NEWS
IN BRIEF
Astec starts centre Godrej Agrovet ( GAVL ) subsidiary Astec LifeSciences has inaugurated its ‘ Adi Godrej Center for Chemical Research and Development ’ in Rabale , India . This features a synthesis lab for product synthesis and a formulation lab to develop new crop protection formulations . Work will focus on new product generation , process optimisation and scale-up , and product lifecycle management , to support GAVL ’ s CDMO services .
New owner for AGM Following approval in the US , Canada ’ s Universal Matter ( UMI ) has acquired Applied Graphene Materials ( AGM ) for $ 1.3 million . UMI said it will leverage AGM ’ s platform dispersion technology alongside its own ‘ flash joule heating ’ process to boost the use of graphene materials in such markets as coatings and composites .
Harima myrcene plant Harima has built its first myrcene facility at its site in Kakogawa , Japan . Myrcene is obtained from pinene , a natural substance that is extracted from pine trees , and used in aroma oils and fragrances . The facility will mainly use energy self-generated from renewable energy sources and carbonneutral fuel , the company said .
Calibre buys Tina Calibre Chemicals has acquired its Indian compatriot Tina Life Sciences , a laboratory and product development firm . The company said it hopes to improve its capabilities in R & D , particularly organic chemistry , in order to accelerate new product development and increase the variety of its CDMO services . No terms were disclosed .
ECHA : Most SVHC users compliant
An EU-wide project by ECHA ’ s Enforcement Forum carried out in 2021 has found that most users of substances of commonly controlled very high concern ( SVHCs ), mainly SMEs , already comply with the requirement to control risks .
The authorities of all 28 member states undertook 690 inspections at 516 companies . The most common SVHCs checked were chromium trioxide and strontium chromate , which are used mainly in surface treatment and chrome plating .
In all , 26 % of downstream users were not using the SVHCs in compliance with conditions set out in their supplier ’ s authorisation decision , while 20 % did not notify ECHA of their use .
In addition , suppliers failed to communicate required information about operational conditions , risk management or monitoring arrangements for 35 % of checked substances .
When finding non-compliance , inspectors took 254 enforcement measures to bring all of the companies into compliance . These included mainly written advice and administrative orders , but also fines and , in some cases , criminal complaints , ECHA said .
Subsequently , ECHA recommended the addition of eight SVHCs on the Candidate List to the REACH Authorisation List . If the European Commission agrees to this , companies will need to apply for authorisation to continue using them . Most prominent among them is lead , with the others being :
• Ethylenediamine
• 2- ( 4-tertbutylbenzyl ) propionaldehyde & individual stereoisomers
• Glutaral
• 2-methyl-1- ( 4-methylthiophenyl ) -2- morpholinopropan-1-one
• 2-benzyl-2- dimethylamino-4 ’ - morpholinobutyrophenone
• Diisohexyl phthalate
• Orthoboric acid , sodium salt
Merck to grow speciality gases
Merck KGaA has reached an agreement with the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania to support a € 300 million investment to expand its semiconductor manufacturing site in Hometown by further developing the world ’ s largest integrated speciality gases facility .
This is part of the Electronics business sector ’ s Level Up growth programme , which envisages spending over € 3 billion in innovation and capacity expansion projects in the US , Germany and Asia by the end of 2025 . Other investments to date and ongoing include :
• A new factory in Greater Phoenix , Arizona , for equipment for Merck ’ s Delivery Systems & Services ( DS & S ) business , due to be complicated in 1H 2023
• A new DS & S facility in Kaohsiung , Taiwan
• The China Electronics Technology Centre and a production facility for organic light-emitting diode materials in Shanghai ,
• Acquiring the chemical business of Mecaro , which has since broken ground on a second facility in Kaohsiung to produce speciality gases and semiconductor materials for thin film and structuring applications as of 2025
8 SPECIALITY CHEMICALS MAGAZINE ESTABLISHED 1981