Raw Materials and Chemicals

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Manufacturers of adhesives and sealants face an increasingly complicated world, where innovation is essential to survival and ever-expanding regulations threaten their profitability (and sanity!).

The average person comes into contact with solvents - toxic substances that dissolve other substances - thousands of times each day without even thinking about them.

Compliance in a chemical environment not only requires selecting the right personal protective equipment (PPE) for a variety of chemicals, but also must ensure that workers wear the equipment.

Silane-modified organic polymers have been around for more than 40 years, and have proliferated in the coatings, adhesives, sealants and elastomers (CASE) industry over the past 20 years.

Automakers' search for lighter materials and more fuel-efficient vehicles is a well-covered topic. But there are more layers to the story than the headlines suggest.

Polyolefin polymers have been an important part of daily life for variety of applications since the reported lab-scale process by Carothers in the 1930s1 and commercial process introduction by ICI in the 1940s.

Flipping the calendar to June 2015 has provided the kind of dread that can only be rivaled by scheduled root canal work or an IRS audit - especially for those who deal with dual Environment, Health and Safety (EH&S) and shipping responsibilities within their company.

Solvents have traditionally been derived from petroleum. These petroleum-based solvents are now being replaced by bio-based solvents, derived from renewable feedstocks such as corn, soybeans and orange peels.

This issue of ASI features our annual Distributor Directory, a year-long reference tool designed to help you quickly locate a distributor that best suits your needs.* Beginning on p. 16, distributor listings are organized by region and include company contact information such as address, phone, fax, email, website, and key personnel.

ALTANA recently announced its Supervisory Board has appointed Martin Babilas to the position of chief executive officer.