Polykemi Invests in its Own U.S. Compounding Plant

Sweden’s Polykemi Group AB is investing nearly $12 million to built its own compounding plant in the United States. The investment in the plant in Gastonia, NC, is the largest single investment in the company’s history, and it lays the ground for Polykemi Inc.’s further growth in North America. The 50,000 sq.ft. plant, which is expandable up to 100,000 sq.ft., will initially be equipped with two production lines, and the expected launch of manufacturing is during second quarter 2022.

A family-owned compounder of a broad range of thermoplastic compounds with a strong presence in Europe and Asia, Polykemi began offering its products in North America in 2014 through a cooperative partnership with compounder Omni Plastics, Evansville, Indiana. Polykemi’s portfolio includes nearly every thermoplastic with the exception of PVC. Included are Scancomp PP HC, a family of PP-based compounds that combine high crystallinity with state-of-the-art glass fiber reinforcements and coupling agents which are targeted to replace 30% glass-reinforced nylon 6 and PBT, and Scancomp PP HBK, a high-gloss, UV-stabilized family of PP compounds which are targeted to replace ABS.

Said Polykemi Inc.’s CEO Johan Hugoson,“We are truly delighted by this deal. It increases our presence and gives us many new opportunities on the American market. The new plant in the United States means we have our own manufacturing facilities on three continents, which also means we have clear quality control. We can guarantee the same high quality in both new and recycled raw materials, as well as the same color on all materials that our plants ship. That means we can cooperate closely with our customers, whose production is split across continents.”

Polykemi Inc will produce precisely the same material in the U.S. as the Group does in Europe and Asia. Furthermore, shipments to American customers will come directly from the plant in North Carolina, saving time, costs and the environment. “This is an investment in the future and lays the ground for Polykemi Group’s future growth and its path to also becoming a distinct player on the American plastic compounds market,” said Hugoson.