German engineering plastics producer Covestro (Leverkusen; www.covestro.com) said it has inaugurated its first industrial-scale polycarbonate copolymer plant at Antwerp, Belgium, following an investment in the mid-double-digit million euro range. A company spokesperson declined to detail the capacity of the new site in response to a Plasteurope.com query. 

The spokesperson also declined to specify the type of copolymerised polymers “for competitive reasons”. The company’s Apec XT materials, introduced during Chinaplas this year, are a likely candidate.

“The new production process is the first and only one of its kind in the world”, said Sucheta Govil, chief commercial officer at Covestro. “We can now produce and launch new polymer materials on an industrial scale much faster than before.”

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According to the company, the in-house technology is based on a solvent-free melt process combined with a new reactor concept. The process allows for PC to be produced with adjustable properties, including improved mechanical properties, higher resistance to chemical attack, and better flame retardancy.

Covestro said applications will at first cover E&E and healthcare, but could in future extend to mobility and other trends.