ATLANTA — Bitrez Ltd., a leading manufacturer of specialist polymers and chemicals in the UK, has appointed Georgia-Pacific Chemicals as exclusive distributor for its Curaphen specialty phenolics across the United States, Canada and Mexico. The appointment extends to all but a small group of existing Bitrez customers.

Georgia-Pacific Chemicals, a subsidiary of Georgia-Pacific LLC, has decades of experience in coatings and other markets and manufactures its own portfolio of proven phenolic products, including FRP resins, air dry and thermosetting systems, aqueous dispersions for lower VOC, and crosslinkers for powder coatings.

The low free monomer Curaphen portfolio is a series of phenolic polymer resins that includes specialist grades offering low free phenol and some with formaldehyde contents of less than 0.1%.

The Curaphen product line is also gaining traction in other businesses across the globe including aerospace, rail and construction where it is favored as a matrix resin. As well as being a flame retardant with excellent smoke and toxicity properties, its lightweight and good mechanical and structural strength make it ideal for interior components in aircraft, trains and buildings.

Paul Jones, Managing Director of Bitrez Ltd., said, “We are very excited to be working with Georgia-Pacific Chemicals LLC, a well-established organization with an excellent reputation. We already export across Europe so it’s great news that Georgia-Pacific Chemicals will help us extend our reach in the USA, Canada and Mexico. Creative chemistry is our lifeblood and it drives us to develop innovative solutions to fill the gap provided by products that have been withdrawn from the market due to regulatory reform.”

“The addition of the Bitrez products to our North American offerings augments our ability to help our customers address regulatory challenges,” said Robert Schlager, Manager of Georgia-Pacific Chemicals coatings business. “We are impressed with the quality and innovation of their products, the quality of the Bitrez organization, and are honored to be associated with them. Our relationship supports our vision of offering our customers the best technology available to meet their needs.”