Germany’s BASF and Korea’s KOLON PLASTICS have started up a new $220 million, 70,000 t/y plant for the engineering plastic polyoxymethylene (POM) at their 50:50 joint venture KOLON BASF InnoPOM in Gimcheon, Korea. Together with the Korean company’s existing 80,000 t/y plant, the site will have output capability of 150,000 t/y.

The new facility will be BASF’s first POM production in Asia. Over the course of 2019, it will shut down an existing plant at Ludwigshafen with a capacity of 55,000 t/y

The German group said the new production facility combines its own “stringent quality control system and its energy-saving technology” with KOLON’s highly efficient production process and stable production capabilities. POM production requires a complex, high-end technology and the Korean producer’s simplified production process has been recognized by BASF for its efficiency.

From their separate production lines within the shared facility, both partners will be able to provide a “stable supply” of material to their customers. The products will be manufactured using the companies’ proprietary technologies, marketed under their own brand names Ultraform (BASF) and Kocetal (KOLON) and through their own respective sales networks.

Raimar Jahn, president, Performance Materials at BASF, said the new plant “sets an industry benchmark for the production of POM. It employs innovative environmental management standards that improve production efficiency, resulting in less energy use.”

Yeong-Bom Kim, joint-representative of KOLON BASF innoPOM and representative director of KOLON PLASTICS, said the two companies hope to continue their partnerships in other areas of business as well.

POM resins are used in complex and highly durable components, for a broad range of applications in automotive as well as in E&E markets. Some 42% of global demand goes into manufacturing key vehicle components such as fuel pumps and safety belts.