June 2005
Great Lakes Chemical Corp, 9025 North River Rd, Suite 400, Indianapolis, IN 46240, USA; tel: +1-317-715-3000; fax: +1-317-715-3050; URL: www.pa.greatlakes.com
Clariant Masterbatches opens black line in Taiwan, closes Watford site A new plant, designed and built especially to produce black masterbatches for producers of nylon and polyester fibres, has opened at the Clariant Masterbatches facility in Taoyuan, Taiwan. The new extrusion line is thought to be the only one of its kind in the region. Designed to yield the high-quality masterbatches required for fibre-spinning operations, the line also will dramatically reduce delivery times to Asian fibre producers, Clariant says. The production of highly loaded black masterbatches in engineering resins for fibre applications represents a major technical challenge. Fibre manufacturers produce filaments with dtex numbers of around 1 to 4, with spinning speeds in excess of 3000 m/min. A dtex number of 1 means that 10 000 m of such a filament weighs merely 1 gram. Any contamination or undispersed particle in the masterbatch will result in serious problems in the spinning process, explains Thilo Kind, Clariant Head of Technology – Asia/Pacific Region, who was responsible for installation and start-up of the new line. Clariant Taiwan specializes in masterbatches for nylon and polyester fibre applications, producing colour masterbatches and a range of products for white semi-dull and fulldull fibres. The facility also makes masterbatches for injection-moulded engineering resins widely used in the local electronics industry and other applications. To maintain consistent operation, ensure high-quality dispersion and prevent contamination, the black line has been installed in a new building, separate from other Clariant operations at the site. It is fully automated, with state-of-the-art computer controls that allow a single operator to run it. Clariant has two existing black lines, in Lahnstein, Germany, and Milford, DE, USA, but says the new line was necessary to tap the full market potential in Asia. Clariant Taiwan
Additives for Polymers
will now be able to offer a greater variety of product, tailor-made to the customer’s application, with better product quality and dramatically reduced lead times, it says. Elsewhere, the division is to close its Watford site in the UK in July and transfer its remaining customer service and warehousing activities to the company’s Wigan site. This will allow the UK operation to be more customer-focused and will increase its competitiveness in the market, it says. The move completes the withdrawal from the Watford site, which began in June 2004 when the company announced the transfer of production to Wigan. In related news, the Wigan plant is now able to offer Clariant’s full range of HYDROCEROL® chemical foaming and nucleating agent (CFA) masterbatches directly to UK customers. Previously these products were only available in the UK through independent distributor Alfa Chemicals. Contact: Clariant Masterbatches Division, Rothausstrasse 61, CH-4132 Muttenz 1, Switzerland; tel: +41-61-469-6170; fax: +41-61-4696597; URL: www.clariant.masterbatches.com
FINANCIALS Crompton’s polymer additives provide substantial improvement ahead of planned merger Crompton Corp posted net earnings for the first quarter of 2005 of US$18.2 million from continuing operations. This includes pre-tax charges of $3.2 million for antitrust costs and $0.2 million for facility closures, severance and related costs. For 1Q 2004, comparable net earnings were $60.79 million. First quarter net sales of $589.7 million were 6% above 1Q 2004 net sales of $555.5 million. The increase was the result of a 13% increase in selling prices and a 2% increase due to favourable foreign currency, partially offset by a 9% decrease in volume. The Polymer Additives segment achieved 1Q 2005 sales of $381.37 million, up 5% from $363.35 million for 1Q 2004. Operating profit showed a far more dramatic improvement,
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