BASF constructs new compounding plant in Korea

BASF broke ground on its new compounding plant for engineering plastics compounds Ultramid (polyamide, PA) and Ultradur (polybutylene terephthalate, PBT) in Yesan, Chung Nam Province, Korea. The new plant is expected to begin operations by the end of 2015, and will create more than 30 new jobs.

With an initial annual capacity of 36,000MT, the new plant will more than double the total compounding capacity of BASF’s engineering plastics in Korea. With this project and the previously announced capacity expansion of BASF′s compounding plant in Pudong (China), BASF’s overall compounding capacity in Asia will increase by 2015 from the current 130,000 to a total of 225,000MT.

The groundbreaking of the new site in Yesan is another milestone BASF, which has been continuously investing in Korea for the past 60 years. Korea has become an important production hub for BASF to serve customers in Korea and the Asia Pacific region, said Mr. WooSung Shin, Managing Director, BASF Korea.

Ultramid and Ultradur are used, for example, in automotive parts as well as the electrical and electronics industry. Some innovative applications include lightweight seat structures, oil sump modules, sensors, engine mounts, connectors and highly integrated laser-structured electronic devices.