DuPont expanding in Europe, Asia to meet EV demand

WILMINGTON, Del.—If tomorrow's electric vehicles are going to charge faster, drive farther and operate safely, they're going to need exactly the right solutions. DuPont Mobility & Materials believes it has them in the BetaTech, BetaForce, BetaMate and BetaSeal lines of adhesives, bonding and thermal management materials.

Auto makers looking to build lighter vehicles, reduce noise and vibration, and provide thermal management and sealing for battery packs have turned to the DuPont brands, banking on the company's decades of expertise and reputation for quality. And with the EV market preparing to break through, demand for those products is certain to rise.

So DuPont is growing.

To better position itself to meet the global demand for these materials, the company is expanding capacity, targeting sites in Asia and Europe for expansion. Within a four-week span, the company disclosed plans to build a $30 million manufacturing facility in Zhangjiagang, China, and expand capacity at two sites in Europe.

Meeting demand
DuPont did not offer specific details about the planned size of the new facility in China, but said that the $30 million investment represents the first of what could be a multi-phase construction plan at the greenfield site at the Yangtze River International Chemical Industrial Park.

"The size and capacity of this phase one will allow us to meet the global demand, and in particular, the China demand for the next four to five years," Tina Wu, global vice president for advanced solutions and Asia-Pacific regional leader for DuPont Mobility & Materials, told Rubber & Plastics News. "If the market continues to grow, we will have the option to expand."

Preparatory work is underway at the site, and DuPont expects to begin construction on the facility this fall with the goal of bringing it online in early 2023.

According to Wu, the plant will be highly automated, featuring state-of-the-art technology. It's unclear how many employees will be brought on board once the facility opens, but she speculates it could be anywhere from 20 to 70.

"We are trying to tap into the latest technology in terms of how we digitalize," Wu said. "We are highly digitalized in a lot of the manufacturing processes, and also inventory and logistics management processes."

Efficiency is only part of the equation for the new facility. Sustainability and conservation are factors as well.

DuPont's corporate sustainability goals, dubbed Roadmap to 2030, focus on key areas of sustainability such as climate, water stewardship and health and safety. Specific goals include reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 30 percent by 2030, while sourcing 60 percent of the company's electricity from renewable energy to deliver carbon-neutral options by 2050 or sooner.

The new plant will be designed to optimize resources, while reducing its carbon emissions, rightsizing its carbon footprint and aligning with the overall vision for sustainability.

"Sustainability is, of course, factoring into any new facility or expansion of a facility in DuPont today as we have a very ambitious sustainability goal," Wu said. "It is all factored into the choice of equipment, choice of utility line and engineering design, so it is definitely in top of mind."

Growing in Europe
As DuPont prepares to bring its new facility to China, it's also eyeing expansion in Europe—the region leading the way in the development and adoption of EVs.

DuPont has earmarked $5 million for a pair of European facilities—in Schkopau, Germany, and Freienbach, Switzerland—to increase capacity of bonding adhesives and thermal management products targeted at the electric vehicle market.

Wu noted that the investment includes the costs of building expansion and new equipment.

"At Schkopau, Germany, (the investment will) support the continued growth in the EMEA market—especially for electrification and lightweighting," Wu said. "We are adding a newer part, expanding that facility to support growing demand."

DuPont opened the Schkopau facility in 2006 to support the European Union's growing demand for adhesive and bonding products, specifically the BetaMate structural and crash-durable adhesives, and the BetaSeal glass bonding adhesives.

The Freienbach plant, meanwhile, has been manufacturing adhesive solutions for the automotive industry since the 1970s. In addition to making DuPont's BetaMate, BetaSeal and BetaTech products, the facility serves as a hub for product development.

Christophe van Herreweghe, global strategic marketing director for DuPont Mobility & Materials, noted that the investment in the Freienbach facility will allow it to remain a hub of innovation and support for European EV customers.

"The Freienbach facility is really going to focus on offering our customers a holistic approach, so that we are able to help them to test our solutions in an overall battery pack," van Herreweghe said. "This is helping for that durability factor, but also to showcase and to prove that it will be key for thermal management and safety.

"So we are investing heavily in having the right test methods and helping our customers to find and approve the optimized designs for the future battery packs," van Herreweghe said.

Global approach
DuPont has a global vision for growth, one that best positions it to meet the demands of a consistently changing automotive industry. The fact that two major investments have come in China and Europe is no coincidence.

At this point, China doesn't represent the largest market for DuPont's adhesive, bonding and thermal management materials, but it is the market with the greatest potential for growth. Europe, meanwhile, is a hotbed of EV activity, driven by technological development that is supported and bolstered by government regulations.

"I think, from a growth rate perspective, Europe continues to lead a lot of the core technology and Europe is also very sustainability-conscious from government regulations to the top OEMs," Wu said. "Europe is going to be a huge market. You are just going to see a switch from the traditional vehicle to the EV."

And while DuPont has yet to detail investment plans for North America, Wu notes that the five-year strategy involves a vision for how to best serve that market, too.

Within the last year, the U.S. has made significant strides that signal a swift transition to EVs. Major market OEMs such as GM and Ford have indicated they are committed to producing vehicles with electric powertrains. That, she said, appears to be backed by the legislation and regulation that supports the technology.

"Washington talks a lot more about sustainability than ever before," Wu said. "… I think America is going to catch up pretty quickly."