RPM International’s Performance Coatings Group (PCG) has acquired Expanko, a US producer of terrazzo tile (under the FritzTile brand), cork, rubber and rubber/cork floor tiles. The Philadelphia-headquartered Expanko, with factory in Mesquite, Texas, has annual sales of more than US$12…
Biesterfeld Spezialchemie subsidiary buys SMPC Production
BIESTERFIELD Specialties Sarl France, the French subsidiary of Biesterfeld Spezialchemie GmbH, has acquired SMPC Production company located in Saint-Ouen Alms. The acquisition has taken effect from April 1, 2013. Under the terms, the name and address of SMPC production remain…
Portage Precision Polymers opens silicone compounding plant, HQ in Ohio
PORTAGE Precision Polymers (PPP) a US custom rubber and silicone mixing firm, opens its new 17,680-sq ft silicone compound manufacturing facility and corporate headquarters in Mogadore, Ohio. The state-of-the-art facility, with a capacity of 20 million pounds of custom silicone…
JK Tyre on track for plant expansion in Chennai
INDIA-based JK Tyre & Industries Ltd is set to start an INR10 billion expansion plan at Chennai in the next two to three months and is anticipated to be completed in two phases by 2016 to 2017 Vikram Malhotra, Vice…
Vietnam’s 2013 rubber exports likely to hit US$4.5 billion
VIETNAM’s rubber exports is expected to reach US$4.5 billion this year, an increase to last year’s value of US$4.26 billion, says Tran Thi Thuy Hoa, Chief of the Office of the Vietnam Rubber Association (VRA). The increasing global demand for…
Philippine local manufacturers decry inferior imported rubber goods
AN INFLUX of cheap Chinese and Vietnamese products are coming into the country and the Government has not stepped up to halt this. This was the general sentiment of the survey result conducted by the Philippine Rubber Industries Association among…
Indonesian petrochem firm to expand naptha facility
INDONESIA’s largest petrochemical producer, Chandra Asri Petrochemical, is investing US$380 million for its planned expansion its naphtha cracker facility in Banten as part of its efforts to improve sales in Indonesia and the Southeast Asia region. Chandra Asri Vice President…
Thailand, Malaysia join forces in Rubber City project
THAILAND and Malaysia are collaborating on the Rubber City project aimed at developing the rubber industries of both countries. There are high hopes for the said project, and shoring up prices in Thailand – a major issue that has elicited…
TA Instruments acquires German software and automation firm
US-headquartered TA Instruments, a subsidiary of Waters Corporation and a manufacturer of analytical instruments for thermal analysis, rheology, and microcalorimetry, has recently acquired Scarabaeus Mess- und Produktionstechnik GmbH based in Wetzlar, Germany. Scarabaeus is a privately-owned manufacturer of instrumentation and…
Apollo in closing stages of US$2.5 billion take over of Cooper
Indian tyre company Apollo Tyres is set to take over US-based Cooper Tire and Rubber Co, with the shareholders having approved the US$2.5 billion sale, thus moving forward towards the set up of the world’s seventh biggest tyre maker and…