Innovation: “We have to go for it!”

There’s so much innovation in the pipeline at Dow Performance Silicones that global segment leader, Christophe Paulo, says it’s a challenge to try and slow down. Leanne Taylor caught up with him at the Fakuma trade fair to find out about new launches, the recent merger and why there’s so much potential in plastics.

Q: Since I last saw you in 2015 there has been a major change in that Dow and DuPont have merged to become DowDuPont. How has this affected your business unit and what will it mean for the future?

There are still changes underway following the announcement on 12th September, but, for our part, as a developer of additives for plastics, joining a big plastics company creates a new world of opportunities and it is very positive. For example, in the last two years before the merger we have launched multiple new products, so the new combined company will allow us to build on this.

Q: Tell me about these new innovations and whether you will focus on new product development going forward.

If you look at all the launches we’ve done since 2015, they include flame retardants for PC, a processing aid for POM, a processing aid for PP film, a processing aid for polyamides, a highly effective processing aid for wire and cable, we are launching a flame retardant for polyamides and, finally, at Fakuma we have launched a processing aid for BOPP called HMB-6301 Masterbatch – so that is a lot!

It’s safe to say the team has been very active and there are many other innovative products in the pipeline that we’ll be launching. For example, it’s fantastic w

hat we’re working on in terms of slip additives for films.

That said, as much as I am driven by this innovation and am constantly saying to my team ‘we have to go for it!’, when it comes to developing these products and bringing them to market, the focus is shifting slightly. Going forward, we’ll work on further developing the products we’ve already launched, rather than focusing solely on developing new products.

We are learning from each launch and we listen closely to feedback from customers about their trials. For example, 80 percent of the time we find a product does exactly what it should but 20 percent of the time it doesn’t, so what we’re going back to the labs to try and correct the issues that didn’t work the first time to be able to bring new and improved versions of our products.

Q: In terms of markets, the automotive industry is an innovation driver – what products are you focusing on for this industry?

The automotive industry is systematically driving innovation – that’s where people are looking for cost effective materials that will look great for a long time. For example, plastic parts produced using standard anti-scratch additives will start to lose their aesthetic properties and sustain damage after 18-24 months, as standard scratch additives migrate from the part after this time.

In 2014 we launched a new, unique anti-scratch material, which not only lasts in plastic parts for the lifetime of the car but is also cost-effective. We’re now working on a new additive for dashboards to increase mar resistance which we hope to launch in 2018. Also, with the advent of electric vehicle technology there is a demand for more flame-retardant materials which we’re developing.

It’s not just production where there’s opportunity either, as there’s a need for additives for the films used to wrap new cars to protect them during shipment, but then also ensure easy removal from the vehicle.

Q: The product you are officially launching at Fakuma is a slip additive for BOPP film used for packaging – another one of your key markets. What are the advantages of this new product?

Interestingly enough, our new HMB-6301 Masterbatch was actually developed from the findings we observed of a material we produced for the automotive industry! We realised that if we tweaked the properties then we could use it to produce a slip additive for BOPP film, so, three years later that’s what we’ve ended up with and we have chosen to launch it at Fakuma.

Our HMB-6301 Masterbatch is non-migrating across film layers and delivers stable slip performance over time. Processors can add the additive only on the layers they want and they can be confident that it will not pollute the film. Use of the product enables processors to run their lines at higher speeds and temperatures and still obtain higher clarity, improved brightness and no migration in the finished film, providing a surface that is ideal for printing or decorating.

Feedback from our partners who trialed the additive extensively before the launch have said that it works fantastically well. They were achieving better metallisation using the slip agent than without – this wasn’t expected at all.

Q: Another recently-launched product that has had positive feedback from the market is the flame-retardent synergist launched at Chinaplas in April. What has made this product such a success?

We launched our 43-821 Additive earlier this year and the feedback is that it works fantastically – in fact, much better than expected. There is a significant pull from the market for this. The additive is compatible with PA6 and PA66 compounds and enables a reduction in the loadings of organic phosphorous flame retardant additives with the same fire safety performance.

Where phosphorous-based flame retardant additives can cause issues of corrosiveness in electronic components our new product can reduce the concentration of the phosphorus-based additive by as much as 40 percent. This means improved processability of the materials, better mechanical properties and less corrosiveness.

We also introduced MB25-502 Masterbatch for optimising throughput of highly mineral-filled polyethylene (PE) compounds used in wire and cable insulation and jacketing at Chinaplas. This new material is the first in the wire and cable industry to combine effective processing with affordable cost.

Q: As you continue with product development and new technologies do you consider Europe a key market?

Europe is very important. Most of the specification still occurs in Europe and not only for Europe, but North America and Asia too. You still have most of the biggest plastics companies that have their headquarters in Europe, as well as the very talented people, the R&D and the production centres.

The dynamics are changing in terms of world markets. China is important, of course, but it’s not what it used to be. ASEAN is a really interesting market, but the geo-politics are not always stable. Europe still has a lot of production and innovation and so will remain a key area of ours.