Styrolution to close Massachusetts plant

In order to further strengthen its polystyrene (PS) business in North America, Styrolution is consolidating its PS capacity in the region through capacity reduction that will result in the closure of its PS plant located in Indian Orchard, Massachusetts by the end of the year. This comes following years of overcapacity in the North American polystyrene market which have also impacted Styrolution, making it necessary for the company to take action to secure this business for the future. The plant accounts for 150,000 tonnes (330 million pounds) of PS production capacity. The mothballing would affect 58 employees currently working at the site. 

Styrolution plans to shift NAS production from Indian Orchard, Massachusetts to its site in Decatur, Alabama where the company will convert a general purpose PS line into a swing line to also produce NAS. The Decatur site's modern infrastructure, excellent rail and road access, and proximity to commercial shipping lines on the Tennessee River will offer customers continued supply reliability. The transfer of NAS production from Indian Orchard to Decatur is expected to be completed by the end of the third quarter, 2014. 

In addition, Styrolution will accelerate growth in styrenic specialties through an expansion of its offering for high-performance transparent styrenics, by providing local supply in Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA). By the end of third quarter of 2014, Styrolution will start production of high-performance transparent specialty, NAS (SMMA) at the company's plant in Ludwigshafen, Germany. Currently, NAS is supplied to the EMEA region from Indian Orchard and compounded locally into the transparent product Zylar. In addition to local supply, customers will also benefit from dedicated service teams that offer expertise in selected focus industries, technical support, regulatory services and certifications.