Solvay Engineering Plastics is establishing a dedicated part-testing laboratory in Shanghai, China, to support the growth of customers in Asia. The Belgium-based producer’s first Application Performance Testing (APT) center outside Europe, planned to open at the end of this year, is aimed at accelerating the development and validation of its Technyl polyamide applications for automotive, consumer and electrical markets.

Solvay said most of its bench tests are developed and customized in close collaboration with OEMs and major Tier 1 suppliers. The new lab will initially be equipped with installations dedicated to metal replacement applications and progressively outfitted with additional apparatus for testing thermal management and fluid barrier applications.

The new facility in Shanghai will “greatly enhance our ability to respond to our Chinese and Asian customers, thereby offering an optimum service to tiers and OEMs active in the region,” said Peter Browning, general manager for Solvay Engineering Plastics, Browning said the unquantified “ significant investment” complements the Solvay engineering plastics arm’s state-of-the-art capabilities in Europe, enabling it to closely support Asian customers, who represent more than 40% of its business activity in optimizing the use of Technyl-based materials.

Solvay’s European APT lab, located at the Technyl Innovation Center in Lyon, France – a legacy of French chemical producer Rhodia – includes “an array of equipment” to address metal replacement, thermal management and fluid barrier application parts testing, Browning said. This includes coolant (glycol) and oil circulation, hydraulic testing for structural applications, oil separation, air pulsation (up to 230°C), vibration testing for temperatures ranging from -35°C to +180°C.