BUSINESS

www.reinforcedplastics.com 13REINFORCEDplastics JULY/AUGUST 2013

THE SGL Group and

Samsung have established a

marketing and sales joint

venture to develop new

industrial and electronic

applications for carbon

composites for Samsung

and the Korean market.

The joint venture partners,

Samsung Petrochemical, a

producer of purifi ed tere-

phthalic acid (PTA) located in

Korea, and carbon fi bre

producer SGL Group of

Germany, will each hold a

50% share.

The joint venture will be

called Samsung SGL Carbon

Composite Materials.

The agreement is expected

to provide a stable long-

term supply of carbon fi bre

materials for Samsung

and promote its use in

various Samsung products

SGL and Samsung establish joint venture for

carbon fibre compositesand applications. Carbon fi bre

materials from the SGL Group

will be preferred by the joint

venture.

“Lightweight materials have

become an important factor

not only in industrial applica-

tions but also the consumer

end markets such as digital

media,” says Yoosung Chung,

President & CEO of Samsung

Petrochemical. “This partner-

ship will position Samsung

as a leading player in the

development and applica-

tion of carbon fi bre-based

products.”

In the mid-term, the joint

venture will aim for business

expansion over the rest of Asia.

It will target applications in

the markets for electronic

products, wind turbine

blades, pressure vessels,

automotive and household

appliances.

The joint venture will be

headquartered in Ulsan,

South Korea, at a Samsung

Petrochemical facility. The

offi ce of the marketing and

sales joint venture will be

located in Seoul.

According to SGL, the Asian

carbon fi bre market is

expected to grow in Korea

and China by over 20% per

year. Currently the Korean

market focuses on prepreg

and sporting goods, but in

future it is expected to

expand to a wider range of

industries like wind energy,

electronics, and automotive.

The closing of the trans-

action is scheduled for July,

pending regulatory

approvals.

SGL; www.sglgroup.com

Samsung Petrochemical;

www.myspc.co.kr

Evonik launches Composites Project House

SPECIALITY chemicals

company Evonik is opening a

‘Composites Project House’ in

Germany to expand its

composites expertise and to

develop new materials for use

in lightweight construction.

Evonik’s 10th ‘project house,’

it will be based in Marl, with

a branch in Darmstadt.

Evonik’s products for

composites include the

ROHACELL® structural foam

core material, VESTAMIN®

hardener component for

thermoplastic matrix systems,

and VESTAKEEP® matrix for

thermoplastic composites.

“One of our aims in this

project house is to develop

materials that can be proc-

essed as quickly as thermo-

plastics but that are ultimately

similar to duroplastic compos-

ites [thermosetting compos-

ites], explains Dr Sandra

Reemers, head of the Compos-

ites Project House. “Duroplas-

tics have a very high level of

mechanical stability and do

not deform under pressure.”

“Take, for example, the auto

industry, where up to now

composite parts have only

been able to be installed in

small quantities and only

after the coating has been

burned in. The goal here is

to develop materials that can

be installed in the same way

as metal components, i.e.

before the paint is applied.”

Evonik’s ‘project houses’ are

strategic R&D units, where

several operating units and

external experts work

together on issues that will

expand Evonik’s portfolio.

The research fi ndings are

then commercialised by

Evonik or an internal start-up.

Evonik;

www.evonik.com

RP0413_Business news 13 23-07-13 09:48:53