High-tech plastics for green mobility

Mobility has become an important concern today with all sectors of the society working hand-in-hand to find innovative solutions and products to enhance it. But the future of mobility is green -- with technological and material innovations playing key role in meeting this goal.

High performance plastics are setting new trends in the production of automotive parts to improve mobility. Growth in automotive production will be steady in the next few years owing to rising demand in major markets despite some setbacks in major- producing and exporting countries. But KPMG’s Global Automotive Executive Survey 2012 (www.kpmg.com) indicates that the automotive industry continues to face environmental challenges, increasing urbanisation and shifting customer behavior, which calls for radical new approaches to future mobility. And these issues are becoming universal, with three-quarters (75%) of respondents believing that emerging and mature markets will converge by 2025. The survey further shows that today’s cars must adapt to their environment. Half the respondents (50%) feel that vehicle design and usage will be influenced by urban planning. And a majority think that new mobility solutions are needed not just for mature, but also for emerging markets, in order to attract future city residents.

As a technology leader in specialty chemicals, LANXESS considers itself an enabler of green mobility, thus supplying customers across the globe with products that help them create environmentally-friendly mobility. Green mobility is an integral part of its global mission to contribute to economic, environmental and social sustainability. This year, LANXESS focuses on green mobility. Its scientists are developing innovative products and technologies based on renewable raw materials, sustainable manufacturing processes and economically-compatible methods of disposal that help to protect the environment. In 2009, the Innovation group function was created to bundle all the expertise at LANXESS.

In all these efforts, the importance of high-tech plastics has been highlighted and the company has been upgrading its facilities worldwide to meet growing demand. LANXESS recently inaugurated its new production site in Jhagadia, Gujarat state in India as part of its commitment to serve the growing market for high-tech plastics under its Semi-Crystalline Products business unit. High-tech plastics from the facility are used by the automotive industry, including leading car manufacturers Tata Motors, Volkswagen and Ford. The site already includes a facility for ion exchange resins used in water purification and a rubber chemicals plant serving the tyre and rubber processing industries.

In his keynote speech during the inauguration of the Jhagadia site, Dr. Werner Breuers, Member of the Board of ManagemAir Jordan IV 4 Running Shoes