Hexion Completes New Application Development Center (ADC) in Shanghai, China

New facility hosts R&D. This investment underscores commitment to coatings and composite technologies focused on sustainable product solutions.

The new facility will host R&D and commercial leadership. Hexion Inc. has successfully completed construction of its new Application Development Center (ADC) in Shanghai as part of its global efforts to further strengthen research, development and technical service capabilities. The 4,800 square-meter new ADC will support new product development and customer collaboration to accelerate growth in water-based coatings and composite applications. Hexion President and CEO Craig A. Rogerson stated, "The new ADC is yet another example of our commitment to strategically investing in our R&D footprint to increase innovation opportunities and drive growth. With commercial and R&D leaders working in close proximity, we will leverage their diverse skills in a world-class technology environment that will ultimately benefit our customers. The investment also demonstrates our commitment to incorporating sustainability principles into our R&D and product development initiatives to meet our customers' demands for environmentally preferred solutions. For example, we expect the new ADC to strengthen our leading position in wind energy applications in China by developing next-generation solutions based on EPIKOTE™ and EPIKURE™ epoxy systems.

Electric vehicles;

In addition to supporting production technologies, the ADC will further support innovation based on our EPIKOTE™ and EPONOL™ resin systems for automotive applications, such as lightweight auto composite components and other technologies that enable customers to manufacture more durable vehicles while reducing air emissions without compromising performance. With 24 global R&D facilities, Hexion is uniquely positioned to develop tomorrow's coatings, composites and adhesive solutions," he said. Environmentally preferred solutions continue to gain momentum in the Asia Pacific region and are expected to grow further with ADC support. For example, the NextGen Epoxy™ water-based system reduces air emissions with lower volatile organic compound (VOC) levels while delivering coating performance comparable to solvent-based systems. Water-based and ultra-high solids acrylic polyol resins, Cardura™ glycidyl ether for production, and VeoVa™ vinyl esters—a series of specialty monomers providing cost-effective resins for 1K isocyanate-free high-performance protective coatings—are among these solutions. Based in Columbus, Ohio, Hexion Inc. provides a broad range of thermoset technologies, specialty products and technical support to customers in adhesives, coatings, composites and industrial markets.