Customer demand has influenced thermoplastic compounder RTP Co. to add two production lines for long-fiber-reinforced thermoplastics at its Suzhou facility.
The long-glass-fiber compounds are based on various resin systems including nylon and polypropylene, and can replace metals in some uses. In China, the automotive and hardware tool sectors have been demanding LFRT, according to Dick Zhu, RTP Suzhou plant general manager.
``We have had to import LFRT from the U.S. because customers requested it,'' said Zhu.
For the Suzhou subsidiary of Winona, Minnesota-based RTP, LFRT production raises the number of production lines to 10 at the year-old facility.
With eight production facilities worldwide, privately owned RTP employs more than 600.
