ASC ISSUES POLYCHLOROPRENE RUBBER UPDATE

According to the summer 2006 edition of The Adhesive and Sealant Council, Inc.'s newsletter, Catalyst, the adhesives and sealants industry is bracing for the elimination of several key grades of polychloroprene rubber (PCR) as a result of Dupont Performance Elastomers' (DPE) decision to terminate production for some products as early as the end of this year. As DPE is the sole domestic supplier of PCR, this issue presents significant adverse ramifications to the adhesives industry. At the request of its members, ASC organized a meeting with potential alternative suppliers from Japan and China at its Spring Convention in Norfolk, VA. ASC members expressing an interest are asked to follow up with these companies directly. In addition, ASC reports that Dupont has filed the first of multiple petitions with the U.S. Dept. of Commerce to lift the Japanese Antidumping Tariff for those grades scheduled for phaseout in 2007. ASC continues to work closely with Dupont on this issue and promises to continue updating affected members in the coming months.

For more information on any of these issues, contact Mark Collatz at The Adhesive and Sealant Council, Inc. at (301) 986-9700 ext. 112.

DOW EPOXY TO INVEST $200 MILLION TO ACCELERATE GROWTH IN CHINA

Dow Epoxy, Midland MI, has announced plans to invest more than $200 million over the next five years in manufacturing and R&D facilities in China. To support continued growth in China and the broader Asian region, the company plans to build a 100,000 MTPA world-scale liquid epoxy resins (LER) plant at its existing site in Zhangjiagang, and a 150,000 MTPA epichlorohydrin (ECH) plant in a soon-to-be-announced site also in China. Both units are expected to start up in the 2009-2010 time frame.

For more information, visit http://www.dowepoxy.com .