Celanese Corp. (Irving, Tex.; www.celanese.com) has announced that it will expand its manufacturing capabilities at the company’s Suzano, Brazil, facility to include Celstran long-fiber reinforced thermoplastics (LFRT) production. The Celstran expansion is expected to be operational by mid-2015. This new Celstran LFRT production operation will be part of the company’s manufacturing site in Suzano where Celanese already compounds Hostaform/Celcon acetal copolymer (POM) and Celanex/Vandar thermoplastic polyester (PBT) products for customers in Brazil and Latin America.
“The addition of Celstran manufacturing capabilities to our existing site outside Sao Paulo is part of the Celanese growth strategy to directly serve our customers in Brazil and Latin America, where we see a healthy growth potential, especially in automotive applications,” said Phil McDivitt, vice president and general manager of the engineered materials business of Celanese.
LFRT products meet the needs of demanding applications that require metal replacement, weight reduction (resulting in lower carbon dioxide emissions), impact strength, design freedom and easy processing in key applications for:
- Automotive: structural, functional and appearance parts (instrument panels, door modules, front end modules, window systems, battery trays, clutch pedals, gear shift levers, consoles, HVAC louvers, air intake pipes and fascia supports).
- Consumer: appliances, electronics, power tools, garden equipment (housings, gears, pulleys, wheels and fan blades).
- Industrial: piping and connectors, window systems, and building and construction.
- Aerospace: seating systems, overhead consoles and cabin carts.