30 November 2006 – Dow has mixed news on the expanded polystyrene front with the temporary shutdown of its Sconapor EPS plant at Schkopau in Germany, while in the US it has started work on a new line.
The Schkopau closure, expected to last until the end of January next year, is partly for scheduled maintenance and partly to allow the company to uprate the line to improve its efficiency.
Dow’s new US facility, at LaPorte, near Houston, will make Styrofoam at an existing site of the group, to meet demand generated by new federal regulations expected to take effect in 2010.
Speaking as ground was broken for the new unit, Kostas Katsoglou, president of Dow Building Solutions, said: “As energy costs escalate, so too do heating and air conditioning bills.
“Products such as Styrofoam brand insulation contribute to energy conservation which helps address the energy demand issues currently facing the US and at the same time lowers the cost to heat and cool buildings,” he added.
