Dow to 'pull the plug' on Tyrin production

London – Dow Chemical Co. is to stop producing chlorinated polyethylene (CPE) from 2016 and discontinue its Tyrin brand, according to a manager at a German-based polymer distribution company.

The US company has notified customers of its plans, which will involve the closure of its CPE plant in Stade, Germany, said Thorsten Schneider of NGE Polymer GmbH, which distributes CPEs produced by Weifang Yaxing Chemical in China.

Dow’s decision is linked to its strategy to move away from chlorine chemistry, said Schneider. The exit, he added, will mean that CPEs will only be manufactured by Chinese producers, of which Weifang is a leader with a capacity of 170 kilotonnes per annum (ktpa).

These comments, however, ignore Showa Denko of Japan. The company has been producing CPE under the Elaslen brand at a plant in Kawaski since 1968. 

Dow’s Stade plant has been its sole production unit for Tyrin brand CPE materials for several years following the closure of its CPE plant in Plaquemine, Louisiana. The German unit, reckons Schneider, has a capacity of around 30-40 ktpa.

Tyrin CPE is used primarily as an additive in thermoplastics and elastomers, to enhance flexibility and improve resistance to flame, chemicals, low temperatures and weathering.

Ratzeburg-based NGE Polymer’s distributorship with Weifang Yaxing includes CPE rubber grades for wire & cable, magnetic profiles, automotive hose and industrial hose applications in Germany and other parts of Europe. 

Image: CPE production at Weifang Yaxing Chemical