Automotive Report: Varroc pursues auto sector, sells JV stake to Plastic Omnium



	Automotive Report

September 17, 2012	SHARE / SUBSCRIBE

Varroc pursues auto sector, sells JV stake to Plastic Omnium
AURANGABAD, INDIA (Sept. 14, 3 p.m. ET) -- Indian auto parts supplier Varroc Group and France’s Cie. Plastic Omnium have ended their joint venture in India, and now Varroc is moving forward with its own expansion plans. (more)

Indiana auto supplier Tasus building Alabama plant
FLORENCE, ALA. (Sept. 11, 3:05 p.m. ET) -- Auto supplier Tasus Corp. is preparing to launch construction of a $19 million injection molding plant in Alabama while also setting up temporary production in the area to help it meet existing customer demand until the permanent site opens. (more)

Eller: Thermoplastic elastomers experiencing global growth
AKRON, OHIO (Sept. 17, 8:55 a.m. ET) -- Thermoplastic elastomers are growing, thanks to the automotive recovery, new soft-touch packaging and as a PVC substitute in the health-care industry, according to Robert Eller, a market analyst. (more)

Spain's Grupo Maier buys stake in Italian auto firm
AJANGIZ, SPAIN (Sept. 17, 8:35 a.m. ET) -- Spanish auto component injection molder Grupo Maier has extended its production into southern Europe with the purchase of a 50 percent stake in Italian parts molder and finisher Cromoplastica International. (more)

Bill would restore salaried Delphi retirees' pensions
WASHINGTON (Sept. 13, 1:45 p.m. ET) -- An Ohio senator wants to give $1 billion from a General Motors stock sale to salaried Delphi Automotive retirees who lost much of their pension coverage during the supplier’s bankruptcy proceedings, but the Delphi Salaried Retirees Association says it prefers another solution. (more)

A. Schulman Academy highlights fuel line development
KERPEN, GERMANY (Sept. 13, 1:45 p.m. ET) -- Compound and masterbatch producer A. Schulman Inc. officially opened its Schulman Academy center earlier this year at its European engineering thermoplastics business headquarters in Kerpen. The new center is a special section of Schulman’s technical center, which opened in November. (more)

Lanxess buys Germany's Bond-Laminates
LEVERKUSEN, GERMANY (Sept. 12, 11:45 a.m. ET) -- Materials supplier Lanxess AG has purchased Bond-Laminates GmbH, a German company that supplies custom plastic composite sheets, including glass-fiber-reinforced sheet. Leverkusen-based Lanxess said the deal strengthens its portfolio of lightweight materials for the automotive industry. (more)

ContiTech supplies seat material to GM's microvan
HANOVER, GERMANY (Sept. 12, 11:45 a.m. ET) -- ContiTech AG, a division of the German supplier Continental AG, said it has started supplying interior trim material to SAIC-GM-Wuling Automobile Co., General Motors’ microvan joint venture in China. (more)

Auto supplier Inteva expands in India
TROY, MICH. (Sept. 10, 4:45 p.m. ET) -- Auto interior supplier Inteva Products has tripled the size of its production capacity in Pune, India, with a new manufacturing plant and testing center which will officially open Sept. 12. (more)

Dickten Masch acquires Nyloncraft
NASHOTAH, WIS. (Sept. 7, 2:25 p.m. ET) -- Dickten Masch Plastics LLC has purchased fellow molder Nyloncraft Inc. and will look to build on both companies’ engineering-plastics experience to replace metal components in the transportation industry. Nyloncraft, based in Mishawaka, Ind., will retain its name, organization, operations and management team as part of the deal announced Sept. 7. (more)

BASF opens TPU research lab in Michigan
FLORHAM PARK, N.J. (Sept. 6, 1:30 p.m. ET) -- BASF Corp. has opened a new research lab for thermoplastic polyurethanes (TPU) in Wyandotte, Mich., to house a five-person team of product developers, chemists and material scientists. (more)

Long Island to house advanced composites technology center
BETHPAGE, N.Y. (Sept. 5, 10 a.m. ET) -- The Long Island Forum for Technology plans to open an advanced materials center that will focus on composites. LIFT President Frank Otto said the center will “serve as a premier resource for composite prototype production across diverse markets, from aerospace, and defense to energy, infrastructure, and transportation.” (more)

Faurecia grows Daimler business with latest Plastal deal
NANTERRE, FRANCE (Sept. 4, 10:55 a.m. ET) -- Automotive supplier Faurecia SA is strengthening its business with Daimler AG by acquiring Plastal France SAS, a supplier of plastic body parts for Daimler’s Smart brand of urban cars. Faurecia spokesman Olivier Le Friec said the deal means the company now is a direct supplier to Daimler. (more)

THE PLASTICS BLOG

By Don Loepp

Chevy: "We're letting plastic be plastic"
When consumer-targeted auto magazines write about new cars, comments about the interiors usually focus on the plastic. All vehicle interiors are loaded with plastic these days, obviously, but critics tend to pick on interiors that they feel are "too ... (more)

THE CHINA BLOG

By Nina Ying Sun

Anti-Japan sentiment sweeps China market

A man yesterday set his Honda Civic on fire outside of a Honda dealership in Shanghai, as anti-Japan protests intensify across China over disputed islands near Okinawa. Shortly after the photos were uploaded to Sina Weibo, a popular Chinese ... (more)

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