Life-saving R&D initiative

By Lucas Lee

“DSM is setting up a world-class organisation that inspires innovation and the creation of sustainable value chains, driven by regional demands.”

– Mr. Marco Kleuters, Vice President

DSM Dyneema is the inventor and manufacturer of Dyneema, an Ultra High Molecular Weight PolyEthylene (UHMWPE) fibre. UHMWPE offers maximum strength combined with minimum weight. Recently, DSM Dyneema invested in a new state-of-the-art world class technical centre in Singapore.
During the ground breaking ceremony, International Plastics News for Asia (IRNA) discussed with Mr. Marco Klueters, Vice President of DSM Dyneema’s Life Protection division in Asia Pacific the company’s sustainable business growth in the Asia Pacific region. 

IRNA: What are the specific demands of the markets today that DSM hopes to meet in investing in this testing centre in Singapore?
Mr. Klueters: The Asia Pacific region is a key growth area for DSM Dyneema and we are continuously increasing our presence here. Asia is home to many high growth economies, which are all seeing rising demand for strong, light and durable fibre solutions.  Asia is becoming more important in global development of innovative products.

IRNA: Please provide an overview of the ballistics testing centre in Singapore. 
Mr. Klueters: DSM Dyneema will invest S$10 million in this new world-class technical centre. The facility will house Asia’s first independent ballistic testing centre and will also be home to the regional headquarter of the DSM Dyneema Life Protect business.  This 2,500 sq.m. facility will have a basement containing two ballistic testing ranges. It will also come with high tech equipment and testing labs for technicians to conduct comprehensive tests on vehicle and personal protection. This centre is the third one after those in the US and the Netherlands.
We are setting up a world-class organisation that inspires innovation and the creation of sustainable value chains, driven by regional demands. The technical centre represents an important milestone in the development of our global corporate strategy.  It will be an excellent place to meet and work closely with our regional partners. The centre will be dedicated to serving our growing customer base for Dyneema UHMWPE fibre, tape and uni-directional fabric in Asia.
It will also drive research and development as part of DSM Dyneema’s fibre solutions global R&D facility by supporting new application development and enhancing the technological capabilities for Asian customers, as well as developing and driving new application areas like renewable energy. Local requirements in Asia are different from the rest of the world. We will use our global know-how to make our solutions fit for local applications. We will also develop completely new applications that are not available in other parts of the world. So the technical centre will develop both existing and new solutions.
The technical centre is designed in line with our commitment to sustainability and will adhere to Singapore’s Building Construction Authority Green Mark Scheme. The centre will incorporate green building technologies that will result in high-level of energy efficiency and sustainable work environment. It is scheduled to be fully operational in the fourth quarter of 2012 and will have 25 staff initially.

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