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August 28, 2008

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Bayer breaks ground on gas-phase TDI plant in Shanghai

Bayer’s splitter at Shanghai

SHANGHAI (August 26, 2008) -- Bayer MaterialScience has announced that it has gained Chinese government approval for construction of its long-planned 250-kiloton-per-year facility for making toluene diisocyanate (TDI) at its Shanghai production site. The plant will be the first to commercially exploit Bayer’s innovative gas-phase phosgenation process. Annual growth in global TDI consumption of 4 percent is expected in the medium term, with forecasts for China´s growth at twice that, said Bayer. TDI is used to make flexible polyurethane foam, which is used in large quantities in upholstered furniture, mattresses and car seats.

Mann + Hummel bolsters its global automotive reach

Seipler

TRAVERSE CITY, MICHIGAN (August 26, 2008) -- Here’s a hint you’re dealing with an international auto parts maker: when a German-based supplier moves its French-born head of its North American operations to run its newly acquired subsidiary in South Korea. In July, Mann + Hummel Automotive Inc. completed the acquisition of Dongwoo Co. Ltd. of Munmak, South Korea, and named Claude Mathieu to head up operations. Mann’s top executive Dieter Seipler said the company hopes the close contacts with Korean automakers will give the maker of injection molded air-intake manifolds and other functional auto parts an inside track for those companies’ global cars.

Experts: Lighter-weight vehicles mean more composites
TRAVERSE CITY, MICHIGAN (August 26, 2008) -- Consumer demand for smaller, lighter and more-efficient cars is outpacing any standards the U.S. federal government has proposed for fuel consumption standards. Composites and thermoplastics offer benefits in shedding weight from cars and trucks, which improves gas mileage. And parts consolidation through modular design offers cost savings. Plastics News was in Michigan to report on the auto industry’s Management Briefing Seminars as experts discussed the many facets of developing more-efficient vehicles.

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Toshiba expanding all-electric press output in Shanghai
SHANGHAI (August 26, 2008) -- With mainland China’s demand for all-electric injection presses on the rise, Japanese press maker Toshiba Machine Co. Ltd. is doubling the capacity of its Shanghai factory. The company is also seeing increased exports from Shanghai to other Asian markets. Toshiba makes all-electrics from 40 to 350 metric tons of clamping force in Shanghai, along with die-casting machines.

Jyco Sealing Technology expands use of TPV seals
DEXTER, MICHIGAN (August 26, 2008) -- Jyco Sealing Technologies already has helped lead the shift from rubber to thermoplastics for automotive weather seals. Even as the company expands its existing business, it is looking to the next wave for thermoplastic vulcanizate (TPV) seals -- using old tires in new cars and replacing metal cores with less expensive plastic. The company extrudes seals in Montreal, Quebec, and Guaymas, Mexico, and has a new plant opening soon in the Czech Republic. It also operates joint ventures to make TPV seals in China, Belgium and Japan.

BASF restructuring styrenics businesses
LUDWIGSHAFEN, GERMANY (August 26, 2008) -- BASF AG has decided to add its styrenic copolymer business to the divestment process already announced for a large part of its styrenics portfolio. The Germany-based company also is reorganizing the structure of its global styrenics business, creating new subsidiaries so that they can be run independently of one another. The new companies are expected to be established in January.

Octal invests big in integrated APET plant

Barenberg

DÜSSELDORF, GERMANY (August 26, 2008) -- Octal Holding & Co. SAOC’s 2.05 billion yuan integrated PET resin and sheet plant in Oman is coming on stream this month, making the firm a major supplier of amorphous PET sheet to thermoforming customers. The investment is in line with plans for Octal to become the “largest and lowest-cost polyester company in the Middle East and the largest polyester manufacturer outside China on a single site,” Chief Operating Officer Joe Barenberg told European Plastics News at the Interpack trade show in Düsseldorf. And it positions the firm to target soft drink and bottled-water markets in the U.S., Europe and the Middle East, he added.

DMT opens Guangzhou biax equipment making facility

Oswald

GUANGZHOU (August 26, 2008) -- DMT Technology GmbH is hoping to usurp from its rival the No. 1 position in China for biaxially oriented film equipment. To meet that goal, the German-based biax-film line supplier has set up its first factory in China, an expansion the company hopes will let it take a leadership position in what is the world’s largest market for biax equipment. “It was clear that we needed a workshop in China, because if you want to offer a competitive price, you have do some parts in China, like frames and insulation panels and so on,” said Peter Oswald, managing director of DMT Guangzhou Machinery Co. Ltd. China. “The price pressure here is very high.”

Solutia seeks options for nylon business

Jacobs

AKRON, OHIO (August 26, 2008) -- Solutia Inc. is looking to sell or merge its nylon business. But that doesn’t mean the company has given up on the unit. Its commitment to progress in nylon is evident in plans to add nylon 6/6 resin capacity in 2009. “We’re trying to reinvigorate the business for the new millennium,” Americas nylon sales manager Robert Jacobs told Plastics News at the newspaper’s Akron office. And rather than making a large capital investment, Solutia is opting to grow its compounding business by working with toll compounders, one each in the U.S. and China. The company also is introducing numerous new products.

Design Guide: Filament winding is reel deal

Lefteri

Designer and materials specialist Chris Lefteri’s latest Design Guide installment looks at a less common method of production, filament winding. Lefteri says that filament winding has recently been reinvented by designers to produce a whole range of products and furniture. The process can easily be described by imagining a cotton reel where the cotton has been impregnated with resin that is then able to be pulled off its reel to form a rigid plastic part.

After delays, plastics futures are on their way in Dubai
DUBAI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES (August 19, 2008) -- After announcing four planned plastics futures contracts more than a year ago, the Dubai Multi Commodities Centre (DMCC) and the Dubai Gold and Commodities Exchange (DGCX) are now anticipating a launch date before the end of this year.

Automakers discuss tooling at industry event
TRAVERSE CITY, MICHIGAN (August 19, 2008) -- Automakers are aware how much the tooling industry is hurting. But that does not mean that tooling companies can expect any sympathy business. Executives noted that the industry needs to improve its flexibility in creating future products, including adjusting engineering specifics that allow toolmakers to adapt and improve their molds and speed development.

Advanced Drainage Systems garners pipe certification
HILLIARD, OHIO (August 19, 2008) -- Advanced Drainage Systems Inc. has received 100-year service life approval for its corrugated high density polyethylene (HDPE) pipe by the Florida Department of Transportation, which will open up the state’s high-traffic arteries for the first time to the U.S.-based pipe maker.

Plastic pipe maker JM Eagle runs ad during Olympics

JM Eagle ad image “all people everywhere”

LOS ANGELES (August 19, 2008) -- Los Angeles-based JM Eagle has debuted a new television commercial during the 2008 Summer Olympic Games. The ad focuses on a “power of water” theme, highlighting the role of water in people’s lives and the importance of transporting it safely and efficiently. According to Advertising Age, a sister publication of Plastics News, through five days, NBC Universal said it has attracted 168 million total viewer for the Olympics, nearly 15 million more than the first five days for Athens, which reached 153 million viewers.

N. American Rotomolders adjust to changing landscape

Mooney

ADVANCE, NORTH CAROLINA (August 19, 2008) -- North American rotational molders were generally optimistic going into this year, despite signs of higher resin prices and more competition from industrial blow molding, according to an updated study by Plastics Custom Research Services (PCRS). Peter Mooney, president of PCRS, thinks growth for 2008-2010 will continue at 2 to 3 percent, and the study points to several reasons for the slowdown from previous years. For example, rotomolded toys have declined, squeezed by domestic retailers, changing tastes in toys and competition from China.

Business as usual: Auto execs still see promise in Russia
TRAVERSE CITY, MICHIGAN (August 19, 2008) -- The auto industry sees Russia as one of its bright areas for future growth, but the bulk of the news out of Russia this week isn’t about cars. Instead, it is with the regular reports on the growing battle between Russia and Georgia. While executives are quick to note that they are staying out of the political realm of discussions, one executive noted that business realities will keep the auto industry building in the region.

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