JEFFERSONVILLE, IND. — Mytex Polymers will increase capacity 50 percent at its year-old advanced color thermoplastics compounding facility in Jeffersonville.
Mytex Polymers, a Jeffersonville-based joint venture of Exxon Chemical Co. of Houston and Tokyo-based Mitsubishi Chemical Corp., will have 52.5 million pounds of annual capacity after the expansion, which should be completed in mid-1998.
The expansion will help meet demand for thermoplastic polyolefins, particularly from North American automotive customers, according to Mytex General Manager David Trout.
Trout said TPO demand is growing at double-digit rates.
``Basically our sales were growing faster than we had anticipated,'' Trout said in an Oct. 31 telephone interview from Jeffer- sonville. ``TPOs in bumper fascias, interior trim and instrument panels are replacing polycarbonate and ABS because of the cost factor.''
In its first year of operation, the company's sales exceeded the original estimate by 25 percent, he said. All of the company's materials are sold to the automotive industry.
Mytex will increase its work force at the site by 15 percent, Trout said.
Mytex uses Exxon's polypropylene production in combination with Mitsubishi's PP compounding technology. Its products are marketed and sold in North America by Exxon's automotive business unit.
Chemtrusion Inc., a Houston-based custom compounding technology company, will continue to operate the Jeffersonville site for Mytex.
The expansion demonstrates the company's commitment to supply materials that comply with original equipment manufacturers' standards for parts that require head- and side-impact resistance, according to Mytex's marketing manager, Yuji Mitsuya.
