Solutia (St Louis, Minnesota / USA; www.solutia.com) plans to build a polyvinyl butyral (PVB) resins plant at its site in Kuantan / Malaysia. The company said output will be used to meet rising demand for its “Saflex” PVB interlayers for laminated glass applications in Asia Pacific and China. "The increased capacity realised from the addition of a PVB resin plant in Malaysia will be used to cost-effectively meet the increasing demand for Saflex sheet produced by our two manufacturing lines in Suzhou, China," (see Plasteurope.com of 19.05.2008) said Eric Nichols, president and general manager of Solutia's advanced interlayers division.

Solutia also manufactures Saflex PVB interlayers in Ghent / Belgium, Santo Toribio / Mexico, São José Dos Campos / Brazil and Springfield in Massachusetts / USA. The company already produces “Crystex” insoluble sulphur, used in rubber products, at the Kuantan site.