Songwon doubles the capacity of its Songnox® OPS product range and focuses on automotive industry

Songwon Industrial Group, the global number two supplier of polymer additives, extends its lead in the delivery of OPS (One Pack Systems) products by commissioning an additional 7.000 metric tons capacity.

Following the announcement in December of 2011 of the acquisition of Additives Technology Greiz (ATG) in Germany, making Songwon a leading supplier of OPS product solutions, the promised expansion of the current capacity is now confirmend and will be up and running as of the middle of this year.

Picture: Songnox® OPS delivers a wide variety of complex additives in a convenient and accurate form for safe and cost effective processing. (Photo: Songwon Industrial Co., Ltd.)

"The new capacity doubles the current volume to 14.000 metric tons", stated Jongho Park, Chairman and CEO of Songwon Industrial Group. "We made a promise when we acquired ATG to extend the capacity of our Songnox® OPS products up to 12.000 metric tons. However, the reaction we have had from our customers has led us to commit additional investment such that we can now deliver an additional 7.000 metric tons of product to meet their demands."

The Songnox® High Heat OPS range offers customers a complete toolbox for designing tailor-made solutions to meet the requirements of longer service life and durability under harsh conditions for end-use applications such as in the automotive industry.

OPS products combine a wide variety of complex additives into an integrated dust free, pellet form, can be custom formulated and offer a number of key advantages such as uniformity and certified composition. OPS are also extremely cost effective as they reduce the actual dosage of individual additives due to more accurate feeding as well as simplified quality control procedures.

Jongho Park continued: "Songnox® OPS can make a significant difference to the quality and cost of the products that our customers manufacture, such that they are able to meet very stringent requirements which are stipulated by their customers. Songnox® OPS offers a combination of additives in a convenient and accurate form for safe and cost effective processing. This is ideal for the automotive industry where we are gaining ground and finding favour due to the high quality and performance that Songnox® High Heat OPS offers. Therefore China with its fast growing automotive industry represents an excellent opportunity for Songwon's innovative solutions.

Songwon Industrial Co., Ltd. In profile
Songwon Industrial Co., Ltd. is a leading producer of Songnox® Antioxidants, Songnox® One Pack Systems, Songlight® Hindered Amine Light Stabilizers, Songsorb® Ultraviolet Light Absorbers, Songstab™ Acid Scavengers, Songstab™ PVC Stabilizers, Songcat™ Tin Intermediates, Songcizer™ Plasticizers for the plastics industry, as well as lubricants, surface coating agents, polyurethane, alkyl phenols, biphenol, flocculants and other chemicals. The Songwon Group of Companies includes Songwon Industrial Co., Ltd., Songwon Holdings AG, Songwon International AG, Songwon International - Japan K.K., Songwon China Ltd., Songwon Industrial Co. Ltd. Representative Office Bahrain, Songwon Additive Technologies AG, Songwon International - Americas Inc., Songwon International - India Pvt. Ltd., Songwon Trading Co. Ltd. and Songwon Chemicals Co. Ltd.

Songnox, Songsorb and Songlight are registered trade marks of Songwon Industrial Co., Ltd.

Songcat, Songcizer and Songstab are trade marks of Songwon Industrial Co., Ltd.

For further information, e-mail: dmorath@songwonind.com or view website: www.songwonind.com

"The Growth Engine for Your Industry"

"The Growth Engine for Your Industry" was the main theme of Chinaplas 2012. In line with this Songwon Industrial Group finished 2011 on a high note having announced a number of key events that demonstrate how growth is at the heart of its success now and in the future. Capacity at its state- of-the-art Maeam plant was increased making it one of the largest antioxidant additive facilities in the world and bringing Songwon's total global manufacturing capacity of antioxidants to 80.000 tons. It is also unique in that it is a fully backward integrated process that delivers security and quality benefits.

In China, Songwon Shanghai Trading Ltd. is the main operational company where sales and sourcing activities on behalf of the global Songwon group are conducted. Chemservice Asia Co. Ltd. complements these activities by providing an unparalleled service in regulatory advice and is an authority on REACH compliance in China.

And in 2011, Songwon Baifu Chemical Co. Ltd. was announced, a joint venture with Tangshan Baifu Chemical Co. Ltd. to manufacture and sell Thioester antioxidants with a fully backward integrated capacity of 6.000 tons.

Jongho Park, Chairman and CEO of Songwon Industrial Group, sees a bright future ahead as he stated: "With the key polymers such as polyolefins set to double over the next 10 years, and with other polymers set to follow in similar trends, the industry will rely on additive suppliers such as Songwon to allow them to meet their growth targets. Additives are a must, they are the key to success in end use applications and we are committed to meeting the needs of our partners in the polymer world."

The polymer industry, and especially thermoplastics, will continue to be put under considerable competitive pressure with the economics of investment remaining critical to fuel future growth, both in established and emerging markets. Jongho Park continued: "Technology is helping us to offer products to our customers that avoid the need for investment in process equipment and help reduce their manufacturing costs, as well as adding security to their quality targets.

We can now offer One Pack System (OPS) products that are fully compounded in pellet form, on an industrial scale, from our recently acquired facility in Greiz, Germany, and we are on our way to manufacture Songnox® OPS in a series of JV's in the Middle East."

Songnox, Songsorb and Songlight are registered trade marks of Songwon Industrial Co., Ltd.

Songcat, Songcizer and Songstab are trade marks of Songwon Industrial Co., Ltd.

For further information, view website: www.songwon.com Refer to page 155

SABIC Innovative Plastics' clear, high-temp Lexan* copolymers
deliver top-end design solutions for industry's most demanding applications

SABIC Innovative Plastics' mission to help customers drive down system costs while achieving exceptional performance with high-end thermoplastics has led to another industry game-changer - Lexan* XHT clear, high-temperature polycarbonate (PC) copolymers. This innovative family of advanced PC resins features new polymer chemistry with an optimal balance of high heat resistance and high flow, enabling it to offer greatly expanded design options for molding thin-wall parts such as medical devices and electrical fuses. Lexan XHT copolymers also offer excellent clarity and colorability, making them top choices for applications like consumer and industrial lighting and heat shields. They are part of SABIC Innovative Plastics' growing Lexan copolymers portfolio built on the technology foundation laid by Lexan PC resin's 50-year track record.

"With Lexan XHT copolymers, SABIC Innovative Plastics is delivering on a previously unmet market need for a true high-heat resin technology with a near perfect balance of properties vs. other clear, high-heat materials," said Bala Ambravaneswaran, product marketing director, Lexan Copolymers & Special Effects, SABIC Innovative Plastics. "These innovative materials give our customers the high-tech yet practical solutions they need to succeed in new high-performance applications. Following the success of Lexan XHT copolymers in automotive lighting, we are quickly moving into diverse and equally challenging application areas."

Clear Resin delivers highest performance for extreme heat conditions
Lexan XHT copolymers address the need for PC-based materials with end-use temperatures in the range of 140C to 195C. They deliver an industry-leading relative thermal index (RTI) Underwriters Laboratories (UL) rating of 150C, surpassing polyarylate (PAR), polymethyl methacrylimide (PMMI) and other high-heat polycarbonates (HHPC). This exceptional high-temperature performance is achieved through proprietary chemistry that alters the polymer backbone by incorporating specialized monomers.

Copolymers offer higher performance than compounds, blends and additives, which are not chemically integrated.
Lexan XHT copolymers surpass competitive high-heat materials in other key areas: Lower color shift on ultraviolet (UV) weathering vs. PAR Better color stability under heat aging vs. HHPC Improved tensile and impact strength retention after heat aging vs. HHPC Better resistance to cracks and haze after metallization than HHPC Improved flame retardancy vs. PC, PMMI and HHPC. Compliance with eco protocols and UL94 capability down to V0 at 1mm and 5VA at 3mm in clear and opaque colors Electrical properties suitable for high-heat film applications.

Comparable alternate materials show marked yellowing and haze after extended exposure to heat and UV light, impacting the appearance of the application. In contrast, Lexan XHT copolymers minimize color shift and retain clarity over a long lifespan. The high-heat color stability and clarity of Lexan XHT copolymers make them an excellent candidate for applications including aesthetic and functional enclosures for industrial and commercial lighting, consumer products such as heat resistant helmets and heat shields, electrical components such as fuses, and non-biocompatible healthcare devices that must undergo autoclaving.

These materials have already been proven in automotive applications including bezels, reflectors and lens covers where they enable direct metallization, which eliminates the costs and environmental impact from pre-coating the part with paint or lacquer. When vacuum-metalized, parts made from Lexan XHT copolymers can withstand temperatures of up to 175C without blistering, hazing, delaminating or losing their brilliant luster. 

Lexan XHT resins are available in a variety of colors with a clear or opaque base. Special visual effects such as diffusion, metallic and sparkle for custom needs, in challenging applications such as industrial lighting, and glass replacement are also available.

Up to 30 percent higher flow and less scrap reduce system costs
To help designers reduce size, mass and weight, and create thinner-walled flame-retardant parts such as housings for consumer electronics, Lexan XHT copolymer grades offer improved flow characteristics for injection molding. These materials deliver a 30 percent longer flow length and better mold release than competitive high-heat materials, which help decrease melt temperatures and cooling requirements and cut cycle times by as much as 25 percent. In a heat-critical thin wall battery cover application, Lexan XHT resin was able to fill a part with 0.7mm nominal wall thickness.

Further, Lexan XHT copolymers can be recycled, allowing scrap to be reused in molding to raise yield and lower net costs. For example, because these materials can be direct-metalized without lacquering, scrap can be reused in the molding process. These properties can significantly reduce system costs, enabling a competitive advantage for customers.

For further information, view website: www.sabic-ip.com   Refer to next page