Air Products Shanfeng Becomes Wholly-Owned Subsidiary of Air Products in China

Air Products (NYSE:APD) today announced that it has acquired all outstanding shares in Air Products Shanfeng, making the venture a wholly-owned Air Products subsidiary in China. This strategic move is part of Air Products’ focus and investment in the performance materials business in China.

The official name of the new company is Air Products and Chemicals (Changzhou) Co., Limited. Air Products Shanfeng was first established in 2005 as a joint venture with Changzhou Shanfeng Chemical Industry Co Ltd., a leading chemical supplier in China.

Air Products Shanfeng, including its production site in Changzhou, Jiangsu Province in East China, was formed to support the growth of Air Products’ triethylenediamine (TEDA) business for the polyurethane foam market in China. This market has been growing at more than 10 percent annually in China and is expected to continue to experience high growth rates as China becomes a global manufacturing center.

To align with the change, TEDA manufactured at the Changzhou facility will come under the Air Products global brands Dabco® chemical catalyst crystal, and the Air Products Shanfeng TEDA brand will be discontinued.

Air Products has invested its leading manufacturing and process technology, as well as implemented its environmental, health and safety standards at the Changzhou facility in the past two years to expand capacity, improve efficiency and provide higher quality products and value-added solutions to meet customers’ demands.

“Air Products has been supplying amine catalysts to the polyurethane market for more than 40 years and is a leading global supplier of TEDA and other amine catalysts to that market. Establishing the Changzhou facility as a wholly-owned Air Products company is a logical progression to support our business growth,” said Patrick Loughlin, vice president and general manager, Performance Materials, Air Products Asia.“It means we will be putting more focus and committing additional resources that will create greater synergies with our global business plans, as well as infrastructure in China and in the region.”

TEDA is an important additive used to catalyze reactions to produce polyurethane foam. Applications of polyurethane foam include automotive seating, furniture, insulation materials, shoe soles and construction.

The ban of chlorofluorocarbons(CFC11) as blowing agents in buildings by the China Ministry of Construction in July this year has further boosted the use of polyurethane in the construction and spray foam markets in China. The Air Products Dabco® PT amine catalyst series and the LK range of non-silicone surfactants for non-CFC spray foam are manufactured by the Changzhou facility.