SEKISUI CHEMICAL CO., LTD. (President and Representative Director: Keita Kato; hereinafter, “SEKISUI CHEMICAL”) announced today that its subsidiary SEKISUI POLYMATECH CO., LTD. (CEO: Jun Yamazaki; hereinafter, “SEKISUI POLYMATECH”) will commence mass production of thermal interface materials for environmentally-friendly vehicles such as electric vehicles (EVs) at its new plant in the Netherlands from October 2020. The new plant is a plant of SEKISUI POLYMATECH EUROPE B.V. (hereinafter, “SPE”), a wholly-owned subsidiary of SEKISUI POLYMATECH. Below is an overview of this matter.
1. Background and future business prospects
In Europe, many environmentally-friendly vehicles such as EVs and plug-in hybrid vehicles (PHVs) are being developed by original equipment manufacturers (OEMs). Demand for heat countermeasures for the lithium-ion batteries (LiBs) used to supply power to such vehicles is rapidly increasing.
In view of this market expansion, SEKISUI POLYMATECH established SPE in August 2018 and commenced construction of a new plant in February 2019 within premises owned by SEKISUI CHEMICAL in Roermond City of the Netherlands. Although there were delays in the delivery of some equipment due to the impact of COVID-19, test production started in July 2020. Full-scale mass production will commence in October 2020.
At SPE, production will commence with grease-type (semi-liquid) thermal interface materials which have high demand for LiB use. These products are positioned as the immediate major products of SPE, although production of sheet-type products for 5G base stations is also being considered for launch within the next several years.
At the new plant, automated production of grease-type products is achieved through unique production process design. There is capacity to produce approximately one million liters of grease-type thermal interface products each year. This is equivalent to the amount needed for approximately 500,000 EVs. In addition, with this commencement of operations, SEKISUI POLYMATECH has established a global production system for thermal interface materials at four locations, including the existing locations of Japan and Thailand as well as China which started operation of production equipment in April 2020. Based on this system, SEKISUI POLYMATECH’s planned sales for its thermal interface material business is 10 billion yen in FY 2022.
2. Overview of new plant
|
Company name |
SEKISUI POLYMATECH EUROPE B.V. |
|---|---|
|
Location (head office/plant) |
Roermond City, Limburg Province, Netherlands |
|
Capital |
500 million yen (completely funded by SEKISUI POLYMATECH) |
|
Building area |
Approximately 2,000㎡ |
|
Main products |
Thermal interface materials |
References
【Overview of SEKISUI POLYMATECH CO., LTD.】
|
Representative |
Jun Yamazaki (CEO) |
|---|---|
|
Location |
Saitama City, Saitama Prefecture |
|
Portion of ownership |
SEKISUI CHEMICAL CO., LTD. : 91%, Inabata & Co., Ltd. : 9% |
|
Business |
Production and sales of plastic and rubber products |
|
Overseas expansion |
Production companies in China, Thailand, Indonesia and the Netherlands |
【Example of SEKISUI POLYMATECH’s grease-type thermal interface product being applied to inner surface of LiB housing】
【Exterior of SPE’s head office and plant】
About SEKISUI CHEMICAL Group
Headquartered in Japan, SEKISUI CHEMICAL CO., LTD. (TSE: 4204) and its subsidiaries make up the SEKISUI CHEMICAL Group. 27,000 employees in over 200 companies throughout 21 countries and regions aim to contribute to improving the lives of the people of the world and the earth’s environment. Thanks to a history of innovation, dedication and a pioneering spirit, SEKISUI CHEMICAL now holds leading positions in its three diverse business divisions as well as top global market share in interlayer film, foam products, conductive particles and more.
Since its foundation in 1947, the SEKISUI CHEMICAL Group has dedicated itself to social and environmental contribution and is now an internationally recognized leader in sustainability and environmental initiatives, having recently been selected as one of the Global 100 most sustainable companies. SEKISUI CHEMICAL Group will continue to maintain a strong corporate presence for 100 years and beyond.
Press Contact
SEKISUI CHEMICAL CO., LTD.
Public Relations Department
Fax: +81-(0)3-6748-6547
Disclaimer
This press release may contain forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements are based on current expectations and beliefs and are subject to a number of factors and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such statements due to changes in global economic, business, competitive market and regulatory factors.