ERJ Top Five: Rubber Technology

ERJ staff report (TP)

Reports on Dalian Rubber & Plastics Machinery ... J-Flex Rubber ... ContiTech ... American Chemical Society Rubber Division ... Semperit AG Holding

1. Dalian Rubber & Plastics Machinery Co Ltd says it has plans to acquire Fu Jian Excellence Honcha Building Material Equipment for up to 555 million yuan ($89.60 million) via cash and share issue. According to Reuters it will raise up to 185 million yuan in private placement of shares to fund acquisition.

2. British rubber mouldings and silicone sheet company, J-Flex Rubber, is celebrating its 30th year in business with continued expansion. It was established in 1984 by managing director John Kirk in Retford, Nottinghamshire – and now has sales of £5m (€6.3m). J-Flex concentrates on the oil and gas industries in Europe, which account for more than 60 percent of export sales.

3. ContiTech has launched its MEGI springs and air-spring systems specifically designed for use on rail vehicles in extremely hot or cold conditions. These include the newly developed K air spring, which can withstand temperatures as low as -50 °C. The German firm will be displaying these new developments and other spring products for sustainable rail engineering at InnoTrans 2014, Berlin, 23-26 September.

4. The American Chemical Society Rubber Division has unveiled a new website dedicated exclusively to the International Elastomer Conference. It features news about the 186th Technical Meeting and International Expo, to be held 14-16 October in Nashville, Tennessee. More than 2,500 are expected to attend the event, which includes a student colloquium and poster Session, career fair, and the Business and Awards Meeting.

5. Semperit AG Holding will build a new glove factory in Kamunting, Malaysia – its largest investment ever. €50 million will be spent from 2014 to 2016 at the plant, where Semperit has been operating six production facilities for medical and protective gloves since its acquisition of Latexx Partners Berhad in 2012. The first gloves are expected to leave the production lines starting mid-2015.