Skip to main content
Sister Publication Links
  • Sustainable Plastics
  • Rubber News
Subscribe
  • Sign Up Free
  • Login
  • Subscribe
  • News
    • Processor News
    • Suppliers
    • More News
    • Digital Edition
    • End Markets
    • Special Reports
    • Newsletters
    • Videos
    • Podcasts
    • Injection Molding
    • Blow Molding
    • Film & Sheet
    • Pipe/Profile/Tubing
    • Rotomolding
    • Thermoforming
    • Recycling
    • Machinery
    • Materials
    • Molds/Tooling
    • Product news
    • Design
    • K Show
    • Mergers & Acquisitions
    • Sustainability
    • Public Policy
    • Material Insights Videos
    • Numbers that Matter
    • Automotive
    • Packaging
    • Medical
    • Consumer Products
    • Construction
    • Notable Leaders in Sustainability
    • Processor of the Year
    • Best Places to Work
    • Women Breaking the Mold
    • Rising Stars
    • Diversity
    • Most Interesting Social Media Accounts in Plastics
  • Opinion
    • The Plastics Blog
    • Kickstart
    • One Good Resin
    • Pellets and Politics
    • All Things Data
    • Viewpoint
    • From Pillar to Post
    • Perspective
    • Mailbag
    • Fake Plastic Trees
  • Shop Floor
    • Blending
    • Compounding
    • Drying
    • Injection Molding
    • Purging
    • Robotics
    • Size Reduction
    • Structural Foam
    • Tooling
    • Training
  • Events
    • Plastics News Events
    • Industry Events
    • Injection Molding & Design Expo
    • Livestreams/Webinars
    • Editorial Livestreams
    • Ask the Expert
    • Plastics News Events Library
    • Plastics News Executive Forum
    • Injection Molding & Design Expo
    • Plastics Caps + Closures: A Global Online Event
    • Women Breaking the Mold Networking Forum
    • Bioplastics Live
    • Numbers that Matter Live
    • PFAS Live
    • Plastics in Politics Live
    • PN Live: Mergers and Acquisitions
    • Polymer Points Live
    • Sustainable Plastics Live
    • Plastics Caps & Closures Library
    • Plastics in Healthcare Library
    • Women Breaking the Mold Networking Forum Library
  • Rankings & Data
    • Injection Molders
    • Blow Molders
    • Film Sheet
    • Thermoformers
    • Pipe Profile Tubing
    • Rotomolders
    • Mold/Toolmakers
    • LSR Processors
    • Recyclers
    • Compounders - List
    • Association - List
    • Plastic Lumber - List
    • All
  • Directory
  • Resin Prices
    • Resin Prices Overview
    • Commodity Thermoplastics
    • High Temperature Thermoplastics
    • Engineering Thermoplastics
    • Recycled Plastics
    • Thermosets
    • Europe - Virgin
    • Europe - Recycled
    • Europe - Feedstock
  • Custom
    • Sponsored Content
    • LS Mtron Sponsored Content
    • Conair Sponsored Content
    • KraussMaffei Sponsored Content
    • ENGEL Sponsored Content
    • White Papers
    • Classifieds
    • Place an Ad
    • Sign up for Early Classified
MENU
Breadcrumb
  1. Home
  2. News
News
May 17, 2021 09:31 AM

DuPont to expand 2 European plants to support EV surge

Erin Pustay Beaven
Rubber & Plastics News Staff
  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Share
  • Email
  • More
    Reprints Print
    BETATECH_i.jpg
    DuPont Mobility & Materials

    DuPont's BetaTech product helps support battery thermal management during hybrid/electric vehicle charging and operation.

    The electric vehicle revolution is on the horizon, and Wilmington, Del.-based DuPont Co. is determined to meet the moment.

    DuPont Mobility & Materials May 17 detailed plans to invest a total of $5 million into a pair of European facilities — in Schkopau, Germany, and Freienbach, Switzerland — to increase capacity of bonding adhesives and thermal management products targeted at the electric vehicle market.

    Tina Wu, global vice president for advanced solutions and Asia-Pacific regional leader for DuPont Mobility & Materials, said the investment plans include the costs of building expansion and new equipment.

    "At Schkopau, Germany, [the investment will] support the continued growth in the [Europe, Middle East and Africa] market — especially for electrification and lightweighting," Wu said in an exclusive interview with Rubber & Plastics News. "We are adding a newer part, expanding that facility to support growing demand."

    DuPont opened the Schkopau facility in 2006 to support the European Union's growing demand for adhesive and bonding products, specifically the BetaMate structural and crash-durable adhesives and the BetaSeal glass bonding adhesives.

    The Freienbach plant, meanwhile, has been manufacturing adhesive solutions for the automotive industry since the 1970s. In addition to making DuPont's BetaMate, BetaSeal and BetaTech products, the facility serves as a hub for product development.

    Christophe van Herreweghe, global strategic marketing director for DuPont Mobility & Materials, noted the investment in the Freienbach facility will allow it to remain a hub of innovation and support for European EV customers.

    "The Freienbach facility is really going to focus on offering our customers a holistic approach, so that we are able to help them to test our solutions in an overall battery pack," van Herreweghe said. "This is helping for that durability factor, but also to showcase and to prove that it will be key for thermal management and safety.

    "So we are investing heavily in having the right test methods and helping our customers to find and approve the optimized designs for the future battery packs," van Herreweghe said.

    Details about the DuPont Mobility & Materials' plans for the European sites come less than a month after the company said it would build a $30 million facility in China to manufacture adhesives for electric vehicles.

    That's not a coincidence. The two markets — China and Europe — are growing very quickly, especially where the electric vehicle market is concerned.

    "I think, from a growth rate perspective, Europe continues to lead on a lot of the core technology," Wu said. "Europe is also very sustainability conscious from government regulations to the top OEMs and their commitment to the EV. Europe is really going to be a huge market, too. You are just going to see a switch from the traditional vehicle to EV or electrification of some sort."

    Wu said that DuPont has a strategic vision to meet the growing needs of a changing automotive industry, which is moving rapidly toward electrification. Governmental regulations and EV development by OEMs are driving the transition globally. But advances in battery technology are pushing EV technology closer to really breaking through.

    "As you can imagine, maybe five years ago, making a battery was much more expensive than the much more mature technology of making a traditional engine," Wu said. "But the cost of the battery and the capability of the battery — meaning driving [more] kilometers or miles per charge or charging time — all of that has significantly improved. And the cost has significantly reduced."

    Within the last 12 months in particular, the costs of building a traditional internal combustion engine vehicle and building an EV have narrowed considerably, and it won't be long before the industry achieves cost parity.

    When that happens, it is likely that EVs will take off. And DuPont will be meeting the needs of the OEMs as they make the leap.

    "Higher energy density batteries and also super-fast charging can create thermal management challenges in these new EVs," van Herreweghe said. DuPont's thermal management solutions "will help safely manage and control heat during charging and vehicle operations."

    RECOMMENDED FOR YOU
    Documentary looks at how ‘we love to hate' packaging
    Letter
    to the
    Editor

    Do you have an opinion about this story? Do you have some thoughts you'd like to share with our readers? Plastics News would love to hear from you. Email your letter to Editor at [email protected]

    Most Popular
    1
    An 8,000-ton dream for Milacron, 20/20 Custom Molded Plastics
    2
    Braskem stops production on a PP line at Pennsylvania plant
    3
    Resin Prices - North America
    4
    Report: Tekni-Plex may be for sale
    5
    National bottle bill ‘could make sense,' senator says
    SIGN UP FOR OUR FREE NEWSLETTERS
    EMAIL ADDRESS

    Please enter a valid email address.

    Please enter your email address.

    Please verify captcha.

    Please select at least one newsletter to subscribe.

    Find more newsletters at plasticsnews.com/newsletters.

    You can unsubscribe at any time through links in these emails. For more information, see our Privacy Policy.

    Get our newsletters

    Staying current is easy with Plastics News delivered straight to your inbox, free of charge.

    Subscribe today

    Subscribe to Plastics News

    Subscribe now
    Connect with Us
    • LinkedIn
    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • Instagram

    Plastics News covers the business of the global plastics industry. We report news, gather data and deliver timely information that provides our readers with a competitive advantage.

    Contact Us

    1155 Gratiot Avenue
    Detroit MI 48207-2997

    Customer Service:
    877-320-1723

    Resources
    • About
    • Staff
    • Editorial Calendar
    • Media Kit
    • Data Store
    • Digital Edition
    • Custom Content
    • People
    • Contact
    • Careers
    • Sitemap
    Related Crain Publications
    • Sustainable Plastics
    • Rubber News
    • Tire Business
    • Urethanes Technology
    Legal
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
    • Privacy Request
    Copyright © 1996-2023. Crain Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
    • News
      • Processor News
        • Injection Molding
        • Blow Molding
        • Film & Sheet
        • Pipe/Profile/Tubing
        • Rotomolding
        • Thermoforming
        • Recycling
      • Suppliers
        • Machinery
        • Materials
        • Molds/Tooling
        • Product news
        • Design
      • More News
        • K Show
        • Mergers & Acquisitions
        • Sustainability
        • Public Policy
        • Material Insights Videos
        • Numbers that Matter
      • Digital Edition
      • End Markets
        • Automotive
        • Packaging
        • Medical
        • Consumer Products
        • Construction
      • Special Reports
        • Notable Leaders in Sustainability
        • Processor of the Year
        • Best Places to Work
        • Women Breaking the Mold
        • Rising Stars
        • Diversity
        • Most Interesting Social Media Accounts in Plastics
      • Newsletters
      • Videos
      • Podcasts
    • Opinion
      • The Plastics Blog
      • Kickstart
      • One Good Resin
      • Pellets and Politics
      • All Things Data
      • Viewpoint
      • From Pillar to Post
      • Perspective
      • Mailbag
      • Fake Plastic Trees
    • Shop Floor
      • Blending
      • Compounding
      • Drying
      • Injection Molding
      • Purging
      • Robotics
      • Size Reduction
      • Structural Foam
      • Tooling
      • Training
    • Events
      • Plastics News Events
        • Plastics News Executive Forum
        • Injection Molding & Design Expo
        • Plastics Caps + Closures: A Global Online Event
        • Women Breaking the Mold Networking Forum
      • Industry Events
      • Injection Molding & Design Expo
      • Livestreams/Webinars
      • Editorial Livestreams
        • Bioplastics Live
        • Numbers that Matter Live
        • PFAS Live
        • Plastics in Politics Live
        • PN Live: Mergers and Acquisitions
        • Polymer Points Live
        • Sustainable Plastics Live
      • Ask the Expert
      • Plastics News Events Library
        • Plastics Caps & Closures Library
        • Plastics in Healthcare Library
        • Women Breaking the Mold Networking Forum Library
    • Rankings & Data
      • Injection Molders
      • Blow Molders
      • Film Sheet
      • Thermoformers
      • Pipe Profile Tubing
      • Rotomolders
      • Mold/Toolmakers
      • LSR Processors
      • Recyclers
      • Compounders - List
      • Association - List
      • Plastic Lumber - List
      • All
    • Directory
    • Resin Prices
      • Resin Prices Overview
      • Commodity Thermoplastics
      • High Temperature Thermoplastics
      • Engineering Thermoplastics
      • Recycled Plastics
      • Thermosets
      • Europe - Virgin
      • Europe - Recycled
      • Europe - Feedstock
    • Custom
      • Sponsored Content
      • LS Mtron Sponsored Content
      • Conair Sponsored Content
      • KraussMaffei Sponsored Content
      • ENGEL Sponsored Content
      • White Papers
      • Classifieds
        • Place an Ad
        • Sign up for Early Classified