US-headquartered A. Schulman has opened its first plastics masterbatch manufacturing facility in India, in Vadodara, Gujarat. It will manufacture A. Schulman’s masterbatch products for India’s growing flexible packaging, appliance and consumer products markets, with an initial capacity of 10,000 tonnes/year.

The firm says the new plant is strategically located near its customers’ manufacturing facilities in western India, and near the coast line of the Arabian Sea, which will facilitate the easy shipment of raw materials for production.

“We are very pleased to announce the opening of our new masterbatch manufacturing facility in Vadodara, India,” said Derek Bristow, Vice President and General Manager for A. Schulman’s Asia-Pacific region. “This plant will be dedicated to providing innovative masterbatch solutions to meet the needs of flexible packaging, white goods and cosmetics manufacturers in India.”

“By opening this new plant in Vadodara, we are strengthening our position to serve our growing customer base in this attractive market,” said Mannar Mannan Shanmugam, A. Schulman General Manager for India.

“In line with our strategic direction, we are continuing our geographic expansion in growing markets across Asia, and India is a key component of that growth strategy,” said Bernard Rzepka, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of A. Schulman. “This new plant is another step in our progress toward becoming the number-one global manufacturer in the masterbatch market.”

The Vadodara plant is A. Schulman’s first manufacturing facility in India and its fifth in the Asia Pacific region. Prior to opening the new facility, A. Schulman was serving its masterbatch customers in India by exporting products from its Indonesian and Malaysian facilities. These facilities will now focus exclusively on serving the growing demand for masterbatch products for flexible packaging applications in their respective markets.