Engineering plastics market in US to reach 5.1 bn pounds in 2019

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Demand for engineering plastics in the US is expected to rise 2.6% per year to reach 5.1 billion pounds in 2019 from 4.5 bn in 2014, as per Business Standard.

"Replacement of metal parts with engineering plastics will continue to drive growth, as will new technological advancements that allow engineering plastics to penetrate new applications. Demand for engineering plastics will be tempered by weak growth in mature markets, in addition to increasing competition from lower cost commodity resins," added the report.

The largest markets for engineering plastics will continue to be the motor vehicle and electrical and electronic markets. The motor vehicle market will increasingly rely on engineering plastics to reduce vehicle weight in order to improve fuel efficiency. However, the construction and the medical and consumer markets will provide the fastest growth.

Nylon, acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS), and polycarbonate will continue to be the three largest engineering plastics by volume, accounting for three-quarters of total demand in 2019. Nylon will post the most rapid increases of the three and will remain the largest engineering plastic. Joseph Kocian, analyst, Freedonia, said, "This growth will be mainly driven by nylon supplanting metals in underhood motor vehicle applications."

Gains for ABS will be the slowest of all engineering plastics, restrained by competition from lower-cost resins and maturity in major applications. Polycarbonate will benefit from strong growth in the construction and the medical and consumer markets, but overall will track the industry average due to the continued decline in CD and DVD sales.

Smaller-volume engineering plastics such as polyphenylene sulfide, sulfone polymers, fluoropolymers, and polyketones will exhibit the fastest growth. Specialised use in mature markets, as well as utilisation in new products such as advanced batteries, photovoltaic modules, and medical implants, will drive overall demand. These resins will see greater use in electrical and electronic and motor vehicle markets, where they are typically used to fill specific high-temperature needs and their greater cost can be economically justified.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- The Coating Resins business of Arkema has expanded acrylic resin manufacturing capacity in Aracariguama, Brazil by 60%, according to the company's statement.

The new reactor will enable manufacturing of Arkema’s product chemistries previously unavailable in the region.

With the start-up of the new reactor, Arkema has improved virtually every aspect of the company’s latex production in Brazil, including manufacturing, logistics and shipping, storage, filtration and the capabilities of the reactor itself.

"These improvements will enable us to begin migrating production capabilities and product lines currently available in other parts of the world to the facility in Brazil," Eric Schmitt, President, Arkema Quimica Ltda. Brazil, explained. "We can now provide customers local manufacturing of innovative, market-leading products, produced in a modern, automated facility with a focus on consistent, repeatable quality, and environmental responsibility."

Products manufactured at the plant will now include a much wider range of chemistries, including 100% acrylic, styrene acrylic, vinyl acrylic, vinyl VeoVa and polyvinyl acetate (PVA). These products are used across many traditional and emerging applications in industries such as architectural coatings, industrial coatings, pressure sensitive adhesives and construction adhesives, textiles, sealants and waterproofing membranes.

As production ramps up, Arkema will begin to introduce new products based on demand and market potential. The first products added to the production capabilities of the new facility include:

- ENCOR 265 BR, a high scrubbing styrene acrylic resin for use in architectural coatings;
- ENCOR DT 211 BR, a 100% acrylic ideally suited for fast-dry traffic paints;
- ENCOR 161 BR styrene acrylic latex for use in mortars and grouts, tile adhesives and waterproofing membranes, as well as cement-based skim coats, gap fillers, and in decorative concrete applications;
- ENCOR 413 BR, an acrylic emulsion polymer specifically developed for use in the polymer modification of Portland cement and other hydraulic cement compositions;
- ENCOR 9801 BR acrylic pressure sensitive adhesive for packaging tape applications;
- ENCOR 9466 BR, a high solids acrylic pressure sensitive adhesive for label applications.

"Arkema has been investing consistently to expand our global presence in resins" said Carlos Lion, Market Manager for Arkema Coating Resins in South America. "Local production in Brazil will allow us to better serve our current customers while, at the same time, offering formulators in various market areas, such as coatings, construction and adhesives, more competitive access to the raw materials they need."

As MRC wrote previously, last year, Arkema announced the construction of a new organic peroxide plant on its Changshu site in China. This investment will help double the site’s production capacity. By doubling its production capacity in China, Arkema will continue to support the strong growth in the organic peroxide market in Asia, a region in which the Group is also a producer in India, South Korea and Japan. The new Changshu plant is due to come on stream in early 2016.

Arkema is a leading European supplier of chlorochemicals and PVC. Kynar and Kynar Flex are registered trademarks of Arkema Inc. With operations in nearly 50 countries, about 19,000 employees, and research centers in North America, France and Asia, Arkema generates pro forma annual revenue of EUR7.5 billion (USD9.5 billion), and holds leadership positions in all its markets with a portfolio of internationally recognized brands.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Henan Shenma Chlorine Alkali is not in plans to undertake a maintenance turnaround at its polyvinyl chloride (PVC) plant in 2015, reported Apic-online.

A Polymerupdate source in China informed that the plant is likely to undergo a maintenance turnaround in 2016, though a specific schedule for the same has not been worked out.

Located at Henan in China, the plant has a production capacity of 450,000 mt/year.

As MRC wrote before, last time Henan Shenma Chlorine Alkali shut down its PVC plant in Henan province of China for maintenance turnaround on May 6, 2014. It stayed off-stream for around two weeks.

Besides, we remind that Shandong Dongyue restarted its PVC plant in early March 2015, following maintenance turnaround. It was shut on February 6, 2015. Located in Shandong province, China, the plant has a production capacity of 120,000 mt/year.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Swiss specialty chemicals company Sika AG reported that its net sales for the first quarter of 2015 declined 0.9% to 1.195 billion Swiss francs from 1.206 billion francs in the same quarter last year, as per Reuters.

However, at constant exchange rates, sales for the quarter rose by 5.1% to 1.195 billion francs. Gains in all regions contributed to this impressive performance, with North and Latin America even posting double-digit growth.

It is planned to open between seven and nine factories in 2015.

Sika expects sales growth of 6% to 8% at constant exchange rates, in line with Strategy 2018. The strong Swiss franc remains a considerable challenge for the margins. However, with raw materials prices falling and in view of the success of Sika's growth model, the company aims to achieve a slight improvement in margins compared with the previous year. Nevertheless, the unknown outcome of Saint-Gobain's hostile takeover bid remains a major element of uncertainty in this forecast.

As MRC informed earlier, Saint-Gobain's attempted takeover of Switzerland's Sika took another twist as two investors said they will appeal a ruling stipulating that the French building materials company is not required to make an offer for all of Sika's shares.

Sika is a specialty chemicals company with a leading position in the development and production of systems and products for bonding, sealing, damping, reinforcing and protecting in the building sector and the motor vehicle industry. Sika has subsidiaries in 90 countries around the world and manufactures in over 160 factories. Its more than 16,000 employees generated annual sales of CHF 5.6 billion in 2014.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Alfa Laval, a world leader in heat transfer, centrifugal separation and fluid handling – has won an order to supply Alfa Laval OLMI heat exchangers to a petrochemical plant in Turkmenistan, said Uk.finance.

The order, booked in the Energy & Process segment late March, has a value of approximately SEK 70 million and delivery is scheduled for 2016.

The Alfa Laval OLMI heat exchangers will be used to increase the yield and recover energy in the production of ethylene, an important ingredient for the manufacturing of industrial chemicals and plastics products.

"We are pleased to have booked another large order for our OLMI heat exchangers," says Lars Renstrom, President and CEO of the Alfa Laval Group. "It confirms that our OLMI products are very well suited for the petrochemical industry’s demanding applications."

As MRC informed earlier, preparations to start the construction of an industrial complex for polyethylene and polypropylene production in Turkmenistan's Kyyanly seaside settlement are underway. A number of industrial facilities worth USD10 billion, including a gas chemical complex in Kyyanly, will be built with Japanese capital in Turkmenistan in the near future.

Alfa Laval is a leading global provider of specialized products and engineering solutions based on its key technologies of heat transfer, separation and fluid handling. The company’s equipment, systems and services are dedicated to assisting customers in optimizing the performance of their processes. The solutions help them to heat, cool, separate and transport products in industries that produce food and beverages, chemicals and petrochemicals, pharmaceuticals, starch, sugar and ethanol.


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