try. The generally weak economy has
taken its toll on both our customers’
coatings and our resin production. This
is true especially in North America and
also in Europe. The Asian region
showed signs of recovery much more
quickly than the rest of the world.
Dimitri de Vreeze, DSM NeoResins+: The
U.S. was the first economy to be hit by
the crisis, which had its impact on China
as an export nation. It is clear that a
local crisis can have global consequences.
Within DSM we have taken the required
measurements in cost control and optimizing cash flows. However DSM has
continued to invest heavily in innovation. In 2009 we opened a new waterborne acrylic factory in The Netherlands
and a new multi purpose polyester factory in Germany in January 2010.
How is the current economy
affecting the demand and
production of resins in
mature and emerging markets?
Uwe Liebelt, BASF: During the first
months of 2010, we have seen improvement in demand for resins. As would be
expected, emerging markets such as
Southeast Asia continue to show higher
growth rates versus the developed markets of Europe and North America. We
should continue to see some production
shifting to regions that can accommodate higher growth rates at lower cost.
China and India will continue to be
important growth regions for resins.
Jared Elliott, Celanese: China and
India are definitely growing markets.
There is no shift in resin production
from the West to the East. Instead, it is
a growth in production for these
emerging markets. We announced the
expansion of our VAE plant in Nanjing,
China late last year that will be supplying these markets in 2011.
Dimitri de Vreeze, DSM NeoResins+: It
should be noted here that there is not a
real shift of resin production in the sense
that production that was first taking
place in Europe or U.S. is now being done
in Asia and from there exported to the
west. It is more a difference in resin
demand growth between the regions.
The export from Asia of products with
ink or paint applied on them is replacing
production of those products in the west,
so the shift is mainly indirect. The crisis
has affected demand in all markets,
either mature or emerging. We see how-
ever that the local end market in China
is recovering faster than the markets in
U.S. or Europe. The crisis has not
changed the basic reasons for the shift
from Europe and the U.S. to Asia, albeit
that current lower demand in the West
will temporary delay some investments
in Europe and the U.S. Legislation, pack-
aging and transport costs as well as the
lack of intellectual property enforcement
are factors which prohibit the shifting of
production of some resins to Asia.
How would you characterize
the pricing situation in the
resins market?
Uwe Liebelt, BASF: Raw material cost
volatility and availability has been an
issue, particularly since the third
quarter of 2009. BASF has announced
price increases as a result.
Jared Elliott, Celanese: It is no secret
that raw material prices are again on
the rise this year after a relatively stable time in 2009. We have seen particularly high increases in the acrylate
monomers, which are also experiencing
various supply disruptions. Our customers are very knowledgeable of the
raw material trends and though no one
ever wants a price increase, they understand the underlying issues.
Dimitri de Vreeze, DSM NeoResins+:
Raw material prices have increased
over the past few years due to the
price increments of fossil fuels. DSM
has managed to control cost but we
had to pass some of the price rises on
to our customers.
What are your customers
demands these days?
Uwe Liebelt, BASF: The resins market
New resins technology
BASF recently introduced Joncryl 1522, a light- to
medium-duty waterborne product for direct-to-metal
coatings providing corrosion protection. In addition,
BASF has developed high solids acrylic polyols with
rapid property development in two component polyisocyanate cured coatings. Finally, the company has
introduced several waterborne energy curing resins
especially for wood coatings.
With the acquisition of Ciba, BASF has added people, technology and products that complement its
existing offerings. The addition of key product areas
such as light stabilizers, photo initiators, formulation
additives and antioxidants compliments the existing
product offerings from BASF.
Eliokem has introduced Hydro Pliolite 040. This water-
based acrylic copolymer emulsion is designed specifically for
high performance masonry coatings and utilizes an emulsified binding system (EBS) that is unique to Eliokem. This
resin system is designed to penetrate into the substrate to
allow better adhesion than conventional latex polymers. The
EBS technology consists of a dissolved, solventborne polymer emulsified in water. This resin is ideal for concrete cure
and seal products and can be formulated to comply with
ASTM 1315. It forms a film while the water evaporates and
leaves a dissolved polymer to penetrate and adhere to previously coated substrates that used a solvent-based or
water-based sealer. Hydro Pliolite 040 is recommended for
use in primers, exterior masonry coatings, tilt up and horizontal concrete membranes.
Eliokem has also recently introduced Pliotec SA10, a
styrene acrylic latex with excellent adhesion properties
used in top and base coats for metal coatings; Pliotec SA40,
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