Sustainability at the heart of Chem-Trend's future

AKRON— Sustainability matters. And especially matters to Chem-Trend.

"Since the company's inception sustainability has been a fabric of our value proposition," Shakti Gauriar, global business development director for tires at Chem-Trend told Rubber News. "Every year we are implementing new processes in sourcing and development to ensure that we're using and producing safer and more sustainable products."

Chem-Trend is part of the Freudenberg Chemical Specialties Group and focuses on the development of premium release agents, purging compounds, paper impregnation chemicals, and other process chemical specialties and additives. The company was founded in 1960 in Howell, Mich., by Peer Lorentzen, a chemical engineer, aided by his wife Birgit, a chemist. They experimented with the development of release agents for polyurethane foam in the kitchen of their home. After gaining success with their newly developed product, they quickly moved production out of their home and into a rented garage in Howell.

Initially serving the die-cast industry, the company invented a water-based lubricant. From the beginning, Chem-Trend has been a company built on "pushing the envelope of what is possible, what is safe, and what is sustainable," according to its website.

Today, the company has 19 global locations, including seven R&D locations (in the U.S., Germany, Austria, India, Brazil, China and South Korea) and eight Manufacturing facilities (two in the U.S., and one each in Brazil, Germany, Austria, India, China and South Korea). It employs 800 globally.

Chem-Trend's main product lines are release agents, purging compounds, ancillary products and paper impregnation additives, and Gauriar said the tire division sells to tire manufacturers across the globe.

The company exhibits at various shows and conferences and was at the 2024 International Tire Exhibition & Conference to interact with both suppliers and customers. The exhibit team was sharing insights on advancements in technology within its portfolio of products including tire paints, mold coatings, bladder coatings and ancillary products for the curing process. The team also demonstrated the use of the SprayIQ spray application monitoring equipment.

Chem-Trend has been working on post-cure applications to work with the complexities of modern tire design and vehicle electrification. The latest product advancements address the differentiated specifications of an electric vehicle tire, including design and shape, self-sealants in puncture-proof tires and the incorporation of sensor technologies.

"Over the last few years, we have seen a transition to tires compatible with various applications (sound deadening, sealants, sensors)," Gauriar said. "We are working to provide customers with mold-release products compatible with these various post-cure applications. This may entail new chemistries and application considerations. As developers of release agents, we want to ensure that customers can maintain high quality, productivity, and performance through the use of our products, regardless of the application type.

"We've had a long history in the tire market (over 30 years) and continue to push the envelope with new technology and innovation for the market. We appreciate the opportunity to work alongside tire R&D folks and those in production to educate and demonstrate the value of release agents within the tire manufacturing process."

Chem-Trend's commitment to sustainability is integral to manufacturing its mold release agents, ensuring environmentally responsible development practices while upholding performance. Chem-Trend's release agent solutions support the industry's achievement of greener manufacturing processes as well as maintaining a focus on reducing waste and emissions.

The company offers conventional (apply-every-cycle) mold release agents to meet the needs of customers such as:

• Water-based or solvent-based (Water-based solutions continue to dominate its global portfolio of products at 80 percent and the company sees continued growth).
• Formulated as ready-to-use or dilutable.
• Suitable for multiple types of spray equipment.
• Capable of "tailored" dilution rates, depending upon the application and amount of slip required.
• Products for molded parts with very complex geometry.
• Exceptionally low in-mold buildup/mold fouling.

Chem-Trend's "DilutionIQ is for concentrates, and SprayIQ is for products that are sprayed, which helps customers better control how much product is applied to the mold, where they spray it on the mold and the ability to control the process remotely.

Chem-Trend took its environmental commitment another step further by eliminating per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) within its global heritage portfolio last year. The company has committed to not using PFAS in new product development, and is committed to achieving the same standards in relation to future acquisitions.
"We've been intensively committing cross-functional hours over the last five years to meet our vision of PFAS elimination," said Amanda Pugh, Chem-Trend's vice president of marketing and technology. "This was a team effort across R&D, operations and sales to find and trial PFAS substitutes while still meeting the high-performance expectations demanded by our customers. We are proud of this achievement, which demonstrates Chem-Trend's overall commitment to sustainability."

"Since day one, Chem-Trend felt it could change and impact the industry by providing water-based solutions to illuminate the need for using solvents," said Gauriar.

Gauriar shared a few of his thoughts about what's happening today and what the future looks like for the rubber and tire industry.

"The pandemic, supply chain constraints, globalization and localization have all impacted the industry in recent years. We've seen a huge transition to non-ICE vehicles, which requires new types of tires and coinciding processing materials. Chem-Trend is focused on producing products with sustainability, safety and environmental concerns as part of its research and development of new products and ways to serve the industry. One way is to continue to develop water-based materials and solutions.

"Of late, I've seen quite a few newcomers to the industry, both customers, as well as internal contacts that may be new to the industry. This injection of newcomers has sparked new questions and ideas, which is great. For us, the focus will always be on providing support and working directly with customers to improve processing, developing new solutions to work in the customer's process, and leading the industry in terms of health and safety responsibilities."