Wacker Opens Technical Center in Singapore

To strengthen its Asian presence, the Wacker Group has opened a new technical center in Singapore. The facility will serve as a regional Center of Excellence for construction polymers, silicone emulsions, silicone resins and antifoam agents, the main focus being on the development of applications in the construction, textiles and pulp and paper-processing sectors, and in the process industry.
    
The technical center will enable Wacker to tap the fast-growing markets in this part of the world. It will also allow Wacker to offer customers local product-development support and to promote internationally recognized quality standards in Southeast Asia.
    
The technical center is located at Wacker Chemicals (South Asia) Pte. Ltd. The Wacker sales subsidiary moved to larger premises in the Singapore Science Park a few weeks ago, thus enabling it to realize this project. The new laboratory will offer Wacker Polymers’ and Wacker Silicones’ customers support in developing new products and product applications for the Southeast Asian market.
    
By having the sales office and technical center under the same roof, Wacker has created ideal working conditions.
    
The fast-growing markets in Southeast Asia made this new technical center in Singapore necessary. It will enable Wacker to reinforce its position as technology leader for high-quality chemical raw materials.
    
“We are generating double-digit sales growth in Asia, which already accounts for almost one third of group sales today,” said Dr. Rudolf Staudigl, executive board member responsible for Asia at Wacker Chemie AG, at the opening ceremony. “The Singapore technical center is another important milestone in our growth strategy for Southeast Asia.
    
 “The objective is to meet the individual needs of our Asian customers locally, and to support and test new applications,” said Dr. Staudigl.
    
Wacker has been supplying chemical products to Southeast Asia for a number of years. Wacker Chemicals (South Asia) Pte. Ltd., which was established in 1984, coordinates regional sales. In addition to Singapore, Wacker has technical centers in the Asia-Pacific region, including Australia, China, India, Japan and the United Arab Emirates. The group currently employs around 1,700 people in Asia-Pacific.