Huntsman Corporation (The Woodlands, Texas, USA), a global manufacturer and marketer of differentiated and specialty chemicals, unveiled a polyurethanes system house in Dubai, UAE. Located in Jebel Ali Free Trade Zone (Jafza), the new facility enables Huntsman to enhance its downstream capabilities in the Middle East and North Africa, as well as increase its ability to produce polyurethane systems and polyester polyols for regional customers.
Systems houses are businesses which purchase liquid chemicals from producers such as Huntsman and sell them to their customers. Huntsman’s Dubai-based systems house will produce polyurethane foams for construction, insulation, appliances, bedding and furniture applications, as well as prepolymers for various applications.
Consisting of a production area with cutting-edge manufacturing equipment, along with blenders, reactors, filling stations, control room, offices and quality control laboratories, the facility will serve as the company’s regional base of operations for its spray polyurethane foam (SPF) business. It also houses a dedicated spray foam application and training center that will provide technical and training assistance.
“This investment is the latest step in the expansion of our worldwide systems house capabilities, which underpin our downstream growth strategy,” says Tony Hankins, president of Huntsman's polyurethanes division. “Constructing the new systems house at Jafza brings us closer to our customers and gives us everything we need to expand our business in the Middle East and North Africa, including manufacturing competitiveness, infrastructure links and speed of response.”
Steen Weien Hansen, vice president for Europe, Africa, Middle East and India, adds that factors such as a growing regional market for polyurethane-based projects and products and an upcoming expo will only increase the demand for a purpose-built polyurethanes systems house in Dubai. Currently, Huntsman has two downstream business in the Middle East, including a systems house in Turkey and a polyols company it owns jointly with a Dubai-based investment company.
Source: Huntsman Corporation, www.huntsman.com