FRANKFURT – At last week’s Techtextil exhibition, Indorama Ventures (IVL) launched its new 100% rPET brand Deja and also announced the formation of the Indorama Mobility Group dedicated to the automotive sector.
Speaking at a press conference for the launch of Deja, Edmund Ingle, CEO of Wellman International (pictured), described IVL as a “company of companies” acquired by the Thai-headquartered business.
Acquisitions have included some of the smartest manufacturers of speciality fibres in both Europe and the USA, including Wellman, and all continue to operate with autonomy under their own brands.
“IVL is the only chemical company on the Dow Jones Sustainability Index and as the largest producer of virgin PET, it was clear we had to step up our operations in respect of rPET,” said Ingle. “We have highly integrated and automated operations for turning PET bottles into pellets and flakes, or back into bottles, and we control the entire process.
“At Wellman we have been recycling PET since the 1970s and today conscientious recycling is the new norm as we see the emergence of ethical industries, where sustainability is as much a pillar of policy as safety and quality.”
Going beyond mechanical recycling, Ingle mentioned two further companies in which IVL now has interests – Canada’s Loop Technology and Ioniqa in The Netherlands.
Both are developing chemical routes to recycling the lower grade materials and waste textiles that cannot be as easily recycled as PET bottles.
Mobility Group
Meanwhile, the new Indorama Mobility Group comprises three business segments – Tyre, Automotive Safety and Functional Materials – with target markets being tyre reinforcement, airbags, seatbelts, mechanical rubber goods, sewing threads, fabrics, ropes and cordage, automotive interiors, home textiles and composites
The new automotive business marks the culmination of successive strategic acquisitions over the past five years, including PHP Fibers, Performance Fibers, Trevira Filaments, Glanzstoff, Kordarna and UTT.
“The group collectively owns decades of industry knowledge, experience and brand equity and this creates a unique portfolio of fibres, yarns, single-end cords and fabrics based on polyester, polyamide, rayon, aramid hybrid and PEN, emerging as an integrated global business unit,” said Jochen Boos, formerly CEO of PHP Fibers and now CEO of the new business group. “This intra-group businesses merger will create a truly global presence and accelerate business growth through the cross proliferation of product lines, expanded customer partnerships and a global manufacturing footprint.”
Further details to follow in the June issue of Sustainable Nonwovens
