- Email: [email protected]
Imerys repurchases carbon black unit from Erachem
ADPOfeb.qxd
28/01/2003
14:32
Page 9
February 2003
POM, SEBS/SBS/EPDM, PS wood effect and PPS based compounds made by the company. Contact: Polykemi AB, Box 14, 271 21 Vstad, Sweden; tel: +46-411-17030; fax: +46-41116730; e-mail: [email protected]
URL change at SpecialChem SpecialChem’s platform dedicated to additives and colours for polymers has a new URL: www.specialchem4polymers.com. The change is effective from 14 January 2003. Only the website address has altered – all other aspects of the service remain unchanged, SpecialChem says. Contact: SpecialChem SA, 204, rue de Crimée, 75019 Paris, France; tel: +33-1-5526-4330; fax: +33-1-5526-4331; e-mail: customer-support@ specialchem.com
Constab sells UK and German additive masterbatch plants to Kafrit Israeli masterbatch producer Kafrit International BV is to acquire the manufacturing assets of two Constab Additive Polymers plants, in Rüthen, Germany, and Portsmouth, UK, for a sum of about 10 million. Constab mainly makes additive masterbatches for polyethylene films for food packaging or industrial packaging and polypropylene additive masterbatches used in the textile industry. The acquisition follows Constab’s announcement in December that it was moving manufacture of its range of masterbatches for BOPP and other speciality PP-based materials from the Rüthen plant to its Czech-based company Silon as. The move was said to be for ‘business reasons’, despite the addition of a production hall there in April. Constab has operated an R&D facility at Brno in the Czech Republic for several years, and the relocation will allow closer cooperation between the two operations, the company says. The UK operation was established through the acquisition of Additive Polymers in 1997. Kafrit’s strategy focuses on growth in particular added-value segments and in technological innovations – especially in additive, agricultural, polycarbonate and flame-retardant masterbatches.
Additives for Polymers
The company says that Constab’s additive masterbatches for PE films will add advantageously to this range of products. In addition, Constab’s customers will now be able to profit from an extended range of services. Contact: Constab GmbH & Co KG, Carlsplatz 22, D-40213 Düsseldorf, Germany; tel: +49211-862920-30; fax: +49-211-862920-59; email: [email protected]; URL: www.constab.de Kafrit Industries, Kibbutz Kfar-Aza, MP Negev 85142, Israel; tel: +972-8-6809845; fax: +9728-6809544; e-mail: [email protected]; URL: www.kafrit.co.il
Engelhard acquires speciality minerals company in China Engelhard Corp has purchased Shuozhou Anpeak Kaolin Co, Ltd, a speciality minerals company based in China’s Shanxi Province, for an undisclosed sum. The company says the acquisition gives it a strategic base from which to source its speciality mineral technologies to rapidly growing Asian markets. The acquired company’s product lines complement Engelhard’s high-end, calcined-kaolin-based offerings to a wide array of markets including plastics, paints, coatings, paper and rubber. The purchase also is expected to facilitate development of new products for construction and architectural applications. Contact: Engelhard Corp, 101 Wood Avenue, Iselin, NJ 08830, USA; tel: +1-732-205-5000; e-mail: [email protected]; URL: www.engelhard.com
Imerys repurchases carbon black unit from Erachem Imerys, through its 100% subsidiary Timcal, has concluded an agreement with Erachem Comilog, a subsidiary of the Eramet group, to repurchase Erachem’s carbon black unit, located at Willebroek in Belgium. This deal will be finalized in early 2003. The Willebroek unit manufactures special carbon blacks mainly for the conductive plastics and mobile energy markets, and has annual sales turnover of approximately 12 million. It employs approximately 30 people. Imerys has also formed a new Specialty Minerals business group, combining the Performance
9
ADPOfeb.qxd
28/01/2003
14:32
Page 10
Additives for Polymers
Minerals activities of the former Pigments & Additives business group with the activities of the former Ceramics & Specialties business group. These businesses have many similarities (highly segmented markets and great customer diversity) and complement each other well, the company says. The regrouped structure also comprises a new Pigments for Paper group, with the Building Materials and Refractories and Abrasives business groups remaining unchanged. Contact: Imerys, Tour Maine Montparnasse, 33, avenue du Maine, F-75755 Paris Cedex 15, France; tel: +33-1-4538-3776; fax: +33-14538-7043; URL: www.imerys.com
BRG study forecasts strong growth for light stabilizers Demand for light stabilizers is growing at a rate double that of the US gross national product (GNP), making them among the fastest growing plastic additives, according to management consultancy BRG Townsend, Inc (BRG). The new global study, Light Stabilizers 2002 – based on BRG’s recently published Plastic Additives 2002 (Additives for Polymers, September 2002, p. 12) – covers all the major types of light stabilizers, including hindered amines (HALS), benzotriazoles, phenol esters, triazine, nickel complexes and benzophenones. The outlook for the light stabilizer business is highly dependent on the growth of polyolefin outdoor applications, says Fred Gastrock, Project Manager at BRG. “These applications are growing faster than polyolefins overall, and polyolefins, in turn, are growing faster than many plastics”, Gastrock notes. Polyolefins account for about 60% of total global consumption of light stabilizers in plastics. Polypropylene, in particular, is replacing metals, engineering plastics and styrenics in automotive and other applications, further increasing the volume of stabilizers consumed. According to the report HALS and benzotriazoles will lead this growth, with benzophenones and other light stabilizers contributing growth at lower rates. All regions except Japan
10
February 2003
will show strong volume growth, the report predicts. Light Stabilizers 2002 details consumption of the different types of light stabilizer in 2001, by region of the world and by plastic, and provides a five-year sales forecast by type and by geographical region. The study also considers the driving forces affecting light stabilizers, including new applications, the migration of speciality additive value from suppliers of prime resins to compounders, and increased international competition. Contact: BRG Townsend, Inc, Suite 130, 500 International Drive North, International Trade Center, Mt Olive, NJ 07828, USA; tel: +1-973347-5300; fax: +1-973-347-6466; e-mail: brg@ brgtownsend.com; URL: www.brgtownsend.com
TECHNICAL BRIEFS Tin additives as flame retardants for halogen-free EVA copolymer Demand is increasing for zero-halogen, lowsmoke flame retardants, particularly for transportation, construction and electronics applications. Inorganic tin compounds, particularly zinc hydroxystannate (ZHS) and zinc stannate (ZS), have found application as flame retardants in a range of plastics, rubbers and paint formulations. In addition to their very low toxicity, these compounds have the key advantage over many other flame retardants of offering outstanding smoke-suppressant properties. As a result, ZHS and ZS have been used as alternative synergists to antimony trioxide – itself a category 3 carcinogen – in halogen-containing polymers. However, there are few studies of the fire-retardant properties of ZHS, ZS and other tin compounds in halogen-free polymer formulations, although it has been suggested that they are useful partial replacements for conventional hydrated fillers such as alumina trihydrate (ATH) or magnesium hydroxide (MH). In Polymer Degradation and Stability (Volume 79, No. 2, 2003, pp. 309–318), M. Cross and P. Cusack of
28/01/2003
14:32
Page 9
February 2003
POM, SEBS/SBS/EPDM, PS wood effect and PPS based compounds made by the company. Contact: Polykemi AB, Box 14, 271 21 Vstad, Sweden; tel: +46-411-17030; fax: +46-41116730; e-mail: [email protected]
URL change at SpecialChem SpecialChem’s platform dedicated to additives and colours for polymers has a new URL: www.specialchem4polymers.com. The change is effective from 14 January 2003. Only the website address has altered – all other aspects of the service remain unchanged, SpecialChem says. Contact: SpecialChem SA, 204, rue de Crimée, 75019 Paris, France; tel: +33-1-5526-4330; fax: +33-1-5526-4331; e-mail: customer-support@ specialchem.com
Constab sells UK and German additive masterbatch plants to Kafrit Israeli masterbatch producer Kafrit International BV is to acquire the manufacturing assets of two Constab Additive Polymers plants, in Rüthen, Germany, and Portsmouth, UK, for a sum of about 10 million. Constab mainly makes additive masterbatches for polyethylene films for food packaging or industrial packaging and polypropylene additive masterbatches used in the textile industry. The acquisition follows Constab’s announcement in December that it was moving manufacture of its range of masterbatches for BOPP and other speciality PP-based materials from the Rüthen plant to its Czech-based company Silon as. The move was said to be for ‘business reasons’, despite the addition of a production hall there in April. Constab has operated an R&D facility at Brno in the Czech Republic for several years, and the relocation will allow closer cooperation between the two operations, the company says. The UK operation was established through the acquisition of Additive Polymers in 1997. Kafrit’s strategy focuses on growth in particular added-value segments and in technological innovations – especially in additive, agricultural, polycarbonate and flame-retardant masterbatches.
Additives for Polymers
The company says that Constab’s additive masterbatches for PE films will add advantageously to this range of products. In addition, Constab’s customers will now be able to profit from an extended range of services. Contact: Constab GmbH & Co KG, Carlsplatz 22, D-40213 Düsseldorf, Germany; tel: +49211-862920-30; fax: +49-211-862920-59; email: [email protected]; URL: www.constab.de Kafrit Industries, Kibbutz Kfar-Aza, MP Negev 85142, Israel; tel: +972-8-6809845; fax: +9728-6809544; e-mail: [email protected]; URL: www.kafrit.co.il
Engelhard acquires speciality minerals company in China Engelhard Corp has purchased Shuozhou Anpeak Kaolin Co, Ltd, a speciality minerals company based in China’s Shanxi Province, for an undisclosed sum. The company says the acquisition gives it a strategic base from which to source its speciality mineral technologies to rapidly growing Asian markets. The acquired company’s product lines complement Engelhard’s high-end, calcined-kaolin-based offerings to a wide array of markets including plastics, paints, coatings, paper and rubber. The purchase also is expected to facilitate development of new products for construction and architectural applications. Contact: Engelhard Corp, 101 Wood Avenue, Iselin, NJ 08830, USA; tel: +1-732-205-5000; e-mail: [email protected]; URL: www.engelhard.com
Imerys repurchases carbon black unit from Erachem Imerys, through its 100% subsidiary Timcal, has concluded an agreement with Erachem Comilog, a subsidiary of the Eramet group, to repurchase Erachem’s carbon black unit, located at Willebroek in Belgium. This deal will be finalized in early 2003. The Willebroek unit manufactures special carbon blacks mainly for the conductive plastics and mobile energy markets, and has annual sales turnover of approximately 12 million. It employs approximately 30 people. Imerys has also formed a new Specialty Minerals business group, combining the Performance
9
ADPOfeb.qxd
28/01/2003
14:32
Page 10
Additives for Polymers
Minerals activities of the former Pigments & Additives business group with the activities of the former Ceramics & Specialties business group. These businesses have many similarities (highly segmented markets and great customer diversity) and complement each other well, the company says. The regrouped structure also comprises a new Pigments for Paper group, with the Building Materials and Refractories and Abrasives business groups remaining unchanged. Contact: Imerys, Tour Maine Montparnasse, 33, avenue du Maine, F-75755 Paris Cedex 15, France; tel: +33-1-4538-3776; fax: +33-14538-7043; URL: www.imerys.com
BRG study forecasts strong growth for light stabilizers Demand for light stabilizers is growing at a rate double that of the US gross national product (GNP), making them among the fastest growing plastic additives, according to management consultancy BRG Townsend, Inc (BRG). The new global study, Light Stabilizers 2002 – based on BRG’s recently published Plastic Additives 2002 (Additives for Polymers, September 2002, p. 12) – covers all the major types of light stabilizers, including hindered amines (HALS), benzotriazoles, phenol esters, triazine, nickel complexes and benzophenones. The outlook for the light stabilizer business is highly dependent on the growth of polyolefin outdoor applications, says Fred Gastrock, Project Manager at BRG. “These applications are growing faster than polyolefins overall, and polyolefins, in turn, are growing faster than many plastics”, Gastrock notes. Polyolefins account for about 60% of total global consumption of light stabilizers in plastics. Polypropylene, in particular, is replacing metals, engineering plastics and styrenics in automotive and other applications, further increasing the volume of stabilizers consumed. According to the report HALS and benzotriazoles will lead this growth, with benzophenones and other light stabilizers contributing growth at lower rates. All regions except Japan
10
February 2003
will show strong volume growth, the report predicts. Light Stabilizers 2002 details consumption of the different types of light stabilizer in 2001, by region of the world and by plastic, and provides a five-year sales forecast by type and by geographical region. The study also considers the driving forces affecting light stabilizers, including new applications, the migration of speciality additive value from suppliers of prime resins to compounders, and increased international competition. Contact: BRG Townsend, Inc, Suite 130, 500 International Drive North, International Trade Center, Mt Olive, NJ 07828, USA; tel: +1-973347-5300; fax: +1-973-347-6466; e-mail: brg@ brgtownsend.com; URL: www.brgtownsend.com
TECHNICAL BRIEFS Tin additives as flame retardants for halogen-free EVA copolymer Demand is increasing for zero-halogen, lowsmoke flame retardants, particularly for transportation, construction and electronics applications. Inorganic tin compounds, particularly zinc hydroxystannate (ZHS) and zinc stannate (ZS), have found application as flame retardants in a range of plastics, rubbers and paint formulations. In addition to their very low toxicity, these compounds have the key advantage over many other flame retardants of offering outstanding smoke-suppressant properties. As a result, ZHS and ZS have been used as alternative synergists to antimony trioxide – itself a category 3 carcinogen – in halogen-containing polymers. However, there are few studies of the fire-retardant properties of ZHS, ZS and other tin compounds in halogen-free polymer formulations, although it has been suggested that they are useful partial replacements for conventional hydrated fillers such as alumina trihydrate (ATH) or magnesium hydroxide (MH). In Polymer Degradation and Stability (Volume 79, No. 2, 2003, pp. 309–318), M. Cross and P. Cusack of