Expansion of Production Capacity at Resin Compound Manufacturing Plant in China

October 11, 2022

Asahi Kasei Corporation

 

Expansion of Production Capacity at Resin Compound Manufacturing Plant in China

- Decided to strategically expand investment in the functional materials business in the Chinese market -

 

Asahi Kasei Corporation (Head office: Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo; President: Koshiro Kudo; hereinafter, "the Company") has announced that it has acquired a Chinese resin compound company ^* We are pleased to announce that we have decided to expand our manufacturing plant (Changshu City, Jiangsu Province, China) by installing a state-of-the-art extruder.

1. Background

The Group has positioned the functional materials business in the Mobility & Industrial Business Division as a key strategic business in order to achieve its vision for 2030. In particular, it has focused on expanding the functional materials business in China, where significant market growth is expected. rice field.

 

2. Overview

In the Chinese functional materials market, where we have been expanding our business, we have steadily increased the sales volume of engineering resins, mainly for applications such as automobiles and solar cell modules (PV). As a result, the local compound production volume in China has grown to exceed the Japanese compound production volume. In addition, sales are expected to increase at an annual rate of about 10% through sales expansion activities in new application markets such as electric vehicles (EV), 5th generation mobile communication systems (5G), connectors, and environmentally friendly materials, which are expected to continue growing in the future. I'm here.

Asahi Kasei Plastics (Changshu) Co., Ltd. (APCS), a new compound plant, has been in full operation since April 2021. However, due to the expansion of the functional materials business in the Chinese market, production capacity is expected to be insufficient from fiscal year 2024 onwards. In light of this situation, the company has decided to increase its production and warehousing capacity, with operation scheduled for October 2023. In addition, in selecting an extruder to increase capacity, the company decided to introduce a state-of-the-art large extruder, as it needs equipment using the latest production technology and the establishment of a smooth mass production system for strategic grades in order to quickly enter and expand into markets such as electric vehicles (EVs) and fifth-generation mobile communication systems (5G).

The Compound Production and Technology Center (hereinafter referred to as "the Center"), which is our compound production technology development and mass production base, has the same type of equipment, and collaboration between the Center and Asahi Kasei Plastics (Changshu) Co., Ltd. will enable technology transfer and technical support from the Center to speed up mass production of the new strategic grade.

Asahi Kasei Plastics (Changshu) Co., Ltd. will continue to expand its production capacity and automated warehouse storage capacity in line with the expansion of its functional materials business in the Chinese market, thereby further strengthening its operations in order to provide products with new value to customers.

 

Asahi Kasei Plastics (Changshu) Co., Ltd. <APCS> Overview

Representative: Tomohiro Shinada

Location: Changshu City, Jiangsu Province, People's Republic of China New Material Industrial Park

Production capacity: 28,000t/year → 36,000t/year (8,000t increase)

 

The Group is making various efforts to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050. As part of this, in the functional material compound business, we will contribute to a sustainable society through the introduction of renewable energy and the development of environmentally friendly grades at our compound manufacturing plants in Japan and overseas.

*Compound: Adding functionality to synthetic resin by adding additives such as glass-fiber and flame Flame retardance

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