IN THIS EDITION
June 2012

Lead Feature


Company News


Materials News


Machinery News


Exhibition News


Injection Moulding


Rubber Journal Asia

E-Magazine for the Rubber Industry
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LEAD FEATURE

Malaysian plastics manufacturers up the ante to attract business

During the 45th anniversary celebration of the Malaysian Plastics Manufacturers Association (MPMA), held in Kuala Lumpur on 23 June, President Lim Kok Boon said that local makers can profit from exports as long as they can match high quality with low costs. MPMA also launched its anti-litter campaign and promoted its 3Rs policy.


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COMPANY NEWS

Petronas to advance its shale gas venture

Malaysia’s state oil company Petronas is undertaking a US$4.7 billion takeover of its Canadian joint-venture partner Progress Energy Resources to gain control of the vast shale gas reserves and advance plans to ship fuel to lucrative Asian markets.


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JEC honours Malaysian companies and ex-PM

The 26th of June was a proud day for Malaysia as the JEC Asia Composites show, held from 26-28 June in Singapore, honoured the country for its contribution to the composites market. Not only did the ex-Prime Minister of Malaysia, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad, receive a lifetime achievement award but so did CEO of CTRM (Composites Technology Research Malaysia), Datuk Rosdi Mahmud, who received a business achievement award. Meanwhile, DK Composites and Petronas Research received innovation awards for their composite innovations.

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Pertstorp completes jv with PTT

Speciality chemicals company Perstorp has finalised the set up of the joint venture with Thailand-based chemical producer PTT Global Chemical for the manufacturing and sales of products for the PU industry. PTT Global Chemical holds 51% and Perstorp 49% of the new joint venture named Vencorex Holding.

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Kuraray opens PVOH facility

Japanese firm Kuraray has set up its new PVOH (Polyvinyl Alcohol) resin production facility at its US subsidiary Kuraray America (a wholly owned subsidiary in Houston, Texas).

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EU firms in China considering shifting investment

Rising costs and regulatory challenges are the biggest issues facing European companies in China, according to an annual survey conducted by the European Union Chamber of Commerce in China.

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Evonik invests EUR100 million in Shanghai plant

German chemical firm Evonik has started construction of its latest production plant for the manufacture of isoprene and isophorone diamine in the Shanghai Chemical Industry Park (SCIP). Worth EUR100 million, the new plant is expected to come on stream in Q1 2014.

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ExxonMobil to build chemical plant in Texas

US-based energy company ExxonMobil Corp plans to build a multi-billion dollar chemical plant in Texas to take advantage of cheap North American shale gas. According to news reports, the plant, which could be online as soon as 2016, would sharply crank up the company’s chemical production capacity and help it compete more effectively with rival Dow Chemical.

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Solvay’s bio-based epoxy feedstock plant in China

Belgian firm Solvay’s Thai affiliate Vinythai will build a facility for epichlorohydrin in Taixing, China, to meet the growth of 8% for the chemical in the market. The plant with an initial capacity of 100,000 tonnes/year requires an investment of EUR155 million and should go on stream in H2 2014.

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NatPet and Schulman ink deal for PP compounding

Saudi Arabia’s Petrochemical Industrial (NatPet) has forged a joint venture deal with US firm A. Schulman to produce PP compounds near NatPet’s PP manufacturing complex at Yanbu with a capacity of 100,000 tonnes/year. To be built in two phases, the first phase will cost US$70.9 million of which 40% of it will be funded through equity while the remainder through debt from sources including the Saudi Industrial Development Fund as well as other local banks.

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Clariant shares 2015 targets

Swiss speciality chemicals company Clariant will continue to implement its profitable growth strategy during the next three years. The company’s main goal is to increase its EBITDA margin from 13.2% in 2011 to above 17% in 2015 and to achieve a return on invested capital (ROIC) that is above peer group average. Clariant will in future generate more than 70% of its sales with core non-cyclical business units.

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Teijin enters South Korean market

Japanese firm Teijin DuPont Films, a joint venture between Teijin and E.I. du Pont de Nemours will establish a wholly owned subsidiary, Teijin DuPont Films Korea to market and sell polyester films in the South Korean market.

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Lanxess to expand to Turkey

Chemical company Lanxess is expanding to Turkey with a new subsidiary – Kimya Ticaret. The company said that the country’s geographical location between east and west is an important growth driver for the company.

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Materials News

Composite fabrics reduces cycle time

Victrex Polymer Solutions and Tissa Glasweberei AG have co-developed innovative composite fabrics to be marketed under Tissa’s brand name Tixpref. Made of unidirectional tapes formed from S2-glass or carbon fibres with Victrex Peek polymer, the fabrics assist customers in drastically reducing the cycle time up to 50%.


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EU tightens controls for dangerous chemicals

To prevent industrial accidents, the European Union has imposed tougher management standards on plastic companies. The Seveso III directive, commissioned by the European Parliament, the European Commission and the EU Council of Ministers, will include new safety rules for companies handling toxic chemicals and metallic ingredients in plastics and oil and petrol.

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Rhodia unveils new Technyl grades

Solvay-owned Rhodia Engineering Plastics has unveiled a new heat-performance Technyl range specifically for injection and blow moulded parts in turbo-charged engines. The PA 6, 6 grades enable engine parts to resist temperatures of up to 210°C, higher than previous grades which were resistant up to 200°C.

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Sabic shows first PC BIPV panels

Sabic has unveiled its first PC building-integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) panels for roofing, cladding and glazing applications. Sabic worked with SolbianEnergie Alternative, a flexible PV production company. Lexan BIPV panels combine Lexan Thermoclear PC sheet with flexible PV laminated crystalline cells from Solbian and are available in a broad range of structures, configurations and colours.

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Euro 2012 ball kicks off chemistry!

German materials firm Bayer MaterialScience (BMS) has helped enhance the official European Championship soccer ball with materials. The Adidas ball is said to have improved properties, allowing for faster acceleration and better control of the ball. The surface texture of the official European Championship ball feels like denim, allowing for better ball control.

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Toho Tenax grows composite business in India

Toho Tenax, a core company of the Teijin Group’s carbon fibres and composites business is planning to develop and market carbon fibre fabrics for India’s composite industry in collaboration with Hindoostan Technical Fabrics, a carbon and aramid textile manufacturer. This will be the first time Toho Tenax will partner with a textile manufacturer in India’s carbon fibre sector.

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Machinery News

Plastics and Rubber Machinery Association elects new Board and Chairman

At the general assembly on 21 June 2012 in Bonn the representatives of the member firms of the Plastics and Rubber Machinery Association elected a new Board for the period 2012 to 2015; the new Board members are: Jürgen ARNOLD, battenfeld-cincinnati Germany, Bad Oeynhausen Günter BACHMANN, Coperion GmbH, Stuttgart Michael BAUMEISTER, Brückner Maschinenbau, Siegsdorf Dr. Karlheinz BOURDON, KraussMaffei Technologies, Munich.

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Nordson acquires Xaloy

US-based Nordson will acquire screw/barrel maker Xaloy for US$200 million purchase price, subject to adjustment, will be financed with available credit facilities. The transaction is expected to conclude during Nordson’s third quarter pending customary closing conditions and regulatory reviews.

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Piovan revolutionises dosing process

Auxiliary equipment supplier Piovan’s latest Lybra doser series, for feeding all types of products, comprises continuous weight-loss gravimetric dosing units, which stand out for their high precision, advanced controls and intuitive user interface.

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Demag gets EUR20 million facelift

Japan’s Sumitomo Heavy Industries is investing EUR20 million in the facilities of Sumitomo (SHI) Demag Plastics Machinery in Schwaig and Wiehe in Germany. The investment will allow the company to modernise production systems for injection moulding machines.

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AkzoNobel supplies equipment to Mexichem

AkzoNobel has signed an agreement to supply its pioneering Continuous Initiator Dosing (CiD) technology to Mexichem, one of the world's largest PVC manufacturers. The deal involves three Mexichem plants (two in Mexico, one in Colombia), which will be supplied with organic peroxide by AkzoNobel's Los Reyes site, where EUR9 million is being invested to boost the existing manufacturing capacity.

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PTi sells sheet extrusion system to Aserpet

US extrusion sheet manufacturer Processing Technologies International (PTi) has sold a sheet extrusion system to Aserpet, based in Gaziantep, Turkey, a PET recycler and soon-to-be manufacturer of PET sheet roll stock. The recently completed sale is PTi’s first in Turkey.

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Exhibition News

K2013 promises to be bigger, better

Against the backdrop of the Eurozone crisis, next year’s triennial plastic event K2013 is expected to be bigger than the previous event says the show organiser. To be held from 16-23 October in Düsseldorf, Germany, the number of Asian manufacturers from China, Taiwan and India is expected to increase.

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Injection Moulding

Faurecia sets up a R&D centre in India

Automotive Tier 1 supplier Faurecia has opened a major R&D centre in Pune, India. Equipped with 800 automotive engineers, the new centre will cater for three of its four business groups – interior systems, automotive seating and automotive exteriors.


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Engel achieves record figures

Injection moulding machine maker Engel Austria’s turnover for fiscal year 2011/2012 reached EUR834 million higher compared to last fiscal year’s EUR358 million. According to the company, two factors in particular have contributed to the upsurge – the introduction of the energy-saving Engel Ecodrive option and the consolidation of system solutions.


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Sabic awards major order to KraussMaffei

Petrochemical company Sabic awarded the KraussMaffei Group a major order – to equip the new Sabic Plastics Applications Development Centre (SPADC) in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, with machines from the KraussMaffei and KraussMaffei Berstorff ranges.


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Wittmann bolsters production capacity in Germany

Wittmann Robot has set up a new facility in Nuremberg to meet the strong demand for automation solutions and complete systems. The new building, scheduled to go on stream at the turn of the year, has an area of more than 12,000 sq m.


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JCI dresses up components with natural fibres

Interior automotive components manufacturer Johnson Controls (JCI) is providing door panels, seat structures and instrument clusters for the new BMW 3 series, made using a combination of natural fibres and PP that is 20% lighter than conventional components. The parts are said to help reduce fuel consumption, while using renewable materials.


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