Apr 18 2007
WACKER, the Munich-based chemical group, officially opens its new Beijing technical center for construction applications. The center’s lab facilities will develop and test construction-sector polymeric binders. The new center boosts WACKER’s presence in China by helping to expand its share of the region’s high-growth construction-polymer market. The investment offers customers optimum local support for new product developments and promotes internationally recognized quality standards in the construction industry.
The Beijing technical center will focus on developing formulations and meeting requirements of local construction-industry customers particularly with regard to northern China’s raw materials and environmental conditions. Located in the Beijing Economic-Technological Development Area, the 980 m2 center includes a sales office, as well as lab and training facilities. With a sales office and technical center under one roof, the sales and development teams can now collaborate more closely to deliver optimal customer support.
WACKER’s technical center in Beijing aims to serve northern China’s expanding markets, enabling the Group to reinforce its position as the technology leader for high-quality construction chemicals. “The Beijing technical center is a further major milestone in our Chinese growth strategy,” said Dr. Rudolf Staudigl, Wacker Chemie AG’s Executive Board member responsible for Asia, during an opening ceremony. “Our primary goal is to offer our customers from the Chinese construction industry products and solutions perfectly matched to their requirements and thereby help them to enhance their own business success. The new technical center allows us to provide better support than ever in helping our Chinese customers to develop new product applications.”
A key focus is on VINNAPAS® dispersible polymer powder formulations for the manufacture of polymer-modified dry-mix mortars. WACKER conducts research on country-specific construction applications, tests local materials and offers advice on construction-chemical questions. The state-of-the-art labs include facilities such as climate chambers with integrated weathering test walls. These are used to test exterior insulation and finish systems under various climatic conditions and to check the specific materials’ resistance and efficiency. Such tests are a great way to raise the profile of high-quality construction materials and help spread their use in China. By working closely with universities, scientific institutes, standards committees and the authorities, WACKER also plays a key role in the wording of quality standards and regulations for the use of dry-mix mortars in China.
“China is growing much faster than the global average. In just a few years, it will be one of the largest chemical markets in the world. That’s why we brought a spray dryer for dispersible polymer powders on stream at our Zhangjiagang site back in 2005,” explained Arno von der Eltz, President of WACKER POLYMERS. “We expect to start construction work on a new production plant for dispersible polymer powders at our Nanjing site this year. This plant will mean our local customers will be optimally supplied and supported.”
China’s growing demand for VINNAPAS® dispersible polymer powders is chiefly due to the need for dependable, lightweight and energy-efficient building materials. Increasingly, Chinese houses are being lined with exterior insulation and finish systems (EIFS). VINNAPAS® is a major component of the specialty mortars used in these systems. The dispersible polymer powder ensures that the individual layers which make up such systems are bonded together permanently. Inside the mortar itself, VINNAPAS® forms a polymeric film that not only improves the adhesion of the mortar, but also makes it more flexible and resistant to impact. As a result, the insulating system offers greater durability and much more resistance to weathering and wear and tear than its unmodified counterparts.