The Dow Chemical Company (Dow) announced today a technology breakthrough project that will increase polyolefin elastomers manufacturing capacity at its production facilities in Freeport, Texas, (U.S.A.) and Tarragona, Spain.
The capacity expansions, in conjunction with SCG-Dow Group’s new world scale specialty elastomers plant in Thailand, which is currently under construction, will result in a net increase of 550 million pounds, bringing Dow’s dedicated global capacity for polyolefin elastomers to nearly 2 billion pounds.
"Dow has been the leader in polyolefin elastomers and plastomers from the very beginning, and we are committed to holding that position," commented Luis Cirihal, Dow Elastomers global business director. "With over 1.5 billion pounds of capacity dedicated to producing AFFINITY™, ENGAGE™, VERSIFY™, and INFUSE™ Polyolefin Plastomers and Elastomers, Dow is well positioned to utilize this technology breakthrough debottleneck project to take full advantage of current and future growth. We will also continue to invest and add to our strong position in metallocene EPDM with our NORDEL™ IP product line.”
This capacity expansion is a strategic investment to meet the growing needs of customers worldwide while maintaining Dow’s cost competitive position. Dow sees increasing strong global demand for polyolefin plastomers and elastomers. Cirihal commented, “By improving our manufacturing operations and investing in technology, along with the added capacity at the new Thailand plant, we will be poised to meet this growing demand and support our customers globally.”
ENGAGE™ Polyolefin Elastomers offer a unique combination of flexibility and toughness, making them a material of choice for a wide variety of applications, including automotive thermoplastic applications. AFFINITY™ Polyolefin Plastomers are versatile polymers that offer excellent adhesion at high and low temperatures, outstanding processability, and superior levels of performance in packaging and other applications.
INFUSE™ Olefin Block Copolymers (OBCs) are polyolefins with alternating blocks of hard (highly rigid) and soft (highly elastomeric) segments. The block structure of OBCs offers an advantaged performance balance of flexibility and heat resistance compared to random polyolefin copolymers. VERSIFY™ Plastomers and Elastomers are a versatile family of specialty propylene-ethylene copolymers that provide films, fibers, and molded parts with an outstanding combination of excellent optics, sealing and hot tack performance, plus elasticity, flexibility, softness and compatibility in blends.
Source: http://www.dow.com/