Trinseo to build new S-SBR pilot plant in Schkopau

Trinseo, aglobal materials solutions provider and manufacturer of plastics, latex binders, and synthetic rubber, plans to build a new solution-styrene butadiene rubber (S-SBR) pilot plant in Schkopau, Germany. The S-SBR pilot plant will allow for more efficient use of Trinseo's production facilities and help speed up innovation in the Performance Tyres market. The pilot plant will begin operation in Q4 2017.

Trinseo's new S-SBR pilot plant will quicken the development process from lab sample to commercialisation. The pilot plant will also deliver sufficient quantities of new S-SBR formulations required for real-life tyre testing. This speedy evaluation of both process and product parameters meets customer needs for reducing product validation time. As a result, the faster testing process accelerates the time to market for new performance tyre innovations.

"The pilot plant demonstrates our long-standing commitment to and collaboration with our customers and is consistent with Trinseo's strategy to grow our Performance Materials businesses," said Hayati Yarkadas, Senior Vice President and Business President, Performance Materials. "This strategic investment will allow us to be more agile and flexible than ever before in our ability to turn around S-SBR product testing," said Samer Al Jabi, Global Business Director for Synthetic Rubber. "The pilot plant will be a valuable technology capability, enabling us to bring S-SBR materials to our customers more efficiently and help performance tyre makers meet new market trends."

Trinseo had approximately US$4billion in revenue in 2015, with 18 manufacturing sites around the world, and more than 2,200 employees.