Wichita, Kan.-based Invista is planning to build a production facility in the Shanghai Chemical
Industry Park, China, for the production of adiponitrile (ADN), hexamethylene diamine (HMD), nylon
6,6 polymer and a variety of other specialty intermediate chemicals. The company signed a letter of
intent for the investment including land-use rights, and hopes to complete construction and bring
the plant online by 2010. The plant will use Invista’s proprietary, butadiene-based ADN
technology.
“Building this new facility is part of our strategy to quickly expand Invista’s nylon 6,6
intermediates and polymer capabilities globally to serve our growing markets’ needs,” said Warren
Primeaux, president, Invista Intermediates. “This is a significant and unique project; it will be
not only the first plant of its kind in Asia, but also the first brand-new facility built worldwide
in 25 years.”
In related news, Invista recently broke ground on its high-tenacity nylon 6,6 yarn facility in
Shanghai’s Qingpu Industrial Zone – an investment worth more than US$50 million. The plant
will have an initial capacity of 11,000 tons and is expected to come online by mid-2008. The yarns
will be used primarily in air-bag production.
“Our investment will put air-bag fiber production right beside our key customers in China,
giving us the opportunity to respond flexibly to their changing needs, as well as leverage our
global leadership in this material,” said Dan Stone, president, Invista Performance Materials. “We
will be the only wholly owned company to have air-bag fiber capacity on three continents, including
North America, Europe and Asia, when the plant is built,” he said.
May/June 2007