Biesterfeld announced that it is expanding its long-term partnership in the field of paints and varnishes with Evonik, a leading manufacturer of chemical specialities. Following the companies’ successful cooperation for a selected portfolio in various countries, Biesterfeld has received further distribution rights. With immediate effect, the company is now the exclusive distributor for Evonik’s Coating Additives business line (CAD) in Central and Southeastern Europe.

HNP Mikrosysteme, Schwerin, Germany, has recently launched the colorDoS dosing system for injection moulding applications to ensure precise dosing of the smallest quantities of colour. The centrepiece of this system is a micro annular gear pump, various versions of which have already been used successfully for fluid delivery in mechanical and plant engineering, in the chemical and pharmaceutical sectors, and in laboratory and analysis technology. The mzr-7245 modular micro annular gear pump used in the colorDoS dispenses a shot weight of 0.02 g to 100 g of colour per shot, depending on the dosing time and viscosity.

Polyglass S.p.A., an Italian company of the Mapei Group, specialised in the production of waterproofing membranes and insulation systems, has chosen Amut as a strategic partner to increase its production capacity for TPO membranes. In December 2020, Polyglass commissioned Amut a new extrusion plant with a capacity of 10,000,000 m2/year that will be dedicated to the production of Mapeplan T, a flexible polyolefin synthetic waterproofing membrane.

The High Performance Polymers business unit of RadiciGroup has invested over EUR 35 million in new construction and installations in North America, Europe and China. Production capacity has been increased by 20,000 t per year in North America, namely, at Radici Plastics USA and Radici Plastics Mexico. In particular, a new site was inaugurated in Mexico, extending over an area of 20,000 m2. In China, work has begun on the construction of a 25,000 m2 plant that will boost production capacity by 30,000 t per year.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has approved a public health emergency exemption under Section 18 of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act ("FIFRA") submitted by the Georgia, Utah, and Minnesota Departments of Agriculture for the deployment of Kraton’s BiaXam in specific applications.  The EPA exemption will allow Delta Air Lines to use BiaXam in specific applications in these states to protect against the SARS-CoV-2 virus.

Hamburg-based Biesterfeld Plastic is adapting its business unit structure. Biesterfeld Plastic has now five instead of the previous three business units:

Hexpol TPE released their 2020 Impact Report. It is the first report of its kind from the company. Energy usage is one of the areas the company is tackling. Work involving surveys and measures to increase efficiency continued in 2020 as well as investment in energy efficient equipment and infrastructure. The report includes performance over a three-year period. There was a reduction in energy consumption of 4,345 MWh from 2019 to 2020, despite an increase in total volume produced. The Hexpol TPE companies work within the ISO 14001 and/or ISO 50001 frameworks and from 2021 all European sites are using 100 % renewable electricity. Water consumption and waste generation also showed a downward trend for 2020. Recycling rates have increased by more than 70 % from 2018 to 2020.

With its 120 years of experience in manufacturing special waxes, Völpker Spezialprodukte GmbH is one of the longest-established wax producers in Europe. In recent years the company has expanded particularly in the field of additives for plastics. The wax additives of the Plastic series and the Plastic recycling series are widely used multi-functional additives. They serve for example as combination lubricants and dispersing aids, especially where the quality requirements are particularly high. Montan wax derivatives - for example Waradur E - are worldwide largely used as optimally effective no plate-out release agents for various high quality TPU applications. For standard requirements, Voelpker offers also the new release agent Cevo process J-3405.

Trinseo and ETB have signed a letter of intent to collaborate on the development of purified bio-based 1,3-butadiene. This will see the two companies combine their respective technology and process expertise to accelerate the development of viable, renewably sourced material solutions.

KraussMaffei is launching socialProduction, its mobile app and web application for injection molding machines. This innovation combines the advantages of social media with cutting-edge production monitoring technologies. The machines report to the users live in secure chat rooms. Working autonomously, socialProduction detects deviations in the production process at an earlier stage than ever before and elevates machine monitoring into a new era.