In moves signaling its commitment to the flexible packaging and converting industry, Rohm and Haas Co., Philadelphia, has recently relocated its technical center and announced the construction of a new pilot coating and laminating facility.

During the first half of 2002, the Adhesives and Sealants Packaging and Converting business relocated its Midwest Technical Center to a new facility in Elgin, Ill. (See sidebar.) Now, Rohm and Haas is completing this relocation by moving its pilot coating and lamination line to a new facility located at its Ringwood, Ill., manufacturing site.

The facility represents a significant investment in new equipment and technology. In addition, Rohm and Haas is investing heavily to expand capabilities at this new site, which will include installation of a production-scale solventless laminator.

"Relocating our pilot line to our Ringwood site will greatly improve our capabilities to simulate customer processes," says John Norder, North American business manager for Packaging and Converting. "The Environment, Health and Safety systems at the Ringwood site give broader flexibility to run the coater and allow us to run more extensive trials."

"We are also pleased to announce that we have made an investment in a production-scale solventless laminator to locate at the new pilot site," says Bill Magee, market manager for Packaging and Converting, North America. "The growth of the solventless market in North America, along with our strong product offering, have justified this expanded commitment to the converting industry." This investment will allow Rohm and Haas to simulate converter processes for running solventless laminations at the high speeds now possible in the market place.

"The expansion of lamination and coating capabilities in North America complements our global capabilities," says Barry Snyder, global marketing manager, Packaging and Converting. "We already have two coater/laminators in Europe and feel that this kind of global commitment to application development is unique in our industry."

Total Packaging Solutions

More than ever before, adhesives are contributing to the success of packaging security, attractiveness and performance. Already a leader in adhesives technology, Rohm and Haas continues to expand the range of products and technologies offered to the packaging and converting industry with its 'Total Packaging Solutions' strategy.

Today, many adhesives providers specialize in one or just a few technologies to meet key customer packaging and converting needs. However, this leaves packaging manufacturers with the burden of sorting through multiple vendors to identify and evaluate the best packaging solutions. Rohm and Haas has chosen the path of a more diverse technology and product base.

"Through recent technological advances and strategic acquisitions, we've added a number of high-quality adhesive systems to our already diverse line of packaging and converting products," says Barry Snyder. "With hundreds of packaging and converting products globally, Rohm and Haas has a product that can fill just about every application necessary for flexible packaging," he adds.

Recently introduced product lines include Rohm and Haas' RoBond[R] L Series water-based adhesives for dry-bond laminating, Mor-Free[R] ELM (extremely low monomer) adhesives that lower the risk of forming primary aromatic amine and Robond[R] CS cold-seal adhesives, in addition to the acquisition of Benjamin Moore's Coseal[R] line of cold-seal adhesives. These products have further increased Rohm and Haas' ability to offer a complete range of solutions to the broadest spectrum of converting problems - the heart of the 'Total Packaging Solutions' concept.

"What we have is really a range of products to meet all the needs of a converter aside from films, foils, paper and ink," says Snyder. "We provide not just a single product or service, but a comprehensive array of products, including barrier coatings, extrudable resins, laminating adhesives, heat seals, cold seals, coatings and primers."

Rohm and Haas is a $5.7-billion company with more than 100 plants in 25 countries. The Rohm and Haas Adhesives and Sealants business, with annual sales of $661 million, supplies formulated adhesives, coatings and polymers for adhesives and sealants. It serves the packaging, converting, transportation, construction and pressure sensitive adhesives industries.

For more information on the Rohm and Haas focus on the flexible packaging and converting industry, call Bill Magee at 847-648-3820 or e-mail poweratwork@rohmhaas.com.

For more information about the company's Total Packaging Solutions, contact Rohm and Haas Co., 100 Independence Mall West, Philadelphia, PA 19106-2399; phone 215-592-3205; fax 215-592-6808; or visit www.rohmhaas.com. Or Circle No. 77.

New Midwest Technical Center for Adhesives

Rohm and Haas dedicated its new Midwest Technical Center in Elgin, Ill., with an open house on Oct. 25, 2002. Located approximately 35 minutes from Chicago's O'Hare Airport, the center was built specifically to support the company's Structural Adhesives and Packaging and Converting customers. The new, 40,000 square-foot facility houses more than 70 adhesives specialists engaged in sales, marketing and technical activities.

Technical activities at the center include product development, applications research and product scale-up. Comprehensive analytical and computational support is also provided on-site. The applications laboratory's precisely controlled environment makes it possible to easily match customer factory conditions and more quickly prequalify adhesives for almost any application profile. State-of-the art equipment complements the staff's efforts to meet customer needs with the right adhesives solution.

"By cultivating an integrated work environment at our modern Midwest Technical Center, we are better able to provide the technical support vital to our businesses and customers," states John Norder, Rohm and Haas business manager for Packaging and Converting in North America.