Japan-based Teijin Ltd. has announced it will begin doing business in the high-performance
polyethylene (HP-PE) market. The company will set up a production facility in the Netherlands and
expects to begin commercial production in the second half of 2011, with a goal of having a 15- to
20-percent global market share by 2015.
HP-PE materials, including fibers and tapes, are produced with ultra-high-molecular-weight
polyethylene polymers. The materials exhibit very good impact, cut, wear and chemical resistance
and are used to make reinforced plastics, protective materials, ropes, nets and medical materials,
among other applications.
The Netherlands-based Teijin Aramid B.V. and Japan-based Teijin Techno Products Ltd. —
subsidiaries of Teijin’s Aramid Fibers Business Group — have been developing HP-PE manufacturing
processes and products and are currently producing HP-PE in limited amounts in their pilot plants.
Teijin decided to proceed with commercial production of HP-PE after the two companies successfully
developed viable mass-production technologies and new production processes, and established the
required mass-produced product quality.
In addition to HP-PE, Teijin’s ultra-high-performance materials portfolio includes Twaron®
para-aramid, Technora® para-aramid-copolymer, Teijinconex® meta-aramid, Tenax® carbon fiber and
hybrid products that combine these materials.
November 16, 2010
