BASF

New effect pigments add colour to ”Firemist” range / Applications include packaging

Fierce competition and high volatility drive consolidation in Germany / French state fund for renovations / New UK market leader is born / Cladding segment increasingly trends towards grey EPS / Prolonged use of HBCD has no notable market relevance

Follow-up: Italian distributor reports regular business operations despite recent fire

Output grows continuously by 7% a year / Consumption doubled over past decade / Global capacities approach 2m t/y / Situation unclear in China / EU imports pressure recyclate grades

Fire destroys warehouse of Italian plastics distributor

Three-way cooperation in developing additive manufacturing solutions / PA 6 powder for 3D printing

First qualitative report on sustainability highlights styrenics' characteristics / Lifecycle approach and optimised use of resources

Moerdijk cracker restarted / Lengthy SM/PO repair works finally completed / Singapore-based cracker down / Preparing for expansions in China and the US

ISOPA general assembly elects new leadership

Takeovers, mergers and consolidations: Changes in the plastics production, packaging and automotive industries / No going back to the way things were

New capacity for pigments at Ludwigshafen / Expanded output already in the Chinese market

Raising engineering thermoplastics compounds capacity in Germany

Brazilian EPS plant to start production in mid-2016

Successful laboratory scale production of butadiene from renewable feedstocks / Milestone in collaboration

Merging Swiss plastics additives activities

Polyurethane Feedstocks November 2015: Slight decreases across the board / Overall demand reasonably good / December will bring another downturn for TDI and rollover for all other materials

New TDI plant officially inaugurated at Ludwigshafen / German dignitaries praise chemicals and plastics group's technology, commitment to industry

Food-contact grades added to “Elastollan” TPU portfolio

Fire shuts Shell's Moerdijk cracker again / No indication of how long outage will last

High-pressure production: LDPE becoming increasingly tight in Europe / Global importance wanes / New plants mostly flexible and easily switched to EVA / Specifically targeted types more expensive

South Korean “Ultradur” and “Ultramid” compounding plant starts up / Development laboratory to follow in Q2 2016

CEO lowers sales and earnings forecast for 2015 after weaker than expected Q3 / Declining demand from China and lower oil prices pressure / Plastics businesses perform well

Site agreement for Ludwigshafen extended to 2020 / Job security and EUR 6 bn investment

Global growth rates remain high / Degradable and bio-based polymers still niche materials / Market dominated by drop-in applications / Europe is leading production region / 5m t of bio-PET for bottles by 2018

Dutch IBC specialist plans IPO in the US