DSM Thermoplastic Elastomers Inc. has added a production line, doubling its Sarlink thermoplastic rubber capacity at its Leominster, Mass., plant. The firm, which is an operating company in the DSM Elastomers BV division of parent DSM NV, boosted its TPE output to 20 million pounds per year from 10 million pounds.
DSM Thermoplastic Elastomers also has added an undisclosed amount of new equipment to its 140,000-square-foot Massachusetts unit. The site also includes a 30,000-square-foot tech center and a 15,000-square-foot office.
The firm declined to reveal the cost of the project, which began in late 1994 and was completed in September. DSM Thermoplastic Elastomers previously said it was a multimillion-dollar project, and increases to the work force will be minimal.
DSM BV also is building a production line at its Genk, Belgium, facility to bolster its European thermoplastic rubber output to 10 million pounds per year by the beginning of 1996.
The unit previously manufactured TPEs but only in limited quantities, the firm reported.
DSM said it is conducting both projects to capture a 20 percent global market share for thermoplastic rubber by 2000. It is focusing on the North American and European markets, which have grown 12 percent annually in recent years.
Sales of Sarlink doubled in 1993 and 1994. In 1995, the growth has continued, according to DSM.
