Magazine November/December 2010

Transcription

SABIC
November/December 2010 Issue 100
Gulf petrochemical industry
THE CHALLENGE
OF SUSTAINING
GROWTH
4 Riyadh Techno Valley to be ready in 2012
NEWS
Round-up of news stories from SABIC
operations around the world
General Supervisor:
Mohamed H. Al-Mady
Vice-Chairman and CEO
Editor-in-Chief:
Samir A. Al-Abdrabbuh
Vice President
Corporate Communications
Acting Managing Editor:
Vinod Menon
Media & External Communications
Contributions to SABIC magazine are
welcome and may be sent to:
[email protected].
Articles and letters received may be
edited for length and clarity. Every effort has been made to report accurate
information in this publication. However,
neither SABIC nor the publishers vouch
for its accuracy, neither do they
indemnify any loss arising through the
use of the information.
The views or opinions expressed herein
do not necessarily reflect
those of SABIC or the publisher.
Saudi Basic Industries Corporation,
P.O. Box 5101
Riyadh 11422, Saudi Arabia.
Publisher:
16 SABIC makes a major impression at K 2010
EXHIBITIONS & CONFERENCES
SABIC honored for sponsoring international energy forum
Metals SBU attends ‘Big 5’ show in Dubai
Performance Chemicals debuts at SEPAWA
SABIC sponsors CHEMINDEX 2010 in Bahrain
Show of strength at K 2010
SUSTAINABILITY
New solutions backed by validation process, scorecard
Green portfolio in a nutshell
COVER STORY
The Fifth Annual GPCA Forum addresses the challenge of
sustaining growth for Gulf petrochemicals
The just-concluded Annual GPCA Forum caps an extremely busy season of
industry exhibitions and conferences. While the Forum projected a very
positive outlook for the region’s resource-driven industry and stressed the
importance of innovation, SABIC’s emphasis has also been on growth and
innovation, as well as sustainability and customer focus. It has been a
long season, with the K 2010 leading the pack of events that included the
energy forum in Riyadh, Chemistry in Industry in Bahrain, Big 5 in Dubai
and SEPAWA in Germany, with each event having its own focus. With so
much happening, it is hardly surprising that this edition has plenty to report
from exhibition locations.
PRODUCT INNOVATION
First PET tape fabric could lead to 30% material savings
Noryl GTX* conductive resins offer fresh benefits to
automobile OEMs
SUCCESS STORY
Chery’s A3CC sports coupe gains from SABIC’s unique resin
combinations
Plexx chooses Lexan* PC sheet for Norwegian train windows
SABIC® STAMAX® LGFPP helps Hyundai win 2010 SPE
Innovation Award
Lexan* Thermoclear* protection for Euro 2012 stadium in
Poland
PRODUCT PROFILE
Valox* resins offer sustainable and high-heat solutions
CUSTOMER OUTREACH
SABIC celebrates partnership with Asia’s glycol customers
Project Manager: Khaled Al-Masri
Group Editor: K. Krishnakumar
Head of Design: Grigor Scott
FOREWORD
BEHIND THE SCENES
A look at what it took for SABIC teams to compile and submit
REACH dossiers
The signing of the contract to build a new plastics application development
center in Riyadh and the establishment of the Middle East Business Unit
of SABIC Innovative Plastics underline the fact that SABIC is investing in
innovation and high-end engineering plastics. SABIC is also supporting
efforts to define new financing tools modelled on Islamic financing, which
has gained enormous respect in global business circles. The news section
reports on these and other SABIC developments including the Rabat-based
North and West Africa business hub.
At the K show, sustainability was a key focus area for SABIC, along with
growth, innovation and customer focus. This issue devotes a full section
explaining how SABIC highlighted its commitment to sustainability,
including the announcement of a new methodology and scorecard to
verify and support claims, as well as a quick glance through the company’s
growing ‘green portfolio’ of products. The Product Innovation, Success
Story and Product Profile sections too have several interesting stories to
tell, demonstrating how SABIC’s products are helping the automobile and
other sectors to achieve new levels of efficiency and weight reduction.
REACH, the European initiative on chemicals, has been in the news
for some time, and SABIC recently reached an important milestone in
implementing the program by submitting key dossiers on a number of its
products to the concerned regulatory body
in Helsinki. Behind the Scenes explains the
importance of REACH, and puts this SABIC
achievement in perspective.
SABIC Asia Pacific recently hosted its
glycol customers to a unique customer
appreciation treat at the Indonesian resort
island of Bali. Customer representatives
from seven countries descended on Bali
and bonded with SABIC teams through a
variety of exercises and interactions over
two days, giving new dimensions to the
concept of Customer Outreach.
I am happy to note that this is the 100th
issue of SABIC magazine. It would be an
understatement to say that it has been an
interesting journey, and we are certain
that there is much more excitement to
come as SABIC scales new heights in the
coming years.
Editor-in-Chief
Senior Graphic Designer: Hussain Mohamed Al-Bakri
PO Box 301292, Riyadh 11372, Tel:+966 (1) 462 3632,
Email: [email protected]
©2010 Alef Publishing & Media
LIFESTYLE
Video games: bonding or bondage?
Reprinting in whole or in part is prohibited by law except with
the prior written approval of the publisher.
2 SABIC November/December 2010
November/December 2010 3
SABIC NEWS
Plastics Application Development Center at
Riyadh Techno Valley to be ready in 2012
The SABIC Plastics Application Development Center in Riyadh will be part of Riyadh Techno Valley
The new SABIC Plastics Application
Development Center (SPADC) in Riyadh
will be operational by the third quarter
of 2012, significantly strengthening
the company’s expanding global
research and innovation network.
SABIC signed the construction contract
for the prestigious project in Riyadh on
December 1.
The signing ceremony was
attended by Prince Saud bin Abdullah
bin Thenayan Al-Saud, Chairman of
SABIC and the Royal Commission for
Jubail and Yanbu, Prince Faisal AlSaud, Advisor to the Saudi Ministry of
Petroleum and Mineral Resources, Dr.
Abdullah A. Al-Othman, Rector of King
Saud University, Mohamed Al-Mady,
SABIC Vice Chairman and CEO.
Dr. Abdulrahman Al-Ubaid,
Executive Vice President, Technology
and Innovation, SABIC, and Khaled
bin Masa’ad El Seif, Chairman of El Seif
Engineering Contracting Company
signed the agreement. About 80,000
square meters of space has been
allocated for SPADC at Riyadh Techno
Valley, the science park located on the
campus of King Saudi University (KSU).
SPADC is expected to have built-up
space of about 43,000 square meters.
During the ceremony, the audience
viewed graphic representations of the
new facility design and were briefed
on a variety of applications under
development at SABIC’s application
development centers in US and
Europe, such as automobile bumpers,
body panels, stadium seats and others.
Prince Saud praised the close
cooperation between SABIC and Saudi
universities, including KSU. He said
SPADC is part of SABIC’s 2020 strategy,
which emphasizes the importance of
research, innovation and creation of
new industries. He thanked Prince
Faisal bin Turki bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud
for his efforts in supporting the
project, and also acknowledged the
support of Dr. Khalid bin Mohammed
Al-Angari, Minister of Higher Education,
Dr. Abdullah A.Al-Othman, and Azzam
Shalabi, President of the National
Industrial Clusters Development
Program. “My sincere gratitude to
all of them. I also thank the working
group of SABIC, the university, and
all others who have worked hard and
contributed in advancing this project.”
Al-Mady said that SPADC will support
the continued expansion of SABIC’s
new product portfolio, especially in
the areas of packaging, automotive
materials and compounding. He noted
that the new research facility will
support the growth of downstream
industries. The center will collaborate
with customers in developing new
plastic applications and provide
technical support to SABIC’s local and
international customers.
SPADC will be equipped with
more than 300 pieces of state-ofthe-art special research equipment
to be operated by more than 150
expert researchers. “It will serve as
a pilot project to help build Saudi
Arabia’s knowledge economy and
play an active role in the transfer of
technology to the Kingdom by building
relations between university scientists
and end-manufacturers of the plastics
industries,” Al-Mady said.
Al-Ubaid said that SPADC will be
part of SABIC’s global network of
technology centers, and will work
closely with other company-owned
and operated technology centers
in Pittsfield in the United States,
Bergen op Zoom and Geleen in The
Netherlands, Bangalore in India,
Shanghai in China, Seoul in Korea and
Moka in Japan. The center will further
enhance the relationships between
SABIC, industrial investors and KSU.
The world-class center will also
house the SABIC Polymer Technical
Support Center, currently located
in Riyadh’s Second Industrial City. It
will function as a technical support
hub and training center for SABIC’s
customers worldwide, Al-Ubaid added.
Largest of its kind in the Middle
East, SPADC’s design and engineering
services were provided by the local
architecture firm, Zuhair Fayez,
in partnership with the US-based
KlingStubbins. The center building
will be LEED-certified, ensuring that
SPADC will be
equipped with more
than 300 pieces
of state-of-the-art
special research
equipment to be
operated by more
than 150 expert
researchers
it complies with the most advanced
global benchmarks for the design
and operation of high-performance
green buildings. (LEED – Leadership in
Energy and Environmental Design – is
a US-based green building certification
program).
SPADC’s design will be a local
landmark, standing almost 60 meters
high to provide graphic representation
of SABIC as one of the world’s leading
petrochemical companies and the
largest in the Middle East. The design
will also reflect SABIC’s four core
values: “Inspire, Engage, Create and
Deliver.”
Al-Ubaid (right) signs the contract with El-Seif
SPADC Riyadh will host advanced machinery and equipment
SABIC NEWS
Al-Mady ranked third among ICIS
Top 40 Power Players
Mohamed Al-Mady, SABIC Vice
Chairman and CEO, has been ranked
third among ICIS Top 40 Power
Players, a tribute to “the people
who have led their organizations out
of the depths of the recession and
prepared them to achieve success in
the upturn.”
In its review of the Top 40, the
leading chemicals and energy news
service provider, ICIS, speaks in
glowing terms about Al-Mady and the
Power Players, “Through the dark days,
a number of leaders took the steps
necessary to make their companies
more competitive in tougher
times, while not sacrificing growth,
continuing to make investments in
research and development, and in
capital-intensive projects... these
people have led their companies out
of the woods, and are again looking
for growth – both organically and
through acquisitions.”
Speaking about Al-Mady’s strategies
for the immediate future, the leading
international publication says that “he
is renewing his focus on ‘value-added’
derivatives such as polycarbonate and
ethanolamines.
In listing the top 40 power players
in the industry, ICIS noted the rise of
the Middle East and China as major
chemical production centers and
pointed out that the decade ahead
will likely hold many new surprises
as the balance of industrial power
in the world continues to fluctuate.
ICIS selected its top group based on
demonstrated leadership that made
their companies more competitive in
tough times.
The other key figures from the
chemicals industry, who have been
ranked one and two respectively, are
Andrew Liveris, Chairman, President
and CEO, Dow Chemicals, and Peter
Bahnsuk Kim, CEO, LG Chem.
SABIC Morocco to serve as regional hub
for North and West Africa
SABIC recently inaugurated its North
and West Africa regional headquarters
in Rabat, Morocco. The inauguration
ceremony on October 25 was led by
Prince Saud bin Abdullah bin Thunayan
Al-Saud, Chairman of SABIC and the
Royal Commission for Jubail and
Yanbu, and Mohamed Al-Mady, Vice
Chairman and CEO, and attended by
Dr. Mohammed Abdulrahman Al-Bishr,
the Saudi Ambassador to Morocco,
and several ministers and senior
officials of the Moroccan government
and diplomats representing other
governments.
Riad S. Al-Nasser, General Manager,
SABIC Morocco received the guests at
the inauguration. SABIC will rely on
its Morocco office to serve the North
and West Africa markets, effectively
leveraging its growing influence in the
region as a leading supplier of polymers,
chemicals and fertilizers. SABIC has
been a supplier of these products to
the Moroccan and African markets for
25 years, and the new headquarters
will streamline direct communications
with customers. It underlines SABIC’s
strong commitment to Morocco and the
African continent.
Prince Saud receives Microsoft CEO
Prince Saud bin Abdullah bin Thenayan
Al-Saud, Chairman of SABIC and the
Royal Commission for Jubail and
Yanbu, received Steve Ballmer, CEO of
Microsoft, at SABIC headquarters in
Riyadh on November 2. Mohamed AlMady, SABIC Vice Chairman and CEO,
attended the reception along with
several Executive Vice Presidents and
Vice Presidents of SABIC, and officials
of the Royal Commission for Jubail and
Yanbu, and Marafiq.
Prince Saud and Steve Ballmer
reviewed the vital role played by
information technology in building
a knowledge-based society in Saudi
Arabia. They also highlighted the
importance of technology in driving
development and in advancing the
nation’s communities.
They also discussed issues of mutual
interest related to IT and the use of
engineering plastics to meet the needs
of Microsoft Corporation.
Ballmer and senior top SABIC management pose for a
souvenir picture at the SABIC headquarters in Riyadh
SABIC, Lummus join hands to develop
toluene methylation technology
SABIC has signed an agreement with
Lummus Technology Inc. to jointly
develop and commercialize toluene
methylation (TM) technology to
produce paraxylene.
The agreement was signed through
SABIC’s Houston-based subsidiary,
SABIC Americas Inc. The TM technology
was developed around a proprietary
SABIC catalyst and process, and will
Prince Saud and Al-Mady inaugurate the Rabat office (above);
and Prince Saud with Ambassador Al-Bishr (below)
SABIC has a growing customer base
in the country, and local downstream
businesses consider SABIC a key partner
in their own success stories. SABIC is
strengthening its presence in Morocco
in the backdrop of a major industrial
transformation taking place in the
country, including the establishment of
new companies in the automotive
industry sector. More than 200
companies are expected to benefit from
the products of SABIC Innovative Plastics
and new engineering solutions.
The stronger presence of SABIC in
North and West Africa is also a further
step towards achieving the company’s
vision to be the preferred world leader
in chemicals. The Morocco operations
will strengthen the SABIC sales network
throughout Africa.
SABIC Americas and Lummus Technology teams after the signing of the agreement
provide an improved process solution
for polyester producers. “This project
is aligned with SABIC’s strategy to be
a technology provider and licensor,”
said Dr. Abdulrahman Al-Ubaid,
SABIC Executive Vice President,
Technology and Innovation (T&I). “The
T&I organization also works with all
of SABIC’s Strategic Business Units
(SBUs) through its global network of
technology and application centers to
improve manufacturing processes and
develop new technologies,” he added.
Al-Ubaid also noted that research
excellence has played a large part
in making SABIC an outstanding
petrochemical success story, and
stated that by continuing to invest
in technology, SABIC is driving the
petrochemical industry forward,
creating market opportunities and
products that will lead to new success
stories in the industry.
SABIC NEWS
SABIC Chair at Imam University will
strengthen Islamic financing: Al-Mady
Chairman and CEO, has said that the
SABIC Chair at the Imam Mohammed
bin Saud Islamic University will strive
to meet the challenges faced by
Islamic finance industry and develop
credible financial instruments that
are both economically efficient and
Shariah-compliant. He was speaking
at the recent foundation workshop of
the SABIC Chair for Islamic Financial
Market Studies at Saudi Arabia’s
leading Islamic university, known
popularly as the Imam University.
SABIC signed the agreement with
the university for establishing the Chair
on November 15, 2009 as part of
the company’s efforts to develop and
find funding channels and innovative
investments that comply with Shariah.
Al-Mady noted that the Islamic
finance industry has been growing
consistently, with creative and
comprehensive concepts financing
bringing more investments into the
sector. Some concepts, such as those
based on partnership in profits and
risks, which control the relationship
between financiers and borrowers,
have become a catalyst for more
responsible financial practices, which
are now widely accepted among the
banking community.
The workshop was opened by
Dr. Sulaiman Abdullah Aba Al-Khail,
Rector, at the university’s conference
building in Riyadh on November 29.
The event was attended by Saud
Al-Saleh, Secretary General of the
Supreme Economic Council, Dr.
Fahd Abdulaziz Al-Askar, Dean of the
Scientific Research and Secretary
General, Research Chairs Programs,
Dr. Mohammed Ibrahim Al-Suhaibani,
Professor SABIC Chair for Islamic
Finance Market Studies, and members
of the Scientific Commission of the
SABIC Chair, and faculty members of
Saudi universities, consultants and
practitioners in the securities trading
industry in the Kingdom.
Al-Mady said the challenges that
may slow down the growth of Islamic
financing include a shortage of
experts and absence of accounting
and control standards, as well as
failure to keep up with legislation
and regulatory changes, and
varying opinions among scholars,
and legal Shariah commissions.
“Our partnership with the Imam
Mohammed bin Saud Islamic University
is the product of close cooperation
between our private sector and
educational institutions to meet
those challenges and achieve our
common goals to promote the role
of the financial sector and national
investment for more sustainable
economic growth,” he said.
“We are committed to supporting
such initiatives, which would develop
the capital market since the company
had already taken the lead in offering
a number of Shariah-compliant
financial instruments in the domestic
market, by introducing Islamic Sukuk in
2006. It was followed by several other
offerings in 2007 and 2008 with a
total value equivalent to SR 16 billion.
These Sukuks are just the beginning of
a greater reliance on the means and
tools to finance innovative Shariahcompliant financing to help SABIC
achieve its objectives and ambitious
plans for growth.
“More than 85 percent of SABIC’s
cash investments, which amount to
roughly SR 58 billion, are compatible
with Shariah. The percentage is
steadily increasing, as we continue to
work side by side with our partners in
the local and foreign banks to develop
more innovative Islamic investment
products in the context of our role and
our social responsibility as a leading
national company.”
SABIC wants its Chair at the
university to be internationally
recognized in the fields of
development and innovation of new
and appropriate financial instruments,
combining legal credibility and
economic capacity. The SABIC Chair
also seeks to provide a research
environment with high quality, attract
top capabilities in the field of Islamic
securities, organization of markets and
promoting production and publication
of leading research in the field of
Islamic banking to help support the
strategy of sustainable development
in the Kingdom. It also seeks to
contribute, along with government
and private agencies concerned with
regulating and providing financial
services, to make Saudi Arabia an
international financial center for
Islamic financial services.
The SABIC Chair research topics
focus on financial instruments based
on religious forms such as “Ejarah”,
“Murabaha” and “Istisna” instruments
as well as other instruments based
on profit-sharing, in addition to other
tools based on forms of partnerships
such as equities and instruments
of speculation and sharing. The
Chair will also focus on developing
financial instruments designed for
risk management and hedging,
restructuring of financial markets and
the role of specialized companies, and
the development of investment funds
in the structures of Islamic financial
markets.
It will also encourage the
development of financial instruments
specialized in financing companies
and governments, and funding and
investment of the endowments,
providing support for real estate
development and infrastructure
projects, and the development of
surveillance and financial control
systems designed to stabilize financial
markets and boost liquidity.
The SABIC Chair annually funds
five research grants and four MA and
PhD studies that conform to specific
standards and conditions. It also
supports the efforts of companies
with institutions of trading in the
securities industry both within and
outside the Kingdom. The research
topics of the Chair for 2011 include
the development of a model to
evaluate and classify Islamic Sukuk
and the conduct of market surveys for
such instruments, discussing ways of
integration of financial markets in the
GCC.
UK Trade & Investment MD visits SABIC
Chairman and CEO, received at SABIC
headquarters in Riyadh on December
1 Edward Oakden, Managing
Director, UK Trade & Investment, and
Paul Williams, Director, UK Trade &
Investment Saudi Arabia. They were
accompanied by Sir Tom Phillips, UK
Ambassador to Saudi Arabia.
Al-Mady discussed with the UK
delegation issues of mutual interest
and ways of boosting cooperation
between SABIC and the UK business
sector, within the frame of the
economic relations between Saudi
Arabia and UK.
Al-Mady with the UK delegation
SABIC Innovative Plastics to establish
ME and Africa business unit
SABIC Innovative Plastics recently
announced the establishment of a
new business unit to meet growing
customer demand for advanced
engineering thermoplastic materials
and application development
expertise in the Middle East and
Africa. The new organization, based
in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, demonstrates
SABIC’s strong commitment to this
increasingly important region –
providing customers access to a robust
portfolio of more than 40,000 highperformance resins. The new business
unit will be led by Richard Crosby, a
veteran Innovative Plastics executive
and scientist.
“Our innovation in materials and
service has been a key differentiator
in helping customers to be successful
in growing and dynamic markets
– from understanding their unique
requirements to continuously
innovating high-performance
materials, technologies and services
that help give them competitive
differentiation,” said Charlie Crew,
President and CEO, SABIC Innovative
Plastics. “Under Richard’s leadership,
we are committed to providing the
same level of support in the Middle
East and Africa to help OEMs and
processors in the region create worldclass products. This new business
unit will enable customers to easily
leverage our expansive portfolio
of solutions to meet the changing
requirements of local and global
markets.”
The announcement, made at the
recently held K 2010 trade show in
Dusseldorf, Germany, is the second
recent example of SABIC’s focus to
bring advanced materials solutions to
Middle East and Africa.
“Innovative Plastics’ proven success
in serving global industries such as
appliances, automotive, building and
construction, alternative energy and
electrical components will enable us
to establish and grow new customer
relationships as well as create greater
market demand in this growing
region,” noted Crosby.
“For example, the solar energy
industry, a major focus area for the
Middle East, uses several of our
engineering thermoplastics in current
Richard Crosby
photovoltaic applications and will
need new innovative materials for
future designs. We see an opportunity
to add value to the design,
development and production of new
applications across multiple markets
helping our customers achieve their
business goals.”
Crosby brings 22 years of extensive
experience in business development,
marketing and technology to his
role. Most recently he served as the
General Manager of Marketing and
Technology for the Innovative Plastics’
business unit in the Pacific. He holds
a doctorate in chemistry from Texas
A&M University.
SABIC NEWS
HR hosts orientation program for
SABIC scholarship students
Al-Benyan addresses the students at the orientation program
The Educational Programs Department
of SABIC Human Resources organized
an orientation program for US-bound
students under the SABIC Outbound
Scholarship Program at the company’s
headquarters in Riyadh on October 26.
Addressing the 86 students on
the opening day of the three-day
orientation program, Yousef Abdullah
Al-Benyan, Executive Vice President,
Human Resources, urged them to
represent the company honorably and
be ambassadors of their country and
their company. He encouraged them
to persevere in achieving their goals
and strengthening their knowledge
about science as well as social
subjects.
Swailem Dbas Al-Swailem, General
Manager, Organization Development,
highlighted the importance of the
program to SABIC Human Resources.
Waleed Y. Al-Kowaileet, Manager,
Educational Programs, answered
questions asked by the students.
The program also covered an
introduction to the visa procedures
at the US diplomatic missions in the
Kingdom.
The scholarship program has
selected 150 new high school
graduate students this year. Fourteen
students have already been enrolled
in UK universities in addition to the 86
students who are headed for studies in
US. The program is also sponsoring 50
fresh high school graduate students to
study in the Kingdom’s universities.
SABIC signs contract for storage
facility at Yanbu port
SABIC and the Saudi Ports Authority signed a contract
on October 26 under which SABIC will obtain land
on lease in the external storage area of the King Fahd
Industrial Port (KFIP) in Yanbu. SABIC will construct
warehouse and container facilities on the leased land
for storing its products before exporting them through
the port.
The contract was signed by Homood Al-Tuwaijri,
SABIC EVP Corporate Control, and Dr Hamoud Al
Sa’adi, Director General of KFIP, in the presence of
Engr. Abdulaziz Al-Tuwaijri, President of the Saudi Ports
Authority and Khalid Al-Shahrani, Logistics Lead for
EMDAD, SABIC’s supply chain project.
The agreement paves the ground for the
construction of a new Portside Logistics Facility (PLF)
and the storage facilities, which will dramatically
improve SABIC’s ability to manage increased export
traffic through Yanbu Port.
Abdulaziz Mohamed Al-Tuwaijri, President of the General Organization
of Ports (right), presents a memento to Homood Al-Tuwaijri
New polyolefin logistics center in UK
reinforces commitment to customers
SABIC recently announced the
official opening of its state-of-the-art
polyolefin logistics center in northeast England, which is replacing the
company’s current logistics center
in the United Kingdom. Located
in Middlesbrough, Cleveland, the
new facility underlines SABIC’s longterm commitment to serving its UK
customers.
The center’s fully scalable design
will ensure that SABIC is equipped
to meet current and future market
demand for all the products in
its broad polyolefin portfolio,
which includes linear low density
polyethylene (LLDPE) film, high
density polyethylene (HDPE) and
polypropylene (PP).
The center is operated by Bertschi
of Switzerland, which won the
SABIC contract on the strength of its
proven record in container and bulk
material handling. Hans-Jörg Bertschi,
President and CEO of Bertschi group,
commented: “This is a major step
for our company in developing a
network of pan-European polymer
handling facilities. We are very proud
to operate this new infrastructure on
behalf of SABIC, with whom we have
a long standing, excellent business
partnership, including in developing
innovative logistics solutions.”
Raf Bemelmans, European Director
for the Polymer Supply Chain: “Our
investment in this logistics center
SABIC and Bertschi teams at the official opening in front of the transshipment platform
demonstrates SABIC’s faith in the
UK market as a long-term consumer
of polyolefin materials. The center’s
logistics systems will enable us to
support the growing use of bulk
Loading of 30-ft-containers in the busy plastics hub
polymer handling operations that
eliminate the need for manual
interventions, such as ‘ripping and
tipping’. Bertschi’s experience in the
transportation and polymer handling
industries combined with the center’s
state-of-the-art design will allow us
to further enhance the service we
provide to our UK customer base.”
Michael Allen, Sales Office Director
SABIC UK says: “Our business strives
to take a leadership position in
petrochemicals. Among other
commitments, this involves building a
world-class European supply network
capable of giving our customers
dedicated support combined with a
reliable supply of quality polyolefin
products within competitive lead
times. Our new logistics hub will play
an instrumental part in delivering
this vision.”
SABIC honored for sponsoring
international energy forum
Ali Ibrahim Al-Nuaimi, Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Petroleum and Mineral
Resources, recently honored SABIC for sponsoring the International Energy
Forum organized by the ministry from October 18 to 20 to mark OPEC’s
50th anniversary
The forum was attended by
delegations from OPEC member
countries as well as a number of
diplomats and officials based in
Riyadh.
Al-Nuaimi inaugurated the forum
at the InterContinental Hotel in
Riyadh, in the presence of Mohamed
Al-Mady, SABIC Vice Chairman and
CEO. Al-Nuaimi and Prince Abdulaziz
bin Salman, Assistant Minister of
Petroleum and Mineral Resources,
toured SABIC’s stand at the Riyadh
International Exhibition for Petroleum,
Gas and Petrochemical Industries
SABIC Metals SBU recently participated in the ‘Big 5’ show which was
inaugurated by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al-Maktoum, Vice President
and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, at the Dubai World Trade
Center on November 22
Al-Nuaimi presents a memento to Al-Mady in appreciation for SABIC’s sponsorship
of the forum. To the left of Al-Mady in the rear is Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman
where they were briefed on SABIC’s
status as a global leader in the
petrochemical industry.
Prince Abdulaziz also attended
the SABIC-sponsored ceremony on
the second day. The forum addressed
various topics including the historic
relations between Saudi Arabia and
OPEC and the Kingdom’s efforts to
stabilize the energy market. Keynote
speakers from Saudi Arabia and world
organizations specialized in oil, gas
and related industries spoke at the
forum.
SABIC products on display
Al-Mady, former Saudi Minister of Petroleum Hisham Nazer, and other guests view exhibits
Metals SBU attends ‘Big 5’ show in Dubai
Visitors at the exhibition
The SABIC pavilion at the ‘Big 5’ show
Sheikh Mohammed visited the SABIC
pavilion where he was briefed on the
state-of-the-art long and flat steel
products. He listened to a briefing on
SABIC and its achievements.
The Big 5 show, which is the largest
of its kind in the Middle East, features
companies showcasing products and
services in the construction industry
from across the world, alongside
leading local and regional developers,
contractors, importers, manufacturers
and distributors.
This year’s show was packed
with features such as conference,
training courses and green seminars.
It provides a platform for exhibitors
and visitors to make use of the huge
opportunities in the construction
sector in the Middle East. The
conference brought together leading
players from across the global
construction industry. In addition,
Another view of the SABIC stand
new concepts such as a forum for
corporate CEOs and seminars for
suppliers, as well as specialized
educational and awareness sessions
to understand the local working
environment, were part of the event.
Performance Chemicals debuts
at SEPAWA
SABIC sponsors CHEMINDEX 2010 in Bahrain
SABIC participated in the Eighth International Conference and Exhibition on
Chemistry in Industry (CHEMINDEX 2010) in Bahrain from October 18 to 20
Performance Chemicals SBU represented SABIC at the 57th SEPAWA Congress
and European Detergents Conference 2010 which was held in Fulda,
Germany from October 13 to 15
SEPAWA is Europe’s largest professional
association representing industries
dealing in detergents, cleaning
products, cosmetics and perfumes.
According to the organizers, a record
number of about 1,600 visitors from
29 countries visited the event this
year.
SABIC was participating in the
event for the first time, exhibiting its
range of ethanolamines/ethxoylates
and NDA products as part of its global
promotional and customer outreach
campaign in preparation for the
upcoming launch of SAUDI KAYAN
amines products. Representatives of
about 80 companies visited the
SABIC booth.
SEPAWA members regularly
exchange knowledge and experience
on a wide range of subjects such
as, new production processes, the
development of performanceenhancing or differentiating
ingredients, the use of industrial
manufacturing procedures, the
significance of lasting product
innovations, and issues relating
The SABIC team at their stand
Overhead view of the show
to sustainability and environment
protection.
SABIC’s Performance Chemicals
SBU operates three Business
Units: Base Products, Functional
Polymers and Functional Chemicals.
Ethanolamines and Ethoxylates are
part of the Functional Chemicals
product range and are used, amongst
others, in household detergents and
personal care products.
“SABIC’s Performance Chemicals
Business aims to diversify the SABIC
product portfolio and accelerate
the exploration of new chemical and
polymer value chains to meet our
customers’ needs,” says Rusmir Niksic,
SABIC General Manager, Functional
Chemicals. “The European market
is one of the key areas for SABIC’s
growth strategy in performance
chemicals where the company aims
to expand its networks in sales,
marketing and distribution. SABIC
intends to combine its knowledge
of customer desired applications
and processes, product quality,
technology platforms, customer
service excellence and security of
feedstock supply to create value,
facilitate growth and spur innovation
for its European customers”.
SABIC representatives at the company’s pavilion
The event, which was inaugurated
by Bahraini Minister of Industry and
Commerce Dr. Hassan Abdullah
Fakhro on October 18, was organized
by the Saudi International Chemical
Society, which is a branch of the
American Chemical Society, in
collaboration with the Chemical
Society of Bahrain.
The conference was attended
by Prince Saud bin Khalid Al-Faisal,
Executive Director, Operations,
National Competitiveness Center
of the Saudi Arabian General
Investment Authority (SAGIA), Prince
Dr. Turki bin Saud bin Mohammed
Al-Saud, Vice President, King
Abdulaziz City for Science and
Technology (KACST), Omar Bazhair,
Vice President, Engineering and
Projects Management, Saudi Aramco,
scientists, pioneers in chemistry
and representatives from the
petrochemical sector from around
the world. At the end of the event,
the organizing committee honored
SABIC for sponsoring the event.
Primarily, SABIC was represented
at the exhibition by Technology and
Innovation (T&I). Dr. Abdullah bin
Saeed Al-Amri, Manager, External
Network and Venture, T&I, briefed
visiting dignitaries on the processes
and operations of SABIC T&I, the
role of laboratories and various new
applications, as well as the technical
support provided to customers.
SABIC’s stand showcased a selection
of technologies applied at SABIC’s T&I
centers.
The conference discussed several
research and working papers. Dr.
Abdullah Al-Rifai, Dr. Zia Choudhury
and Yousef Al-Ghadeer, who are
researchers at SABIC Technology
Centers in Riyadh and Jubail,
presented working papers on
advanced materials, corrosion and
membranes’ industrial applications.
Discussions were held on analytical
techniques, conventional and nonconventional oil field chemicals, and
other important issues related to the
oil and petrochemical sectors.
Show of strength
SABIC made a major impression at K 2010 based on
its “four-pillar” principle. The profound changes at the
company since K 2007 were quite evident as was its
commitment to growth, customer focus, sustainability
and innovation
key initiatives and achievements in this
critical aspect of the plastics industry
(See Focus on Sustainability, page 20).
Al-Mady repeated this message at
the SABIC customer dinner, where
he personally welcomed each of
the 700 guests, creating a personal
touch that set the tone for the night.
In his opening address, he reminded
everyone that SABIC was continuing
to invest in plants, innovation,
technology and people right across the
globe, putting it in a position to help
customers meet their business goals
and challenges wherever they may be.
(From left): Meesen, Al-Mady, Crew and Al-Mana at SABIC’s press conference
Al-Mady underlined SABIC’s continued
investment in both production and
innovation
An overview of the busy SABIC stand at K
If you can rate the success of a fair
by figures alone, SABIC had a very
successful K 2010. Some 3,500 business
meetings were held, which means
some 8,000 people visited the stand
for meetings or simple enquiries. Then
there were live customer seminars in
German and English, and participants
visiting the stand after listening to
the presentations. Add to that, the
successful opening press conference,
91 media interviews before and during
the show, and about 1,200 media clips
generated. To say that the stand was
“busy” would be an understatement.
Every three years, the German
town of Düsseldorf becomes the
nerve center of the plastics industries,
when materials suppliers and machine
manufacturers from around the world
converge to meet and do business.
SABIC has been a regular at K for a
number of years, but as one manager
pointed out before this year’s show,
although he met a distributor three
years ago that didn’t know SABIC, that
would be much more difficult this time
around. For the 2010 edition, SABIC
brought all its previous experience to
bear as well as a rigorous plan based
on the four pillars of growth, customer
focus, sustainability and innovation.
SABIC’s K activities and
everything about the stand and its
communications were based on the
pillars, which were incorporated in
a number of ways. The stand was
constructed in the shape of a giant
molecule, the root of SABIC’s work. The
openness and numerous hospitality
areas reflected customer focus;
the demo areas and use of Lexan
material in the building showcased the
innovation; its size (the tallest stand
at K) reflected growth; and the fact
that some 90 percent of the stand was
recyclable or re-usable was a brilliant
example of sustainability. The concept
was summed up as the “Culture of
Innovation”.
So at K, SABIC made a bold statement
about where the company is, where it
is going and how customer focus and
innovation will enable it to get there.
KEY MESSAGE
The show started with SABIC
holding the very first press conference
of the K, attended by about 60
journalists from the leading global
trade publications including Chemical
Week, Platts, Asian Plastics News,
Kunststoffe, Plastics News and
Plastverabeiter.
Chairman and CEO, briefed the
journalists about the progress
SABIC has made over the past years
and future plans. Khaled Al-Mana,
Executive Vice President, Polymers,
Charlie Crew, Executive Vice President,
SABIC Innovative Plastics, and Huub
Meesen, Vice President Europe,
supported Al-Mady at the press
conference. Al-Mady underlined
SABIC’s continued investment in both
production and innovation, detailing
the new plants and investments in
Performance Chemicals and innovation
that are taking place globally.
Charlie Crew spoke about SABIC’s
strong relationships with global
automotive companies. He cited
the success of the Chery automotive
project in China, where SABIC’s Noryl
GTX*, Xenoy* and Stamax* resins
enabled the car manufacturer to
reduce weight, improve styling and
enhance pedestrian safety on a model
which was prominently displayed
on the stand. Speaking after the
conference he said, “We continue to
expand the boundaries of materials
excellence with next-generation
products, processing expertise, and
advanced application development
capabilities to help customers
differentiate, compete and grow.”
Reflecting an overall market
trend, many questions at the press
conference focused on aspects of
sustainability and environmental
issues. Khaled Al-Mana listed SABIC’s
NEW LEADS
For SABIC at K, meeting customers,
prospects and partners was the top
priority. On the 1,200 m² stand,
three reception desks were needed
to manage the flow of people. The
atmosphere was hectic at times.
Managers and customers conversed
at every level of the structure, from
the ten meeting rooms and friendly
ground-floor coffee bar to the more
open first-floor area and sushi bar or
the VIP lounge. Yet despite the bustle,
the atmosphere was at all time both
businesslike and welcoming.
Visitors and passers-by could see
the many SABIC applications displayed
on the stand. In addition to a wide
range of industrial and household
appliances, the Chery sports car and
Harley Davidson motorcycle featuring
SABIC plastics were very popular with
passers-by and the press. “Our Culture
of Innovation focus drives SABIC’s
strategy to be the preferred world
leader in chemicals and plastics,” said
Al-Mana. “We are proud to show how
investments in our global capabilities
and portfolio help us achieve mutual
success with our customers.”
SABIC managers from around the
world attending the K show reported
Staff delighted to see
machines, processes
The SABIC customer dinner at K was well attended, and was addressed by Al-Mady (right)
extensive coverage in tier-one online
media as well as the business press.
SABIC’s key messages were well covered,
and by the end of the show, the industry
media had a good grasp of SABIC’s
sustainability messaging platform.
Al-Mady was the first industry
executive featured in the K show’s
inaugural footage. The media tour
of the SABIC stand was also a major
success.
About 356 articles were generated
during the show, including 54
interviews with SABIC business leaders
and 10 press releases. SABIC was also
part of a press conference announcing
the creation of an innovative PET
Nr. 44
30 28. Oktober 2010
DIE ZEIT
S. 30
fabric with the Austrian manufacturer
Starlinger, co-developed in Saudi
Arabia. (See details on page 36).
An ad campaign in 33 key global
plastics publications and highly visible
outdoor advertising in Dusseldorf city
and at the fairground provided much
visibility.
SABIC worked with 21 machine
manufacturers, such as Gruppo
Colines, Dolci-Belloni, Billion and
Hosokawa-Alpine, that ran live
demos of their machines at the show,
running SABIC material. Not only
did their potential customers see
SABIC’s material in a live production
environment, they also get SABIC’s
SCHWARZ
cyan
magenta
yellow
WIRTSCHAFT
DIE ZEIT No 44
message through branded material on
the relevant stands.
“In a way, it extended our stand,”
says PP Technical Marketing Manager
Diederik Goyvaerts. “And what also
happened frequently is that after
talking to customers at our stand, we
could send them to see the material in
action at the manufacturer.”
APPETIZER SEMINARS
Living up to its slogan of ‘a culture
of innovation’, SABIC has a growing
wealth of research, experience,
application development and
concepts to share with the market.
SABIC already has a comprehensive
program of e-seminars that runs on
the web, supporting its emphasis on
customer focus and co-development.
For the first time, however, SABIC
experimented with running live
customer seminars at K.
Nr. 44
DIE ZEIT
S. 31
WIRTSCHAFT
The format was simple: a 20-minute
presentation, followed by a 10-minute
Q&A session. “The idea was to
create an appetizer,” says IP Product
Manager Ton Hermans. “People don’t
have the time to sit for an hour at a
fair like K.” The 18 seminars covered
many themes. Those that generated
the most interest included metal
replacement and weight reduction,
sustainability, health care and
photovoltaics. Some 80 percent
of visitors asked to receive more
information following the seminars.
The impact of SABIC’s K efforts and
achievements will last for quite some
time to come – across businesses,
customers, partners, prospects and
the media. Geert Drummen from
Moscow summed up his impression
of K with a grin: “It was excellent,
exciting, exhausting but very
rewarding!”
SCHWARZ
cyan
magenta
yellow
28. Oktober 2010 DIE ZEIT No 44
Die neuen Aufsteiger
aus dem Osten
Jubail
SAUDIARABIEN
ÄGYPTEN
BASF
Deutschland
ZEIT-Grafik
Sabic
4 (6)
Saudi-Arabien
Sinopec
China
SUDAN
44,9
41,0
3 (2)
5 (8)
eer
Dow Chemical 2 (3)
USA
ExxonMobil
USA
15 026
Dubai
Riad
49,8
1 (1)
OMAN
JEMEN
Arabisches
Meer
SOMALIA
600 km
31,2
28,9
ZEIT-Grafik/Quelle: Chemical Week
Sabic in Zahlen:
Sabic-Chef Mohamed Al-Mady
in westlicher (links) und saudischer
Dienstkleidung (rechts),
Chemieanlagen im saudischen Jubail
Gewinn (2009): 2,4 Milliarden Dollar
Börsenwert: 74,6 Milliarden Dollar
Mitarbeiter: 33.000
Produktionsstätten: 213
Fotos: PR; Ali Al Mubarak/ArabianEye/
Agentur Focus; Reuters (v.l.n.r.)
ZEIT-Grafik/Quelle: eigene Recherche
Klammheimlich an die Weltspitze
Images from Die Zeit, the highly respected German national daily
newspaper, which ran an extensive feature on SABIC during the show
JUNG v.MATT
31
IRAN
IRAK
Chemieunternehmen im Vergleich, Umsatz in
Milliarden US-Dollar, Rang 2009 zu (2008)
sM
HIGH VISIBILITY
In addition to actual meetings on
the stand, SABIC pushed its messages
in other ways. The media campaign
was a big success with SABIC securing
“We are proud to show how investments in
our global capabilities and portfolio help us
achieve mutual success with our customers”
Rote
very positive outcomes. “Before I got
to K, I wasn’t very optimistic,” said
Gabriele Bacchetta, Polymers Manager
in Italy. “But the reactions I have been
getting from people have changed
that.” Most people reported very brisk
schedules.
Konrad Hellmann from Germany saw
new business in polycarbonate bottle
closures, coin deposit locks and heavy
duty vehicles. “Driven by the short
supply in engineering thermoplastics,
customers to whom we never had
access also approached us to speak
with us about business,” he says. “We
saw many new leads in health care
fostered by cross-fertilization between
the polymer and innovative plastics
business units.”
Cross-fertilization was also on
the agenda for Geert Drummen,
who oversees the vast CIS and
Baltics market from Moscow. “In
the CIS, market distances are huge
and exhibitions and seminars are
efficient ways to meet face to face
with key people. We met with some
90 companies,” he says. “We made
a few large deals at the stand and
met with several prospects who will
start ordering in the coming months.
We then introduced our biggest
client to our SABIC Innovative Plastics
colleagues as there will certainly be
some synergy in sales.”
Sparkassen-Finanzgruppe
W
er hätte gedacht, dass es
in einem Wüstenstaat
ähnliche Probleme gibt
wie in der Lagune von
Venedig. Zu viel Sand
auf der Baustelle kann
eben auch von Übel
sein, besonders wenn er Salzwasser ansaugt wie
an der Golfküste Saudi-Arabiens. Was die Bau-
nicht notwendigerweise das »größte« Unternehmen, sagt er betont bescheiden. »Wir wollen
nicht Wachstum um des Wachstums willen, sondern, dass unsere Kunden die Produkte und den
Service noch mehr schätzen.«
Der Mann ist ebenso Manager wie Diplomat. Einerseits gibt er seinen Mitarbeitern
stramme Ziele vor: Nachdem sich die Produktion im vergangenen Jahrzehnt mehr als verdop-
There is more to trade fairs than
sales and promotion. This year’s
K provided the opportunity for
employees to keep up with the latest
trends in the industry. Although K is
not really a production environment,
seeing how SABIC material is used
in extrusion plants was fascinating.
Various groups from SABIC sites
visited the fair. For Jo Soons, Business
Coordinator HDPE Pipe, who
was attending with people from
Gelsenkirchen, the reason for the
visit was simple. “Everyone from
SABIC should come!” he says. “This is
the business we are in.”
Process Technology Specialist
Nikolas Zwaneveld headed a visit
from the Young Professionals
in Bergen op Zoom. “We bring
together people under 35 from
just about every sector in SABIC,”
he explains. His co-organizer Kiki
Crombag, part of the polymer
market intelligence team, headed
a large group from Sittard. She was
particularly interested in seeing how
the competition was communicating
at K. HR was also present at the stand.
On a windy, rainy Sunday, a group
of 15 people from Geleen and
Genk braved the weather to board
a coach and head for Dusseldorf.
Hendrik Vrissen is an operator
from the Genk plant. His primary
reason for coming? “The machines,”
he says. “I like to visit K for the
manufacturers’ stands. I’m also
involved in a federation and like to
keep up with trends. There is always
something new here.”
One person who knows K well
is Wim Gloerich, who used to be
part of the sales team in Germany
and attended eight fairs but is
now retired and acts as a guide
for the employees. “At the time,”
he remembers, “it was mainly a
German fair.” The changes he sees?
“It’s much bigger now, and more
international,” he says. “But deep
down, it’s the same business.” The
employees followed his explanations
about extrusion and injection
molding with interest.
Das saudische Chemieunternehmen Sabic nutzt billiges Öl für
seinen Angriff auf BASF und Co. VON JUTTA HOFFRITZ
Nischenplayer Süd-Chemie arbeitet mit Sabic an
der Erforschung neuer Katalysatoren – allerdings
in den USA. Branchenführer BASF prüfte vor einigen Jahren eine Zusammenarbeit im Nahen
Osten – um sie dann zu verwerfen. Bei Bayer stand
das Thema offenbar nie zur Debatte. »Saudi-Arabien?«, fragte Werner Wenning jüngst bei seinem
Abschied als Bayer-Chef. Die Bedingungen dort
seien noch nicht reif. »Wenn wir irgendwo inves-
mehrt auf Technologie und verlässt sich längst
nicht mehr nur darauf, diese nur per Joint Venture in die Heimat zu locken. In den vergangenen
Jahren hat Sabic bereits mehrere Übernahmen
im Ausland realisiert.
Besonders die Akquisition der Kunststofftochter des amerikanischen GE-Konzerns 2007
galt mit knapp zwölf Milliarden Dollar als extrem teuer. Allerdings markierte der Kauf auch
SUSTAINABILITY
New solutions backed by
validation process, scorecard
SABIC scores a green-high at K with the announcement of expanded and
innovative sustainability product solutions, and new validation process and
scorecard
SABIC unveiled major sustainability
initiatives at K 2010, introducing
SABIC Innovative Plastics’ expanded
portfolio of post-consumer recycled
(PCR) content materials and a rigorous
validation process for its sustainable
materials and applications. SABIC
Innovative Plastics’ new process
includes a Sustainable Product
Scorecard, developed in partnership
with independent environmental
sustainability consulting firm
GreenOrder. SABIC Polymers too
announced new products that
demonstrated its growing strength in
sustainability.
Sustainability was the most ‘visible’
subject at K, with many of the stands
focusing on the topic with vivid
communications and imagery. SABIC’s
approach was more subtle. “Green”
or environmental aspects were not
used as banners on the stand; they
were built right into it. A large part of
the stand was built in Lexan* sheets,
with up to 90 percent recyclable or
re-usable. The two major exhibits –
the Chery sports car and the Harley
Davidson – were automotive, currently
a major focus in the debate around
sustainability. SABIC technology
contributes to weight reduction,
which in turn results in a reduction
in energy production costs and
ultimately lower fuel consumption.
SABIC’s data-driven approach,
reinforced by the portfolio and
scorecard announcements, showed
the rapid progress that SABIC has been
making in achieving its sustainability
goals since the launch of a new
corporate Sustainability Council in late
2009.
The expanded Sustainability
Solutions Portfolio of PCR content
materials now includes more than
25 grades spanning six resin families,
enabling customers to design a wide
variety of more sustainable products.
McKay conducts a ‘live seminar’ on sustainability at the SABIC stand
At the Hosokawa Alpine stand, SABIC ran its 5-layer solution for collation shrink film applications,
which offer converters several advantages including film down-gaging and high efficiency
The portfolio expansion includes new
Cycoloy* PCR filled and unfilled flameretardant (FR) resins, the first in a family
of new open-loop Noryl* Classico PCR
resins, and three new grades of Lexan*
EXL resin with increased recycle content.
The expanded offering builds upon
SABIC Innovative Plastics’ award-winning
Valox iQ* and Xenoy iQ* resins and
Lexan* EXL 8414 resin. (Green portfolio
in a nutshell, page 24)
SABIC SBUs participating in K used
the event to launch their material
solutions while the Polymers SBU
highlighted materials such as linear lowdensity polyethylene and low density
polyethylene (LL/LLDPE), PP Qrystal, and
Vestolen A RELY, which help converters
reduce material usage, lower energy
consumption by up to 15 percent, and
offer other benefits.
SABIC’s overall message was that
sustainability is not just a question of
recycling, it’s also a question of creating
products that enable manufacturers to
reduce energy use, or create lighter and
more sustainable products. This was
also the key message at the company’s
sustainability seminar for customers,
which was repeated four times during
the show.
“First, you have to remember that we are
using natural gas, and this is better than using
coal or oil. Second, we are reviewing all our
manufacturing steps and identifying areas of
improvement”
AL-MADY’S COMMENTS
Mohamed Al-Mady,Vice Chairman
and CEO, emphasized the approach
at SABIC’s K 2010 press conference.
“We are stressing that growth must
be sustainable, and we must innovate
over time. SABIC is stressing the
sustainability piece of innovation and
growth,” he said. The company’s
Technology and Innovation centers
will play a key role in producing new
and advanced materials to address
customer needs.
In response to a question from the
media about the company’s carbon
footprint and manufacturing, AlMady explained: “First, you have to
remember that we are using natural
gas, and this is better than using coal
or oil. Second, we are reviewing
all our manufacturing steps and
identifying areas for improvement,
including recycling some waste
streams and converting CO² into
products. There are many things we
have done that really make SABIC one
of the most sustainable companies
in the Middle East, at least, but we
aspire really to continue on this path.
Sustainability is best when linked to
profitability, and we are pursuing
sustainable growth through profitable,
sustainable projects.”
VALIDATION
Products and applications in
SABIC Innovative Plastics’ expanded
Sustainability Solutions Portfolio
have been strictly validated in two
potential ways: either they meet one
or more widely recognized thirdparty sustainability standards or their
SUSTAINABILITY
standard-specific criteria. The results
of the scorecard are used to develop
environmental benefit claims that are
subjected to a rigorous, independent
review. These validated claims,
summarized in an Environmental
Product Data Sheet (EPDS), give
customers access to the data they
need to differentiate their products
and showcase their sustainability
initiatives.
“We commend SABIC Innovative
Plastics for its proactive efforts
to provide new alternatives to
traditional materials across the
spectrum of sustainability,” said
Truman Semans, principal at
GreenOrder, an LRN Company. “The
key to this initiative is the verification
of environmental benefits using
established standards and rigorous
validation and testing processes. Our
work in independently evaluating
SABIC Innovative Plastics’ materials
helps ensure that they fulfill their
eco claims and deliver proven,
measurable value to customers.”
Bert Groothuis, a manager
on SABIC’s global corporate
sustainability team, and Robert
McKay, Sustainability Leader for SABIC
Innovative Plastics, led the seminars
on the topic, and were close to all
the buzz. Customers noticed and
responded to SABIC’s sustainability
efforts – in particular, the focus
on providing sustainable products
that are validated by robust data,
enabling customers to use them with
confidence.
As Bert put it at one of the
seminars, “If you’re talking about
sustainability, you have to talk about
life-cycle analysis.” This “show me
the data” approach went down well.
“I have visited all the big raw material
suppliers, and all have sustainability
as a theme on their booth,” said
a customer during the show. “But
none of them was providing tangible
information like SABIC – you seem
to be the only one who does this
seriously.”
“Sustainability was clearly a
theme at the show, especially
among material suppliers – nearly
all highlighted sustainability,” said
McKay. “We not only participated
in this trend, we demonstrated our
capabilities as a credible and trusted
partner in sustainable innovation.”
Bert agreed, and underlined
SABIC’s opportunity to distinguish
itself in comparison with the
competition. “I like the way we
presented our sustainability story -in a structured and data-driven way,
which resonated well. Looking ahead,
all of our businesses are focused on
increasing our successes, building our
portfolio and really going after the
business value.”
The SABIC stand was built primarily using Lexan* sheet, bulk of which is recyclable or reusable
environmental benefits relative to
incumbent technologies have been
verified using the company’s new
Sustainable Product Scorecard. SABIC
is now working with other SBUs to
introduce a similar validation process,
making adjustments where necessary
based on the standards and the needs
of the industries that they serve.
For a significant number of products
in the portfolio, there are third-party
standards defining sustainability
features, such as halogen-free FR
or PCR content. For a number of
other solutions, such as automotive
lightweight design or footprint
reductions, there are no widely
recognized industry and third-party
standards defining sustainability. It is
necessary to verify the environmental
benefits of these solutions over
incumbent alternatives using Life
Cycle Assessment (LCA) methods
for estimating the environmental
footprint of products and processes.
SABIC Innovative Plastics has
incorporated these LCA methods into
For a significant number of products in the
portfolio, there are third-party standards
defining sustainability features, such as
halogen-free FR or PCR content
its new Sustainable Product Scorecard
to ensure that the verification process
is done in a rigorous and credible way.
The scorecard process has already
verified the environmental benefits
of seven sustainability solution
families, with more in the pipeline.
This portfolio validation process
enables customers to confidently
choose high-performance materials
that advance their environmental and
business goals. SABIC plans to further
expand its list of verified materials
and sustainability portfolio to further
support customers’ environmental
objectives. The Sustainable Product
Scorecard measures, validates and
communicates environmental benefits
compared with conventional or
alternative materials. The scorecard
has two components:
1. Life Cycle Assessment:
LCA and Life Cycle Inventory (LCI)
methodologies, based on the ISO
14040 and ISO 14044 standards, are
used to build the first component of
the scorecard. Carbon and energy
footprints of products or applications
are estimated through the product’s
life cycle.
2. Green Chemistry Screen (GCS):
This tool assesses the chemical
composition of the product, including
known impurities, byproducts and
catalysts, against well-established
toxicological, regulatory and
The Ferromatik stand at K demonstrated the energy saving advantages of using SABIC’s
PP Qrystal while moulding thin walled packaging products for food applications
• Reduced CO2 emissions
• Delivers performance of virgin PBT
(“drop-in solution”)
SUSTAINABILITY
Green portfolio in a nutshell
Sustainability Solutions Portfolio targets top environmental issues
• Industrial
• Telecom
• Food contact applications
Cradle-to-gate manufacturing data
Verified environmental performance1
Valox iQ 195 resin
vs. standard PBT
Valox iQ 195 resin
vs. Polyamide 62
~34% less
~47% less
~70% less
~58% less
Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions/Kg resin
Fossil fuel energy consumption/Kg resin
Keyb
Keys
Valox iQ resins have a lower environmental impact
SABIC’s Sustainability Solutions
Portfolio is comprised of materials
that address today’s most important
environmental initiatives:
Post-consumer recycled content:
SABIC has received high praise for
its Valox iQ and Xenoy iQ resins,
including the 2009 Responsible
Care award from Cefic and the
2007 environmental award from the
Society of Plastics Engineers (SPE).
These materials, containing up to
60 percent post-consumer content
derived from discarded PET bottles,
consume less energy and yield less
carbon dioxide (CO2 ) than traditional
polybutylene terephthalate (PBT)
or polyamide (PA) 6 throughout the
entire manufacturing process – from
cradle (discarded PET bottles) to gate
(resin pellets). The recently launched
Lexan EXL PCR resins for consumer
electronics applications reduce energy
and emissions by up to 60 percent
compared to conventional Lexan
EXL resins.
Automotive weight-out: SABIC has
led the industry for many years with
lightweight materials that reduce
fuel consumption and emissions
while delivering high performance
and improved design flexibility.
Collectively, automotive body panels
Valox iQ* 195 Resin vs. Polyamide 6
100
100
80
80
Percent Contribution (%)
Specialty Film and Sheet business provides high-performance glazing and roofing materials for the building and construction industry that can reduce
energy usage in heating and cooling. Thermoclear* Solar Control infrared (IR) multiwall sheet products, which combine highly insulating multiwall
construction with a proprietary IR coating, have been shown to reduce indoor cooling and heating energy requirements by 7 to 25 percent compared
with double-pane glass windows and skylights, depending on multiwall thicknesses between 16 mm and 25 mm.
Percent Contribution (%)
Valox iQ* 195 Resin vs. Standard PBT
60
40
20
0
Greenhouse
gas emissions
Non-renewable
fossil energy demand
Standard PBT
60
40
F
C
20
0
Valox iQ* 195 resin
Greenhouse
gas emissions
Polyamide 6
Non-renewable
fossil energy demand
Valox iQ* 195 resin
A sample of the SABIC sustainability scorecard
The lightweight body parts of the Hyundai QarmaQ produced from SABIC IP Xenoy iQ resin
molded from Noryl GTX resin; Lexan
polycarbonate (PC) glazing; Xenoy iQ
resin in pedestrian protection systems;
SABIC® Stamax® long glass-filled
polypropylene (LGFPP) for front-end
module assemblies; and Flexible Noryl
resin for ultra-thin-wall wire coating
may reduce the weight of a typical
car by more than 24 kg. This average
weight savings results in a carbon
emissions reduction of approximately
20 to 45 percent during the entire
life cycle of a car compared to
incumbent technologies. For example,
for a typical car, this weight reduction
could lower CO2 emissions per
kilometer traveled by approximately
2.4 g. Successful adaptation of these
lightweight technologies to a European
fleet of approximately 210 million
vehicles could potentially avoid 9.7
million tons of CO2 emissions per year.
Advanced flame retardance (FR):
SABIC is continuing to expand its array
of non-halogenated FR plastics to keep
pace with evolving environmental
regulations and voluntary eco labels
that are important to customers.
For example, the new halogen-free
SABIC has received high praise for its Valox
iQ and Xenoy iQ resins, including the 2009
Responsible Care award from Cefic
FR Lexan PC resin series combines
transparency and all the benefits of
an FR PC with chemically halogen-free
formulation.
Energy efficiency: Energy efficiency
is an important focus for SABIC
Innovative Plastics. For example, its
Specialty Film and Sheet business
provides high-performance glazing
and roofing materials for the building
and construction industry that can
reduce energy usage. Thermoclear*
Solar Control infrared (IR) multiwall
sheet products, which combine highly
insulating multiwall construction with
a proprietary IR coating, have been
shown to reduce indoor cooling and
heating energy requirements by 7 to
25 percent compared with doublepane glass windows and skylights,
depending on multiwall thicknesses
between 16 mm and 25 mm.
SABIC’s sustainable product portfolio
now includes the following new
additions:
SABIC is continuing to expand its array of
non-halogenated FR plastics to keep pace
with evolving environmental regulations
Noryl Classico PCR resin: Expanding
on a history of successful closed-loop
recycle programs, the first grade in
this open-loop family of modified
polyphenylene ether (PPE) resins is
Noryl PCR RN0401 resin, containing
20 percent recycled content and
featuring a UL94 V0 rating at 2 mm
and an estimated heat deflection
temperature of up to 70C. It is an
appropriate candidate for a variety
of electronic housings, modems and
power adaptors. Two additional grades
of Noryl PCR Classico resin, with up
to 40 percent PCR content, are also
expected to be commercialized within
the next six months.
Cycoloy PCR resins: These
polycarbonate/acrylonitrile-
butadiene-styrene (PC/ABS) resins
contain 30 to 50 percent openloop PCR polycarbonate from water
bottles, CDs, and other sources
and are appropriate for laptop and
consumer electronics housings. Filled
and unfilled FR grades are available,
contributing to upto two Electronic
Product Environmental Assessment
Tool (EPEAT) points for manufacturers
listing their products to that standard.
For example, Cycoloy RCM 6123
resin offers 30 percent PCR content,
a UL94 V0 rating at 1.2 mm, and
high stiffness of 4.3 gigapascals
(GPa) for thin-wall enclosures. Up
to six additional grades will soon
be available, offering a variety of
combinations of stiffness, flame
rating and viscosity.
SUSTAINABILITY
SABIC helped GM’s Chevrolet Volt concept car electrify the auto industry with its light weight
Noryl GTX resin body parts
Lexan and Lexan EXL PCR resins:
There are now four grades of non-FR
Lexan EXL PC resin with PCR content
ranging from 10 to 80 percent.
Three new grades – Lexan EXL 8134,
Lexan EXL 8454 and Lexan EXL 8483
resins – join Lexan EXL 8414 resin,
which was introduced at NPE 2009.
All are based on SABIC Innovative
Plastics’ high-performance Lexan EXL
technology, which offers superior
impact, improved low temperature
ductility, and enhanced processability
compared to standard PC grades.
The grades offer carbon footprint
reductions, in terms of cradle-to-gate
greenhouse gas emissions, ranging
from 20 to 64 percent compared to
traditional Lexan EXL 1414 resin and
a lower carbon footprint than virgin,
traditional PC and PC/ABS. Lexan EXL
8414 has been used in cell phones,
most notably the MOTO™ W233
Renew. Additionally, there is one new
grade of FR polycarbonate resin –
Lexan R9453 resin – containing up to
30 percent PCR with a UL94 V0 rating
at 1.1 mm. Lexan R9453 resin is flame
retarded with non-brominated and
non-chlorinated FR technology.
LD/LLDPE films: SABIC unveiled a
pioneering concept in low-density
polyethylene and linear-low-density
polyethylene (LD/LLDPE) films at K.
This milestone innovation marks a new
approach to leveraging SABIC’s worldclass polyolefin portfolio. Among
numerous benefits, it produces smart
resin combinations offering converters
significant material and energy savings
while optimizing manufacturing and
packaging performance. The concept
is designed to enhance product
performance and expand the choice
of raw materials to end markets such
as compression packaging, hygienic
packaging, lamination and shrink film.
It supports film packaging applications
that comprise up to five layers or
more, allowing manufacturers to
create unique property configurations
LDPE Ultra Melt Strength foam
that meet the specific needs of brand
owners as well as the demands of
the consumer. They are also capable
of balancing specifications such as
high-gloss or tear resistance, while
optimizing packaging performance.
At the same time, it opens up new
application areas and unprecedented
levels of sustainability performance,
replacing traditional materials with
light-weight packaging solutions.
The multi-layer concept enables
manufacturers to create more value,
including significant cost and material
savings; improved down gauging
options; lower energy consumption;
and higher processing speeds. This
is because the resin combination
for every item in production can be
tailored to get the most out of each
manufacturer’s extrusion equipment
and capabilities. Using this customized
approach, manufacturers can achieve
down-gauging options that reduce
thicknesses by up to 20%. The SABIC
LDPE-materials used in this concept
are produced with SABIC’s state-ofthe-art PE tubular technology - the
more sustainable alternative to the
traditional autoclave technology.
The tubular technology reduces
air emissions significantly while
minimizing energy consumption and
waste during the production process.
and maintaining excellent mechanical
properties. UMS range delivers
notable manufacturing advantages:
it is temperature-sensitive, allowing a
wider operating window for machine
temperatures. This combination of
properties delivers considerable
material and energy savings,
supporting converters in their
efforts to improve their cost and
sustainability performance. The first
two grades in the SABIC® LDPE UMS
line – one designed for foam sheet
applications, the second engineered
for foam sealing applications – make
the production of PE-foams more
environmentally friendly. In addition,
they are easier to recycle. SABIC®
LDPE 2202 UMS is designed for foam
sheet applications, and is capable of
significantly minimizing the unwanted
waves associated with corrugation.
This results in smooth end-products
with excellent insulating properties
that are easier to install and offer
improved thermal insulation.
LDPE UMS: SABIC also launched its
new foam line, SABIC® LDPE Ultra
Melt Strength (UMS), at K 2010. The
product incorporates high-performing
LDPE materials that provide a high
insulating capacity for building
applications and an outstanding
shock-absorbing capability for
packaging applications. This
pioneering line achieves new levels of
cost efficiency, offering converters the
opportunity to reduce foam density
from between 5 and 10 percent,
while improving thermal performance
SABIC® LDPE 1905 UMS improves the
sealing and mechanical behavior of
the end-product, making it ideal for
foam sealing applications. The highperforming UMS line is also produced
using PE tubular technology. The
SABIC® LDPE UMS portfolio is available
worldwide. Additional UMS grades will
be launched in the near future.
SABIC continues to work with
customers to implement customdesigned closed loop recycling
projects where products are collected
at end of life and disassembled.
The resin is then recovered, and
incorporated by the company back
into the resin purchased by the
customer to make a new version of
the recycled product. Successful
implementations include printer
cartridges, end-of-lease business
equipment, and recovery of
customer’s manufacturing, or postindustrial waste.
* Trademark of SABIC Innovative Plastics IP B.V.
® Trademark of SABIC
LD-LLDPE multi-layer film
COVER STORY
The challenge of
sustaining growth
referred to the size and stature of
the regional industry with a total
capital investment estimated to
reach $50 billion by 2015. He said
the industry was entering a new
phase of growth and the influence
and reach of GPCA has also been
expanding. He noted the Gulf region’s
emergence as “the world’s essential
petrochemical production hub with
its natural advantages of lower energy
and feedstock costs and proximity
to high-growth economies.” He
cited the example of polyolefins, a
product category in which the Gulf’s
production capacity has increased
from 7 percent in 2005 to 13 percent
in just five years, and is slated to reach
15 percent by 2015.
Industry leaders urge Gulf petrochemical companies
at the annual GPCA forum to adopt a fresh mindset
aimed at engineering innovation and value creation
Al-Mady referred to the competitive
partnerships that have emerged during
the recent economic downturn, and
said the outlook was quite positive
compared to this time last year. “But
there will be continuing challenges as
we deal with energy and feedstock
availability, and with the effects of
climate change – especially those based
on carbon dioxide emissions,” he said.
migrating away from the traditional
production centers in Europe and
North America and toward low-cost
regions such as the Middle East, in
particular the Gulf region.
The UAE minister pointed out that
the Gulf’s share of global ethylene
production has increased sharply from
5 percent over 10 years ago, and is
expected to reach 20 percent by 2014.
“The Gulf region has emerged as the world’s
essential petrochemical production hub with
its natural advantages of lower energy and
feedstock costs and proximity to high-growth
economies”
Sheikha Lubna delivers the inaugural keynote address
What are the mega trends and mega
challenges of our times? Where does
the chemical and petrochemical
industry fit in, and how can it help
meet those challenges? How can the
Gulf and the Middle East region, which
have already established itself as a
leading hub of global petrochemical
industry, sustain its strong position in
the coming years – and grow further?
Why are technology and innovation
the most important and strategic
drivers of growth and business now
and in the coming years, and how can
the Gulf and Middle East meet this
challenge?
Industry leaders from the region
and other parts of the world raised
and sought to answer these and
other important questions at the
Fifth Annual Forum of the Gulf
Petrochemicals and Chemicals
Association (GPCA), held in Dubai on
December 8 and 9. “Driving value
and growth through innovation,” the
theme of this year’s forum, thus turned
out to be an effective prompt for
industry leaders to offer interesting
and thought-provoking presentations
while delving deep into the key
challenges for the industry in the
region in the coming years.
By the time the delegates were
ready to go home after some
intellectually stimulating discussions,
there would have been very little
doubt in their minds about how the
global chemical industry is addressing
the mega trends and challenges,
the important role of the chemical
industry in advancing innovation and
sustainability, and how the Gulf region
should be moving forward to retain its
competitive edge to sustain growth in
the coming years.
It was also clear that the GPCA
Annual Forum had established a strong
reputation as a platform that offered
many things to many people and the
unique interface between scientists,
professionals, managers, businesses
and service providers, and above all
for senior executives from around the
world to exchange ideas and opinions.
REGION’S STRENGTH
When Mohamed Al-Mady, SABIC
Vice Chairman and CEO, welcomed
the delegates from across the world
and made his opening remarks, he
Al-Mady opens the annual forum
Al-Mady pointed out that the
region’s companies were not just
adding capacity, but are also
making significant investments in
innovation, research and application
development. “We have also placed
a strong emphasis on distributing
innovation throughout the value
chain, including products application,
production process, product
developments and in our working
process and practices,” he said.
Sheikha Lubna Al-Qasimi, Minister
of Foreign Trade of the United Arab
Emirates (UAE), who delivered the
opening keynote address, echoed
the message of the region’s status as
“the future center of gravity for the
global petrochemicals and chemicals
industry.” The economic downturn
may even have accelerated the
eastward migration of production, and
the longer-term trend continues to be
one of global petrochemical supply
The region’s share of global chemical
production capacity is expected to
touch 16 percent by 2015 and 20
percent by 2020. “Even within a tough
economic environment where capital
infusion has become increasingly
challenging, the ability of GCC producers
to fund their expansion projects has not
been an issue,” she said.
Al-Qasimi said the regional industry
faced a major challenge in 2009-10
from protectionist actions by countries
COVER STORY
potential impact of such measures on
the development and health of the
regional and global industry,” she said.
“That said, we remain committed to
free trade and expect all countries to
abide by WTO rules.”
DECADE OF TRANSFORMATION
Delivering the second keynote
address at the inaugural session,
Khalid Al Al-Falih, President and Chief
Executive Officer of Saudi Aramco,
said it is time for the region to look
beyond oil and gas production,
refining, and primary petrochemicals
in order to widen product diversity
and downstream value addition.
Underlining the importance of
creating value parks and clusters, he
said the Gulf region has the potential
to be a ‘mega-cluster’ for chemicals.
“Even as we compete, we
should concurrently collaborate
“Even within a tough economic environment
where capital infusion has become
increasingly challenging, the ability of GCC
producers to fund their expansion projects
has not been an issue”
at the regional level, with greater
integration and cooperation
providing critical mass in terms of
local markets for chemicals. Such
a robust home market can in turn
serve as a springboard to competing
on the global stage, even while the
GCC chemicals ‘mega-cluster’ spurs
economic diversification and new
opportunities within our societies,”
he said.
Al-Falih urged the regional
industry to focus attention on three
enabling areas to contribute more
effectively to economic development
and diversification: Research and
Development, Human Resource
Development and the cultivation of a
dynamic environment for commercial
success. He said the regional
industry needs 10 years to achieve a
transformation of the current business
model so that it can serve as a true
enabling industry for other sectors.
Al-Falih suggested that the chemical
industry must accept “four stretch
targets” to achieve so that it can take
its place alongside oil and gas as one
Industry leaders tour the exhibition outside the conference hall with chief guest Sheikha Lubna
such as China, India and the European
Union to block imports and protect
indigenous industries by imposing antidumping duties. Some of those cases
in China and India have been closed,
but “we remain concerned about the
“We have also placed a strong emphasis
on distributing innovation throughout the
value chain including products application,
production process, product developments”
The panel of speakers on the first day included (from second left): Al-Mady, Al-Falih,
Jourquin, Heitmann and Cornelis; on extreme left is moderator Eithne Treanor
Al-Falih’s keynote address called for a new mindset in the region
COVER STORY
The panel on the second day included (from left): Al-Sadoun, Weidman, Chu, Hong, Konov and Diercks
of Gulf’s pillar industries. First, the
region’s petrochemical and chemical
industry should increase sales by a
factor of five by 2020. Against the
business-as-usual scenario of increasing
annual sales from $50 billion to $80
billion over the coming decade, the
industry should target $150 to $200
billion range, capitalizing on growth
of existing businesses and creating
new ones. Secondly, the industry
should increase the chemicals-related
workforce in the Gulf by a factor of ten
in the next 10 years. Third, the Gulf
sector must increase its R&D spending
by a factor of 10, to roughly five
percent of total sales. He noted that
last year, from the entire Middle East,
only SABIC ranked among the top
global thousand corporate investors
in R&D according to a study. The
fourth target proposed by Al-Falih
was related to the task of developing
talent.
He proposed the establishment of
“an aggressive target of multiplying
the number of R&D scientists and
engineers at work in the sector by
a factor of 50 over the coming two
decades. Again, that is a stretch goal,
but one I consider essential to the
long-term health and competitiveness
of the Gulf’s chemical industry,”
he said, urging the adoption of a
policy framework that will enable
downstream expansion to be pursued
as a key strategy.
FOCUS ON INNOVATION
R&D and Innovation remained the
key theme of most of the subsequent
speakers and the panel discussions.
Christian Jourquin, CEO of Solvay S.A.,
emphasized that innovation is the
tool with which the world can combat
the big challenges of population
growth, aging population, the state of
extremely stretched natural resources
and climate change. Asserting that
the chemical industry is part of the
solution, not part of the problems
related to global warming, Jourquin
noted that the industry enables two
to three times more emission savings
for each unit it generates. This is
because of the innovative products
and technologies that the chemical
industry provides to other industries
and consumers. Urging the industry
to foster a new mindset that focuses
on sustainable development and
focuses on constant improvements
in products, processes and systems,
Jourquin stressed the need to develop
innovation along full value chains to
achieve integrated and sustainable
solutions. These should translate
into effective and efficient solutions
in water management, smarter
cities, sustainable factories and
transportation, and so on. Science,
innovation and partnerships offer the
keys to sustainability, he said.
KEY BENEFITS
In a presentation titled “Innovation
Pay-Off”, Axel Heitmann, Chairman of
the Board of Management, Lanxess
AG, elaborated on how the company
had achieved lower costs, more
efficient production and cleaner
environment through process and
product innovation, including use of
renewable energy, optimization of
feedstock and high-tech plastics, and
reducing the output of unwanted
products.
Innovation needs to be aligned with the
mega trends and challenges of the day, and
address the needs of future mobility, water
problem, food security and urbanization
GPCA:
new horizons
GPCA has gone from strength to
strength over the years, and so
has the annual forum. Mohamed
Al-Mady, Vice Chairman and CEO
of SABIC and Chairman of GPCA,
and Dr. Abdulwahab Al-Sadoun,
Secretary General, are delighted
with the progress that the
association has achieved in recent
years. The association’s membership
has increased from a mere 62 in
2006 to 159 in 2010. The number
of full members has gone up from
20 to 36 (the rest being associate
members). The membership
list comprises companies from
23 countries representing the
regional and global producers of
petrochemicals and chemicals, and
their service providers, with GCC
accounting for about 69 percent.
The number of delegates to the
annual forum has shot up from
450 in 2006 to 1,323 in 2010,
with Middle East and North Africa
accounting for more than 800.
This year, the forum registered
an increase of 22 percent in
delegate numbers. The increasingly
international flavor of the event
has been distinct in recent years,
in terms of attendees, speakers
and the topics discussed. In his
closing remarks at the forum this
year, Al-Sadoun announced several
key initiatives for 2011. Most
importantly, the GPCA has instituted
two annual awards for the region
– the GPCA Plastics Innovation
Award and the GPCA Supply Chain
Excellence Award. The association
will hold four mini-forums in 2011:
the Plastics Summit in April, the
Fertilizer Convention in September,
the Supply Chain Conference and
the Human Resource Forum.
Supply Chain
Award of Excellence
More than 1,300 delegates attended the annual forum this year
Al-Sadoun opened the forum’s sessions on the second day
COVER STORY
Heitmann also stressed that the
innovation needs to be aligned with
the mega trends and challenges of the
day, and address the needs of future
mobility, water problem, food security
and urbanization. “Innovations pay
off, if targeted at specific needs of
specific customers in specific markets,”
he said, adding that they must also
be a fundamental aspect of corporate
strategy and fully understood by every
key player in the company.
Francois Cornelis, Vice Chariman
of Total and President of Chemicals,
explained Total’s approach to
innovation, including key technologies
for the future of exploration and
production of oil, the metallocene
revolution in polyolefins, the evolution
from micro to nano technology, and
said that Total Specialties are focused
on material science. Referring to the
disastrous image of plastics, he said
the industry must address the problem
by strengthening recycling initiatives.
“Energy content in polyolefins is big
and clean, and must be recovered.”
The presentations were followed by
a lively question and answer session,
during which the Saudi Aramco CEO
pointed out that the Gulf is one of
the world’s must open regions in
terms of welcoming and encouraging
investments and hosting foreign
expertise.
GULF PERSPECTIVE
Dr. Abdulwahab Al-Sadoun,
Secretary General of GPCA, opened
the second day’s proceedings with
a presentation that focused on the
regional perspective on innovation.
Reporting the findings of a recent
survey commissioned by GPCA,
Al-Sadoun said the conclusion was
that most Gulf companies have not
yet created or implemented their
innovation strategy, although over
80 percent count innovation among
their top priorities. Capacity building
is a serious concern for the region as
most have identified human resources
as the most important obstacle to
innovation. While most companies
think that their focus is product
innovation, Al-Sadoun said that there
was limited scope for the under the
current circumstances, and therefore
the focus is likely to fall on process
innovation to improve productivity
and reduce costs. Most CEOs in
the Gulf are focused on introducing
differentiated grades of existing
products in response to market needs,
he added. Al-Sadoun observed that
properly addressing the concept of
innovation is likely to strengthen the
global relevance of Gulf chemical
players in a sustainable way. He
promised that this will be a key focus
area for GPCA in 2011.
NEW ORDER
Dave Weidman, President and
CEO, Celanese, spoke about the new
chemical order in which new players in
new geographic regions have become
industry leaders with production
increasingly migrating eastward.
He said the future changes in the
chemical industry will be driven by
new players and emerging geographic
growth, but enterprise value can be
increased by strategies that drive
geographic growth, innovation and
productivity.
Ki-Joon Hong, President and CEO,
Hanwha Chemical Corporation,
focused on the potential of the Middle
East and Far East to work together for
maximum value creation. Through a
comparative analysis of resources and
capabilities, he suggested that the
regions have plenty to gain from such
a strategy. As the finite resources of
the Middle East such as oil and natural
Responsible Care MOU extended
GPCA and American Chemistry
Council (ACC) have renewed
and expanded the scope of their
memorandum of understanding
(MOU) signed last year to establish
a Responsible Care program in the
Gulf region. The association will
work with ACC to identify additional
areas of collaboration, and advocate
specific policy outcomes in areas such
as trade and international product
stewardship and sustainability.
“GPCA’s efforts over the past
year have resulted in the admission
of the association as a full member
of the Responsible Care Leadership
Group (RCLG). GPCA has developed
a concrete plan of action to enable
its members to adopt and implement
Responsible Care programs.
“GPCA is working to ensure
that petrochemical and chemical
Al-Mady hands over a memento to Stephen D. Pryor, Director, ACC and President, ExxonMobil
Chemical Company (center), and Cal Dooley, President and CEO of ACC
companies in the Gulf produce and
use chemicals in ways that lead
to reduced energy use, minimal
greenhouse gas emissions, and
protection and preservation
of natural resources,” said Dr.
Abdulwahab Al-Sadoun, GPCA
Secretary General.
Al-Mady poses a question to one of the speakers during panel discussions ; on his right is Maha Mulla
Hussain, Chairman and Managing Director of Petrochemical Industries Company of Kuwait
gas become less and less accessible,
the regions should cooperate to tap
natural resources, particularly solar
energy, which is being aggressively
pursued by Hanwha, Ki-Joon said.
Dimitry Konov, President of Russia’s
Sibur LLC, spoke about his country’s
ambitious plans to build six clusters
of world-scale ethylene capacities,
and said Russia’s production would be
competitive on export markets.
Prof. Dr. Rainer Diercks, President,
Petrochemical Division, BASF, stressed
the importance of new branches of
knowledge and the shift of emphasis
from products to solutions. Titled
“From science to innovation:
chemistry shapes the future”,
Diercks’ presentation noted that the
world is increasingly dominated by
discontinuities, such as the changing
pattern of global GDP, the fluctuating
oil proices, and changing currency
exchange rates. Chemical industries
“As the finite resources of the Middle East
such as oil and natural gas become less and
less accessible, the regions should cooperate
to tap natural resources particularly solar
energy”
must rely on sustainability, strong
international R&D and a multidisciplinary approach to tackle the
mega challenges of the future such as
a burgeoning population, urbanization
and a sharp increase in the need for
energy, he said.
The only diversion from the core
topic of innovation at the forum
was the address by Victor L. Chu,
Chairman, Far Eastern Investment
Group, who offered insights on raising
investment funds in China. Pointing
out that the era of cheap capital is
over, Chu noted the absence of RMB
financing options in China, and said
three new channels will soon be
available to investors: an offshore
RMB capital market being developed
in Hong Kong, which will be easy to
tap; the possibility of a listing on the
Shanghai stock market which has
launched a pilot scheme; and, private
equity financing.
PRODUCT INNOVATION
First PET tape fabric could lead to
30% material savings
Noryl GTX* conductive resins offer
fresh benefits to automobile OEMs
SABIC recently worked with its development partner Starlinger, an Austrian
mechanical engineering company that leads the market in machinery for
polypropylene tapes and woven fabric, in launching the very first fabric made
from polyethylene terephthalate (PET)
SABIC Innovative Plastics has launched its latest high-tech thermoplastic
offering – a new family of Noryl GTX* resins – to give global automotive OEMs
and tiers a major design advantage
This was announced at a Starlinger press conference which
was also attended by SABIC. The fabric boasts a number
of powerful properties such as high stiffness, temperature
performance, resistance to creep and high gloss with options
for transparency, translucency and opacity. Significantly, as
the fabric is made of PET, it also offers excellent recyclability.
Sultan Bin-Battal, Vice President, PET, PVC, PS and MidEast & Africa Business Unit, underlined these features,
stressing that the high strength of the material could enable
up to 30 percent savings in materials. This makes it a more
sustainable solution for the packaging of supermarket goods,
hot-filling applications, geotextiles and self-reinforced
composites for the automotive and transport sectors. “This
is the first time this has been done,” Bin-Battal said. “The
benefits for users are very clear, but actually developing the
material was quite complex. Together with Starlinger we
have applied jointly for two patents for the technology.”
When approached by SABIC staff scientist Dr Zahir Bashir
about working together, it turned out that Starlinger had
been looking at the same topic themselves. Development
took two years. Although the product is still going through
customer testing, there have already been requests from
prospective customers.
Birefringence pattern shown by transparent PET tape fabric,
seen with polarized light, between crossed polars
Development partners address a joint press conference in
Dusseldorf, announcing the development of PET fabric
Starlinger Managing Partner Angelika Huemer spoke
enthusiastically about the cooperation between the
two companies. “It worked very well,” she noted. “New
development can take years, but our technical teams
were totally focused on achieving the same goal.” The
companies are currently examining other exciting ideas
using the same technology.
A transparent and a pigmented white
bobbin used to make the fabric
These new conductive blends
of polyamide (PA) and modified
polyphenylene ether (PPE) cut
coefficient of thermal expansion
(CTE) by 20 to 40 percent compared
with previous grades for increased
dimensional stability and improved
gap and flush management.
The new features give automotive
designers greater freedom to create
larger top-quality, high-precision body
panels than previously feasible. They
also integrate into existing processes,
including higher-heat online painting
systems. These high-performance
materials underscore SABIC Innovative
Plastics’ strategic focus on helping
automotive customers create
differentiated designs that also
promote system cost reduction and
sustainability through weight-out.
“This is a breakthrough in
automotive design that promises
to significantly expand the use of
thermoplastic body panels,” said
V. Umamaheswaran, Director of
Products and Marketing, SABIC
Innovative Plastics, Automotive.
“SABIC Innovative Plastics has given
car designers the ability to leverage
the multiple advantages of Noryl GTX
resins in larger and more complex
fenders and other body panels,
with the assurance of outstanding
aesthetics and performance. Now,
even trucks and large SUVs can benefit
from metal replacement with Noryl
GTX resins, which deliver consistent
dimensional stability for a highprecision result.”
Quality & Aesthetics
SABIC Innovative Plastics has
utilized new technology to ensure a
low CTE and enhanced conductivity
at higher temperatures while
maintaining excellent mechanical
properties, including impact strength.
The new family of Noryl GTX* resins will help create
larger and more complex automotive body panels
Noryl GTX 98 series of resins feature
20 percent less moisture uptake and
post-heat shrinkage than previous
grades, enabling large parts to
maintain their tight tolerances even
in bright sunlight and high humidity.
Precise part alignment enhances
overall quality and appearance.
Another aesthetic benefit is the
perception of robustness in a plastic
part, resulting from a 50 percent
improvement in stiffness over previous
Noryl GTX grades.
In online painting, Noryl GTX
98 resin series delivers a 10C
improvement in heat tolerance,
making them compatible for highertemperature online painting.
Less fuel, emissions
By increasing the potential size of
body panels, Noryl GTX resins can
make an even greater contribution to
vehicle weight-out, leading to reduced
fuel consumption and emissions.
According to the company’s
Sustainable Product Scorecard,
verified by GreenOrder, a leading
sustainability consulting firm, the use
of the Noryl GTX 98 series of resins
compared with steel in body panels
can reduce the weight of a car by up
to 3.2 kg (7 pounds) resulting in up to
40 percent less energy consumption
and up to 42 percent less carbon
dioxide (CO2) emissions per part over
its whole lifecycle.
To meet different CTE requirements
(related to part length), SABIC
Innovative Plastics will offer up to four
different variations of the new resin
technology. Currently, Noryl GTX 987
and 989 grades are available, with
more planned in the near future.
SUCCESS STORY
Chery’s A3CC sports coupe gains from
SABIC’s unique resin combinations
Plexx chooses Lexan* PC sheet for
Norwegian train windows
Chery Automobile is China’s top car manufacturer and exporter. When Chery
launches its new A3CC sports coupe, SABIC Innovative Plastics will be proud
of the advanced materials solutions that are built into the vehicle
Plexx AS, a leading Norwegian plastics converter, has chosen SABIC Innovative
Plastics’ new ultra-tough, flame-retardant (FR) Lexan* F6000 polycarbonate
(PC) sheet to thermoform European passenger train window frames. The
frames will be used in Norwegian State Railways train cabins
The sleek A3CC, which combines highend style with practical performance,
was a major attraction at the recently
held K 2010.
The car carries several parts made
from SABIC Innovative Plastics’
materials: the first Noryl GTX* resin
front fenders used by a Chinese
automotive OEM; a fuel filler door, also
molded from Noryl GTX resin; light
weight front and rear energy absorbers
made from Xenoy* resin; and an
undertray, molded from Stamax®
long glass-filled polypropylene (LGFPP)
compound.
“Our five-year collaboration with
Chery on the A3CC was clearly a
success and showcases the innovative
nature of Chery and their design of a
new vehicle with high-performance
plastics,” said Gregory A. Adams,
Vice President, Automotive, SABIC
Innovative Plastics. “Our diverse
and growing portfolio of resins
enabled Chery’s designers to create
this exciting new convertible with
plastic materials used in applications
ranging from Class A fenders to
structural components, and supports
the company’s goal of ultimately
competing on a global scale.”
DESIGN QUALITY
Chery recognized the crucial role
of SABIC Innovative Plastics’ materials
in pursuing its goal to be a global
automotive leader. The introduction
of the A3CC caps months of media
attention, with comments that this
new sports car promises to change the
quality of design in China.
“We chose to collaborate with
SABIC Innovative Plastics on the
A3CC sports coupe because of
the company’s respected global
reputation and capabilities, further
benefiting from their excellent
level of co-development support
on this project,” said Shen Haojie,
Executive Director, Second Product
Development Division, and A3CC
Program Director at Chery. “Providing
high-performance materials was just
the beginning. The SABIC Innovative
Plastics team understood our needs,
and provided materials, design, and
tooling expertise to help us achieve
our goals.”
SABIC Innovative Plastics
collaborated with Chery on three key
applications that offer the potential
for expanded use within a vehicle and
also across other product lines.
Front fender: Chery is the first Chinese
OEM to use conductive Noryl GTX
resin for a mass-produced fender.
Replacing steel body panels with Noryl
GTX resin enabled Chery to cut fender
weight by more than 50 percent
compared with steel (1.37 kg against
2.80 kg) while delivering better lowspeed impact durability than steel.
Noryl GTX resin can be online painted
along with the metal Body-In-White
(BIW), avoiding the need for secondary
operations and ensuring a perfect
color match. Further, this conductive
resin does not require a primer step
prior to painting.
Fuel-filler door: This part is
traditionally molded and painted by
the component supplier, potentially
causing color mismatches with the
body. Molding this part from Noryl
GTX resin enables it to be painted
online along with the rest of the BIW.
This streamlined approach avoids
quality issues and enhances aesthetics.
Energy absorbers and undertray: The
A3CC’s front bumper will incorporate
an energy absorber made with Xenoy
resin and an undertray molded with
Stamax LGFPP compound. These
components form a globally compliant
bumper system because they meet
European Union (EU) 2003/102/
EC Phase II lower leg pedestrian
protection requirements, Economic
Community of Europe (ECE) and US
Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards
(FMVSS) impact test requirements
for low speed vehicle damageability.
The rear bumper system will also
incorporate an energy absorber
made with Xenoy resin, and meets
ECE and FMVSS low-speed vehicle
damageability requirements.
Overall benefits from the materials
include weight-out for energy
efficiency, part consolidation, design
flexibility and system cost reduction
from online painting.
Chery Automobile Company’s new A3CC Sports Coupe featuring SABIC Innovative Plastics’ Noryl
GTX*, Xenoy*, and Stamax® resins
SABIC Innovative Plastics’ Lexan* F6000 PC sheet will
be used for Plexx AS passenger train window frames
This advanced, tailor-made PC material
replaces sheet molded composite
(SMC) for significantly improved
performance and faster cycle times,
while avoiding the multiple secondary
operations required for SMC.
SABIC Innovative Plastics is helping
customers succeed in the highly
competitive transportation sector with
advanced solutions that provide high
performance, system cost savings, and
superior end-product differentiation
against other thermoset materials.
“We had two main goals in
upgrading from SMC to Lexan
F6000 sheet: cutting the cost of
the window frames and developing
a much improved product for
market differentiation,” said Arild S.
Johnson, Managing Director, Plexx
AS. “With SABIC Innovative Plastics’
help, we achieved these goals and
more. Compared to SMC, Lexan
sheet is faster and easier to process,
provides greater design flexibility and
toughness, and keeps its attractive
appearance even after heavy use. In
short, the SABIC Innovative Plastics
team gave us a customized, highend polycarbonate grade, enabling
us to create a unique product that
stands out in the marketplace and,
most important, meet our customers’
needs.”
Lexan F6000 sheet, which can be
custom colored, delivers exceptional
color and texture retention after
thermoforming and provides
durability for the demanding public
rail environment. The material
complies with railway fire protection
requirements: UL94 V0 at 1.5 mm
flame retardance according to ASTM
E162, and low smoke (ASTM E662) and
toxicity (BSS 7239 and SMP 800 C)
performance.
Key advantages
Lexan F6000 sheet offers a
number of important advantages over
traditional SMC for window frames.
First, it is significantly cost-effective,
even though only the periphery of
the sheet is used, the center portion
is recycled. Second, by streamlining
the production process, the material
cuts cycle times by up to 80 percent
against SMC. Molded-in color avoids
the need for secondary operations
such as painting and sanding;
thermoforming does not require
gluing or hand work; and the material
does not need a curing step – all of
which were required with SMC frames.
“Our Lexan F6000 sheet is already
widely used in the aircraft industry
because it offers exceptional flameretardant performance, outstanding
impact strength, and a very attractive
appearance,” said Lennard Markestein,
Global Marketing Director, Specialty
Film & Sheet, SABIC Innovative Plastics.
“These attributes, together with cost
and cycle time advantages, make
Lexan sheet an ideal replacement for
labor-intensive SMC. Our collaboration
with Plexx demonstrates how
SABIC Innovative Plastics can help
customers achieve a clear competitive
advantage in existing market
sectors by leveraging new material
technologies.”
Lexan F6000 sheet also offers
sustainability advantages over SMC,
including reduction of volatile organic
compound (VOC) emissions associated
with conventional painting and
curing. Because Lexan F6000 sheet
is approximately 30 percent lighter
than traditional SMC, window frames
for railway carriages made with the
material can potentially contribute to
fuel conservation.
This opaque PC sheet is produced
with a special, durable texture
that avoids the appearance of
abrasion and fingerprints, helping to
maintain an attractive appearance
under heavy use conditions. SABIC
Innovative Plastics’ ColorXpress facility
delivered an exact match to the
custom red-orange tint that is the
brand of Norwegian State Railways.
The company also customized the
flame retardance of the material to
comply with fire/smoke/toxicity (FST)
standards mandated in Norway.
SUCCESS STORY
SABIC® STAMAX® LGFPP helps Hyundai
win 2010 SPE Innovation Award
Lexan* Thermoclear* protection
for Euro 2012 stadium in Poland
The lightweight, high-performance SABIC® STAMAX® long glass fiber
polypropylene (LGFPP) resin helped Hyundai-Kia Motors win a coveted Society
of Plastics Engineers (SPE) 2010 Innovation Award on November 9
Adding to the recent stadium success stories, SABIC Innovative Plastics said
in November that its Lexan* Thermoclear* polycarbonate (PC) multiwall
sheet portfolio has scored another winning goal – the new Ultra-Stiff Lexan
Thermoclear sheet, with its ability to withstand high winds and heavy snow
loads typical of the region, is being used to construct the 43,000- square
meter, free-hanging roof of the UEFA’s Euro 2012™ Football Championship
Stadium in Silesian (Śląski) Chorzów, Poland
SABIC Innovative
Plastics. “STAMAX
resins are among the
newest materials in
our broad and growing
portfolio. With their
huge potential for the
automotive industry, we
have already announced
plans to expand capacity
at our Bay St. Louis
facility in Mississippi.
We’re confident that
our focus on innovative
solutions and close
collaboration will enable
our customers to create
An illustration of the 2011 Hyundai Sonata door modules
other award-winning
made using SABIC Innovative Plastics’ SABIC® STAMAX®
applications in the
Long Glass Fiber Polypropylene resin
future.”
The Hyundai Sonata door module
The lightweight, high-performance
is just the latest of many applications
SABIC® STAMAX® long glass fiber
featuring SABIC Innovative Plastics
polypropylene (LGFPP) resin helped
materials that have received SPE
Hyundai-Kia Motors win a coveted
awards. This recognition attests to
Society of Plastics Engineers (SPE)
the strong trend in the automotive
2010 Innovation Award on November
industry to expand the use of SABIC
9. The Chassis Hardware category
Innovative Plastics’ solutions to
award honored the 2011 Hyundai
achieve key objectives of weight-out,
Sonata’s plastic door module featuring
cost-out and greater design freedom.
an integrated window guide rail.
This major application, which
utilized STAMAX 30-percent glassreinforced resin to replace steel in
all four door panels, cut total vehicle
weight by approximately 4 lbs (2
kgs), enabled 21 components to be
integrated into a single injectionmolded part, and cut overall system
costs by streamlining five assembly
processes into one.
“We’re honored to have helped
Hyundai win this prestigious award,
which showcases the many benefits of
utilizing our STAMAX resins to simplify
both the design and the manufacture
of door modules,” said Gregory A.
Adams, Vice President, Automotive,
2011 Hyundai Sonata
Ideal for Integration
“Our work with SABIC Innovative
Plastics on the Sonata door module
resulted in an elegant, simplified design
that fully integrates the window guide
rail,” said Daniel Vivian, Director of
Engineering Design, Hyundai – Kia
Motors. “This was our first experience
with STAMAX resin, and it surpassed
our expectations by delivering the high
performance of steel while improving
overall quality and cutting weight and
costs. Plastic door modules make an
important contribution to the high
quality, fuel efficiency and affordability
of the new Sonata, and we look
forward to future collaborations with
SABIC Innovative Plastics.”
SABIC® STAMAX® LGFPP grades
support design of semi-structural
automotive applications that
combine light weight with functional
integration, such as front-end modules,
instrument panel carriers, tailgates and
seating systems. Compared to short
glass fiber PP, STAMAX resins deliver
higher impact resistance and stiffness
and improved dimensional stability for
tight tolerances.
The 2012 UEFA championship is the
largest football event in the world,
after the World Cup, and will take
place in Poland and the Ukraine from
June 8 to July 1, 2012.
“Sports stadiums are often
signature buildings for a city or
country, and architects strive to
create unique new forms, including
huge roofs with dramatic curves and
sweeps of glazing,” said Lennard
Markestein, Global Marketing
Director, Specialty Film & Sheet,
SABIC Innovative Plastics. “The sheer
size of these roofs, their exposure to
wind and weather, and the global
trend toward increased loading
requirements for large structures
require specialized, lightweight
glazing materials. Our new Ultra-Stiff
Lexan Thermoclear sheet can meet
the demands of the largest and most
challenging designs and the harshest
conditions to provide long-term
protection and beauty.”
An Industry Leading Product
When it is completed at the end
of 2010, the oval, free-hanging Śląski
Stadium roof will utilize transparent
Ultra-Stiff Lexan Thermoclear sheet
panels, each 1,500 mm in width.
In spite of its extremely large size,
the roof is lightweight, providing
greater design freedom (i.e., cold
forming into many different shapes
and configurations) and simplifying
installation compared with glass. The
installation of the roof is being done
by Thermoserr Poland.
“This new Lexan sheet far exceeded
my expectations,” said Aldo Zamuner,
A view of the stadium’s free-hanging roof
General Manager, Thermoserr Poland.
“It is easy to handle and install, and
creates a beautiful effect. The SABIC
Innovative Plastics team provided
excellent hands-on technical support,
expertise and assistance, and met our
deadlines with ease. In my opinion,
Lexan Thermoclear Ultra Stiff sheet is
unmatched in the industry.”
Lexan Ultra-Stiff Thermoclear sheet
offers exceptional performance with
capability to withstand wind and snow
loading pressures of up to 2200 N/
m2, equivalent to wind speeds up to
200 km/h. This new sheet product
delivers up to 250 times the impact
resistance of glass to reduce the risk
of breakage from wind, hail, and
other extreme weather, as well as
vandalism. The multiwall configuration
of the product provides excellent
thermal insulation. These critical
properties ensure that spectators are
sheltered from the weather, while
teams on the field experience less
wind resistance that could interfere
with play.
The SABIC Innovative Plastics
material provides flame retardance
that complies with the European fire
standard EN 13501-1 for safety. It
features an ultraviolet (UV)-resistant
coating on both sides to protect
spectators from solar radiation
and also to prevent yellowing
of the polycarbonate. Ultra-Stiff
Lexan Thermoclear sheet can be
custom-tinted to meet customer
specifications.
This material carries a 20-year
limited written warranty against
discoloration, loss of light transmission
and loss of impact strength due to
weathering.
PRODUCT PROFILE
Valox* resins offer sustainable and
high-heat solutions
Three new grades provide advanced flame retardance and excellent
performance for electrical and electronics applications
aesthetics offer another advantage,
enabling E&E manufacturers to
provide unique color combinations to
differentiate their products.
WHAT’S NEW
SABIC Innovative Plastics recently
launched three new sustainable
additions to its Valox* ENH resin
series that deliver advanced flame
retardance (FR) together with
experienced scientific and technical
team achieved this goal. The three
new Valox ENH PBT resin grades, with
different glass reinforcement levels,
not only utilize non-brominated
and non-chlorinated FR technology
but also provide a better balance
of high-performance properties
than competitive non-brominated
FR PBT resins. They deliver excellent
elongation, chemical resistance and
Valox resin’s flexibility lends itself to a host
of properties that can be tailored to specific
industry needs
Valox* ENH resins are used to make electrical equipment including cooling fan
The Valox* family of thermoplastic
polyester resins are semi-crystalline
materials based on polybutylene
terephthalate (PBT) and/or
polyethylene terephthalate (PET)
polymers. Valox resin formulations
include many performancematched grades designed to provide
application-specific property
profiles. Valox resins combine heat
and chemical resistance, as well as
outstanding electrical properties with
exceptionally good processability and
surface appearance.
SABIC Innovative Plastics began
producing and marketing Valox resins
in 1974. More advanced Valox iQ*
and Valox ENH* resins are created
with PBT-based polymers derived from
60% post-consumer plastic waste,
consuming less energy and yielding
less carbon dioxide (CO2) in their
manufacturing than traditional resins.
Valox resin’s flexibility lends itself
to a host of properties that can be
tailored to specific industry needs.
These include mechanical, thermal
and electrical properties combined
with resistance to a variety of
chemicals including hydrocarbons,
dilute acids and bases, detergents
and most aqueous salt solutions. The
product is available in a broad range
of both filled and unfilled grades,
with specified UL and other anti-flame
agency compliance ratings.
The family also includes health care
grades that meet food contact and
medical regulatory specifications.
Various health care applications and
food contact applications are made
with these type of Valox grades.
Valox resin offers excellent
performance at high temperatures,
with a Relative Temperature Index
(RTI) of up to 284 °F (140 °C). Very
good processability and high flow in
thin sections offer excellent surface
finish, making Valox an ideal candidate
for a host of applications in electrical
and electronics industries. Color and
outstanding mechanical and electrical
performance to the electrical and
electronics (E/E) industry. These
innovative materials help customers
comply with global environmental
regulations, including the European
Union (EU) Waste Electrical and
Electronic Equipment (WEEE) directive
that is now also being applied in Korea
and China.
The expansion of the Valox ENH
resin family is the result of the
company’s focus on providing an everbroadening portfolio of validated,
sustainable materials to customers.
“Environmental regulations and
guidelines regarding acceptable
flame-retardant chemicals for the
electrical and electronics industry
are continuing to tighten,” said
Jos Braat, Global Product Market
Director, SABIC Innovative Plastics.
“Our dynamic R&D program focused
on sustainable solutions continues to
yield technological breakthroughs.
Our new Valox ENH grades are just the
latest deliverables in a strategic effort
to evolve our flame-retardant plastics
portfolio to be in line with global
regulations and voluntary eco-labels
that are important to our customers’
growth.”
SUPERIORITY
Reducing halogen content in flameretardant polybutylene terephthalate
(PBT) is a challenge because
substituting a non-brominated,
non-chlorinated FR chemistry usually
reduces the mechanical performance.
SABIC Innovative Plastics’ highly
impact, and actually offer a very
good electrical and flammability
performance. Overall, they provide
a better balance of properties than
other non-brominated FR PBT resins.
The new Valox ENH resin grades are:
• Valox ENH 3500 PBT resin, unfilled
• Valox ENH 4530 PBT resin, 15
percent glass fiber reinforced
• Valox ENH 4560 PBT resin, 30
percent glass fiber reinforced
The three new Valox ENH resins
meet the UL94 V0 standard at 0.8
mm. With a comparative tracking
index (CTI) of 500 volts for Valox ENH
4530 resin and a CTI of 600 volts
for Valox ENH 3500 and Valox ENH
4560 resins, these grades far surpass
the CTI performance of standard
glass-filled brominated PBT, which
is typically around 200 volts. These
unfilled and glass-filled grades have
potential for use in electric cooling
fans, relays, connectors, switches and
fuser applications in printers.
SUSTAINABILITY DIMENSION
To make applications even more
sustainable, Valox ENH resin grades
can be enhanced by combining them
with other SABIC Innovative Plastics
PBT technologies, particularly Valox
iQ* resins. This iQ technology is
referred to as “upcycled technology”
because it incorporates high levels
of post-consumer polyethylene
terephthalate (PET) bottles into PBT
resin through a proprietary chemical
process. Upcycling not only diverts
waste from landfills but also reduces
carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions and
energy usage when producing PBT
resin. Valox iQ NH 4550 is made from
upcycled post consumer PET and is
currently in SABIC innovative Plastics’
product portfolio. This new product
combines non-brominated flame
retardancy with a very low carbon
footprint PBT resin and is therefore
unique in the market.
The addition of the new materials
increases the Valox ENH resin
portfolio to five commercial grades
applicable to many different E/E
applications currently made of
brominated FR PBT and/or PET. SABIC
Innovative Plastics is also planning to
launch PBT/PET alloys within the Valox
ENH resin family soon.
Valox* ENH resins are used in making connectors
CUSTOMER OUTREACH
SABIC celebrates partnership with Asia’s
glycol customers
SABIC Asia Pacific recently celebrated the company’s partnership with its
mono-ethylene glycol (MEG) customers in the region at a well-organized
two-day event that sought to mix business focus with fun and games
Some preferred golf while others had the option of exploring the city
Adds Fahad Al-Swailem, SABIC Vice
President for Glycols Business Unit:
“The event was a great opportunity
to strengthen our relationships.
Celebration of Asia Partnerships is
exactly what we’ve achieved. Through
close interactions over these two days,
we have built personal relationships
with customers all over Asia.”
The feedback from leading
customers in the region has been very
positive. Wu Kao Shan, Executive Vice
President, Far Eastern New Century,
said SABIC had done an excellent job
of organizing the event, and he was
all praise for the customer service
and logistical arrangements related
to flying in the invitees to Bali. “We
hope SABIC continues to support its
customers so that we grow together.
Glycol customers pose with SABIC Asia Pacific team for a souvenir picture in Bali
Forty key SABIC MEG customers from
seven countries, including China,
India, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan,
Korea and Thailand, took time off
to fly into the Indonesian resort
island of Bali to attend the customer
appreciation program.
“Celebration of Asia Partnerships”
was the theme of the October 2224 event. With the participation
of customers including Sinopec,
Far Eastern New Century, Itochu,
Indorama, Huvis, Hengyi, Sheng
Hong and Tong Kun from the
seven countries, SABIC’s regional
management took customer
engagement to a whole new level
and further consolidated long-term
business relationships.
“SABIC Sensorial Experience”,
a team building challenge that
“This event was truly a celebration of Asia
partnerships. Our customers have been with
us through good times and bad times and we
wanted to show our appreciation”
promoted bonding with customers
over fun and games through the use
of the five human senses of sight,
sound, taste, smell and touch, and
a gala dinner on October 23 were
the high points of the celebration.
SABIC customers were also treated to
optional programs including city tours
and golf.
Asia absorbs a lion’s share of SABIC’s
global MEG exports from Saudi Arabia.
The single most important application
of MEG in Asia is the manufacture
of polyester, which goes into the
fiber, film and PET (polyethylene
terephthalate) bottle and packaging
industries. SABIC is the top MEG
producer in the world in terms of
production capacity, and most of the
Asian customers have been sourcing
their glycol needs from SABIC for over
10 years.
“This event was truly a celebration
of Asia partnerships. Our customers
have been with us through good times
and bad times and we wanted to show
our appreciation,” says Ahmed Alumar,
SABIC Vice President for Asia Pacific.
Alumar (fourth from right) and glycol customers have an informal dinner table conversation
CUSTOMER OUTREACH
“Isn’t it amazing that
we are really in the
business of engaging
the five senses of the
human race – sight,
hearing, taste, smell
and touch”
David Shin Cherng Ming, SVP of Far Eastern Textile Taiwan, with Al-Swailem
I think SABIC is doing a great job in
maintaining long term contact with
customers.”
Shin In Yool, Vice President for
Polyester Business Planning, Huvis
said: “I really enjoyed this highly
energetic atmosphere tonight and
the teambuilding was so brilliantly
engaging! SABIC is one of the most
Visit signals Indonesia’s importance
SABIC recently signaled the
importance of the Indonesian market
for the company, with a visit of Ahmed
Alumar, SABIC Vice President for Asia
Pacific, to Jakarta. The visit included a
customer dinner with SABIC’s longterm partner in the market, Asahimas
Chemicals.
Alumar also met with Saudi
Ambassador to Indonesia
Abdulrahman Mohammed Amen
Alkhayyat and discussed SABIC’s
priorities in the region and Indonesia.
The ambassador hosted a dinner for
the SABIC team and the company’s
key customers from PT. Tekpak, PT.
Panca Budi, PT. Indopoly, PT. Argha
Karya, PT. Universal Carpet, PT.
Royal Industries and The Indonesia
Olefin, Aromatic and Plastic Industry
Association as well as the Gulf trade
and government officials. The SABIC
delegation included Rudi Permadi
and Hedie Kam, Business Leaders
in Indonesia, and Lili Koh, Director
for Corporate Communications Asia
Pacific.
The program also included an
informal employee luncheon and
business reviews that enabled the
teams to discuss the opportunities and
challenges in the Indonesian market.
customers, some of whom had spent
half a day travelling from their home
countries to be at the SABIC event.
Al-Swailem spoke about the overall
directions of SABIC and our glycols
business and operations worldwide.
“We thank you for your continued
long-term partnerships, and we want
to achieve more successes with you,
and see you grow as SABIC grows,”
Alumar said. “Our teambuilding
activity today is about enjoying the
SABIC Sensorial Experience. As we are
creating this program, we wanted
to do something interactive and
engaging. We thought of what we
do every day in business and how
the products we make are touching
lives. Isn’t it amazing that we are
really in the business of engaging the
five senses of the human race – sight,
hearing, taste, smell and touch”
he said?
Hosting the gala dinner, Al-Swailem
praised the spirit of camaraderie
among the teams. Noting that the
teams had lots of reasons to celebrate
the partnership, he described SABIC’s
glycols business as one of the best
business cooperation and success
stories. SABIC is the world’s top
producer of glycols with a total
production of more than 6 million
tons of Glycols worldwide (including
joint venture producing affiliates).
Glycols have an important position
in SABIC’s global 2020 vision, he
said. In February, the SINOPEC-SABIC
Tianjin Petrochemicals Company
(SSTPC) started production in China.
SABIC owns the rights to market 100
percent of the glycols production
at SSTPC. This local availability
brings SABIC closer to its customers
in Asia, offering benefits of trading
in local currency and efficient local
services. The recent start-up of
SAUDI KAYAN has also helped increase
SABIC’s glycol production capacity.
Al-Swailem said SABIC is planning
to open a new storage hub facility
in Asia to further improve service
delivery.
Customer focus will remain a
cornerstone of SABIC’s growth
strategy, and the company is
committed to achieving sustainability
in its operations. Asserting that SABIC
is committed to strengthening its
reliable services to Asian customers,
he noted that the company is now
present in 38 locations in the Asia
Pacific region and employs more than
2,000 staff.
Alumar (fifth from left) and Ambassador Alkhayyat with SABIC team members and other guests
The ambassador hosted a dinner for the SABIC delegation
powerful producers in the world.
Huvis has worked with SABIC for more
than 25 years, and we are happy to
be close to SABIC. We hope to build
concrete partnerships and good
relationships for the future.”
Subodh Laroya, Assistant Vice
President, Indo Rama India, said: “We
have been working with SABIC since
last 15-20years. Our partnership
has gone very smoothly and we
hope it will go further, building on
our relationships. SABIC is a world
leading company. It is the best and
becoming the biggest – only because
of their effort in building up strong
relationship with their customers.”
Describing the experience as
memorable and fantastic, Rakesh
Kumar K Goel, Head of Department,
Alok Industries Ltd. said: “I got to
meet so many people from China,
India and Taiwan. My key takeaway for
Fahad’s speech is that he cares for the
customers – this is the best thing and
a demonstration of clear commitment
to customers. We are 100 percent
with SABIC. SABIC is a good company
to work with and we enjoy working
with you.”
Welcoming the participants to the
event earlier, Alumar thanked the
The team-building exercise turned out to be a winner for all participants
Behind the Scenes
Reaching REACH
SABIC recently submitted its first REACH dossiers, accomplishing a major
regulatory milestone. The achievement involved five years of solid behindthe-scenes work by dedicated teams
The REACH team (from left to right): Madeleine Dirix, Harrie Camps, Wil ten Berge (external consultant),
Esther van der Zande, Doeke van der Schaaf (external consultant TNO) and Marcel Bosma
SABIC teams – is a monumental task
of documenting vast amounts of
technical information, reports and
user information into dossiers to be
submitted to the authorities.
After five years of gathering
information, coordinating with
colleagues, competitors and
customers, SABIC has submitted
74 dossiers to the Helsinki-based
European Chemicals Agency (ECHA)
as part of the company’s commitment
to implement REACH (Registration,
Evaluation, Authorization and
Restriction of Chemical substances).
REACH is the European legislation
governing chemicals, which became
effective in June 2007. The dossiers
were submitted to secure the license
for Polymers, Chemicals, Fertilizers,
Innovative Plastics and Performance
Chemicals SBUs.
However, nothing can be more
misleading than to think that the
submission of these dossiers marks the
conclusion of SABIC’s REACH agenda.
Such is the nature and impact of this
legislation, SABIC’s REACH teams are
certain that the European initiative
will continue to have a major
influence on the company’s business
in the years to come. The objective of
REACH is to improve the protection of
health and the environment through
the better and earlier identification
of the intrinsic properties of chemical
substances. Over the years, more than
100,000 chemical products have
been made available on the market.
The European Union authorities
are anxious to fill any information
gaps about them, creating a central
information source concerning their
properties and studies that were
carried out.
What this meant in the short term
for the industry – and therefore the
BROAD AND DEEP
To do this, the teams had to take
a broad look at the substances.
Producers had access to different
studies on, for example, their toxicity.
To complete the dossiers, it was
necessary to contact competitors for
relevant information, read and review
studies and reports and also dig
deeper into the clients’ operations.
How are they using the material?
Who is exposed to it, and for what
duration and under what conditions?
Esther van der Zande is a senior
expert within Product Safety who
coordinated much of the technical
work involved. To complete her work,
she needed to quiz clients through
the sales and marketing teams
about the precise way they use
SABIC products.
The exercise proved useful for
everyone involved, as SABIC gained
very valuable insights into the
way they work. “This was actually
an opportunity for the sales and
marketing people,” she says.
SHARING AND LEADING
The sheer amount of information
and work involved led producers to
create consortia to share the burden
and costs. In some cases, such as
propylene, SABIC led the process for
other members of the industry. “This
was an opportunity to position SABIC
in a leadership role amongst a network
of co-producers, suppliers and
distributors,” explains Harrie Camps,
Manager of Regulatory Affairs,
Product Stewardship, in Sittard;
The Netherlands “In the mid and long
term, this will be useful.”
Jaco Boelhouwer, Business Manager,
C4s and Oxygenates, was one of
the people coordinating with other
companies. “One problem we found
was that producers and legislators
often referred to things in different
ways,” he recalls. “We had long
discussions about whether some
products were best categorized
as a substance or a transported
intermediate, for example.” In another
case, SABIC considered a process
as a physical separation, whereas
the legislation considered it to be a
chemical transformation. “The legal
wording can be complex; it’s not black
or white,” he concludes.
For the SBUs, the process was
largely an exercise in inventorying.
“Obviously, we know the products
we sell,” says Boelhouwer. “But then
there are the exceptions, for example
products that might be produced
only very occasionally in exceptional
circumstances such as cracker
turnarounds. They had to be included
in the registration or they could not be
sold when needed!”
Houria Belabed is Regional
Business Manager for OXO/LAO
(Performance Chemicals), which rely
on products from Saudi Arabia. For
her, communication within SABIC also
played a role. “It was important to
explain the importance of REACH to
our colleagues in KSA,” she says.
“At the time, this was purely a European
initiative, although it looks as though
the USA and perhaps Asia are moving in
that direction as well now.”
Van der Zande was also struck
by the range of contacts needed to
implement REACH. “This was one of
the learnings for me,” she adds. “In the
last three years I had regular contact
with manufacturing, procurement
(both raw materials and feedstocks),
marketing and sales colleagues. In
the future REACH will also affect the
processes and procedures within these
departments.”
Behind the Scenes
LOOKING FORWARD
REACH has been having an
important effect throughout the
industry as distributors and users are
also directly involved. Showing that
SABIC was very active in
pre-registering and registering its
products sent a reassuring signal
to the market. “Several SBUs were
contacted by clients to ensure that
the products they purchase were
being registered,” notes Belabed.
“It was important for them to
know they could continue with the
same supplier.” Security of supply
is a big issue in several sectors,
such as health care, and one that
strengthens SABIC’s position in
the market.
The fact that SABIC registered
its chemicals in Europe, does
not provide a freeride for our
global customer-base. “SABIC
Camps (third from left) and van der Zande (second from left) celebrate a REACH milestone with
TNO’s staff Doeke vander Schaaf (extreme left), Gerwin Schaafsma (third from right), Jeane
Nicolas (second from right) and Monique Groenewold (far right)
“Several SBUs were contacted by clients to
ensure that the products they purchase were
being registered”
Belabed, Regional Business Manager,
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in understanding REACH and other
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Belabed also underlines the positive
impact of REACH. “This initiative
shows that the chemical industry
is taking potentially dangerous
products in hand in a responsible
manner. It is also important from the
point of view of sustainability.”
At the end of the day, SABIC
will have played a win-win
role in ensuring that suppliers,
distributors and users have a better
understanding of the products
they use, and the risks involved. By
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2
LIFESTYLE
Video games
Bonding or bondage?
At a time when video game enthusiasts are already drooling
with anticipation over the great games expected in 2011,
the role of gaming in the modern family is worth a study
Have you been at a loss wondering
how to bond with your adolescent
or teenage daughter or son, or
nephew or niece? Do you think
that playing video games is only
for children and teenagers? Do
you have apprehensions that if you
show any interest in enjoying video
games, either watching or playing,
you are encouraging a dilution of the
younger generation’s respect
for you?
New age parents are discovering
that playing video and computer
games with their children are a great
way of bonding with them.
A recent media report in India
said that video and computer games
were helping parents rediscover
ways of bonding with their new-age
children in the country. In 2007,
a survey in US – albeit conducted
by a developer and publisher of
computer and video games – found
that millions of grandparents, in
particular grandmothers, played
computer games with their
grandchildren. Ninety-five percent
of the grandparents said the games
provided an opportunity to “bond
with, or better relate to” their
grandchildren.
However, another recent report
from the Indian city of Kolkata
said the schools across the city
had issued circulars or are holding
parents’ orientation programs on
how to monitor children’s addiction
to video games. Some of the most
violent and undesirable video games
available in the market are landing in
the hands of kids, something that has
made schools hit the panic button.
According to a new study
from Sony Online Entertainment,
published in the November issue of
Family Circle magazine, an increasing
number of American parents are
recognizing the benefits of their
children playing videos games, such
as improved hand-eye coordination,
problem solving and typing skills.
The survey suggests that video
games are also teaching children to
think strategically. The study also
found that 87 percent of parents
who participated in the survey are
spending time playing video games
with their children. However, an
Associated Press-AOL Games poll
of 2007 revealed that a significant
percentage of parents still believe
that video games are bad for young
children, and never – or seldom –
play with them.
While there are no signs of a
universal consensus on whether
playing video and computer games
is good or bad for young people in
various age groups, there is little
doubt that gaming is here to stay,
and the business – and its customers
– will continue to grow. Indeed the
debate is no more about whether
gaming is good or bad, but how
much gaming is ideal – and perhaps
even recommended, not only for
young people but even parents and
grandparents.
Gaming has emerged as a major
money spinner of our times. Video
Game Sales Wiki (vgsales), an online
resource that provides consolidated
global information and analysis
on the industry, says from $41.9
billion in 2007, the worldwide game
industry sales are expected to grow
9.1 percent annually to $48.9 billion
in 2011, $68 billion in 2012 and $91
billion by 2015. The industry has
achieved dramatic growth over the
past two decades – from $7 billion
in 1994 to $25.4 billion in 2004. As
of 2008, the worldwide PC-based
A number of parents believe that playing video games together helps them bond with their children
game market alone was worth $10.7
billion. With the proliferation of PCs,
and the availability of free online
games, players are spoilt for choice.
COMPLAINTS & CONCERNS
Parents and teachers in different
parts of the world complain that
video games are a major distraction
for adolescents and teenagers. The
common complaints are about
addiction eating into their time,
affecting studies, health and
relationships. At a more serious
level, there have been concerns
about the influence of extreme
violence and exposure to improper
scenes and language that are totally
inappropriate for underage children.
In a 2009 article on her website,
Dr. Gwen Dewar, founder and
author of ParentingScience.com,
who has studied anthropology,
and evolutionary and comparative
psychology, reviewed several studies
that sought to assess the impact
of video games on young minds.
Her conclusion? “Maybe there’s no
reason to panic. Kids have always
engaged in games that simulate
violence, and video games aren’t all
bad. In fact, some games promote
social responsibility. Others may help
sharpen your child’s spatial skills. But
there are good reasons to suspect
that video game violence can
There are no signs of a universal
consensus on whether playing video
and computer games is good or bad
for young people
Experts say that parents must keep a tab on what young children are exposed to in video games
LIFESTYLE
The new generation of hand-held devices provide easy, all-time access to video games
“When I consider the high-quality studies
reviewed here, I’m persuaded that something
is going on”
contribute to behavior problems.”
Citing studies and experiments,
she says people do feel more hostile
after playing violent video games,
especially the ones that simulate
real-life situations. There is also
evidence that playing violent games
can make people behave more
aggressively immediately afterwards.
“When I consider the high-quality
studies reviewed here, I’m persuaded
that something is going on...It
also seems clear that many kids
have a self-destructive video game
‘addiction’. Surveys suggest that
an alarming number of kids are
pathological gamers, playing games
so obsessively that they neglect their
social lives and school work. Finally, I
am bothered by something that most
researchers haven’t addressed—
namely, the effect of certain video
games on a child’s developing sense
of morality. Some popular video
games glamorize gangsters and
criminals,” she notes.
PARENTAL ADVICE
Professor Mark Griffiths, Director
of the International Gaming Research
Unit at Nottingham Trent University,
UK, who has been studying and
writing about video games for
a long time, recently rolled out
some parental advice on video
game worries. He says video game
playing offers educational, health,
therapeutic and psychomotor
benefits (e.g., hand-eye coordination and increased reaction
times).
“So when it comes to videogames,
what should parents do? To begin
with parents should actually find out
what video games their children are
actually playing! All video games
now feature the PEGI rating system
(Pan European Game Information),
which not only contains a specific
age rating but also specific game
content (such as whether the video
game features sex, violence, fear,
swearing, gambling, discrimination,
etc.),” he writes.
If parents find that their children
are into inappropriate games, they
should try and guide their children
through deeper involvement: “(i)
Help choose suitable games that are
still fun for their children to play, (ii)
talk about the content of the games
so that children understand the
difference between make-believe
and reality, (iii) discourage solitary
game playing for long periods, (iv)
follow recommendations on the
possible risks outlined by videogame
manufacturers, and (v) ensure
that children have plenty of other
activities to pursue in their free time
besides the playing of video games.”
To answer the ‘how much is
too much’ question, Griffiths
has come up with about seven
simple questions that will enable
the parents to determine if their
children are playing too much
video game. The questions related
to the frequency and duration of
the activity, reasons of indulgence,
symptoms of restlessness if there
is no access to games, sacrifice of
social and sports to opt for video
games, the habitual skipping of
homework to play and inability to
control the urge to play. “If the
answer is ‘yes’ to more than four
of these questions, then your child
may be playing too much and you
need to foster other activities to
replace the video game playing,”
he says, adding: “Thankfully, very
few children are genuinely addicted
to video games, but as responsible
parents it is our job to monitor their
video game playing and there are
now plenty of games that we can
play along too.”
The Indian media report which
said that video games had become
an enjoyable bonding route for
parents and children, quotes games
companies as saying that the
gaming community is sensitive to
the increasing demand for games
parents can play with their children.
“For example, Nintendo’s Wii games
pertaining to physical conditioning
and exercise abound in the market.
Since they stress on good habits,
parents are happy to buy them for
the family,” says one of them.
Facebook offers a very tangible
example of the popularity of free
online games. Reports say that
Facebook Games now has over 200
million people playing video games
on the site, with 40 percent of
the user base taking part in social
gaming. Apparently, the top 10
games on Facebook have more than
12 million users each.
So next time you get offered
a cow or some chicken on your
Facebook page, or get invited to join
Farmville, think of it as a new channel
to bond – especially if it’s from your
children or a young relative.
The water fountain off the Red Sea coast of Jeddah is reputed to be the tallest of its kind in the world
Metals that strengthen industry
Steel is a vital ingredient for businesses across the world, from
manufacturers of kitchen appliances to building contractors. As the
leading steel producer in the Middle East, SABIC’s metals business
has played a vital role in the construction, development and
industrialization of some of the world’s fastest growing economies.
Sharing our futures

Magazine November/December 2010

Transcription

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