 |
 |
In this Edition August 2011 |
LEAD FEATURE |
COMPANY NEWS |
MATERIALS NEWS |
MACHINERY NEWS |
INJECTION MOULDING ASIA |
 RUBBER JOURNAL ASIA |
| ELECTRONIC ISSUE |
PRA August 2011 Electronic Issue Now Available |
Company News
Polyplastics expands POM capacity in Malaysia
B
y expanding production capacity of its Duracon polyoxymethylene (POM) at its Malaysian plant, with an additional 90,000 tonnes/year, Japanese supplier Polyplastics says it will meet a third of global POM demand. The construction will be completed in October 2013 and it will start operating early 2014.Polyplastics has four production bases for POM in Japan (Fuji), Taiwan (Kaohsiung), China (Nantong) and Malaysia (Kuantan) and the group's total capacity is 200,000 tonnes/year. As a result of this investment, its POM production capacity will total about 290,000 tonnes/year, accounting for about a third of the world's total demand for POM.
After the completion of the facilities, POM production capacity of the Malaysian facility will reach 120,000 tonnes/year, making the company the largest POM producer within the group.
In this expansion, Polyplastics will introduce its original, energy-saving polymerisation technology.
POM boasts mechanical/sliding properties and mouldability, and has been used in diverse industrial fields such as the automotive, OA supplies, home electric appliances sectors and in commodities like fastener or buckle. Its market has been expanded in line with economic growth of Asia.
The world's demand for POM is estimated 900,000 tonnes/year and more than 50% of that is consumed in Asia. Demand for POM in Asia is expected to grow by about 4-8% (annually) in line with China and ASEAN countries' economic growth. Furthermore, it is expected that the Indian market will grow in the near future and Polyplastics forecasts a larger POM market share in Asia.