HOUSTON—The Plaza Group has increased its efforts to expand the application of Versalis polymers throughout North America in support of Versalis' global polymer expansion.
“Versalis is very committed to the North American market, which they want to continue to participate in,” said Plaza Group President Randy Velarde.
Formerly Polimeri Europa, Versalis produces elastomer, plastic and intermediate product lines and is wholly owned by Eni S.p.A.
The company rebranded itself to become more market-oriented. Its elastomer product line includes Dutral EPDM, Europrene nitrile rubber, Europrene SIS, SBS, SEBS block copolymers, Europrene polybutadiene, SBR, Intene polybutadiene for HIPS and Intex SBR latex.
Velarde said Versalis' Dutral, Europrene, Intene and Intex product lines are well known and frequently specified for formulations in the rubber and plastics industry.
Plaza Group has had a partnership with Versalis since 2009, and Velarde said its products have performed outstanding for the company.
“Versalis has a very solid reputation for their product lines,” he said.
Velarde said Plaza Group is exploring opportunities to break into other businesses and expects the amount of products imported from Versalis will increase in conjunction with the North American expansion efforts. The company also is considering its options to expand its Versalis product line.
Plaza Group is not targeting a specific region in North America. Velarde said its goal is to ensure the North American marketplace is fully aware of how easy it is to access these products through the group's supply chain. Its chain includes multiple warehouses in the U.S. and direct shipments.
“I think where they have announced increases in capacity around the world, generally speaking, are those areas that we will concentrate our effort in,” Velarde said.
Plaza Group is evaluating its resource requirements for the North American expansion.