Sekisui S-Lec to Build New Plant in the Netherlands

Interlayer film is used in laminated glass in car windscreens, office buildings and private homes. The new plant will be located on the DSM/Chemelot site in Sittard-Geleen in the Netherlands and will provide employment for 50 people. Production is expected to start before the end of 2006.

The global market for interlayer film is estimated to be worth around 100 billion Yen with a growth rate of 3% per annum. Sekisui holds around 40% of the total market in the automotive industry putting it ahead of competitors such as Solutia and DuPont. The decision to invest in the new plant will result in savings on transport and eliminate exchange rate risks because at the moment, PVB raw material is sourced from a plant near Kyoto in Japan and shipped to Sekisui S-Lec's factory in Roermond in the Netherlands.

Sekisui is grateful for the support and co-operation it has received from NV Industrial Bank LIOF, the Province Limburg, NFIA offices in the Hague and Osaka and DSM/Chemelot in making this new plant possible.

Although other options were considered, this support played a crucial role in the final choice to locate the plant on the DSM/Chemelot site. Sekisui Chemical has full confidence in the Netherlands and especially the Province Limburg for this investment based on the experience the company has had over the past few years with its production plant in Roermond.