Sumitomo Chemical recently announced the decision to expand its automotive materials business in China by providing manufacturing capabilities for thermoplastic elastomers (TPEs) at its existing facility in Dalian, Liaoning Province. The company is also building a new manufacturing and sales base for polypropylene (PP) compounds in the city of Chengdu, Sichuan Province. TPEs are materials that melt and become pliable at high temperatures, while at the same time presenting rubber-like elasticity at normal temperatures. They can be processed by molding in the same way as thermoplastic resins. The primary applications include automotive materials, such as airbag covers and body seals. PP compounds are high-performance materials made by kneading synthetic rubber, glass fibers, and inorganic fillers into PP to improve or vary material parameters such as impact resistance and functionalities based on target applications. The city of Chengdu where Sumitomo Chemical's PP compounds manufacturing facilities are to be located is a major city in the western part of China and holds the great promise of a continued high economic growth in the future. The TPE unit will be part of Sumitomo subsidiary Sumika Polymer Compounds Dalian, which was set up in 2011. Sumitomo’s TPEs are offered under the brand name Espolex globally. The new plants are being built in light of the growing automotive industry in China and rising demand for PP compounds for automotive exterior or interior applications. The company did not give more details on the capacity of the new plants. In addition, Sumitomo Chemical reportedly set up a new marketing base in Mexico and a manufacturing plant in India for its PP compounds last year. Going forward, the company said it will continue to expand and strengthen its global production and marketing capabilities.