The Maag Group, comprising Maag Pump Systems, Automatik, Gala Industries, Reduction Engineering Scheer and, since 2018, Ettlinger Kunststoffmaschinen, is enhancing its systems expertise by focusing on Centers of Excellence.

Dow and SCG have entered into an agreement to develop recycling solutions with an aim to tackle plastic waste. The deal also intends to create a circular economy for plastic in Thailand.

Covestro is already actively exploiting the benefits of digital transformation. The company now announced that important progress had been made in two areas: A pilot project has provided new findings for the predictive, intelligent maintenance of systems and is now continued at the production site in Caojing, China. Also, the global project for digitalizing and integrating the system landscape in production, "Optimized System Integration" (OSI2020) for short, is entering the next project phase.

Evonik Venture Capital invests in a 3D-printing start-up in China that makes implants for neuro and spine surgery. The company is the lead investor in a high single-digit million-euro round of fundraising for Shanghai-based Meditool.

Skids, package units and flexible modules: The trends and facts in modular plant engineering – Flexible like a construction kit and powerful like a made-to-measure system: Modularisation has the potential to herald in a new era of plant construction. However, on the way there, there are not only technical hurdles to overcome — definitions are also being fought over. An status-report between PED, process skids and MTP.

Nouryon has made a series of investments at its metal alkyls plant in Rotterdam to improve efficiency and increase capacity. The projects are to enable the company to continue meeting growing demand from customers in the polymer industry and improve supply reliability in Europe.

Engineering begins with an idea at a one-stop specialist for chemical and polymer projects  – Can a process that traces its roots back to the 19th century become even better today? Can the production capacity of a PET plant be enhanced by over 100 % without replacing the main reactor? And can a one-stop engineering provider still have a specific solution for each problem? The answer to all this questions is — yes, with the right ideas.

Clariant will significantly expand the capacity of its catalysts production facility in Panjin, Liaoning province, Northeast China. A double-digit million dollar investment is to further optimize the existing facility and enable the creation of a new state-of-the-art production line for Syn Dane maleic anhydride (MA) catalyst.

SNF has plans to have a total emulsion-grade PAM production capacity of 1 million Mt/year in the U.S. by the end of 2020. With an aim to support this move, the company is actively investing in upstream monomer production capabilities.

Mitsubishi Chemical Holdings Corporation announced that Diamond Edge Ventures has invested in Fluence Analytics, a startup spun-off from Tulane University in 2013. The company provides real-time analytics solutions called “Acomp” (Automatic Continuous Online Monitoring of Polymerization), an online monitoring system for chemical reactions such as polymer synthesis.