Arkema, a French advanced materials company, has opened a new production line at its Sartomer plant in Nansha, China, increasing the production capacity of its 3D printing resins by 30%.
Christophe André, Executive Vice President, Advanced Materials at Arkema, said, “This investment strengthens our commitment to providing the most advanced photocure resin solutions with innovative properties, as well as services, to our customers around the world and giving them a leading competitive edge in their respective markets.”
Electron beam curing
Arkema develops advanced 3D printing materials through its subsidiary Sartomer, which produces photocurable resins such as N3XTDIMENSION and SAR-GEL, which is used to detect water at the bottom of fuel tanks.
Earlier this year, Sartomer USA set up an in-house electron beam (EB) lab with standalone electron accelerators, to test and develop EB curable resins. At the time two more EB labs were planned, one in France and one in Asia.
On EB labs, Doug Sharp, President and CEO of Sartomer USA, had said, “The EB laboratory installations fortify Sartomer’s commitment to providing the most advanced liquid resin solutions and R&D services to customers around the world. This investment also enables us to help prospective customers looking to use EB curing in existing applications or test proof of concept of new ideas.”
Last month at Big Ideas for UV + EB Technology Conference and Expo, Sartomer introduced more UV/EB curable resins used in 3D printing, graphic arts, and coating.
Meeting the demand
The new production line at Sartomer was inaugurated in April 11, 2019. According to Arkema, the Asian market has seen a growth in demand for UV and EB curable resins for use in electronics and 3D printing. It is expected that the new production line will be able to meet this demand.
On the opening of the setup, André added, “We thank our internal teams and our partners who helped us to start this new production line on schedule. We also thank our customers for their continuous trust and support over the years by using Sartomer’s products.”
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Featured image shows the inauguration of the new production line at the Sartomer plant in China. Photo via Arkema.
