US sending team to investigate fatal leak at DuPont Texas plant

MOSCOW (MRC) - Four workers died and a fifth was hospitalized Saturday after a chemical leak at a DuPont facility near Houston, said Reuters.

The workers were performing routine maintenance tasks at the company's manufacturing facility in La Porte, Texas, when the chemical, methyl mercaptan, began to leak at around 4 a.m. Central Time (5 a.m. ET), spokesman Aaron Woods said.

Woods would not say how the company learned of the leak, but said that the Harris County Medical Examiner pronounced four of the workers dead at the scene.

The chemical, used to make insecticides and fungicides, is liquid when it is contained, but becomes a gas when it is released and mixes with oxygen, Woods said.

"This is a tragic loss for the entire Du Pont family," Woods said. "Our thoughts are with the family members as they continue to process the loss of their loved ones."

The company would not release the names, ages or genders of the victims, at the request of their families, Woods said. The company did not yet know how the chemical began to leak, he said.

"Our focus at the moment is solely on the employees and the family members that are impacted and the individual that is in the hospital," Woods said. "But as we move past that we will begin a full investigation to understand what went wrong and what we need to do to prevent this from ever happening again."

As MRC wrote before, DuPont had a phosgene release at its plant in Belle West, Virginia, resulting in one fatality.

DuPont, is an American chemical company that was founded in July 1802. DuPont developed many polymers such as Vespel, neoprene, nylon, Corian, Teflon, Mylar, Kevlar, Zemdrain, M5 fiber, Nomex, Tyvek, Sorona and Lycra. DuPont developed Freon (chlorofluorocarbons) for the refrigerant industry, and later more environmentally friendly refrigerants. It developed synthetic pigments and paints including ChromaFlair.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Neogroup is in plans to restart a polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plant in Lithuania , reported Apic-online.

A Polymerupdate source in Lithuania informed that the plant is planned to be restarted in end-November 2014. It was shut in early October 2014 for maintenance turnaround.

Located at Klapeida in Lithuania, the line has a production capacity of 160,000 mt/year.

As MRC wrote before, the plant engineering and construction specialists, Uhde Inventa-Fischer, executed the revamp of a plant for the production of bottle and packaging-grade PET for Indorama Ventures Poland Sp. Z.o.o. in Wloclawek, Poland, in September 2014.

The capacity of the polycondensation plant, which was built and commissioned by Uhde Inventa-Fischer in 2002, was increased from 160,000 to 216,000 tonnes per annum. At the same time, the production costs have been considerably reduced through economies of scale and an improvement in energy and feedstock efficiency.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Australian packaging company Amcor Ltd. is developing its own films that do not use Barex resin in the wake of an announcement its Barex supplier will close its Lima, Ohio factory early next year, said Plasticsnews.

In the meantime, the Melbourne-based manufacturer is working on a deal with the supplier, Ineos Group, based in Rolle, Switzerland, for a continued source of Barex-brand polyacrylonitrile (PAN) resin to meet its customers’ needs for the next three years.

John Murray, Amcor executive general manager of corporate affairs, told Plastics News the priority is to secure sufficient Barex PAN to meet immediate needs. Amcor is working with its customers, Ineos and film converters on a technical, legal and commercial framework that will ensure supply until its replacement film is commercialized.

Murray said they hope to finalize a deal “in the next week” but will not comment further until the deal is reached.

He did not specifically respond to Plastics News’ query on whether Amcor would consider buying the Ohio factory, nor would he say what quantity of resin was involved in the three-year supply, nor its cost.

Amcor uses Barex in manufacturing packaging for pharmaceutical, medical and food products. Murray said its inert chemical properties provide a superior barrier for sensitive and aggressive products, such as nicotine and analgesic patches, and animal health products.

As MRC wrote before, Amcor Ltd. is rapidly expanding its presence in the Asian market. The company’s top official in the region said it will soon announce plans for a new plant. Amcor also is expanding capacity at its two Indian plants.

Amcor Limited is an Australian-based multinational packaging company. It operates manufacturing plants in 42 countries. It is the world's largest manufacturer of plastic bottles.

MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- A trade coalition of vinyl extruders and window manufacturers reached an out-of-court settlement in a patent lawsuit filed by J-Channel Industries Corp. (JCIC) over window frame technology, said Plasticsnews.

The coalition was able to negotiate the settlement - terms weren’t disclosed - based on a "preponderance of prior art and technical and legal deficiencies" in JCIC’s claim, according to a statement of the 14-member coalition.

The group is made up of American Builders and Contractors Supply, Associated Materials, Comfort View Products, Croft, Deceuninck North America, LB Plastics, Magnolia Windows and Doors, MGM Industries, Moss Supply, Sun Windows, West Window, Vinylmax, Veka Inc. and Wincore.

The coalition argued that the “J-rail” channel design has been used in window frame construction since at least the early 1960s and members pointed to past court cases invalidating a prior patent on which the lawsuit is based.

JCIC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Mellville, N.Y.-based Itus Corp., which acquires patented technology to assert and monetize patents, says it reached settlement/license agreements with 15 companies and includes Chelsea Building Products Inc. on its list.

"Of the 27 patent infringement lawsuits originally filed in connection with our patented J-Channel technology, 24 lawsuits have now been resolved," Itus President and CEO Robert Berman said in a statement about the technology that allows for easier and faster installation of windows.

Berman also said the number of settlements and licenses exceeds the original number of lawsuits filed in fall 2013 because some companies not named as defendants requested licenses. Itus estimates that sales of J-Channel windows exceed 10 million annually.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Trinseo, a global materials company and manufacturer of plastics, latex and rubber, today reported its third quarter of 2014 financial results with revenue of USD1,3 million and adjusted EBITDA of USD62 million, said the producer in its press release.

Revenue in the third quarter was roughly flat to prior year as higher SSBR volume and a favorable foreign exchange impact were offset by lower price which was primarily driven by the pass through of lower raw material cost. Sequentially, revenue decreased by 3% due to lower sales volume, with seasonality and weaker economic conditions in Europe, as well as an unfavorable currency impact as the U.S. dollar strengthened compared to the euro.

Adjusted EBITDA for the quarter decreased USD10 million, or 14%, versus the prior year. This decrease was driven by lower styrene monomer production margin and lower equity affiliate income which were partially offset by favorable raw material purchase timing as well as higher SSBR sales volume. In addition, prior year results included a USD12 million foreign exchange loss compared to a USD2 million gain in the current year. Sequentially, Adjusted EBITDA decreased USD18 million, or 22%, due to the turnaround at our Schkopau, Germany Rubber plant, lower styrene and polystyrene margins, higher bisphenol-A cost in Polycarbonate, and seasonality in Europe.

Styrenics revenue of USD561 million for the quarter was 3% below the prior year due mostly to the pass through of lower styrene costs which were partially offset by currency. Adjusted EBITDA of USD22 million was USD45 million below prior year due primarily to lower styrene monomer margins. These margins were well below last year’s which were at their highest level since 2005. Additionally, equity affiliate earnings from Americas Styrenics decreased versus prior year. The polystyrene market was particularly weak during the quarter due to economic conditions, the European summer holiday, and destocking driven by high styrene prices. Styrene monomer margins in Europe were similar to last quarter but were significantly lower in Asia.

Engineered Polymers revenue of USD261 million was 1% higher than the prior year due to currency. Adjusted EBITDA of USD2 million was flat versus prior year as higher volume to the automotive market as well as higher margin in our compounds and blends products were offset by a decrease in equity affiliate earnings from Sumika Styron. The global polycarbonate market continues to rebound with year-to-date growth of about 5% and operating rates approaching 80%. Sales volume to the consumer essential markets was its highest since 2012. Sales volume to the automotive market grew year-over-year in Europe, North America, and Asia.

Formerly known as Styron, Trinseo previously announced plans to change the name of all Styron affiliated companies to Trinseo. Some, but not all, of the Styron companies have completed the name change process and are currently known as Trinseo; Styron companies that have not completed this process will continue to do business as Styron until their respective name changes are complete. Styron’s operating companies also continue to do business as Styron at this time.

Trinseo is a global materials company and manufacturer of plastics, latex and rubber. Trinseo’s technology is used by customers in industries such as home appliances, automotive, building & construction, carpet, consumer electronics, consumer goods, electrical & lighting, medical, packaging, paper & paperboard, rubber goods and tires.

MRC