BASF Expands its North American Engineering Plastics Compounding Operations
January 20 , 2006
WYANDOTTE, Mich. -- BASF's Engineering Plastics business will expand its North American manufacturing operations with the installation of compounding capacity at the company's Altamira, Mexico, site.
When start up of production commences in the second quarter of 2006, BASF's engineering plastics compounded at Altamira will be supplied to customers based in Mexico and along the U.S.-Mexico border. BASF engineering plastics to be compounded at Altamira include various nylon 6, nylon 6,6 and PBT resins.
"We selected Altamira as the ideal location for this compounding extrusion line because it is a well-established, major production site for our Styrenics business, and therefore already houses the infrastructure and people with the requisite technical familiarity with polymer and compounding processes that meet our standards for producing high-quality resins for our customers," said Greg Masica, Director of Manufacturing for BASF's Engineering Plastics business in North America.
This action has no impact on BASF's other North American engineering plastics compounding facilities in Wyandotte, Mich., and Sparta, Tenn., which will continue their normal operations.
"The compounding operations at Altamira will help us to serve our customers in Mexican and U.S.-Mexican border markets more effectively and efficiently, and enable us to pursue other growth opportunities in this important area," Masica continued. "Capacity from our Sparta and Wyandotte lines that currently supply this area will be shifted to other markets, where demand for our engineering plastics remains strong. The available capacity will also be utilized to manufacture products resulting from the recent acquisition of LATI's North American operations."
"BASF is committed to the North American engineering plastics market, which we believe offers significant growth opportunities," said Jay N. Baker, Group Vice President of BASF's Engineering Plastics business in North America. "We've made three acquisitions in last three years - Honeywell's engineering plastics business, Ticona's nylon 6,6 business and, in December 2005, LATI's major North American engineering plastics business - and have taken the necessary strategic actions like expanding our compounding capacity at Altamira to reaffirm BASF's dedication to being our customers' supplier of choice for engineering plastics."
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BASF Corporation, headquartered in New Jersey, is the North American affiliate of BASF AG, Ludwigshafen, Germany. Rated in FORTUNE magazine as America's Most Admired Chemical Company, we employ about 10,000 people in North America and had sales of approximately $11 billion in 2004.
BASF is the world's leading chemical company: The Chemical Company. Its portfolio ranges from chemicals, plastics, performance products, agricultural products and fine chemicals to crude oil and natural gas. As a reliable partner to virtually all industries, BASF's intelligent solutions and high-value products help its customers to be more successful. BASF develops new technologies and uses them to open up additional market opportunities. It combines economic success with environmental protection and social responsibility, thus contributing to a better future. In 2004, BASF had approximately 82,000 employees and posted sales of more than $50 billion. BASF shares are traded on the stock exchanges in Frankfurt (BAS), London (BFA), New York (BF) and Zurich (AN).
