Bayer MaterialScience has taken its capacity for PU intermediate MDI beyond 1 million tpa with the its latest expansion in Europe through a 36 000tpa debottlenecking exercise. At the same time, the group has committed $8m to an upgrade of its polyols capability in the US to come onstream at the end of next year.
The MDI boost, at Uerdingen in Germany, is being achieved without major capital investment, and will be followed by the new 350,000tpa plant to be opened in China in 2008, as the company maintains its leadership position in the PU field.
The US project involves the introduction of state-of-the-art computerised control for the full process at its New Martinsville operation in West Virginia. According to Peter Vanacker, head of the PU business unit at BMS, the project reflects the site’s role as a major source for specialities in the Nafta region.
