As the world's leading specialty chemicals company, Clariant has drawn the attention of its customers to the potential violations of Clariant's Exolit® OP-related patent rights in certain flame retardant products. Clariant stated that the procurement and use of halogen-free flame retardant products produced by certain Chinese manufacturers may constitute an infringement of Clariant's related patent rights.
As the sole supplier of Exolit® OP, Clariant has developed its flame retardant technology based on organic phosphinates. Since 2004, this technology has been commercially sold under the Exolit® OP trademark. Clariant's innovative technology is protected by multiple patents worldwide. Today, such phosphinates have become the leading solution for halogen-free flame retardant materials used in thermoplastic engineering plastics such as polyamides and polyesters, and are widely used in many industries, especially the electronics and electrical industries.
Clariant found that some Chinese manufacturers have started to produce and sell similar flame retardant products, and believes that the above actions may have constituted an infringement of Clariant's patent rights. Clariant will continue to closely monitor the flame retardant modifier and terminal flame retardant product market for potential patent infringement issues and inform customers of progress in a timely manner.
Clariant emphasizes here:
Clariant is the only global supplier of Exolit® OP flame retardants including China;
Clariant has numerous patents to protect its products, including products distributed in China, through continuous innovative processes and active patent management;
Clariant is actively taking legal action to combat infringement of intellectual property rights in its products or technologies.