Wacker Chemie AG is strengthening its presence in South America, and inaugurated its expanded technical center, including training center, near São Paulo, Brazil. The new regional competence center for South America combines research and development, applications technology, and a basic- and advanced-training facility for silicone and polymer applications under one roof. The expansion focuses on the labs for polymer binders which are primarily used in construction chemical applications. The integrated WACKER ACADEMY training facility, which is also being expanded, is furnished with a new practice room and so offers an ideal platform for industry-specific networking among customers, distribution partners and WACKER specialists. With the expansion, the Brazil technical center is increasing its local expertise in applications technology, know-how transfer and service, and thereby serves the strongly growing markets for high-quality silicone and polymer products in South America.

The expansion was made necessary by the region’s strong economic growth, particularly in the field of sophisticated construction, paint and coating applications. This measure will help WACKER enhance its position as the market and technology leader for high-quality chemi-cal raw materials. Consequently, the Group is investing continuously in its Brazil technical center, augmenting and refining its R&D expertise, as well as its local applications-engineering and customer services.

The technical center in Jandira has been supporting customers in the development of new products and applications since 2003, taking local raw materials and environmental conditions into consideration. The expansion focuses mainly on the labs for dispersible polymer powders, which are used in dry-mix mortars for concrete applications, tile adhesives and sealing slurries, for example. As part of the expan-sion, the testing area available for polymer binders will be increased by a factor of more than three. Moreover, the new labs are equipped with cutting-edge instrumentation meeting international standards.

WACKER’s own education and training center, the WACKER ACADEMY, has also been expanded locally. Training participants now have access to a new larger training lab with state-of-the-art equipment, allowing them not only to learn the theory, but also to perform comprehensive practical exercises.

“In expanding our technical center in Brazil, WACKER is ideally pre-pared for growing local demand, especially for construction, paint and coating applications,” said Danilo Timich, managing director of Wacker Quimica do Brasil, at the opening celebration. “By developing our local training expertise, we are also offering considerable added value to our customers and partners. With this facility, which is unique in the region, we can further improve our technology leadership in high-quality chemical products.”