Wacker Chemie AG is expanding its range of services in Turkey with today’s official opening of a technical centre for construction, textile and consumer-care applications in Istanbul. The technical facility serves as an application and test laboratory for polymeric binders and silicones needed in the region’s construction, textile, household and cosmetics industries.

This new technical centre is Wacker Chemie AG’s response to Turkey’s sustained economic growth. By broadening its local expertise in application technology and service, the Group says it can now offer its customers and business partners even better local support.

“Our customers’ rising sales volumes are being joined by higher quality and service requirements, which we are now even better able to meet with our new local test facility,” said Wacker Executive Board member Auguste Willems during the opening ceremony. The region’s construction industry, in particular, is experiencing an upturn, resulting in a growing need for advice.

Testing of ETICS

The new facility enables testing of specific properties of tile adhesives and external thermal insulation composite systems (ETICS), the two key applications for Vinnapas dispersible polymer binders from Wacker. It has, for example, modern laboratory equipment for analyses of viscosity and air-pore content or the curing time of fresh mortars.

Furthermore, it offers the possibility of testing the properties of hardened mortars as required by various standards, such as EN 12004 or EN 13499. The properties that can be tested include adhesive, flexural and compressive strengths, as well as water-vapor permeability and impact resistance.

The new centre is also equipped to examine products under varying climatic conditions, for instance, applying ETICS adhesives at low temperatures. “The new laboratory for construction polymers represents an important contribution on our part toward expanding modern construction materials in Turkey and adjacent countries,” explained Hande Bucuklar, managing director of Wacker Kimya Ticaret.

Silicones for textile applications

The new facility has a laboratory for silicones used in the textiles industry. It allows in-depth studies to determine the thermal and shear stability, foaming tendency, gloss and colour stability, as well as the water repellency or hydrophilicity of the products on offer and of customer formulations.

Different formulations can be applied and tested in the new laboratory under realistic conditions, such as padding or exhausting. In addition, the equipment enables specific tests and formulations tailored to the needs of the local cosmetic and household-care industries. The laboratory is also well equipped for developing local formulations. For example, shampoos, creams or fabric softeners that contain Wacker’s silicones can be formulated to help customers with their development projects.

Training courses

The new technical centre will also be used to hold theoretical and practical training courses. A showroom has been set up that is equipped with various proprietary construction chemicals to show the long-term performance capability of Wacker’s products. For instance, the wall paint is modified with Silres BS 333 to create an easy-to-clean surface.

The new development centre’s proximity to customers is intended to help strengthen Wacker’s market position and enable it to better address local customers’ specific needs. “This new service facility allows us to detect and react to regional trends and developments early on. By offering customers tailored local solutions, we intend to benefit even more from the local economy’s growth,” said Hande Bucuklar.

The new technical centre will also serve customers from neighbouring countries. It is a part of Wacker Kimya Ticaret’s new site in Istanbul’s up-and-coming AtaÅŸehir district.

www.wacker.com