Trinseo has inaugurated a pilot facility in Hsinchu, Taiwan for production of thermoplastic polyurethane, thermoplastic elastomers and bio-based plastics for customers in the Asia-Pacific region.
The new facility is built at the company's existing site Hsinchu, and will bring the company physically closer to customers in the automotive, consumer electronics, footwear and medical markets, it said.
Francesca Reverberi, vice president of engineering materials and synthetic rubber at the company,said: 'We are very excited to start up the pilot facility for our custom engineered TPE and TPU which is closer to customers in the Asia-Pacific region.'
Trinseo expects TPU and TPE use to grow in the future because of trends such as the growth in tele-medicine and the convergence of medical and consumer electronics. ‘These trends bring a requirement for soft touch materials and bio-based plastics,' she said.
The pilot plant will also play a significant role in helping Trinseo achieve its 2030 Sustainability Goals, which specify that sustainably sourced materials will form the basis of 40% of Trinseo's portfolio within a decade. Trinseo's biobased and biodegradable TPE and TPU materials comprise a significant portion of the company's environmentally friendly portfolio, and the pilot facility is expected to accelerate adoption and development of these solutions.
No capacity was given for the size of the pilot plant, nor was the investment specified.