Latest facility in global network provides testing, technical and specification consulting for asphalt producers and paving contractors across entire Central and Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa (ECEMEA) region.
Prague, Czech Republic – April 28th, 2009. DuPont officially launched its new Paving Center (PC) here today which will be focused on bitumen modification using DuPontTM Elvaloy® reactive modifiers. This is the latest in a global network of testing facilities for polymer modification of bitumen Elvaloy® polymers mixed with bitumen improve the performance of asphalt concrete significantly, which can increase the lifetime of the road surface by more than 50 percent, and can reduce the cost of road maintenance by more than 30 percent comparing to conventional bitumen. Knowledgeable industry experts and scientists are already working in the Center and in the few months since the Center was opened, more than 100 laboratory tests and a number of formulation evaluations have been conducted there.
“Infrastructure development in Eastern, Central Europe, Turkey, Middle East and Africa is one of the key opportunities to boost local economies in the current global economic recession,” said William F. Weber, Vice President and General Manager, DuPont Packaging & Industrial Polymers, at the opening. “The road construction budget of this region totals approximately USD 120 billion per year, with over 30,000 kms of roads planned to be built. Our unique expertise in polymers that improve the performance of asphalt in paving applications has provided value, all around the world, from Brazil to Canada, Mexico to India. DuPont’s global network of highly recognized independent experts demonstrates our commitment to open science and collaboration. This newest capability enables us to better support local customers in this region,” he said. (http://www2.dupont.com/Elvaloy/en_US/uses_apps/polymer_modified_asphalt_pma.html)
“The Europe, Middle East and Africa region is extremely diversified with over 100 countries and customers with very specific needs. Even the versatile road construction legislation in each and every country requires an individual approach. We believe that this center supporting and serving our customers will bring immediate value, particularly through the network of highly recognized experts who can be accessed by our customers on the local level,” said Heike Van de Kerkhof, EMEA Director of DuPont Packaging & Industrial Polymers.
Asphalts modified with Elvaloy® provide a high performance solution for roads with longer life, better resistance to rutting, cracking, fatigue and chemicals. Their easy manufacturing is connected with the unique chemistry of DuPont modifiers, which allows for considerable simplification of the polymer modified bitumen (PMB) technology and thus enables added value for the asphalt producers and also for the road owners, responsible for the maintenance of the roads. These characteristics of DuPont polymers for asphalt have allowed the introduction of PMB technology to places where alternate products required significantly higher investment. With the creation of new business models, DuPont PMB technology has been available to MB producers, contractors and transportation authorities in different countries with low investment.
“The Center in Prague is not only developing PMB formulations and providing technology set-up and consulting; its main goal is to understand and identify customer needs and assist in creating holistic solutions reflecting the complexity of road design, construction, and chemistry of bitumen modification and particularly the specificity of each situation. DuPont Specialists, together with the network of independent paving experts, are also assisting our customers at their production sites, providing valuable technology and processing guidance – describes Jiri Lang, Director Sales & Marketing, DuPont Packaging & Industrial Polymers ECEMEA. “DuPont also invested in laboratory equipment to provide our customers with required testing. The diversity of the ECEMEA region is reflected in the variety of tests according to the different national specifications based on both European and US (SHRP) standards. Now we are able to provide the testing and consulting services from Prague in an efficient way and we do already work with customers from Russia, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, South Africa, Czech Republic, Poland and many others.” – Kamran Iqbal – EMEA Paving Segment Leader underlines.
September 1st, 2007 DuPont launched cooperation with LukoilPermNefteorgsyntez, resulting in the successful launch of polymer-modified bitumen production. “This is the first large-scale DuPont™ Elvaloy® reactive elastomeric terpolymers (RET) application in Russia, and one of the first results of the Paving Center in Eastern Europe” – says Svaytoslav Burmistrov, Sales and Marketing Representative. The development and registration of new local standards before the beginning of production for modified bitumen was a big achievement within the scope of this project. Thanks to this effort, DuPont™ Elvaloy® can now be used across the country.
“The successful start of the project with the industry leader opens opportunities across Russia and is crucial for the positioning of the Elvaloy® RET brand within the national road construction industry," commented Jean – Luc Duramy, Eastern Europe Country Leader.
As an innovative science company, DuPont spends over $1.3 billion in research and development every year to create new materials with unique properties and versatile applicability, including in the road construction industry. The Paving Center in Prague is the second technology and science hub for DuPont in the Central European Region. Last year in August, Pioneer, one of the leading worldwide seed manufacturers and wholly owned subsidiary of DuPont, opened a new seeds R&D center in Hungary.
DuPont is a science company. Founded in 1802, DuPont puts science to work by creating sustainable solutions essential to a better, safer, healthier life for people everywhere. Operating in more than 75 countries, DuPont offers a wide range of innovative products and services for markets including agriculture, nutrition, electronics, communications, safety and protection, home and construction, transportation and apparel.
LukoilPermNefteorgsyntez is a subsidiary of Lukoil, which is largest refinery in Russia, and produces the largest volume of bitumen in the country. The installed capacity for modification is more than 70,000 tons per annum and it can be increased in the future.
LukoilPermNefteorgsyntez supplies all paving projects in the Perm region and sells its bitumen to many other regions of Russia and neighboring countries.
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