Arkema is expanding capacity for specialty polyamides in China and the US to support its customers’ growth around the world, particularly in the sports, consumer electronics and automotive markets. At its Zhangjiagang site in Jiangsu province, China, the French chemical producer is increasing its compounding capacities and will bring on stream two production lines for polyamide 11 in 2017, adding to the polyamide 10 already produced there. Arkema said this and other investments made in recent years at Zhangjiagang amount to €10 million overall.

In the US, an investment at Birdsboro, Pennsylvania, will enable the manufacture of Arkema’s new Pebax biosourced grades for the sports and electronics markets. The company said the projects are part of its research and growth platforms centered on weight reduction, material design, solutions for electronics, and the development of biosourced products.