Headline makers

BASF AG, Ludwigshafen, Germany, said it will invest 4 million euros by the end of 2004 to expand production capacity for the company's Paliocrom effect pigments by 30% in Ludwigshafen. The move is being taken in response to strong demand in recent years for the Paliocrom Gold and Paliocrom Orange effect pigments.

BASF Corp., Mount Olive, NJ, announced plans to modify an existing manufacturing facility at its Wyandotte, MI, site to produce amino resins for the North American coatings market, with construction of the facility scheduled to begin by the end of 2003 and resin production expected to start in the second quarter of 2004.

CPS Color, Vantaa, Finland, said it will open a sales and service office in Moscow to serve markets in Russia and other former Soviet Union countries. The move is part of a worldwide plan to provide local service capabilities for equipment. CPS in 2000 acquired Corob, a major supplier of dispensing and mixing equipment.

Crompton Corp., Middlebury, CT, announced the opening of a new technology and manufacturing center in Nanjing, China. The facility includes manufacturing and administrative facilities, laboratories and warehousing for the development of products and formulations for the rapidly growing Chinese market. The site will initially manufacture the company's Adiprene/ Vibrathane urethane products.

Eastman Chemical Co., Kingsport, TN, formally dedicated its newly built regional headquarters facility in Capelle aan den Ijssel, near Rotterdam, The Netherlands. The facility will serve as headquarters for Eastman's Europe, Middle East and Africa region, and consolidates three company offices formerly located in The Hague and Rotterdam.

Huber Engineered Materials, Atlanta, announced an agreement with Nubiola Pigments, Barcelona, Spain, that is expected to lead to an exclusive marketing alliance involving anticorrosion products for coatings. The agreement, which was expected to become effective Jan. 1, will grant Huber North American sales, marketing and customer-support responsibilities for anticorrosion products supplied by Nubiola Pigments. The products include the Actirox and Hispafos zinc phosphates.

Huntsman Corp., Salt Lake City, announced the launch of the company's Surface Technologies unit, a move that reflects the addition of the former Vantico business to the Huntsman group of companies in 2003. The Surface Technologies unit is part of Huntsman Advanced Materials, a business unit of the Polyurethanes and Specialties Division of the Huntsman Group.

3M Co., St. Paul, MN, said it has given the brand name 3M Novec Fluorosurfactants to the company's fluorosurfactant-technology product line. The company said the brand differentiates its reformulated surfactant chemistry, which is based on perfluorobutane sulfonate (PFBS), and reflects a commitment to producing safe, sustainable technologies.

Reichhold Boosts Capacity for GMA Resins in Europe

RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, NC - Reichhold Inc. said it has completed the expansion of a plant in Vienna that brings production of glycidyl methacrylate acrylic (GMA) powder-coating resins to a company site in Europe.

The expansion provides the company with initial annual production capacity of approximately 4 million pounds and the potential to expand production as needed to meet demand. Reichhold formerly supplied its GMA powder resins exclusively by import from Asia through parent company Dainippon Ink and Chemicals (DIC).

Gary Krall, Reichhold chairman and CEO, said the production capacity gives Reichhold and DIC the ability to meet increased demand for GMA resins expected during the next decade.