BASF Expands North American Engineering Plastics Compounding Operations
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."
SOURCE: BASF