Dow Corning expands facility in Songjiang, China

Dow Corning expands facility in Songjiang, China

Dow Corning (Shanghai), a subsidiary of silicon manufacturer Dow Corning Corporation, has completed its multi-million USD expansion at the Shanghai Songjiang site that the company says marks one of the largest single investments in China’s paper release industry to date.

According to Dow Corning, the newly established solventless silicone manufacturing system demonstrates the company’s continued effort to increasing efficiency in the regional supply chain and brings environmental and financial benefits for customers across China and the Asia Pacific region because no solvents are used.

The opening ceremony was attended by Wang Xinkui, vice chairman of Shanghai People's Political Consultative Committee; Zhang Peirong, Songjiang district vice governor; William Brekke, principal commercial officer at US Consulate General Shanghai as well as customers in the region and Dow Corning employees.

‘The China market has been a significant contributor to our success and expanding our manufacturing presence allows us to continue innovating and providing tailor-made products and solutions for our customers here,’ said Jeremy Burks, Dow Corning China president. ‘Our solventless silicone system is a great example of the cutting-edge of technology we offer our customers and which also supports our commitment to sustainable and responsible development.’

Since entering the China market in 1973, Dow Corning has invested more than USD $2 billion in three major facilities in the country – the newly expanded manufacturing Songjiang site that serves as the Asia Specialty Chemicals Hub; Zhangjiagang’s manufacturing facility, which is an integral part of China’s largest integrated silicone production site; as well as Shanghai’s Dow Corning China Business and Technology Center.

‘Dow Corning has been operating for nearly seven decades worldwide and our continued success is attributed to our unique global commitment to excellence in customer service wherever we operate,’ said Patrick McLeod, Dow Corning business vice president, specialty chemicals.

‘With the global industry trend shifting from solvent-based technology toward adopting solventless products, our integrated service in China is perfectly positioned to meet this demand. Furthermore, our local supply and integrated service offering in China allow our regional customers to increase their market segment share and better compete in the world marketplace by enabling them to incorporate innovations into their product lifecycles and production efficiency.

‘Through incorporating highly efficient energy designs and technology and advanced processes for raw material efficiency, we are committed to applying environmental, health and safety (EHS) principles throughout our business so that we can continue contributing to our industry’s sustainable and responsible development.’

The 12-hectare Songjiang site was established in 1997 and was Dow Corning’s first manufacturing plant in China. Serving a number of industries, including beauty care, electronics, construction, paper as well as textile and leather, the site today manufactures products ranging from emulsions to sealants, adhesives and encapsulants.

Adhering to the Responsible Care principles, a number of measures have been adopted to enable Dow Corning to continue minimizing waste, reducing environmental footprint through less use of solvents and recycling resources at the site. For example, the minimization of organic solvent throughout the newly installed manufacturing system has enabled Dow Corning to reduce its overall impact on the environment. A close-loop steam recovery system has also been adopted to recycle and reuse steam generated as part of the production process, which not only decreases the need to generate additional steam, but also reduces overall water and energy consumption on-site.

Pictured: Jeremy Burks, Dow Corning China president

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