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US: Monolith – carbon black
FOCUS 350–700 8C in the absence of oxygen. The carbon black product is said to contain minimum levels of polyaromatic hydrocarbons or other potentially carcinogenic contaminants. (See also 'Focus on Pigments', Nov 2014, 5–6). The CH2E group owns the largest stockpile of scrap tyres in the US, estimated to contain 600,000 tonnes, located just north of Hudson (60 km northeast of Denver). Pyrolyx recently acquired another German company involved in the recovered carbon black sector – Carbon Clean Tech GmbH (CCT). As part of the acquisition agreement, Pyrolyx committed to building a new plant at CCT's site at Stegelitz (30 km northeast of Magdeburg in eastern Germany), Original Source: Compounding World, Feb 2015, 10 (Website: http://www.amiplastics. com/mags) © Applied Market Information Ltd 2015
Singapore: Teknor Apex – plastics compounds & masterbatches Teknor Apex recently opened a new 11,340–13,610 tonnes/y polyvinyl chloride (PVC) compounding line at its complex in Singapore, which is one of the largest and most diversified compounding facilities in Asia. The first units at this complex were installed in 1969. Teknor acquired the operating company, Singapore Polymer, in 2001. There are now three separate plants at the complex, with a total of 17 lines for making plastic compounds and masterbatches. Original Source: Plastics News, 10 Apr 2015, (Website: http://www.plasticsnews.com) © Crain Communications Inc 2015
Turkey: Maskom – masterbatch Maskom Masterbatch & Compound Technologies plans to install a fourth plant at its manufacturing complex within the Güzeller Industrial Zone on the outskirts of Gebze (60 km southeast of Istanbul). This plant will be capable of making 7200 tonnes/y of coloured masterbatch and will run alongside the company's existing 4800 tonnes/y coloured masterbatch plant. With the addition of new capacity, Maskom intends to raise its exports of coloured masterbatches from 2400 tonnes/y to 7800 tonnes/y. Also at the Gebze Güzeller site, Maskom has: a 4800 tonnes/y black masterbatch plant; a large white masterbatch plant; and a plant making up to 60,000 tonnes/y of plastic
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compounds incorporating calcium carbonate, talc and glass fibre fillers. Original Source: Plastics News, 8 May 2015, (Website: http://www.plasticsnews.com) © Crain Communications Inc 2015
US: Monolith – carbon black A newly established company – Monolith Materials (of Redwood City, CA) – intends to join the ranks of US carbon black producers, building a plant employing a novel patented process, the economic feasibility of which has already been demonstrated at a pilot plant at Redwood. Natural gas will be the primary feedstock and the process will yield byproduct hydrogen as well as carbon black. Monolith's proposed plant will be sited at the Hallam, NE power generating complex (40 km south of the state capital, Lincoln). The complex is owned by the Nebraska Public Power District Authority and the hydrogen by-product will be supplied as fuel for a new boiler at the Authority's nearby Sheldon power station. Two former long-serving Cabot Corp executives – Mr William Brady and Mr Roscoe Taylor – have been appointed by Monolith, respectively as Executive Chairman and Vice President, Engineering. Construction work should begin in mid-2016, with start-up planned for 2019. When it is up and running, the plant will employ about 100 people. As yet, no details have been released on carbon black capacity. Original Source: Chemical and Engineering News, 27 Apr 2015, 93 (17), 14 & 18 May 2015, 93 (20), 20 (Website: http://cen.acs.org/ index.html) © American Chemical Society 2015
COMPANIES Change of ownership of Azelis Azelis (headquartered in Antwerp) is one of the leading European chemical distributors, specialising in serving the paint, plastic, rubber, food, healthcare, animal nutrition, pharmaceutical and personal care industries. The private equity fund, 3i Group plc (based in London) acquired a majority stake in Azelis in 2007 and transformed the company from a fairly loose decentralised structure into an integrated group with a single brandname, under the leadership of Mr Hans-Joachim Müller. Azelis now has sales offices in 29 European countries plus seven countries outside Europe, including Canada,
China, India and Japan, It has a global customer base of around 20,000. Following an agreement signed in February 2015, 3i Group has sold its stake in Azelis to another London-based private equity fund, Apax Partners LLP. Effective 1 April 2015, Azelis was appointed by Evonik as the Nordic region distributor for Aerosil and Sipernat grades of precipitated silica, designed for use in the food, personal care and pharmaceutical sectors. The agreement covers Denmark, Iceland, Norway and Sweden. In mid-May 2015, Azelis announced that Milliken had extended its distribution agreement with Azelis, so that Azelis now markets Milliken's novel Liquitint polymeric colorants for all homecare and industrial cleaning applications across Europe, with the exception of the Italian and Greek markets. Azelis stated: "Liquitint colorants offer quality, performance, and microbial certification unmatched by dyes or pigments. They are water-soluble, which makes them easy to mix, easy to clean and nonstaining. Plus, with only a few primary colorants, Liquitint enables customers to cover a wide color space, adding to the differentiation potential of their final products, including laundry products, household cleaners, institutional and industrial chemicals.'' Original Source: PPCJ, Polymers, Paint, Colour Journal, Apr 2015, 205 (4607), (Website: http://www.polymerspaintcolourjournal.com/) © DMG Events (MEA) Ltd 2015. Original Source: Azelis, 30 Apr & 19 May 2015 (Box 6, Posthofbrug 12, B-2600 Antwerp, Belgium, Tel: +32 3 613 0120, Website: http://www. azelis.com) © Azelis 2015
Dainichiseika appoints Arpadis to sell its pigments in France Arpadis France SAS (based in Lille) has been appointed as the new French distributor for selling organic and inorganic pigments manufactured by the Dainichiseika group (headquartered in Tokyo). Daicolor Italy (based in Milan) is Dainichiseika's European subsidiary responsible for handling the group's marketing arrangements. Original Source: Pitture & Vernici - European Coatings, May-Jun 2015, 91 (3), 87 (Website: http://www.pittureevernici.it) © CREI srl 2015
Schulman acquires Citadel On 1 June 2015, A Schulman Inc announced that it had completed the $800 M acquisition of HGGC Citadel July 2015
Singapore: Teknor Apex – plastics compounds & masterbatches Teknor Apex recently opened a new 11,340–13,610 tonnes/y polyvinyl chloride (PVC) compounding line at its complex in Singapore, which is one of the largest and most diversified compounding facilities in Asia. The first units at this complex were installed in 1969. Teknor acquired the operating company, Singapore Polymer, in 2001. There are now three separate plants at the complex, with a total of 17 lines for making plastic compounds and masterbatches. Original Source: Plastics News, 10 Apr 2015, (Website: http://www.plasticsnews.com) © Crain Communications Inc 2015
Turkey: Maskom – masterbatch Maskom Masterbatch & Compound Technologies plans to install a fourth plant at its manufacturing complex within the Güzeller Industrial Zone on the outskirts of Gebze (60 km southeast of Istanbul). This plant will be capable of making 7200 tonnes/y of coloured masterbatch and will run alongside the company's existing 4800 tonnes/y coloured masterbatch plant. With the addition of new capacity, Maskom intends to raise its exports of coloured masterbatches from 2400 tonnes/y to 7800 tonnes/y. Also at the Gebze Güzeller site, Maskom has: a 4800 tonnes/y black masterbatch plant; a large white masterbatch plant; and a plant making up to 60,000 tonnes/y of plastic
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compounds incorporating calcium carbonate, talc and glass fibre fillers. Original Source: Plastics News, 8 May 2015, (Website: http://www.plasticsnews.com) © Crain Communications Inc 2015
US: Monolith – carbon black A newly established company – Monolith Materials (of Redwood City, CA) – intends to join the ranks of US carbon black producers, building a plant employing a novel patented process, the economic feasibility of which has already been demonstrated at a pilot plant at Redwood. Natural gas will be the primary feedstock and the process will yield byproduct hydrogen as well as carbon black. Monolith's proposed plant will be sited at the Hallam, NE power generating complex (40 km south of the state capital, Lincoln). The complex is owned by the Nebraska Public Power District Authority and the hydrogen by-product will be supplied as fuel for a new boiler at the Authority's nearby Sheldon power station. Two former long-serving Cabot Corp executives – Mr William Brady and Mr Roscoe Taylor – have been appointed by Monolith, respectively as Executive Chairman and Vice President, Engineering. Construction work should begin in mid-2016, with start-up planned for 2019. When it is up and running, the plant will employ about 100 people. As yet, no details have been released on carbon black capacity. Original Source: Chemical and Engineering News, 27 Apr 2015, 93 (17), 14 & 18 May 2015, 93 (20), 20 (Website: http://cen.acs.org/ index.html) © American Chemical Society 2015
COMPANIES Change of ownership of Azelis Azelis (headquartered in Antwerp) is one of the leading European chemical distributors, specialising in serving the paint, plastic, rubber, food, healthcare, animal nutrition, pharmaceutical and personal care industries. The private equity fund, 3i Group plc (based in London) acquired a majority stake in Azelis in 2007 and transformed the company from a fairly loose decentralised structure into an integrated group with a single brandname, under the leadership of Mr Hans-Joachim Müller. Azelis now has sales offices in 29 European countries plus seven countries outside Europe, including Canada,
China, India and Japan, It has a global customer base of around 20,000. Following an agreement signed in February 2015, 3i Group has sold its stake in Azelis to another London-based private equity fund, Apax Partners LLP. Effective 1 April 2015, Azelis was appointed by Evonik as the Nordic region distributor for Aerosil and Sipernat grades of precipitated silica, designed for use in the food, personal care and pharmaceutical sectors. The agreement covers Denmark, Iceland, Norway and Sweden. In mid-May 2015, Azelis announced that Milliken had extended its distribution agreement with Azelis, so that Azelis now markets Milliken's novel Liquitint polymeric colorants for all homecare and industrial cleaning applications across Europe, with the exception of the Italian and Greek markets. Azelis stated: "Liquitint colorants offer quality, performance, and microbial certification unmatched by dyes or pigments. They are water-soluble, which makes them easy to mix, easy to clean and nonstaining. Plus, with only a few primary colorants, Liquitint enables customers to cover a wide color space, adding to the differentiation potential of their final products, including laundry products, household cleaners, institutional and industrial chemicals.'' Original Source: PPCJ, Polymers, Paint, Colour Journal, Apr 2015, 205 (4607), (Website: http://www.polymerspaintcolourjournal.com/) © DMG Events (MEA) Ltd 2015. Original Source: Azelis, 30 Apr & 19 May 2015 (Box 6, Posthofbrug 12, B-2600 Antwerp, Belgium, Tel: +32 3 613 0120, Website: http://www. azelis.com) © Azelis 2015
Dainichiseika appoints Arpadis to sell its pigments in France Arpadis France SAS (based in Lille) has been appointed as the new French distributor for selling organic and inorganic pigments manufactured by the Dainichiseika group (headquartered in Tokyo). Daicolor Italy (based in Milan) is Dainichiseika's European subsidiary responsible for handling the group's marketing arrangements. Original Source: Pitture & Vernici - European Coatings, May-Jun 2015, 91 (3), 87 (Website: http://www.pittureevernici.it) © CREI srl 2015
Schulman acquires Citadel On 1 June 2015, A Schulman Inc announced that it had completed the $800 M acquisition of HGGC Citadel July 2015