WACKER Expands Technical Center in Dubai by Lab for Paints and Coatings

Munich / Dubai, - - WACKER, the Munich-based chemical company, has expanded the service portfolio at its technical center in Dubai. The center of excellence located at the “Dubai Silicon Oasis” (DSO) technology park now also includes a dedicated laboratory for interior and exterior paints and coatings applications. The new lab comprises applications technology and test equipment for polymer dispersions needed as binders for interior architectural paints. A further focus is on silicone additives and binders for interior and exterior paints and coatings. The expansion not only enables WACKER to help its local customers develop new and tailor-made products for the strongly growing market for high-quality coatings. It also encourages the exchange of know-how and promotes internationally recognized quality standards in the region.


The expansion was made necessary by the region’s strong economic growth, particularly with regard to sophisticated paint and coating applications. This measure will help WACKER to further bolster its position as a leading producer for vinyl acetate-ethylene copolymer (VAE) dispersions and silicone additives and binders.

“The expansion of our technical center helps us to further strengthen our leading market position in the promising growth segment of paints and coatings in the Middle East”, said Cyril Cisinski, Managing Direc-tor Wacker Chemicals Middle East, during the opening ceremony. The company therefore continues investing in its Dubai technical center to augment and refine its expertise in research and development, as well as its local applications technology and customer service. “Our technical center here in Dubai is top-notch equipped and unique in the region. Thus, we are setting new standards in service, advice and transfer of expertise, offering our customers and business partners considerable added value”, explained Cisinski.

The extended technical center will now also specifically support customers in the paints and coatings sector in developing new products and applications for the regional markets with regard to locally available raw materials and environmental conditions. The expansion has focused on VAE dispersions used, for instance, as binders for interior paints. The dispersions of the VINNAPAS® brand have an enormous application and performance range and can be formulated over a broad range of pigment volume concentrations. Specific dispersions are manufactured without the use of alkylphenol ethoxylates (APEO) or formaldehyde donors and enable the formulation of coatings without adding plasticizers or solvents, resulting in low odor coatings with a low content of volatile organic compounds.

In addition, the technical center has extended its range of silicone additives and binders for paints and coatings applications. Silicone resin emulsion paints based on SILRES® BS, for example, rank among the most advanced facade coating systems: They are hydrophobic yet permeable to water vapor and are characterized by high hiding power and extreme long-life cycle. As environmentally-compatible raw materials, they thus actively contribute to preserving the value of every structure.

By establishing the new paints and coatings lab, WACKER further sees itself well prepared to meet the growing demand for consulting and service for paints and coatings applications. WACKER is thus helping considerably to ensure and expand the availability of high-quality coating products in the Middle East. Moreover, WACKER’s local experts are helping to formulate quality standards as well as to introduce economical and environmentally friendly technologies to the region.

WACKER in Dubai

WACKER set up a local subsidiary (Wacker Chemicals Middle East) in Dubai back in 2000 and has been operating its own sales office there since then. A technical center has been available to regional customers and partners since 2002. In 2009, WACKER moved to the “Dubai Silicon Oasis” technology park: Spanning nearly 13,000 m2, the new location houses technical labs as well as the offices of WACKER’s subsidiary for the Middle East sales region. In spring 2010, WACKER further established a local branch of its international training and competence center, the WACKER ACADEMY, at its technical center Dubai. From Dubai, the subsidiary serves customers from the United Arab Emirates, the Middle East and Africa.