NEWS
Braskem and United Caps deal
Brazilian petrochemical company Braskem and United Caps, a maker of caps and closures based in Luxembourg, have collaborated to develop the Greener brand of bio- sourced plastic caps and closures. Initially, United Caps is marketing two standard closures using Braskem’s I’m Green polyethylene, which is made from sugar cane: the Victoria 30/25 screw closure for still drinks and the Proflatseal for both still drinks and dairy products, both pressur- ised and non-pressurised. According to Braskem,
I’m Green is not just derived from a renewable feedstock but has a negative carbon foot- print, sequestering 3.09 kg of CO2
from the
atmosphere for each kg produced. It is also said to have the same characteristics, quality and properties as Braskem’s other polymers. �
www.unitedcaps.com
Ascend buys BTP to add compounding in Europe
US-headquartered PA 66 specialist Ascend Perfor- mance Materials has acquired Netherlands- based compounder Britannia Techno Polymer (BTP), giving it its first wholly owned compounding operation outside of the US. The value of the transaction has not been disclosed. Tilburg-based BTP has
been providing toll com- pounding services to Ascend since its formation in 2009, and to predecessor Solutia since 2006. The com- pany currently has a production capacity of around 32,000 tonne/yr, around half of which is understood to have been used by its new owner. “Ascend is a major
portion of the activity that currently goes on at BTP,” said Phil McDivitt, President and CEO of Ascend, who explained that the Ascend/ BTP relationship went beyond the typical toll compounding arrangement. “We have toll compounding capacity in Asia and also
Ascend Performance Materials CEO Phil McDivitt (left) with BTP founder Andrew Leigh
other toll compounding agreements in Europe and North America. But the relationship with BTP is different. We have built our engineering plastics business in Europe in very close partnership,” he said. The decision to acquire BTP is part of a strategy of establishing regional compound production, according to McDivitt. He said that the company’s highly integrated PA66 production capabilities in the US allows it to be globally competitive in resin but compounding activity benefits from a more localised footprint. Ascend’s existing
compounding capacity in
the US is located at its sites at Pensacola in Florida and Foley in Alabama and these have been supplying some of its European require- ments. “We will be scaling down the production coming from the US as we integrate the BTP facility,” said Ascend Senior Vice President Scott Rook. All BTP staff will be joining
Ascend, including founder and Managing Director Andrew Leigh. “Andy will transition to become our Director of Compounding Technology. We expect him to play a key role in our compounding business on a global scale,” said McDivitt. �
www.btpolymer.com �
www.ascendmaterials.com
KH begins new series
German injection moulder KH Group said that it has started producing a single-use medical device for an undisclosed customer in a new ISO 14644-1 Category 8 cleanroom with biomonitoring. This is part of a large-scale contract, which will also see two more cleanrooms built at short notice. KH added that the “highly complex assembly follows in
Cleanroom moulding at KH Group 10 INJECTION WORLD | September 2018
accordance with GMP guidelines … Enormous increases in quantity are foreseen over the next few years, which means that a further increase in capacity will follow”. (Read our Medical Moulding feature on page 21 in this issue.) �
www.kh.de
www.injectionworld.com
PHOTO: ASCEND PERFORMANCE MATERIALS
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