Cariflex names new boss, announces $50m investment

Singapore – Three months after its acquisition by Daelim Industries, Cariflex PTE – a former polyisoprene latex business of Kraton Corp. – has a new chief executive officer and is eying expansion.

Prakash Kolluri, formerly VP sales and marketing Asia Pacific, Kraton Polymers, has been named as the CEO to move Carliflex forward in its “future growth globally,” the company announced 17 July.

In addition, the company is now planning to construct a new large-scale polyisoprene latex plant at its Paulinia, Brazil facility to meet the strong market demand from medical and consumer product customers. 

The $50-million (€44-million) capital project was approved by the board of directors in April and the plant is expected to be operational in the first quarter of 2021, Cariflex said.

The new production line will replicate the existing technology at the plant and will double the polyisoprene latex capacity of the site.

“Cariflex is excited to be making a sizeable investment in the growth of the polyisoprene latex business,” said Philippe Henderson, head of sales & marketing. 

The company maintains that its polyisoprene latex is a "unique synthetic alternative to natural rubber latex" for dipped goods and various speciality products. 

“With the current strong demand for medical protective equipment such as surgical gloves, we recognise our customers’ needs to have more material available,” Henderson added.

Also commenting, Kolluri said the decision to expand capacity would accelerate organic growth at Cariflex “to a rate faster than competitors.”

Cariflex is a manufacturer of isoprene rubber latex (IR latex) and isoprene rubber (IR) for medical end markets and other high-value markets. 

US polymer group Kraton Corp. sold the business to Daelim Industrial $530 million (€467 million) cash in March.