Metallurgy / Chemicals / Rubber & Plastics

Milliken is expanding the facilities and capacity it acquired last March with the acquisition of Germany's Zebra-chem GmbH. Zebra-chem is a specialist synthesizer and chemical company producing additive and blowing agent concentrates for polyolefins, PVC and engineering thermoplastics.

The expansion will allow Milliken to increase production capacity at the Bad Bentheim plant it will acquire by 60 percent by the end of the year. Milliken & Co. plans to install new production equipment and hire more employees at the plant, which will be renamed Birch I, and it is also building a new warehouse nearby called Birch II. Milliken & Company has been a trailblazer in sustainability for more than a century, and the company's tradition of naming its factories after trees is a tribute to the company's core values.

Tugce Asici-van Houselt, Sales Manager for Milliken & Company, said: "We are seeing very strong value-added demand for these products in several end markets, and our customer base has welcomed our broader solutions portfolio. These facilities will continue to provide global Market services, with a focus on Europe, the Middle East and Africa."

German factory-produced viscosity modifiers and modifiers can increase the melt flow of recycled PP resins with little loss of physical properties, allowing more recycled content to be used by processors and brands without compromising overall performance.

“Miliken & Company is known for its sustainable innovations,” said Wim Van de Velde, global vice president of Milliken & Company’s Plastic Additives business unit. “We are excited to leverage its European leadership to help accelerate market solutions, Improve and increase production using recycled plastics. This expansion marks a clear market response.”

The plant also produces solid concentrates as chemical blowing agents for the production of foamed thermoplastics. These blowing agents - which enable lightweighting and improved thermal and acoustic insulation without compromising mechanical properties - are suitable for use in PVC, polyethylene, polypropylene and polystyrene. They can be used by processors in extrusion and injection molding foam processing methods.

Milliken said it is on track to fully integrate the acquired businesses this year.