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Significant investments in expanding the capacity of its high-heat engineering resins Ultem PEI (polyetherimide) and Extem TPI (thermoplastic polyimide) are planned by SABIC in order to meet growing demand. Announced at Chinaplas 2019, this capacity expansion will come on stream from a new production plant in Singapore. This will make SABIC the only high-heat resin producer with manufacturing capabilities in all regions. In addition to this, investments to stretch the company’s short-term capacity were made to support the immediate growing demand.

Said director of the company’s high-heat 911±¬ÁÏÍø Rudy Miller, “In total, we are expanding our production capacity by more than) 50%. Fundamentally, it is our ambition to support our customers and our customers’ growth. There is a growing demand for high-heat polymers, driven by stringent requirements in an increasing number of applications that are exposed to challenging or tough environments. Our existing customers have been loyal to our Ultem brand while new applications and customers are also rapidly driving new demand and opportunities.”

According to Miller, more than half of SABIC’s high-heat thermoplastics organization is closely working with customers on new applications. “In electrical and electronics everything needs to be smart, driven by real-time direct communication and connectivity. These days everything is packed with electronics, from increasingly autonomous vehicles, to smart grids in solar and wind-energy harvesting, and from sophisticated appliances or consumer portable devices to telecom infrastructure, smart meters and connectors. The current trends, such as miniaturization, weight reduction, improved optics and connectivity, call for dimensionally stable materials, with tight tolerances, ease of processability and the possibility for mass production, all combined with minimization of waste and optimization of potential post-consumer recyclability.”