October 19, 2015
Kansas City, MO – October 19, 2015 – Aliphatic polyketone is receiving broad interest in new markets and applications as well as in the resurrection of legacy applications that were once commercial in CARILON® branded polyketone. It has been over ten years since the last pound of polyketone was produced by Shell Chemical, yet the enthusiasm for this unique engineering resin is greater now than ever before. According to Cliff Watkins, Marketing Director at PolySource, four substantial programs will launch in Q1 2016 in applications in Building & Construction, Automotive, Food & Beverage Manufacturing and Electrical connectors. OEM’s are clamoring to get parts molded in polyketone, and into their testing processes as the result of the significant performance benefits demonstrated in lab tests that have compared polyacetals, polyamides and polyesters for wear & friction, abrasion resistance, mechanical toughness and chemical resistance.
Polyketone has the moisture resistance and frictional performance of polyacetal, the thermal resistance of polyamide 6 and fuel permeability resistance that is nearly 10 times that of polyamide 12. Further bolstering OEM interest in polyketone are the recent announcements by Hyosung that their 50,000mT/year (110MM lbs.) commercial plant was started in June of this year and is running well and additionally, Hyosung senior management has approved funding for a second 50,000mT/year plant with a preliminary start-up of 2021. PolySource, LLC, founded in 1993, has focused its business on delivering resin solutions to customers whether their need is stocked material, application development, process support or alternative resin searches. Through its direct sales team, customer service team, and network of warehouses and logistics partners, PolySource is well positioned to manage the needs of its customers. For further information contact: Chris Meyers, (816) 540-5300, chris@polysource.net