CHINAPLAS '12: Germany's LANXESS to open Hong Kong apps centre

18 April 2012 12:40  [Source: ICIS news]

SHANGHAI (ICIS)--LANXESS is opening a new plastics application development centre in Hong Kong in the second half of 2012 to strengthen ties with automotive customers in the growing Asia-Pacific region , the German specialty chemicals company said on Wednesday.

The application centre, in the Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks, will become a technology hub for LANXESS’s high-performance plastics, the company said during the Chinaplas 2012 Plastics and Rubber Trade Fair in Shanghai.

The new centre will have computer-aided development and engineering facilities, as well as a parts testing centre, focusing on the company’s high-tech plastics Durethan (polyamide or nylon) and Pocan (polybutylene terephthalate or PBT), the company said.

LANXESS plans to invest a total of €1m ($1.31m) at the new application centre, the company said.

Last year the company expanded capacity for high-tech plastics at its plant in Wuxi, Jiangsu province, to 60,000tonnes/year.

Martin Kraemer, CEO of LANXESS Greater China, said: “This application centre represents our intention to be an active, eager partner with researchers, producers and customers, it will complement our R&D centre we already have in Wuxi to develop and evaluate materials solutions used in the automotive industry.”

The company will also focus on high-tech plastics solutions for a wide range of industries.

“Our high performance materials, inorganic pigments, functional chemicals and additives are bringing added value for fuel efficiency and environmental performance,” Kraemer said.

“We look forward to working hand-in-hand with our Asian customers to develop new, lighter-weight plastic solutions that drive green mobility.”

LANXESS high performance plastics are forecast to take up 15–20% of market share in China, while the Korean and Indian markets are also showing a gradual uptrend, he added.

The company is already established in the Asian region through its flagship brands Durethan and Pocan, which are a lighter-weight alternative to metals such as steel or aluminium.

The company says they also enable carmakers and car parts suppliers to save money by providing less costly production methods and easier assembly. They can be found, for example, in engine bearings, door structures, front ends and seat cross-members.

China has become the world’s largest automotive market and is expected to grow by up to 8% this year, according to LANXESS.

Chinaplas 2012 runs from 18–21 April.

($1 = €0.76)

By: Dolly Wu
+65 6780 4359

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