|
Ube Industries,Ltd. (President: Kazumasa Tsunemi) announces that the MEKO (methylethylketoxime)
production facilities (annual production: 5,000 tons) at
its Ube Chemicals plant, construction of which was completed
last November, have been quality-inspected by representatives
of major paint manufacturers, and are now moving toward
full operations.
Ube has been manufacturing MEKO since 1979, and the product
is one of the core products of Ube's fine chemicals business.
MEKO is well known as a chemical used to prevent the
formation of surface skin on liquid paint. Recently, however,
demand for this product has been increasing in other sectors,
including for use in cationic electrodeposition paints
for automobiles, isocyanate blocking liquids for polyurethane
prepolymers, and silicone sealant hardener raw materials.
With the completion of these new facilities, Ube Industries
has positioned itself to respond to increasing demand
stemming from robust domestic sales of automobiles as
well as Japanese automakers' advances in China and throughout
Asia.
The decision to build new facilities at the Ube Chemicals
plant was reached because Ube Industries' Sakai plant
had capacity to produce only 3,000 tons of MEKO per year,
and limitations in those facilities made it difficult
to increase production there.
The new facilities include ISO container filling and
shipping as well as drum filling, providing for the increase
in efficiency for both production and logistics, as well
as for the possibility of further expansion in the future,
if demand should increase. To enhance the advantages gained
by concentrating production at the Ube Chemicals plant,
with the completion of this stage, we have also decided
to suspend operation of the MEKO facilities at the Sakai
plant.
Many of Ube Industries' fine chemicals products are aimed
at customers in the paint and ink industry, and our new
facilities will help to strengthen our presence in this
industry in Japan and throughout Asia.
In caprolactam products, which are the basic ingredients
of nylon, Ube Industries has adopted a strategy of increasing
competitiveness both in the basic stages and in the derivative
products known as the "caprolactam chain." The
new facilities can be seen as part of our strategic efforts
to strengthen our caprolactam chain, as both MEKO and
caprolactam are made from amine liquid.
For inquiries please contact:
Ube Industries, Ltd.
Investor Relations & Public Relations Dept.
Corporate Planning & Administration Office
Seavance North Building, 1-2-1 Shibaura, Minato-ku, Tokyo 105-8449
Phone : +81(3)5419-6110
|
|
