Daily Telegraph joined the dots between cause and effect when it referred to the high crude oil prices that had cut into GE Plastics' profits and its parent company's earnings, and the fact that 'SABIC...has easy access to the world's largest oil reserves.'
While the Daily Telegraph is quoting the sale in the terms of a deal done, other austere commentators such as Forbes, The Financial Times and the Wall Street Journal are still hedging with SABIC as the front runner, attributing this to 'two people familiar with the negotiations' who will have the reddest faces on Wall Street if they are wrong.
Full production planned for proprietary elastomer for drug delivery systems May 20, 2007
Drug delivery system specialist Bespak is to scale up manufacture of a bromobutyl elastomer it developed in-house for use in pressurised metered dose inhalers (pMDIs). Bromobutyl was selected as the base polymer for its inertia to both ethanol and HFA propellant, and Bespak has developed the formulation using a special accelerator to enhance the curing process and minimise extractables. Bespak says it offers pharmaceutical companies a compatible elastomer with lower leakage and lower moisture ingress characteristics than current alternatives and which demonstrates comparable leachables and shot-weight profiles.
The formulation has been scaled up to Process Qualification (PQ) stage at King's Lynn and is already on trial with a number of customers. The purpose-built, facility, commissioned in 2005, will be capable of delivering all of the anticipated annual demand for valve seats and gaskets.
Arrow invests in doubling clean room assembly May 20, 2007
Arrow Medical has doubled clean room assembly space to 2,500 ft² at its Kington, Herefordshire, plant with a Class 10,000 clean room from Felcon CDI. The £100,000 investment will support production of medical devices for use in cardiology, orthopaedics and ear, nose and throat surgery. Initially it will be used for the assembly of laryngeal masks, and other components and sub-assemblies.
Other clean room facilities at Kington include silicone moulding, radio frequency welding, and other assembly processes, such as heat welding and glueing. The new clean room has been designed to incorporate silicone moulding, and other discrete production technologies to meet specific customer requirements. It covers the final assembly phase of Arrow Medical's production line, and includes secure packaging facilities so that products leaving the complex go directly to gamma or ETO sterilisation facilities before delivery to clinical customers.
Perrite supports university nanocomposites research May 20, 2007
A nanocomposites research programme at Queen's University, Belfast and the University of Bradford is being supported by Vita Compounding's engineering thermoplastic compounding division Perrite. The company will be making available development lab time and full production scale-up work, including final validation trials. As well having a range of twin screw extrusion lines with which to work, Perrite is also able to tailor screw profiles to particular experiments and properties.
RTP names Azelis as UK distributor and sets up Chinese TPE plant May 20, 2007
Specialist US engineering materials compounder RTP has appointed Azelis Plastics UK to sell its compounds in Britain. RTP has manufacturing plants in the USA, the Far East and France and it was the association between the French plant and Azelis partner company Arnaud in France that led to the appointment of Azelis as UK distributor.
RTP has also extended its Far East presence by adding thermoplastic elastomer capabilities to its Suzhou plant in China, which it opened in 2005. The company makes TPEs through five chemistry routes and as well as TPEs for bonding to thermoplastics and for medical and speciality rubber replacement applications, makes compounds incorporating the company's wear resistant, conductive, flame retardant, and colouring technologies. The new Chinese TPE facility follows the establishment last year of RTP's TPE operations as a separate division and the investment in a new research laboratory.
BASF opens Chinese compounding plant May 20, 2007
The compounding plant that BASF has been building in Pudong, near Shanghai in China, has come on stream. It has a capacity of 45,000 tonnes and is described as 'one of the most modern compounding plants in the world today, with the highest environmental standards and the most efficient production capabilities available.'
BASF says that in the next 10 years the Asia Pacific market for engineering plastics is expected to grow on average by about 7 per cent per year, with an even higher growth rate in China. By 2010 BASF aims to achieve 20 per cent of its group sales and earnings in the chemicals businesses in Asia Pacific, with 70 per cent of those sales from local production. Alongside this new plant in Shanghai, BASF has similar compounding facilities in Malaysia and Korea.
Bottles mean prizes May 20, 2007
Entries are invited for the 2007 Horners Bottlemaking Award. The award is open to moulders of bottles, jars or other hollow containers up to 20 litres which can have been made by any process including extrusion blow, injection blow, injection stretch blow, injection moulding, rotational moulding or vacuum forming. The entry should be pre-market or new to market (having been launched within the last 12 months), innovative, of pleasing or practical design and with a likely or proven commercial application or potential. It must have been developed, manufactured or sold in the United Kingdom.
New plant to build more recycling machines May 20, 2007
Steady growth in sales has led to Austrian recycling equipment specialist Next Generation Recycling building a new factory. The company has seen sales of its one step shredder/extruder machines grow at up to 20 per cent annually since 1996, and this year the company expects to sell around 70 systems. The existing plant is now too small to build at that volume, and NGR has started work on a 32,000 m³ factory on a 20,000 m² site at Feldkirchen an der Donau in Upper Austria.
Solutia finds a way out of chapter 11 May 20, 2007
US nylon manufacturer Solutia has put forward a plan to extricate itself from the chapter 11 bankruptcy into which it fell after assuming liability for staff disability, environmental clean-up and chemical exposure litigation while it was part of Pharmacia - formerly Monsanto Company. Some of these liabilities have now been accepted by Monsanto, and a $250 million investment will cover other liabilities.
Cyclics names compounding distributor for CBT May 20, 2007
Distribution of Cyclics Europe's CBT - cyclic butadiene terephthalate - for compounding and masterbatch applications has been taken on by IMCD Deutschland (formerly Interorgana).
Reliance plans large-scale PP investment in India May 20, 2007
A 900,000 tonnes polypropylene plant is to be built by Reliance Petroleum at Jamnagar in India. The plant will have two 450,000 tonnes lines running Dow's Unipol process and will start up in December 2008. Parent company Reliance Industries already operates four Unipol PP process lines at its Jamnagar complex and two more at its Hazira complex. Reliance Industries is the largest producer of polypropylene in Asia.
Engel invests in North America May 20, 2007
Engel plans to invest $4 million at its Guelph injection moulding machine plant in Canada over the next three years. Guelph is one of two North American plants. It builds the company's small and medium-sized machines, while large machines are built at York in the USA.
Engel has also appointed a chief executive responsible for both plants. Steve Braig joins the company with 25 years experience in capital equipment and machinery in the packaging, automotive and injection moulding industries.
Dow in Saudi Arabian and Chinese joint venture plans May 14, 2007
Dow Chemical is in final discussions with Saudi Aramco - 'the world's largest oil company' - to build 'one of the largest grassroots plastics and chemicals production facilities in the world' in Saudi Arabia. And in China it is liaising with the Shenhua Group to build a coal-to-chemical plant which would produce feedstocks for plastics.
Dow and Saudi Aramco have signed a detailed memorandum of understanding covering the construction, ownership and operation of the Ras Tanura Integrated Project. The joint venture will be operationally integrated with Saudi Aramco's Ras Tanura Refinery complex and its Ju'aymah gas processing plant, two of the largest facilities of their kind in the world. These facilities will supply feedstock to the joint venture and continue to be owned and operated by Saudi Aramco.
The Ras Tanura petrochemical complex will produce a broad range of both basic and performance products, including ethylene, propylene, aromatics and chlorine derivatives. Initially, the project scope includes world-scale production units for polyethylene, ethylene oxide and glycol, propylene oxide and glycol, chlor-alkali, vinyl chloride monomer, polyurethane components, epoxy resins, polycarbonate, amines and glycol ethers. According to Saudi Aramco, 'The wide range of chemical materials and plastics to be produced by the joint venture will help spawn other downstream chemical conversion industries, thus strengthening the role of the chemical sector as a key enabler of many other future investments in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.'
The deal extends Dow's involvement in the Middle East, where it has manufacturing plants or petrochemical joint ventures in Kuwait, Oman and Dubai, and recently agreed to join with Libya's National Oil Corporation in a petrochemicals joint venture which will produce polyethylene and polypropylene.
The Chinese agreement brings Dow and Shenhua a step closer to building a world-scale coal-to-chemicals complex in Shaanxi Province in China. The project will use 'clean coal' technologies that convert coal to methanol to produce ethylene and propylene. The complex will include a chlor-alkali unit, enabling the production of products such as caustic soda, vinyl chloride monomer and chlorinated organics. Other derivative products being planned for the complex include glycols, amines, solvents, surfactants, acrylic acid and derivatives and propylene derivatives.
The Coperion compounding equipment group based in Stuttgart, Germany, has been sold to German private equity company Deutsche Beteiligungs by Lyceum Capital - formerly West Private Equity - for around Eur 300 million.
Coperion was put together in 2000 by combining Werner & Pfleiderer, Waeschle and Buss. In 2004 the company added Chinese extruder manufacturer Nanjing Keya and last year sold Buss to Zurich-based investment company Fabrel Lotos. From a loss-making position in 2003, Coperion has moved to a pre-tax profit more than Eur 40 million in 2006 on sales up from Eur 289 million in 2003 to around Eur 450 million.
Another new chief for Battenfeld Gloucester May 14, 2007
Battenfeld Gloucester Engineering - the remaining plastics machinery business in the German-based SMS Group - has another new chief executive in six months. Carl Johnson has worked for the company for 12 years and before becoming CEO was responsible for the company's blown film group. Towards the end of last year CEO Brian Marvelley left the company and was replaced by John Kaplan in a move which saw SMS' head of plastics machinery Pepyn Dinandt take on the role of chairman and president. John Kaplan is now described as an 'interim' CEO, and has left the company.
SMS has made no secret of the fact that BGE, while not included in its recent sell-off, is something of a cuckoo in its predominantly metal processing machinery nest. It is currently being 'restructured and brought back to profitability after having gone through a phase of weakness' according to SMS chairman Heinrich Weiss.
US sign company bids for Chinese moulding machine builder May 14, 2007
An American brand marketing company is planning to buy a Chinese manufacturer of injection moulding machines. Sign Media systems, which produces graphics for vehicles and outdoor advertising sites, has put in a letter of intent to buy Ningbo Shuangma Plastic Machinery Manufacturing Co. Shuangma has a machine range of 100 models from 58 to 1,680 tons and builds around 2,000 machines a year for sale in South America, South East Asia, the Middle East, and Africa. Sign Media says that estimates from Shuangma show sales of $30 million for 2006, and the company 'should experience an annual growth rate of between 30 - 40 per cent.'
Lanxess 'could and would like to' buy Degussa May 10, 2007
Lanxess has become more open about its desire to buy Degussa. Speculation has rumbled on in Germany since Degussa was bought by the RAG industrial conglomerate in May last year. Less than a month after the RAG takeover of Degussa Lanxess felt moved to publish an analyst's report on its website denying that Lanxess had any ambition to take over Degussa, but at the same time pointing out the benefits to Lanxess of such a takeover, and recommending purchase of Lanxess stock.
On March 21 this year the Rheinische Post reported that Lanxess had 'surprisingly issued a new bid to acquire the RAG subsidiary Degussa' which was denied by Lanxess, with a statement that Lanxess had not issued a bid to take over Degussa, 'either now or in the past' and that, with Degussa wholly owned by RAG, 'there is therefore no acquisition project on our part'. On May 6 Lanxess chief executive Axel Heitmann was quoted in Handelsblatt saying that Lanxess would be prepared to pay Eur 4 - 6 billion for Degussa should RAG's plans for a public flotation fail. In the previous week, according to Reuters, a spokesman for RAG had said the conglomerate had no plan to sell its Degussa unit and that a merger with Lanxess 'could lead to value destruction and job losses'.
And yesterday Mr Heitmann, announcing the company's first quarter results, referred to 'the merger we are advocating with Degussa' and added 'The two companies are an ideal fit and have few overlaps. Combining them would create a new, strong global player here in North Rhine-Westphalia.' Warning that Lanxess means business he said: 'Let me assure you that Lanxess could finance this acquisition. And contrary to some reports, we could do it even without private equity capital.'
Of course, Degussa is not for sale. And as RAG's plans stand at the moment, it can't be sold. RAG has the dubious privilege of owning a large chunk of Germany's coal mining industry, which exists on government subsidies, and while coal mining is to be 'phased out' in Germany, this won't be until 2018. Degussa's earnings are supporting in part the operations of the mining sector, and RAG's Industrial Group as a whole is being held back by coal from further growth. To free itself RAG has devised a new 'foundation' structure with the ultimate goal of taking the Industrial Group public. And Degussa is a major attraction in making the flotation happen.
Lanxess has been bullish about acquisitions since last autumn when it revealed that its restructuring measures to sort out its poor or loss-making businesses since it was cut free from Bayer in 2005 had put it in the position to start expanding in a big way. This year's first quarter figures show that the restructuring is still bringing benefits - although the disposals make the year-on-year figures look less inviting. Sales fell 7 per cent but Lanxess says that discounting portfolio changes and currency effects, they were actually up 3 per cent. Pre-tax profits rose from 11·2 per cent to 12·8 per cent, with net profit up 11 per cent on last year to Eur 91 million. Crucially in the context of acquisitions, the company's net debt reduced by 12 per cent to Eur 448 million.
The engineering plastics business has had a lot of work done on it to improve profitability, which showed in the first quarter with sales down 6 per cent but profits up 86 per cent. This was partly due to the sale of the loss-making fibres business, but also to carving out and restructuring the styrenics business into Lustran Polymers. It has cut costs in volume grades and sold off its SAN business in an effort to achieve the cut-off 5 per cent profitability that it demands from its business units. In the first quarter profitability crossed the threshhold to double to 9·6 per cent, but Lustran is not out of the woods yet, and Mr Heitmann hinted at further radical restructuring: 'we plan to continue developing the business, possibly with a partner. We intend to reach a decision on this within the next few months.'
Plastics producers form more bio-partnerships May 10, 2007
More partnerships are being formed which could see the development of bio-sourced plastics. At the end of last month we reported on a tie-up between Rohm and Haas and energy crop company Ceres to investigate the potential for producing methacrylate monomers alongside cellulosic ethanol from energy crops. Now Metabolix, already in partnership with ADM - Archer Daniels Midland Company - in the Telles polyhydroxyalkanoate joint venture to make plastics from corn sugar and other agricultural products, is to collaborate with Australia's Cooperative Research Centre for Sugar Industry Innovation through Biotechnology (CRC SIIB) to research and develop plastics from sugar cane. Sugar cane is currently the premier biomass crop for biofuels, says Metabolix, and the company believes it can be developed to produce an advanced biorefinery feedstock for the production of natural plastics, fuels and chemicals.
Queensland Minister for State Development John Mickel commented: 'This new sugar cane natural plastics programme could well pave the way for the sugar industry's involvement in future bioplastics industries and other sought after bio-based products.' Sugar giant Tate & Lyle is already involved in bioplastics production through its DuPont Tate & Lyle Bio Products joint venture to make bio-PDO for use in the manufacture of Sorona PTT (thermoplastic polyester).
Ashland has also entered the bio-business, linking with Cargill - which owns polylactic acid producer NatureWorks - to develop bio-sourced chemicals. While initial research is not directly into polymer production, the venture's first product will be propylene glycol, used among other things to make unsaturated polyester resins, and Ashland has major interests in composites materials. The PG will be produced from glycerin as a co-product of biodiesel production.
New chief executive for Rapra May 10, 2007
Rapra Technology has a new chief executive, less than a year since Smithers Group put in Hugh Pace to pick up the pieces after last year's financial collapse. Mr Pace has left Rapra to return to the USA as chairman and chief executive of Pirelli Tire North America - he worked for Goodyear before joining Smithers - and is being replaced by James Dowey who is currently director of tyre uniformity machinery at Kobelco Stewart Bolling Inc, a subsidiary of Kobe Steel which makes tyre, rubber and plastic process equipment in Hudson, Ohio, in the USA. Mr Dowey and his wife are soon to move to the UK.
Resisting wear under extreme conditions May 10, 2007
The wear-resistant grades based on its high performance materials portfolio have been expanded by Solvay Advanced Polymers. These materials are designed for wear-resistant applications requiring long-term use in temperatures between 120 and 265 degC and short term use up to 280 degC. Solvay already has wear-resistant grades of Amodel polyphthalamide and Torlon polyamide-imide, and has now introduced formulations of its KetaSpire PEEK, AvaSpire modified PEEK, and Ixef polyarylamide.
Amodel PPA and Torlon PAI are already in use for bearings, washers, gears and seals, and Solvay will aim to expand applications in parts for automotive, aerospace and oil exploration industries, among others. The ability of these materials to withstand wear in harsh environments without lubricants is expected to make them particularly suitable for industries such as healthcare and food processing where lubricated contaminants must be avoided.
The company says the new materials are intended to meet specific service demands for wear-resistant materials. 'One size, turnkey solutions have no place in friction and wear. You can have so many variables at play in a given application - performance under pressure, friction, chemicals, heat.'
Eastman ramps up speciality polyesters May 10, 2007
Eastman Chemical Company is expanding its specialty copolyester production with the opening of a site in Columbia, South Carolina, USA. The company has recently expanded capacity for CHDM - an intermediate in several of Eastman's copolysters - at its Kingsport, Tennessee, site.
Inergy plans new plants in emerging markets May 7, 2007
The Inergy Automotive Systems joint venture between Solvay and Plastic Omnium is planning to build fuel systems plants in three automotive growth markets - China, Russia and India.
In China it has started construction of a plant at Wuhan in the Hubei province scheduled to go on stream in 2008. It will serve vehicle plants operated by Nissan and General Motors. This will be Inergy's second foray into the Chinese fuel systems market: in 2005 it announced a plan to buy a majority stake in China's leading plastic fuel systems manufacturer Yangzhou Yapp Automotive Plastic Parts Company but nothing came of the venture.
In Russia Inergy is negotiating the purchase of a site between Moscow and Nijni Novgorod for a new facility to supply the fuel system for the Russian-built version of the low cost Logan produced by Renault and its Romanian associate Dacia. Inergy already supplies the system for the Logan out of its Romanian plant. Inergy Automotive Systems then plans to build on this first venture in Russia to develop new business with other manufacturers operating in the country.
Inergy Automotive Systems has also set up a company in India that will ultimately operate at a location between Bangalore and Chennai in the South-East. It will produce the fuel system for a low-cost model that a Japanese car maker is planning to develop to target the emerging countries, for release in 2010.
Inergy Automotive Systems is the world leader in automotive fuel systems and supplies systems for one in five of all new cars.
Two German-based packaging companies have been sold by their investment company owners to other investment companies. Mauser has been bought by a Dubai-based company, Dubai International Capital, and Klöckner Pentaplast has been bought by an affiliate of the Blackstone Group of America.
Mauser was sold by One Equity Partners, a subsidiary of JP Morgan Chase & Company, which acquired it in 2003. When OEP bought Mauser its turnover was around Eur 250 million. This year it expects to hit Eur 1 billion.
Mauser is active across industrial packaging, with plastics packaging as its biggest sector. It has more than 50 locations, including eight joint ventures, in 13 countries across Europe, North America, Latin America and Asia, and employs around 3,700 people. It moved into Latin America only at the end of last year, when it bought Metalúrgica Barra do Pirai of Brazil. The DIC takeover will support further growth, especially into Asia.
No price has been put on the transaction, but it values Mauser at Eur 850 million.
Klöckner Pentaplast, which makes rigid films, has been owned for the past six years by European-based private equity firm Cinven and JP Morgan Partners of America, during which time its revenues have grown from Eur 833 million to Eur 1·2 billion. The sale price was Eur 1·3 billion.
The company reckons to be the world's leading producer of rigid plastic films - it put its toe into the flexibles water in 2005, but pulled it out again earlier this year. It has 21 plants in 11 countries on four continents and employs more than 3,400 people.
Trelleborg is being investigated in the USA and Europe for possible involvement in a cartel on marine hoses used to transport oil. Two managers of Trelleborg's French subsidiary Trelleborg Industrie were arrested yesterday in the US and have since been released. The European Union competition authorities are conducting a similar investigation at Trelleborg Industrie's site in Clermont Ferrand in France.
Trelleborg is co-operating with the invesigating authorities and says that it has 'a very clear and well communicated policy to adhere to applicable competition laws. Should the allegation of cartel activities prove to be correct this is serious and obviously completely unacceptable.'
The operation targeted by the investigation accounts for a small part of the Group's sales in France. The operation had sales in 2006 of approximately Eur 27 million.
Ashland Distribution has begun patching the hole in its North American portfolio left by the decision by Dow Chemical to terminate its distribution agreement with Ashland. Ashland has now taken on distribution of BASF's Elastollan thermoplastic polyurethane, ExxonMobil's injection moulding grades of HDPE and LLDPE, and Sunoco's polypropylene.
Huhtamaki to build flexibles plant in Thailand May 3, 2007
Huhtamaki of Finland is to build a flexible packaging plant for food and consumer goods in Thailand, close to its existing plant in Samutsakorn Industrial Estate in Bangkok. The plant is scheduled to start operations in the summer of 2008. The value of the investment is approximately Eur 17 million.
Teknor Apex opens Chinese compounding plant May 3, 2007
US-based compounder Teknor Apex - which owns Chem Polymer in this country - is taking a further step into Asia with the opening of a compounding plant at Suzhou in China. Teknor Apex already manufactures in Asia through its Singapore Polymer Corporation subsidiary, which it bought in 2001.
The new Chinese plant will have a 14,000 tonnes capacity through two lines with additional capacity planned in the next two years. It will make compounds across the Teknor Apex range, from rigid and flexible vinyl and thermoplastic elastomers from its American company and SPC, through engineering thermoplastics from Chem Polymer, to other speciality compounds developed by SPC.
A new company has been set up to run the plant, Teknor Apex (Suzhou) Advanced Polymer Compounds Co. Products from the plant will be exported and sold into the domestic market.
The Suzhou plant is described as 'the latest in an ongoing series of expansions and acquisitions'.
Solvay Solexis is to expand capacity for Solef polyvinylidene fluoride by about a third at its plant in Tavaux, France. The new capacity is due on stream early in 2009.
Solvay says it is seeing growth in industries and applications such as chemicals, semi-conductors, oil and gas and pipes and fittings, and that new applications are developing in other markets such as environmental technologies, with membranes for water purification, and as components in rechargeable lithium-ion batteries.
Borealis expands PP compounding in Brazil May 3, 2007
Borealis is to increase compounding capacity at its Itatiba plant in Brazil with two new lines costing around Eur 6·5 million. The expansion will serve the automotive and appliances markets and will increase the polypropylene compounding capacity of the plant by
11,000 tonnes. It is due for completion in mid-2008.
Elopak's British bottle business in management buy out May 1, 2007
Elopak's dairy and juice bottle businesses in Britain have been taken over in a management buy out which is described as creating the largest privately-owned HDPE bottle manufacturer in the UK.
Auspac of Bracknell, Berkshire, and Elopak Plastic Systems (UK) based in Foston in Derbyshire have been bought by a holding company called FourFourTwo set up by Kim Potter, Neil Powell and Dave Dennie, senior members of the management team at Elopak Plastic Systems (UK). Auspac, which was bought by Elopak in 2003, will continue to operate under that name from Bracknell while Elopak Plastic Systems (UK) will change its name to EPS (Foston) and continue to operate from Foston. Kim Potter becomes managing director, Neil Powell finance director and Dave Dennie operations director. No value has been put on the sale.
The companies run 16 Uniloy and Techne lines, split evenly between the two sites in cavity terms. They turn over around £15 million and have 35 predominantly dairy customers representing around 10 per cent of the British market for HDPE bottles.
Kim Potter said 'We have taken the initiative to buy both companies on the basis that there is a clear demand within the UK for a committed long term supplier of HDPE liquid food containers.' Elopak also has HDPE bottle production in Greece, Denmark and Saudi Arabia, but its biggest business sector is in carton packaging. Elopak's strategy is to become the biggest supplier in the fresh and premium aseptic liquid food packaging market through technical and geographical growth in paperboard cartons. Its parent company, Ferd of Norway, recently failed to expand its carton business through the purchase of SIG Holding of Switzerland when it was outbid by Rank Group Holdings of New Zealand.
Invista starts work on China's biggest air bag fibre plant May 1, 2007
Construction has started on a nylon fibres plant for Invista which will become China's largest air bag fibre producer. The new plant in Shanghai, representing an investment of more than $50 million, will produce nylon 6,6 yarns primarily for use in automotive safety air bags. It is the latest stage in Invista's $300 - 400 million Chinese investment programme.
When the plant comes on line next year, Invista says it will be the only company to have air bag fibre production on three continents. The new plant will have a capacity of 11,000 tonnes.
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