Professor Christian Hopmann, institute director of the IKV Institute for Plastics Processing in Industry and Craft at RWTH Aachen University, has been honoured as the newest "Fellows of SPE" at Antec 2019, the largest international technology conference. He was nominated by SPE’s Injection Moulding Division (IMD) and received the prestigious award by Dr. Brian Grady, president of the Society of Plastics Engineers (SPE) on 17 March 2019 at Renaissance Center in Detroit, Michigan, USA.

Byk is expanding its operations in the Shanghai region and has opened a new site. The company said that Asia accounts for one third of sales, and has made a substantial contribution in past decades. The five-hectare site in Shanghai (around 54,000 sqm) is home to laboratories, a distribution center, and administration and was constructed in just two years. BYK invested around EUR 38 million. Some 100 employees will work here it is in full operation.

Borealis and Borouge have announced that the new compounding plant of Borealis in Taylorsville, NC, USA, has come on stream during Q1 2019 as planned, with the inauguration of the facility scheduled for 16 May 2019. With production lines for thermoplastic olefin (TPO) and short glass fibre (SGF) reinforced compounds, the plant is well located to meet the growing needs of OEM and Tier 1 in the region for advanced polypropylene (PP) solutions, while adding another 30 kt to the companies’ global PP compounding capacity.

Lubrizol has announced the opening of a new TPU line in its Songjiang (Shanghai) China. This expansion of the Songjiang plant follows the launch last year of a new compounding line. Both expansions are aimed at supporting the company's engineered polymers business. The company has been adding capacity to its global TPU manufacturing footprint in every major region of the world to support the fast-growing demand for specialty elastomers. The new line in China will increase capacity for specialty applications by nearly a third.

Feica, the Association of the European Adhesive & Sealant Industry, invites experts to share their knowledge and experience at the 2019 European Adhesive & Sealant Conference and Expo, which takes place at the Valamar Dubrovnik Hotels in Dubrovnik, Croatia, from 11 - 13 September 2019.

Lubrizol announces the addition of a new, toluene-free Pearlbond TPU grade for adhesive powders, films and webs. Pearlbond 1170L complements the Pearlbond 1160 and 1160 L series. These resins are already widely used in demanding end-uses such as fire hoses, thermobonding films for use in footwear, furniture, apparel, sealing tapes and automotive interior trim. This series offers benefits such as short cycle time, good wetting properties and waterproof performance. In addition, it is the ideal resin for film and sheet conversion applications thanks to its gel-free properties and high melt strength.

Audia Elastomers is offering an extensive range of material solutions for the production of durable pet toys (e.g., dog chew toys and treats), including elastomers that deliver durability, tear strength, high clarity, and adhesion. The company provides customised material solutions such as styrenic block copolymers (SBC), thermoplastic polyurethanes (TPU), copolyesters, and thermoplastic vulcanisates (TPV) that allow brand owners to position their products at various retail price points from high-end, boutique products to mass market, big box store materials.

The NRC Group announced that it is now operating under the uniform brand name Nordmann. According to the company, this step is part of a holistic strategy that the distributor of chemical and natural raw materials as well as speciality chemicals has taken up in response to changes in the global market.

Acmos, Inc. announced that it has opened an office in Pittsburgh, PA, USA. The company is a global manufacturer of release agents and related process chemicals for the polyurethane, rubber, composites, wood, foundry, glass, thermoplastics, and metalworking industries.

Kraton Corporation announced that it has approved the construction of a semi works latex unit in Paulinia, Brazil, which is scheduled to be complete by Q1 2020 and ready for commissioning during Q2 2020. Details on the investment volume and capacity of the facility were not disclosed.