volatile organic compounds,
low odor and high durable solutions not only help protect
health and provide protection and resistance against weathering
elements, but also meet the increasingly more stringent environmental
standards,” said Jeff Knight, senior vice
president, Dispersions and Resins Asia
Pacific, BASF.
For the first time, the full acrylic
polymer dispersions Acronal 7079 was
introduced in India. Featuring BASF’s
state-of-the-art technology with 3-di-
mensional cross-linking structure, it
helps prevent formation of cracks and
create a good water barrier property and
water vapor permeability. With the use
of the latest technology, Acronal 7079 is
ideal for clean and durable elastomeric
wall coating. The systematic ultraviolet
cross-link and good thickener response
make it excellent in weathering and dirt
pickup resistance.
The organic opacifying polymer,
AQAcell HIDE 6299 was also launched
during the show. It is designed to provide
opacity and whiteness to paints in architectural coatings by extending and/or
improving the efficiency of TiO2. It helps
reduce the amount of TiO2 in the formulation without sacrificing performance.
With its low odor, it can be used in both
exterior and interior paints.
Kraton Polymers Completes
Acquisition of Arizona
Chemical
Kraton Polymers LLC has completed
the previously announced purchase of
all of the outstanding shares of capital
stock of Arizona Chemical Holdings
Corporation. Arizona is one of the largest global providers of pine-based specialty chemicals.
The $1,370 million cash purchase
price for the acquisition, which is sub-
ject to adjustment for cash, indebted-
ness, working capital, and other items,
as well as the previously announced cash
tender offer and redemption of all of the
Company’s outstanding 6.75% Senior
Notes due 2019 and related acquisition
and financing expenses were funded
through the following transactions:
A private offering of $440 million in
aggregate principal amount of 10.500%
Senior Notes, which were issued at a
price of 96.225% and mature on April
15, 2023,
A $1,350 million six year senior se-
cured first lien term loan facility, which
was issued at a price of 97 percent and
will bear interest at LIBOR plus 500 basis
points, subject to a LIBOR floor of 100
basis points,
A new $250 million five-year asset-
based revolving credit facility, $37 mil-
lion of which was drawn at closing,
which replaced the Company’s former
senior secured credit facilities.
Elcometer Consolidates
European Manufacturing
Operations
Elcometer has made the strategic decision to consolidate the Group’s European
manufacturing and CNC machining operations at a single location.
Over the next four months, Elcometer’s
Belgium manufacturing operations, located in Hermalle-sous-Argenteau, will
be transferred to their new purpose built
1,600 m2 ( 17,200 ft2) state of the art
UK CNC Machining Centre facility in
Manchester, opened in April 2014 – maximizing productivity and simplifying the
control and management of Elcometer’s
coating inspection and physical test
equipment business.
In recent years, the Group has made
considerable investment in new equipment including vertical and horizontal
milling machines, sliding head lathes,
planar and cylindrical grinding machines
and robotic loading and unloading facilities. This pattern of investment will
continue with several new equipment
additions already earmarked for the
coming year.
This increased capacity and capability
will result in direct benefits for customers in terms of even greater product availability and quality.
Commercial operations (sales, service
and repair) are not affected and Belgium
customers can continue to contact
Elcometer SA by phone, + 32 (0) 4 379 96
10; email; be_info@elcometer.com or via
www.elcometer.be.
Wacker Expands Production
Capacity for High-Quality
Silicone Fluids at Its
Burghausen Site
Munich-based WACKER Group has expanded its production capacity for functional silicone fluids at its Burghausen
site. With the new expansion stage,
which came on stream in early January,
WACKER is meeting the rising global
demand for specialty fluids and silicone
emulsions in the coatings, paper, textile,
cosmetics and personal care industries.
Functional silicone fluids serve as important precursors here. Investments in the
expansion amount to around € 26 million.
The expansion measure is of particular
importance for WACKER SILICONES.
At the performance silicones plant in
Burghausen, the precursor siloxane and
other raw materials are used to make
highly specialized functional silicone fluids. They are important starting materials
for antifoam, impregnating and release
agents and for additives for the construction, coatings, paper, cosmetics and personal care industries.
The expansion is increasing the plant’s
total production capacity by around 70
percent. “The completion of our poly-
silicon production site in Tennessee has
essentially concluded our investment
in full-scale plants for the manufacture
of precursors. We are now focusing on
plants for intermediates, sales products
and specialty products,” said WACKER
President and CEO Dr. Rudolf Staudigl at
the commissioning ceremony. According
to him, the performance silicones plant is
a good example of this. “Thanks to the
expansion, we have sufficient production
capacity in Burghausen to meet the rising
global demand for versatile silicone fluids
and emulsions.”
As part of the capacity expansion,
production processes were optimized
further. Silicone fluids can now be pro-
duced even more efficiently with even
higher purity. “This plant is a key fa-
cility for us. The most important inter-
mediates for our product portfolio are
manufactured here,” said Dr. Christoph
Kowitz, head of the Performance
Silicones business unit. The majority of
the plant’s products are processed into
