PPG completes USD5 million expansion of Wuppertal, Germany, coatings plant

MOSCOW (MRC) -- PPG Industries announced the completion of a USD5 million expansion at its coatings manufacturing facility in Wuppertal, Germany, said the company in its press release.

The project added equipment to existing buildings on the campus, supporting up to a 35 percent increase in annual production capacity of environmentally sustainable waterborne coatings for automotive and industrial applications. The facility, which employs more than 190 people, plans to hire employees to manage the increased capacity.

The additional capacity will enable PPG to meet increasing demand for its waterborne coatings by automotive manufacturers and industrial customers in the region. Waterborne coatings use water as a base instead of the chemical solvents used in traditional coatings. In addition to a heightened focus throughout Europe on using sustainable products and practices, waterborne-coatings demand is being driven by adoption of compact-paint-process technologies by automotive manufacturers in Europe. Compact paint processes reduce the number of steps needed to paint a vehicle, enabling manufacturers to reduce energy used during the process and downsize the space required for the paint process in a manufacturing facility.

As MRC informed earlier, PPG Industries has agreed to acquire US-based IVC Industrial Coatings for an undisclosed amount. The company operates five manufacturing facilitates in the US, one plant in Guangdong, China, and a small development lab in Manchester, England. It has a workforce of over 300.

PPG Industries, Inc. (PPG) is a global supplier of protective and decorative coatings. Performance Coatings, Industrial Coatings and Architectural Coatings- EMEA segments supply protective and decorative finishes for customers in a range of end use markets, including industrial equipment, appliances and packaging; factory-finished aluminum extrusions and steel and aluminum. Founded in 1883, PPG has global headquarters in Pittsburgh and operates in nearly 70 countries around the world. Reported net sales in 2014 were USD15.4 billion.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- In accordance with the applicable regulation, Solvay must sell the outstanding Solvay bearer (non-dematerialized) shares on the market. Currently 33,099 shares or 0.04% of the total issued equity, have not yet been converted into either dematerialized shares or registered shares, reported the company on its site.

Holders still have the possibility to convert their bearer shares until July 17, 2015, at the latest. This can be done by depositing them at any BNP Paribas Fortis agency in Belgium. All remaining bearer shares will be sold by Solvay on the Euronext Brussels stock exchange within a period of 3 months post the deadline of June 17, 2015. After deduction of incurred costs, the proceeds of this sale will be deposited at the Belgian Deposit and Consignment Office, where holders can still claim the reimbursement of their bearer shares, after deduction of the penalties as described in the law, as from January 1, 2016 until December 31, 2024.

The dematerialization process does not modify the capital of Solvay SA which is represented today by 84,701,133 shares.

As MRC wrote previously, in December 2014, Solvay announced that it had acquired Dhaymers, a Brazilian manufacturer of specialty esters, entering the skin care market and expanding its presence in industrial lubricants and mining industries in Latin America.

Solvay S.A. is a Belgian chemical company founded in 1863, with its head office in Neder-Over-Heembeek, Brussels, Belgium. The company has diversified into two major sectors of activity: chemicals and plastics. Solvay supplies over 1500 products across 35 brands of high-performance polymers пїЅ fluoropolymers, fluoroelastomers, fluorinated fluids, semi-aromatic polyamides, sulfone polymers, aromatic ultra polymers, high-barrier polymers and cross-linked high-performance compounds.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Asahi Kasei Medical Co., Ltd., a medical device company, has formed a 50:50 joint venture (JV) with Kuraray Medical Inc., a provider of dental bonding agents, dental cements, composite resins, and related material, for the production of hollow-fiber membrane for use in medical devices, using Eval ethylene-vinyl alcohol copolymer (EVOH) from Kuraray Co., Ltd., said 4-traders.

The JV company is named as A-K Membrane Manufacturing Co., Ltd.

Asahi Kasei Corp. integrated its two core operating companies in the medical devices-related field, Asahi Kasei Kuraray Medical Co., Ltd. and Asahi Kasei Medical Co., Ltd., as of April 1, 2012. As previously announced in our release dated August 3, 2011, Kuraray Co., Ltd. transferred the entirety of its 7% holding in Asahi Kasei Kuraray Medical to Asahi Kasei Corp. on April 1, 2012. Asahi Kasei Kuraray Medical became a wholly owned subsidiary of Asahi Kasei Corp. on that date.

As MRC informed earlier, Asahi Kasei Chemicals has opened a new production line for Duranol polycarbonatediol (PCD), and a second line for Duranate hexamethylene diisocyanate (HDI)-based polyisocyanate at its facility in Nantong, China. The company started commercial operation of the new Duranol line, and the second Duranate line, in November 2014 and May 2015 respectively.

Asahi Kasei Kuraray Medical Co.,Ltd. engages in the research and development, production, and sale of medical equipment in the fields of hemodialysis, therapeutic apheresis, transfusion therapy, and virus removal for biotherapeutic products in Japan and internationally. The company offers devices for the treatment of immunologic or intractable diseases, leukocyte reduction filters to prevent adverse effects associated with blood transfusion, and virus removal filters used in biopharmaceutical production.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- German drugs and chemicals group Bayer plans to invest EUR4 billion (USD4.54 billion) in research and development this year, said Reuters, citing chief executive.

"That is more than ever before. The development of our new blood thinner Xarelto alone cost 2.2 billion euros," Marijn Dekkers.

Aspirin maker Bayer raised its research and development spending by 5 percent to 3.57 billion euros in 2014, representing 8.5 percent of its sales before special items. It has about 14,000 employees worldwide working in this field.

As MRC informed earlier, Bayer AG plans to list its plastics division as early as October 2015 to take advantage of current rich stock market valuations. The report, which cites sources familiar with the deal, said that, while a decision on the exact timing will be taken just days ahead of the actual launch of the initial public offering (IPO), Bayer wants to conclude preparations by late August.

Bayer is a global enterprise with core competencies in the fields of health care, agriculture and high-tech polymer materials. As an innovation company, it sets trends in research-intensive areas. Bayer's products and services are designed to benefit people and improve their quality of life. At the same time, the Group aims to create value through innovation, growth and high earning power. Bayer is committed to the principles of sustainable development and to its social and ethical responsibilities as a corporate citizen. In fiscal 2014, the Group employed 118,900 people and had sales of EUR 42.2 billion.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Demand for plastic containers in the U.S. is forecast to increase 4.9% annually to USD32.4 billion in 2016, consuming 14.2 billion pounds of resin, according to Canplastics.

The report from the Cleveland-based industry market research firm forecasts that growth will be driven by performance advantages over alternative packaging formats as well as a recovery in the overall economy following the recession of 2007-2009.

The report also notes that volume gains will lag value gains as the average weight per container unit continues to fall, reflecting preferences for small, single-serving containers in a number of food and beverage markets, and lightweighting of containers to reduce material use and enhance sustainability. Also, despite increased competition from pouches and other types of flexible packaging, these will often augment rather than replace rigid containers. PET and high density polyethylene (HDPE) are by far the primary plastic container resins, accounting for a combined 86% of demand in 2011.

Bottles and jars, which represented 77% of plastic container poundage in 2011, are by far the leading plastic container type. Through 2016, plastic bottle and jar demand is expected to rise 2.8% per year to 165 billion units, moderated by the already-dominant position of plastic in many applications, with few new areas existing for large-scale conversions. Additionally, bottle unit growth during 2001-2006 benefited greatly from booming sales of bottled water. Moving forward, a considerable decline in bottled water growth is expected based on environmental factors. However, developments will be aided by healthy prospects for smaller single-serving beverage bottles. Among major bottle and jar markets, the fastest gains are predicted for pharmaceutical and food applications.

Faster volume gains are expected for other plastic container categories, such as tubs, cups and bowls. Demand will be backed by popular trends like convenience, portability and portion control benefits of single-serving cup packaging as well as favorable outlooks for certain foods (e.g., yogurt, hummus, single-cup coffee) typically packaged in tubs and cups. A rebound is expected for plastic pails based on a recovery in construction activity from low levels in 2011, which will increase demand for paints, adhesives, driveway sealers and other goods typically packaged in pails.

MRC