Honeywell Resins And Chemicals Breaks Ground On New Resin Manufacturing Line In Virginia

State-of-the-art production line will be only North American source of key food packaging resins

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Jun 09, 2015, 08:30 ET

MORRIS TOWNSHIP, N.J., June 9, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Honeywell (NYSE: HON) Resins and Chemicals announced today that it has broken ground on its new nylon resins production line at its Chesterfield, Va., manufacturing facility.

The new production line can produce multiple grades of Honeywell Aegis^®nylon 6 resins, as well as copolymer nylon 6/6.6 resins, both of which are used in food packaging films and other applications. When the line starts up in the fourth quarter of 2015, Honeywell's Chesterfield facility will become the first and only North American supplier of both resins.

The new production line at Honeywell's Chesterfield, Va., plant will be the only North American source of key food packaging resins.

Honeywell announced in April 2014 its plans to build the new line, which will expand the manufacturing capacity of the Chesterfield facility by 40,000 metric tons to 200,000 metric tons per year.

"Honeywell has been committed to the nylon market for more than 60 years, and we are investing in expanding our capabilities and developing new technologies," said Erin Kane, vice president and general manager of Honeywell Resins and Chemicals. "Our position as the only fully-integrated North American manufacturer of both nylon 6 and copolymer nylon 6/6.6 will provide film manufacturers with a more secure resin supply than they have today."

Approximately 10 billion pounds of food packaging film is produced in North America annually, and the use of nylon films on the continent is growing at a compound annual growth rate of 4.5 percent, according to Freedonia Group, a business research company.

The expansion will also showcase technologies developed by other Honeywell businesses, including Experion^® PKS distributed process control systems from Honeywell Process Solutions.

Nylon packaging films made with Aegis^® resins provide excellent barrier properties to oxygen, helping to retain flavor and maintain product freshness. In addition to food packaging films, Aegis resins are used in automotive, consumer and industrial applications spanning from carpeting and fishnet to plastic parts. Honeywell Resins and Chemicals also manufactures nylon films under the Aegis and Capran^®brands for use in food packaging, as well as industrial applications ranging from wind turbine blades to aerospace components.

Through its nylon manufacturing operations, Honeywell Resins and Chemicals produces many chemical intermediates, including phenol, Nadone^® cyclohexanone, Naxol^®cyclohexanol, acetone and caprolactam. The business also manufactures Sulf-N^®ammonium sulfate fertilizer, a co-product of caprolactam production. Honeywell's plant in Hopewell, Va., with a capacity of 350,000 metric tons of caprolactam per year, is one of the world's largest caprolactam and ammonium sulfate plants.

In addition to manufacturing, the business also conducts nylon-related research and development at technology centers in New Jersey and Virginia, where it operates laboratory-scale polymer reactors and blown film equipment, as well as in Shanghai, China, where the business has extensive analytical capabilities for resin development.

Honeywell Performance Materials and Technologies (PMT) is a global leader in developing advanced materials, process technologies and automation solutions. PMT's Advanced Materials businesses manufacture a wide variety of high-performance products, including environmentally friendlier refrigerants and materials used to manufacture end products such as bullet-resistant armor, nylon, computer chips and pharmaceutical packaging. Process technologies developed by PMT's UOP business (www.uop.com) form the foundation for most of the world's refiners, efficiently producing gasoline, diesel, jet fuel, petrochemicals and renewable fuels. PMT's Process Solutions business (www.honeywellprocess.com) is a pioneer in automation control, instrumentation and services for the oil and gas, refining, pulp and paper, industrial power generation, chemicals and petrochemicals, biofuels, life sciences, and metals, minerals and mining industries.

Honeywell (www.honeywell.com) is a Fortune 100 diversified technology and manufacturing leader, serving customers worldwide with aerospace products and services; control technologies for buildings, homes, and industry; turbochargers; and performance materials. For more news and information on Honeywell, please visit www.honeywellnow.com.

This release contains certain statements that may be deemed "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, that address activities, events or developments that we or our management intends, expects, projects, believes or anticipates will or may occur in the future are forward-looking statements. Such statements are based upon certain assumptions and assessments made by our management in light of their experience and their perception of historical trends, current economic and industry conditions, expected future developments and other factors they believe to be appropriate. The forward-looking statements included in this release are also subject to a number of material risks and uncertainties, including but not limited to economic, competitive, governmental, and technological factors affecting our operations, markets, products, services and prices. Such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance, and actual results, developments and business decisions may differ from those envisaged by such forward-looking statements. We identify the principal risks and uncertainties that affect our performance in our Form 10-K and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

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