Kuraray has announced its decision to establish facilities at its Niigata Plant in Tainai City, Niigata Prefecture, that will be capable of producing 5,000 t/a of a newly developed acrylic TPE. The material is called "the New Elastomer" and has been developed utilising the company's proprietary technology. It shows transparency and softness, as well as adhesive properties.

Two new reports from industry consultants AMI highlight the recent development of the thermoplastics compounding industry in North America. AMI’s guide to the thermoplastics compounding industry in NAFTA is a listing over 500 companies involved in the 13 billion pound NAFTA compounding industry.

Volker Scheel and Andreas Stuber have additionally been appointed as Managing Directors of Norddeutsche Ueberseegesellschaft in Hamburg mbH and of Transeurasia GmbH and thus will also be the Managing Directors for K. D. Feddersen GmbH & Co. KG. Scheel and Stuber will represent the companies each with sole power of representation.

KraussMaffei Technologies India Ltd. was recently set up in Pune, India. Thus, the KraussMaffei portfolio of injection moulding machines and extrusion systems as well as its multi-technology processes and services will now be offered directly to the Indian market.

At Chinaplas, being held in Shanghai from 19 - 22 April 2010, Kraiburg TPE will once again be demonstrating its involvement in the Asian market. Main focus will be on the new Thermolast M compounds that offer customers in the pharmaceuticals and medical markets safe and economical handling of materials that will later come into direct contact with media that ultimately pass into the human bloodstream.

For the latest highlight of Playmobil, the Great Dragon Castle, developers had to meet multiple challenges. One of them was the dragon itself, with a total of eight injection moulding tools, of which four had to be designed for multi-component injection moulding.

The International Institute of Synthetic Rubber Producers, Inc. (IISRP) will honour two of its outstanding leaders at its next AGM in Dubai, UAE, in April 2010.

Thierry de Barneville was recently appointed as ExxonMobil Chemical’s new global polyolefins automotive Sales Manager, located in Paris, France.

Sarlink TPV has announced that a new distribution partnership between Entec Resins S.A. de C.V. and Sarlink is official since 1 January 2010. Sarlink has found a new business relationship in Entec, which will supply Sarlink’s products to the plastics and rubber industry in Mexico. Entec will be the sole distribution partner in the country for all Sarlink grades from now on.

Patrice Barthelmes, 52, has been appointed CEO of Eliokem. Since 1999, Barthelmes served as Vice President (VP) and Director for the Packaging & Building Materials Division of Rohm & Haas until its buyout by Dow in 2009, where he was appointed VP and Group Director for its Adhesives & Functional Polymers Division.