DuPont and Chenguang Announce Joint Venture to Leverage Fluoroelastomer Expertise in China

Zhonghao Chenguang Chemical Research Institute Company Limited and DuPont Fluoropolymer Solutions have come together to announce a 50:50 joint venture (JV) that will focus on providing industry-leading science and technology solutions, as well as high-performance sustainable applications to the China market. Chenguang is a subsidiary of ChemChina. The fluoroelastomer market in China has been experiencing rapid development over the past few years, and with the two companies forming a JV to produce and market fluoroelastomer pre-compounds and gums in China, supply volumes are poised to witness an expansion.

Fluoroelastomers are regarded as being very critical to a number of applications thanks to their unique characteristics. Some of these applications include the design of efficient and safe automobiles, building more durable chemical process equipment, aiding the development of high-performance airplanes, and assisting the development of solutions centered on renewable energy.

As part of this new initiative, the strategic alliance between the two companies will address the unmet needs in the rapidly-growing fluoroelastomer market in China. The JV is largely geared toward promoting investments ahead of new product launches, optimizing technology and capacity, focusing on establishing a regular supply of high-quality fluoroelastomers and so on. 

Even as the two companies embark on this strategic journey, they continue to discuss new areas where collaboration can be considered. The new JV will be known as DuPont Haohua Chenguang Fluoromaterials (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. The fluoroelastomer products being sold under this company will be branded Viton® and Chenguang. 

The companies added that the new JV will further the technology leadership of both companies and expand their manufacturing footprint at the same time. In addition to these initiatives, the two companies will jointly invest in the establishment of a new Shanghai-based pre-compound manufacturing unit.

Toxics Release Inventory Shows 14% Increase in Toxic Pollution Levels Between 2012 and 2013

The Toxics Release Inventory that was released in December 2014 brings to light a spike in toxic pollution levels across the United States in 2013. For starters, the report reveals that industrial facilities released about 500 million more pounds of toxins into the surrounding environment. This translates into an increase of 14% from 2012 to 2013, the report shows. Experts have expressed concerns that this is the highest ever increase in the amount of toxins released in the environment in recent years.

Much of this increased release of toxic wastes could be attributed to the metal mining industry. Data gathered in 2013 shows that organizations reporting to the U.S. EPA’s Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) released 0.5 million more pounds of toxic materials into the ground, water, and air as compared to 2012. This takes the annual total of toxin discharge to a whopping 4.1 billion pounds.

Of this, the metal mining industry alone was responsible for releasing 518 million pounds more in 2013 as against 2012. This is an increase of 35%. According to the data available in the report, other significant contributors to the discharge of toxic materials include electrical utilities, petroleum bulk terminals and chemicals manufacturing units.

On the brighter side, a few industries reported a decline in toxic material discharge – these include industries such as primary metals, hazardous waste, solvents recovery, and fabricated metals. But these declines were not significant enough to mitigate the increased toxic waste discharge from the aforementioned industries. 

From the regional standpoint, Alaska was reported to have released the highest amount of toxic wastes in 2013, at 970 million pounds, a great part of which could be traced back to the metal mining industry that is very active here. 

Experts that have analyzed the report expressed concerns over the direction in which industrial pollution in the United States is heading. 

Factory Profits in China Sag to Two-Year Low, Show Figures From China’s National Bureau of Statistics

After recent reports about China’s economic growth slipping to the lowest in 24 years, reports about factory profits in China reaching a two-year low are now emerging. Leading news agency Reuters stated in a report on Tuesday that the 2014 factory profits reported by Chinese manufacturing facilities are showing growth rates that are the weakest in two years. With these new reports, the challenges faced by the Chinese economy are only underscored. China’s National Bureau of Statistics states that between 2013 and 2014, large industrial facilities in China registered a 3.3% increase in profits. This is the slowest since 2012 (November). The Bureau also stated that the country’s factory profits contracted by about 8%, which is the worst performance in about 12 months.

Speaking to reporters on the sidelines, a vice minister from the country’s Ministry of Industry and IT said that it would be a while before China overcame this slowdown. He said that China’s economy is entering a phase of ‘new normal’ where downward pressures on the industrial sector are more evident and impactful than ever before. Weak innovation capabilities are also hampering growth to a great extent, the minister added. The government of China has now revised its goal of growth in the industrial sector from 8.3% in 2014 to 8% in 2015.

As China’s economy fast approaches maturity, the definition of what is ‘normal’ from the economic context is now undergoing a sea change. Officials said that the government is now focused on facing this transition with growth rates that are slower, but offer better quality. 

Financial institutions and banks are feeling the heat of the slowdown, as the ration of bad debts of Chinese banks scaling a five-year peak, according to the national bank regulator. The manufacturing market in China has been sagging for a while now, and the hectic pace of investments in China has been cooling off too. All of these factors have combined to rein in the economic growth of China’s economy to 7.4% as of 2014, which is the lowest since 1990 – the year that marked heavy sanctions on China in the wake of the Tiananmen Square crackdown.

Greenville Technical College and Clemson University Establish US$25 million Center for Manufacturing Innovation

A whopping US$25 million is being invested by the Greenville Technical College and the Clemson University to establish a new center that will offer hands-on training to students so they can land high paying jobs in sectors such as transportation, automotive, and others. This new facility will be christened the ‘Center for Manufacturing Innovation’. The initiative also marks a strategic partnership between the two institutions as well as the local school district. A number of top manufacturers located in the area will also form a part of this partnership. These include names such as General Electric, BMW, Bosch Rexroth and Michelin.

The ground breaking ceremony for the new center was held at Greenville, near Clemson’s I-CAR, an institute that is committed to automotive research. The Center for Manufacturing Innovation will be dedicated to helping increase the number of skilled workers for manufacturing facilities in the South Carolina upstate region.

Students will be able to enroll for dual-credit programs at the center, and they will also have the option of working at Greenville County schools to encourage more students in advanced manufacturing careers. A part of the this program is dedicated to encouraging more younger students to enroll for high-tech manufacturing programs so as to carve out a career in highly skilled areas. Officials running the program hope to achieve this through informative camps and organized tours of the Center for Manufacturing Innovation.

Apprenticeships and internships are an integral part of this course, where students will be able to work alongside experienced members of the faculty and engineers.

A US$25 million bond issue was approved for Greenville Tech in 2013 by the Greenville County Council approved. According to Greenville Tech’s president Keith Miller, the new center could mark a game-changing approach to education.

PepsiCo Jordan Creates Signs One-Year Deal with Employee Union for Higher Wages and Other Benefits

In an endeavor to improve the working conditions employees working in PepsiCo-Jordan facilities, the company has pledged JOD 1 million to the General Union of Food Industry Employees. The agreement, signed for a one-year period, was signed by key management personnel of PepsiCo-Jordan and the president of the Employee Union.

The agreement kicked off with a salary raise for all employees of PepsiCo-Jordan, which would be effective 1 January, 2015. In addition to this, the company also offered a bonus to employees with an L3 Stratis and lower ranking. Staff members who were yet to complete a year in the company received a bonus amount based on their total tenure in the company.

This was the third year in a row that employees of PepsiCo-Jordan received a bonus, as part of the Performance Program. In yet another initiative, the company announced cuts to the amount it deducted by way of health insurance premium for all employees, besides modifying its existing class of medical services to Class A. The coverage amount for the approved network was raised as well.

Speaking on this development, a senior official from the company said that the partnership between the employees’ union and management reflects that it stands committed to fostering a motivating work condition that also has a positive effect on the personal lives of employees. 

The president of the employee union said that the latest agreement further extended the endeavor to ensure a motivational and safe working environment that also offers job security to employees.

Over 50% Americans Are Skeptical About Foods Claiming to be ‘Natural’ and ‘Organic’: Study

Labels might well be regarded as a way to up sales in the booming nutrition industry, but a latest study reveals that Americans still remain skeptical about these claims. Ironically, this distrust doesn’t stop them from shelling out more money to buy products in the belief that they are eating healthy. The Nielsen study, released on 20 January, 2015, states that consumers show distrust in assertions that involve the use of terms such as ‘heart healthy’ which are not easily verifiable.

About 30,000 people from about 60 countries participated in the online poll. From these figures, it emerged that about 56% respondents from North America stated that they did not trust the claims made by nutritional products. Market watchers said that the trend of nutritional food is just about building up into something big, and these revelations show that this significant degree of distrust will create an interesting scenario in the backdrop of more and more people wanting to consume healthier food.

In the same study, it emerged that about 43% respondents said gave great importance to GMO-free food and natural ingredients. Similar sentiments were observed about food items without artificial flavors and colors. 

The report also noted that in many cases, manufacturers are entirely eliminating or bringing down the amount of ingredients such as saturated fat, cholesterol, sugar, sodium, and transfer in food. In place of these ingredients, a number of manufacturers are using ingredients such as protein and fiber in foodstuff. An official from Nielsen said that there remains scope for more action on this front from manufacturers because there is an escalating demand for food products with labels that state ‘organic’ and ‘natural’. While sales for ‘organic’ products have increased by 28% between 2012 and 2014, the same for ‘natural’ food products have gone up by 24% in the same duration.

About 33% respondents added they would pay more money for organic products. On the other hand, older respondents said that they were not heavily influenced by health factors when making a purchasing decision.

Cheer Among Indian Alphonso Traders as EU Lifts Ban on Imports

The Commission Committee of the European Union (EU) has voted unanimously to revoke a ban on the importation of Alphonso mangoes that was slapped on India in 2014 on account of sub-standard quality. All shipments of the fruit from India to the EU were suspended in May 2014 after inspection officials found fruitflies in a number of consignments.

Speaking about the development, Britain’s minister for natural environment, Lord de Mauley, said that the decision to revoke the ban is reflective of the many improvements that India has brought about to its export system. He also added that it is imperative for India to uphold these quality benchmarks to keep trade between the two countries on the smooth track. Mauley said that it was also equally important to keep the health of consumers in Britain in mind.

Officials close to the development said that the EU would resume imports from India in about a month, after the EU adopts the new legislation formally, and the European Commission publishes it.

While this development brought much cheer for the mango trade committee in India, the same cannot be said about exporters dealing in four other banned products – bitter gourds, patra leaves, aubergines, and snake gourds. The imports of these vegetables continue to face a ban on account of sub-standard pest control standards, added de Mauley.

Sanjay Pansare, the director of the Agriculture Produce Market Committee, based in New Mumbai, said that the development marks good news for traders of Alphonso mangoes in India, especially after the ban caused losses to a number of exporters in the country last year.

As for the other vegetables that are still barred from being exported from India to the EU, officials from the latter said that they would review the possibility of revoking the ban only after they have enough evidence of the safety and pest-control standards. After the UK, the markets of the Netherlands, Belgium, and Germany are among the important ones for fruit and vegetable exporters from India.