Mitsubishi Chemical Corporation announced its intention to open its European carbon fiber sheet molding compound (SMC) plant in Italy. The new plant is scheduled to begin operations in September 2020, and is located next to C.P.C. SRL (headquarters: Modena, Italy, hereinafter referred to as CPC). Mitsubishi Chemical (MCC) holds a 44% stake in the company.
The SMC developed by MCC is an intermediate material for carbon fiber reinforced plastics (CFRP) and a sheet-like material in which carbon fibers cut to a length of several centimeters are dispersed in a resin. SMC can be processed into components in a short time by a stamper, that is, about 2 to 5 minutes. Compared to prepreg intermediates (uncut carbon fiber fabric impregnated with resin), the SMC has high formability for molding parts with complex shapes.
In Japan, MCC produces SMC at its Aichi plant (Toyohashi, Aichi Prefecture). Japanese automakers have adopted SMC for structural parts of car door and trunk inner panels and back doors. Through CPC, MCC developed its mobile business in Europe using CFRP as the main structural material. It has begun to promote the development of SMC to obtain automotive application certifications, mainly from several European luxury car manufacturers, and it is expected to be more widely adopted in the future.
To meet such strong demand, MCC will open a new SMC production facility in Modena, Italy to increase production capacity. Modena has customers and a skilled workforce that provide advanced engineering traditions that allow smooth entry into the MCC automotive market. In addition to MCC's current plant in Aichi Prefecture, the new production facility will strengthen SMC production and help further expand MCC's global sales.
MCC will actively provide the best solutions in the mobile field by combining the carbon fiber production bases in Japan, the United States and Europe, the molding technology of CPC, and the marketing capabilities of Mitsubishi Chemical Advanced Materials Co., Ltd. (MCAM). Strong marketing capabilities and strong sales network, especially in Europe and the United States
* MCAM changed its name to Quadrant AG on April 1, 2019. The company operates the following businesses worldwide: a variety of super engineering plastics combined with fillers, and thermoplastic resins combining carbon fiber, glass fiber and polypropylene fiber.