Evonik ups silica production with new facility in Japan

The company asserts that “Japan is an attractive market for innovative and customized specialty silicas,” ​and goes on, in the press release announcing the additional capacity, to boast that “the new facility meets stringent ISO 14001 and ISO 9001-HACCP quality standards, and has been certified for Japanese Pharmaceutical Excipients GMP standards.”   ​

Business development ​

It’s actually DSL that is expanding to produce more specialty silicas. DSL is a joint venture of Evonik and Shionogi & Co., with 51% owned by Evonik. And with this latest move, the company will be upping its silica production capability in Japan by around 50%.

“The expansion will allow us to continue providing exceptionally high-quality silica that will support the growth of our customers in sophisticated sectors such as the food, cosmetics, and pharmaceuticals industries,” ​says Andreas Fischer, ​head of the company’s Silica Business Line, who spoke at the site’s opening ceremony.

Beyond its current partnerships, Evonik expects to see the use of silica develop: “We also anticipate new ideas for other industrial applications, such as paints and coatings, or paper coatings,” ​adds Fischer.  ​

Market force​

The project will build up DSL’s business too, of course. “As the expansion shows, we see growth potential for the high-quality specialty silica business in Japan,” ​says DSL President Tadashi Kanai in the press release. “Our aim is to strategically enhance our already strong market position.”​

That company focuses not only on production but also on services and regulations: “DSL is a reliable partner to its customers, whom we support with intense technical collaboration and highly dependable delivery performance. The new facility also complies with regulatory requirements for direct contact with food in Japan, the EU, the US, and other states, and meets demanding HACCP and GMP quality and safety requirements in Japan.”   ​

Global initiative ​

Evonik is deliberately establishing a strong presence in the silica market on several continents, most recently planning production sites in North and South America.

“Following expansion projects in Europe and Asia, Evonik is now constructing a facility in Americana, Brazil, which will be the first plant in South America for highly dispersible (HD) silica,”​ the press release states. (That silica is commonly used in the automotive industry.)

And early this year, Evonik began plans for a production facility in the States—a world-scale plant for precipitated silica. “The company hopes to finish construction by the end of 2017. ​

The overall project…would be the largest investment that Evonik has made in North America in the past five years [and] is still subject to board approval.”  ​