On 1 January 2020, German distributor Biesterfeld (Hamburg; www.biesterfeld.com) will add Switzerland to the list of countries in which it distributes ExxonMobil’s (Houston, Texas / USA; www.exxonmobil.com) thermoplastic vulcanisate (TPV). With the inclusion of Switzerland, the company will have distribution rights for the products throughout continental Europe. It also has rights to sell “Santoprene” TPV in Brazil, North Africa and the UK.

TPV consists of a two-phase polymer of vulcanised EPDM rubber dispersed in a polypropylene phase. Similar to rubber, it is also suitable for a wide variety of thermoplastic processing and is easy to recycle, ExxonMobil says. The vulcanisate is used in the construction, electrical equipment and consumer goods industries and also for manufacturing cables and hoses.