December 18, 2018-Munich-based chemical group WACKER expands silicone rubber production capacity worldwide. WACKER plans to gradually increase the total annual production capacity of special silicone rubber by 40,000 tons by expanding multiple production bases by 2021, and allocate approximately 100 million euros of investment funds for this purpose.
Through this expansion, WACKER aims to better meet the growing demand for silicone rubber in key industries such as global automotive manufacturing, electronics and medical technology. With this investment, WACKER's Silicones business unit further implements its strategy to expand its specialty product portfolio.
Silicone rubber is one of the most popular high-performance materials in the industry. "Silicone has excellent properties and can be used to implement innovative product solutions. It has become an indispensable material for many key industries such as automotive manufacturing, medical and electronic technology with its unique overall performance," said Robert, president of WACKER's silicone business unit Dr. Gnann said, "Driven by development trends such as hybrid vehicles, electric vehicles, digitalization, and decentralized alternative power generation such as wind and solar, we have achieved growth rates above average. We have also achieved sustainable development. We have made a significant contribution, and we will very clearly focus our expansion on specialty products in our portfolio as a strategic priority. "
WACKER will significantly improve the supply of silicone rubber products and customer service in the near future by expanding its upstream and final production capacity. The expansion will benefit all product lines in WACKER's solid silicones segment. In April this year, WACKER put into operation a new silicone sealant and thermally conductive silicone compound production base in Jincheon, South Korea. WACKER's and Silicon Valley's joint venture in Amtala, India, has also begun producing room-temperature-curing silicone elastomers and liquid silicone rubbers.
WACKER CHEMICAL GROUP plans to expand the production capacity of liquid silicone rubber, high temperature and room temperature curing silicone rubber and thermally conductive silicone mixtures in Burghausen (Germany), Adrian (Michigan, USA) and Zhangjiagang (China) in 2019. WACKER is currently considering and studying the construction of a solid silicone production line at its production facility in Charleston, Tennessee. WACKER has been producing polysilicon at its Charleston production site since 2016. The production base will also put into operation a fumed silica production line next year. Fumed silica is an important filler for the production of solid silicone rubber.
Silicone Rubber
Silicone rubber is mainly composed of a silicone polymer and a filler. It can be cross-linked with the corresponding reactants to form a three-dimensional structure, so that the rubber compound that originally had fluidity or plasticity becomes an elastic rubber body. Silicone rubber is resistant to high temperatures, can remain flexible at low temperatures, and is resistant to aging (ultraviolet, ozone, radiation), is easy to process, and can maintain stability and good mechanical properties over a wide temperature range. Silicone elastomers are widely used in the fields of aircraft and machinery manufacturing, electronics, electrical technology, textiles, baby products, toys, household appliances, sporting goods, and construction. WACKER offers about 1,000 silicone rubber products.
Wacker Silicone Business Unit
WACKER SILICONES is one of the world's largest manufacturers of silicone products, supplying more than 3,000 highly specialized and innovative products. Product categories include silicone-based oils, emulsions, resins, elastomers, sealants, silanes, silane-terminated polymers, fumed silica, and more. The product can effectively increase the value and efficacy of the customer's final product, so for the customer, the value-added effect is excellent. The silicone products produced by WACKER's silicone business unit are mainly used in the construction, chemical, cosmetics, textile, automotive, paper, electronics and medical technology industries. In fiscal 2017, sales of WACKER SILICONES accounted for approximately 45% of the Group's total sales.