Roehm Innovation Center opens in Wallingford, Connecticut

• New facility marks the largest non-production investment in the region
• Enhanced resources reinforce commitment to future of CYROLITE® & ACRYLITE® Molding Compounds innovation

Roehm is pleased to announce the opening of its flagship Innovation Center. This “Center of Excellence” is equipped with a state-of-the-art materials development laboratory, featuring advanced processing capabilities for material compounding, injection molding, and extrusion. The 2,000 square foot lab has a full range of physical, mechanical, thermal, and optical material characterization techniques. Expanded functionality will provide enhanced support and solutions for Roehm customers.

The Innovation Center marks the largest non-production investment for Roehm in the region. The 15,000 square foot facility is located in Wallingford, Connecticut – close to a Roehm manufacturing plant. The site is home to technical, processing, and formulation polymer experts committed to the development of new CYROLITE® and ACRYLITE® molding compound solutions for the medical, automotive and lighting industries, as well as the household goods sector.

“The space fosters collaboration of OEM’s, processors, and Roehm experts to create new PMMA-based solutions that meet the demanding requirements of our medical, and general industry clients,” says Thomas Spagnuolo, Vice President and General Manager of Molding Compounds at Roehm America. “Improved technical resources provide our team with the tools needed for advanced product development with our customers.”

The Innovation Center will soon be certified with ISO and IATF accreditations. The modern onsite lab features temperature and humidity control, ideal for plastic formulation and processing optimization. The new site is also home to a visitor’s center - showcasing Roehm’s history of innovation, an internal/external training facility, and a customer hub built to respond quickly to customer requests such as technical data, samples, and application support.

As the global headquarters for medical research and development, the Innovation Center is the central hub for the development of new CYROLITE® solutions in the medical device industry. The team will support medical OEM for infusion therapy, blood management, diagnostics, and other technologies. Activities also include development, design, and processing support for ACRYLITE® applications in automotive lighting, extrusion, optics, and distribution in the Americas region. This work will encompass body add-on components as well as signal and interior lighting for the automotive industry. Applications such as appliances, general lighting, and custom-made compounds will be supported at this facility as well.

“The new Innovation Center will deliver enhanced capabilities crucial to the advancement of material solutions and technical services that exceed our customers’ expectations and fuel the growth of Molding Compounds,” says Renlong Gao, Head of Innovation Center.

News of the Innovation Center launch at the start of this year reaffirms Roehm’s commitment to growth in the Americas’ Region along with two previous significant investments last year, including the newly constructed headquarters in Parsippany, NJ and the new world-scale methyl methacrylate (MMA) plant in Bay City, TX.