Ecombine mulls plans to establish overseas liquid-rubber mixing facility

London – Liquid-phase rubber mixing specialist Ecombine is considering expanding production capacity outside of China, with a new facility potentially in Europe.

That’s according to Ian Liu, sales & marketing manager, Ecombine Advanced Materials Co. Ltd, speaking in an interview with European Rubber Journal.

The patented technology, said Liu, is on track to gain wide-scale adoption across the tire & rubber industry within the next 10 years.

Interest is increasing, largely because of the improved physical properties and reduced energy-consumption liquid mixing offers during processing, he explained.

These benefits, added the Ecombine official, are linked to the “improved filler dispersion within rubber compounds and strengthened polymer-filler interaction."

Qingdao, China-based Ecombine - which includes tire & rubber machinery major Mesnac as its largest shareholder – has, therefore, drawn up plans to establish an overseas factory.

“Ecombine aims to become a global company,” emphasised Liu. “We're not just looking at the Chinese market, we're looking worldwide.”

The location, continued Liu, could “possibly in Europe [as it] is the biggest and most influential market in the tire & rubber industry and still leading development trends.”

Asked about the likely timescale for the planned overseas project, the Ecombine manager said: “We will probably have the announcement later this year about our next step.”

In April, an Ecombine official informed ERJ about the company’s plans to expand its 70ktpa liquid-phase rubber mixing’ plant in Qingdao. (ERJ report)