www.plastics-technology.com News

'Arburg establishes organisation in the United Arab Emirates '

2008-07-03T16:24:40Z

Since 1 January 2009, Arburg has been officially represented in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) with its own sales and service office. The Arabplast, which took place from 10 to 13 January in Dubai, provided the ideal forum for presenting the new Arburg organisation and Allrounder technology to the Arabian trade public.

“The Arabian market offers great potential with regard to technologically sophisticated applications, which is why we have decided to make long-term investments in this market,” explained Managing Director Sales Helmut Heinson at the Arburg press conference during the Arabplast. This is reflected in Arburg’s participation in the Arabplast – for the first time with its own exhibition stand – and, above all, in the foundation of Arburg’s own organisation in the United Arab Emirates, with which customers in the Arab states will be able to receive even more intensive support in future.

The head of the new sales and service office is the manager of Arburg’s Dutch subsidiary, Carlo Brouwer, who knows the Arab countries intimately and has already made numerous business contacts here. Responsible for sales locally is Waddah Jaara, who has been selling Arburg products for many years and is a familiar face for Arab customers. The service technician also has many years of experience, and knows the Allrounder machines down to the last detail. “As you can see, we have highly qualified employees for both sales and service, who can provide our customers with first-class support,” said Carlo Brouwer, emphasising that, “in the Arabian states, too, Arburg is demonstrating the qualities of continuity and reliability for which the company is internationally reputed.”

As with all the international Arburg organisations, the new office in the United Arab Emirates will offer the entire range of services valued by Arburg customers around the world: sales, service, spare parts, application technology and training.

“Following the foundation of our own sales and service office at the beginning of the year, we have now also found perfect premises in Ras Al Khaimah, and are therefore gradually reinforcing and extending our service offering,” says Helmut Heinson, explaining the company’s next steps.

“Thanks to our co-operation with the ‘Higher Institute for Plastics Fabrication’ (HIPF) Training Centre in Riyadh, which works exclusively with Arburg in the injection moulding sector, we are already in a position to present our products live and hold customer training courses,” added Carlo Brouwer. Arburg is therefore also able to make use of the Institute’s technical centre, which is equipped with 15 Allrounder 420 C Golden Edition machines and boasts the complete infrastructure of an injection moulding plant.

At the Arabplast, the Arburg team received thoroughly positive feedback from all quarters. Both existing and potential customers were impressed by the opening of the Arburg sales and service office in the UAE and by the performance of the Allrounder machines.

“Our high-tech machines amply satisfy the exacting requirements of the booming Arabian market in all areas – the dominant packaging industry, for example, and the growing production of technical and medical moulded parts,” said Carlo Brouwer. The Arabplast exhibit and application were selected with this in mind: the high-precision production of syringe barrels on an electric Allrounder 570 A equipped with a high-performance plasticising cylinder and a 48-cavity mould.

“The Arabplast was characterised not so much by the quantity but rather the quality of the visitors. It was therefore possible for us to provide all trade visitors with intensive support and individual advice, and to present Arburg technology in detail,” said Carlo Brouwer, who was extremely pleased with the exhibition.

About Arburg

Arburg, a German machine construction company, is one of the leading global manufacturers of injection moulding machines for plastics processing with clamping forces between 125 kN and 5,000 kN. Fields of application are, for example, the production of plastic parts for motor vehicles, communications and consumer electronics, medical technology, domestic appliances and packaging. The product range is completed by robotic systems, complex projects and other peripherals. Arburg’s operations are coordinated by an integrated management system and are DIN EN ISO 9001 and 14001 certified. Arburg is represented by its own organisations in 24 countries at 32 locations and by trading partners in more than 50 countries. However, production takes place exclusively in the parent factory in Lossburg (Germany) – with the mark of quality "made by Arburg - made in Germany". From a total of more than 2,000 Arburg employees, around 1,700 work in Germany. Around 330 further employees work at the international Arburg organisations

Further information about Arburg can be found at www.arburg.com

Further information:

ARBURG GmbH + Co KG

Press office

Susanne Wurst

Postfach 1109

D-72286 Lossburg

Tel.: +49 (0) 7446 33-3463

Fax: +49 (0) 7446 33-3413

e-mail: presse_service@arburg.com

'Dow Announces the Sale of the Thermoplastic Polyurethane Business'

2008-07-03T16:24:40Z

As part of its strategy to become a consistent earnings growth company, The Dow Chemical Company announced the sale of the primary assets from Dow’s Thermoplastic Polyurethane (TPU) business to The Lubrizol Corporation. Financial terms of the sale were not disclosed.

The sale includes the production plant in La Porte, TX, customer lists, contracts and technology.

"The decision to sell the TPU business was based primarily on the fact that the TPU business is healthy and growing, but does not align to Dow’s transformational strategy," said Mike Szabo, Global Product Director, TPU. "Our priority now is working closely with Lubrizol to ensure a safe and seamless transition."

"Dow’s portfolio management strategy represents smart, market-oriented business decisions. We are constantly reviewing, replenishing and trimming our portfolio as markets change and evolve," said George Biltz, Corporate Vice President, Strategic Development and Planning. "This sale allows Dow to unlock the value of a strong, healthy business and direct resources to growth projects."

About Dow

With annual sales of $54 billion and 46,000 employees worldwide, Dow is a diversified chemical company that combines the power of science and technology with the “ Human Element ” to constantly improve what is essential to human progress. The Company delivers a broad range of products and services to customers in around 160 countries, connecting chemistry and innovation with the principles of sustainability to help provide everything from fresh water, food and pharmaceuticals to paints, packaging and personal care products. References to “Dow” or the “Company” mean The Dow Chemical Company and its consolidated subsidiaries unless otherwise expressly noted.

For Editorial Information:

Kelley Cone
The Dow Chemical Company
989-638-2663'

'Macfarlane Group PLC disposes of its Plastics operations in Ireland'

2008-07-03T16:24:40Z

'In line with the Group’s strategy to focus on and develop its core businesses, Macfarlane Group
PLC (“Macfarlane”) announces today that it has concluded an agreement for the sale of its
Ireland-based plastics business, Macfarlane Plastics Limited (“Macfarlane Plastics”), to Procap
Holdings SA for a total cash consideration of £1.7m, payable immediately.
The disposal proceeds, which exclude attributable expenses of £0.3m, will be used by Macfarlane
to reduce Group debt, which was below £8.0m at 31 December 2008.
Macfarlane Plastics made an operating loss of £0.1m on turnover of £6.0m in the 12 months to 31
December 2007 (audited). The gross assets of the business were £5.0m (unaudited) at 30
November 2008 and its net assets were £2.6m (unaudited) at the same date.
The Macfarlane Board estimates that the disposal will produce a realised loss of £1.2m in the
financial year to 31 December 2008. £0.7m of this loss was provided for in the accounts for the
six months to 30 June 2008, as announced on 28 August 2008.
Commenting on the disposal of Macfarlane Plastics, Archie Hunter, Chairman of Macfarlane
Group, said:
“The disposal of the plastics business is another key step for Macfarlane Group, which enables us
to focus on our operations in Packaging Distribution and the specialist Manufacturing of labels
and transit packaging.
Although the economic environment remains challenging the actions we have taken during the
year will result in our financial performance in 2008 being in line with the Board’s expectations.”

Further enquiries:

Macfarlane Group Tel: 0141 333 9666

Archie Hunter, Chairman

Peter Atkinson, Chief Executive

John Love, Finance Director

Spreng & Co

Tel: 0141 229 0482

Callum Spreng

Mob: 07803 970103

'Missouri Botanical Garden Collects Used Plastic Pots'

2008-07-03T16:24:40Z

The Missouri Botanical Garden operates the most extensive residential garden recycling program in the nation. With the addition of a record 150,000 pounds of horticultural waste in 2008, the Garden’s Plastic Pot Recycling program has saved over 670,000 pounds, or 335 tons, of plastic garden pots, cell packs and trays from landfills to date.

“The growth of this program has been outstanding, and it is apparent that the passion gardeners have for recycling their plastic containers drives this effort forward,” said program founder and organizer Dr. Steven Cline, manager of the Garden’s William T. Kemper Center for Home Gardening. “Providing an alternative to pitching pots by offering a program to recycle them has sparked a sense of loyalty to doing the right thing.”

The yearly public collection of plastic garden pots, polystyrene cell packs and trays was expanded in 2008 from a six-weekend to a six-month collection period. The Missouri Botanical Garden serves as the central collection site, open daily from May through October. Several retail garden centers throughout the metro St. Louis area also participate in the environmental effort as satellite collection sites. In 2008, these included Greenscape Gardens, Crabapple Cove Nursery, Summerwinds at Timber Creek, Garden Heights Nursery, Rolling Ridge Garden Center, Bowood Farms, and University Gardens.

Over the last five years, the program has further expanded to include collections from “green” industry businesses such as landscaping contractors, public works departments, grounds management professionals, and wholesale growers. Green business participants dropped off truckload quantities at the Garden’s collection center on a weekly basis throughout the program’s duration.

'275% rise in GCC plastic factories as sector's investments hit $5bn '

2008-07-03T16:24:40Z

'The number of GCC factories of plastic products rose to 1,223 in 2007 compared to 326 in 1990, with an increase of 275 per cent, while the industry's investments surged up to $5 billion (Dh18.36bn) in 2007, compared to $932 million in 1990, with a 536-per cent increase, a report issued by Gulf Organisation for Industrial Consulting (GOIC) has said.

The report added that the number of workers in the industry increased to 79, 000 in 2007, compared to 17,500 workers in 1990, an increase of 351 per cent. The plastic products industry is one of the region's most important transformational industries, as they account for 10.6 per cent of the total number of GCC transformational industries.

Saeed Abdullah Alroken, Director of Industrial Development Department at the Ministry of Economy, said: "The plastic industry is one of the UAE's most important industries. It has witnessed rapid growth year-by-year.

Over the last five years, the number of plastic factories in the UAE rose from 507 in 2003 to 679 in 2007, an increase of 33.92 per cent. The volume of investment increased from Dh144.75m in 2003 to Dh154.38m in 2007, an increase of 6.65 per cent.

"The number of workers in the plastic industries rose from 29,000 in 2003 to 36,000 in 2005, a 24.7 per cent increase.

"The plastic industry is expected to see a growth rate of 15-20 per cent over the next five years, due to the growth witnessed in the other economic sectors in the country, especially the real estate sector."

'

'Natural polymers rise in US'

2008-07-03T16:24:40Z

Demand for natural polymers in the US is forecast to grow by 7.1% annually to 2012, generating sales of $4.0bn from a market of 1.75 billion pounds (800,000 tonnes).

The best opportunities are seen in packaging applications as a result of the increased availability and cost competitiveness of polymers such as polylactic acid (PLA).

These are the key findings from a new report, “Natural Polymers”, compiled by The Freedonia Group. It cautions, however, that further growth for products such as guar gum and gum arabic will be threatened by climatic and political uncertainties.

Demand for starch and fermentation products will expand at double-digit pace from $561m in 2007 to $1.125bn in 2012, thanks to greater availability and improved production technologies for PLA, starch blends and hyaluronic acid. Falling prices will also boost demand.

PLA will see significant growth in packaging outlets, particularly for thermoformed containers. Hyaluronic acid demand will be stimulated by a strong requirement for dermal injections and orthopedic treatments for an ageing population.

Cellulose ether demand as a share of the total market will decline, but it will still grow by 4.2% annually, from $1,097m in 2007 to $1,350m in 2012. Methyl cellulose will dominate due to its widespread use in construction materials such as plaster, mortar, grouts and pastes.

The US researcher forecasts robust growth for protein-based polymers such as collagen. The market will grow 6.9% annually from 2007, reaching a value of $605m by 2012.

'Polish PVC producer is put up for sale'

2008-07-03T16:24:40Z

Poland's top petrochemicals group PKN Orlen confirmed it plans to sell off its PVC and fertiliser interests, largely operated by its chemicals subsidiary Anwil in Wloclawek, Poland.

A consortium comprising three Polish chemical groups last month agreed to form a new company to bid to acquire PKN Orlen's stake of almost 85% in Anwil if Orlen finally put it up for sale. The consortium partners are Ciech, Zaklady Azotowe Tarnow and Kedzierzyn.

PKN Orlen announced the firm disposal plan when it revealed details of a revised future strategy covering the years 2009-2013 on 26 November. Faced with the worsening effects of the global financial crisis, key elements of its new strategy will include increasing efficiency, cutting its planned annual investment and selling off non core businesses including Anwil and a stake in Poland's second ranked mobile telecoms operator Polkomtel.

"Due to the limited natural synergy with PKN Orlen’s core activities, the company has decided to free up the capital involved in PVC and artificial fertilizers while retaining the role of strategic raw material supplier for the chemical industry," the group said in a statement outlining its strategic plans.

Petrochemicals will remain a major part of its portfolio and the group intends to invest around 39% of its planned five year group investment which totals $4.3bn. Over that period, it will increase petrochemical feeds from refining, introduce new products and work to improve efficiency in the production area.

The group is already working on a key expansion project in Plock, Poland. This scheme involves the construction of a 400,000 tpa petrochemical plant to produce paraxylene and PTA (purified terephthalic acid), used as raw materials for the manufacture of PET polymers.

Paraxylene is also used in the production of polyesters for film, resins and fibres. Launched in 2007, the plant project is scheduled for completion by December 2009.

Growth in the Polish economy, the largest in Eastern Europe, is expected to decelerate next year from around 5.2% to 3.5% as a result of the global credit crunch, economists predict.

Anwil and PKN Orlen's Czech petrochemicals subsidiary Spolana of Neratovice have a combined PVC resin capacity of 435,000 tpa and Spolana can produce up to 40,000 tpa of caprolactam. Together they form Eastern Europe's biggest PVC production source.

This month, both companies announced they have cut back PVC output by 30%, while Spolana has reduced caprolactam production by a third in response to plunging demand in the recession

'Plating firm invests in factory move'

2008-07-03T16:24:40Z

UK contract plating specialist Quality Plated Plastics has moved into new premises in Great Barr, Birmingham following an investment in excess of £2m.

The facility, adjacent to the company’s existing factory, has been refurbished and now houses a state-of-the-art plating plant supplied and installed ahead of schedule by Hong Kong-based Process Automation, the world’s largest manufacturer of plating plants.

The new plant effectively doubles capacity for QPP and increases the size of mouldings that can be plated. Output can exceed 40,000 parts per day.

Co-owner John Timmins says the improved efficiency and quality from the plant will ensure that QPP remains competitive and gives it the opportunity to enter new markets.

“We are already seeing a move back to the UK from the Far East,” he explains, “driven by the fall in the pound and reduced volumes, which has enabled us to win several new contracts. Whilst the coming year is likely to be tough, we still intend to grow our business.”

QPP has a turnover of £3.5m and employs 50 staff. It will work to JIT and Kan Ban schedules, if required, and will manage projects from concept to completion.

Key markets are automotive, sanitaryware, brewery dispense, point-of-sale and signage.

The range of finishes includes chrome, gold, satin chrome, nickel and Twilite smoked chrome.

'Ukraine firm to build large blow moulders'

2008-07-03T16:24:40Z

Ukrainian plastics processing equipment supplier Polimash is developing a new blow moulding machine capable of producing five-litre PET bottles.

The Chernihiv, Ukraine-based company, which specialises in the manufacture of bottle blowing machines and blow moulds, aims to launch the new equipment designed for a capacity of 1,500 bottles per hour.

Polimash's latest machine is reported to be equipped with an eight-zone heating capacity and a special cooling system for the bottle thread section by the international publication Eurasian Chemical Market.

Overall, the equipment manufacturer, which employs 156, has produced a total of 700 machines since it was formed in 1999.

Polimash makes a variety of different semi-automatic and automatic APF and UPF blow moulding machines for containers ranging from 200 milliliters to 10 litres. In recent years, it has specialised in developing wider use of PET bottles in the dairy sector in Ukraine and abroad.

At the end of last year, Polimash supplied five APF-4 high-speed automatic blow moulding lines for half litre to 2 litre bottles, installed in December 2007 and February 2008 at the Kazakhstan bottling company Aleks of Saryagash.

'Polymers take the load in Insignia engine'

2008-07-03T16:24:40Z

'A load-bearing part under the bonnet of the Opel/Vauxhall Insignia, just voted European Car of the Year 2009, is using polymer instead of metal.

German automotive supplier ContiTech Vibration Control is making a heavy-duty torque support made of fibreglass-reinforced polyamide because it is 50% lighter than a comparable component made of aluminium.

The vehicle part is making its series-production debut in the new Insignia. According to the firm, it is the first time a passenger vehicle’s engine-mount system has used plastics for a mechanical, heavy duty component.

Instead of 1,390g, the torque support currently used in the Insignia weighs only 720g.

ContiTech claims the lightweight component can reduce the total weight of vehicles as well as fuel consumption, adding that less weight on the front axle means axle-load distribution improves as does driving safety and dynamics.

The polyamide support is already in its second product generation at ContiTech’s development centre.

“We are manufacturing plastic supports and elastomer components in an intelligent manufacturing process in which fewer components are needed and weight can be reduced,” said Diethard Schneider, an engineer at ContiTech Vibration Control and developer of the torque support.

The firm is also constructing more than 20 new plastic components for a number of automotive manufacturers – including an engine mount system for sports cars.

ContiTech adds that plastic assembly parts use a lot less energy at much lower cost, and offer a variety of options when recycling.

Sabic Innovative Plastics was also quick off the mark, revealing the role its products play in the Insignia. The car’s fuel filler door is made from Xenoy HMD resin, a material which combines high modulus with a low coefficient of thermal expansion for enhanced dimensional stability in hot temperatures.