New brand for the technical know-how behind Pocan and Durethan

HiAnt – innovation in teamwork with customers 

Top service for material, application, process and technology development

Leverkusen – The Semi-Crystalline Products business unit at LANXESS, whose portfolio includes Durethan and Pocan, is regarded the world over as a premium supplier of high-tech polyamides and polybutylene terephthalates for high-tech applications. The image of the two families of materials is inextricably linked to the comprehensive services that international customers receive for the development of innovative system solutions throughout the world. “This sets us firmly apart from many of our competitors and is something we are looking to make a prominent feature of in the future with the new HiAnt brand. The brand stands for our specially tailored customer service and in-depth know-how in product, application, process and technology development,” explained Lars Kraus, head of Technical Marketing Services at Semi-Crystalline Products. 

HiAnt – a high-end brand
The HiAnt brand name is derived from “high-tech” and “ant”. Ants are renowned for their well-organized teamwork, industriousness, interlinking through effective communication, and success through combined effort. Despite their delicate bodies and diminutive size, they can carry many times their bodyweight. “This property in particular evokes our successful innovations in the lightweight construction of high-strength structural components in terms of materials, combinations of materials, design and processes,” said Kraus. The association between HiAnt and “high-end” is no coincidence. “We see ourselves as technology leaders and suppliers of high-end plastics solutions in a whole range of innovation areas,” added Kraus.

HiAnt – know-how for all stages of component production
The expertise behind HiAnt can be illustrated by a wealth of examples. The Semi-Crystalline Products business unit is a leader in plastic-metal composite technology (hybrid technology) and is currently making great strides in the development of this lightweight form of construction. For example, much lighter organic sheets can now be used instead of sheet steel. This results in all-plastic composite components with excellent load-bearing properties. Polyamides and polyesters that are highly filled, and therefore extremely stiff, are one of the development highlights in the field of materials and processing. They are ideal as an alternative to metals and thermosets. HiAnt also stands for in-house enhancements of mathematical calculation methods for predicting component behavior. Among other things, integrative simulation has been optimized in such a way that it can now also be used for the high-precision design of hybrid components based on organic sheets and polyamide 6. Semi-Crystalline Products also determines key material data for customers – for example, material parameters that are governed by the rate of elongation in complex high-speed tensile tests and that are key factors in simulating component crash behavior. Component testing is a further element of the expertise offered by HiAnt. For example, a new shaker part-testing lab for vibration testing has recently been built. The equipment installed here can be used to perform all standard oscillation tests on the largest commercially available air intake manifolds – including, if desired, in combination with climate tests.

HiAnt – “The Power of Innovation”
The HiAnt logo is augmented by the slogan “The Power of Innovation”. “This slogan is a commitment to our customers but also to ourselves. We constantly strive to work on innovations that ensure success for our customers and boost our leading position in materials, processes and technologies,” declared Kraus.   

LANXESS is a leading specialty chemicals company with sales of EUR 5.06 billion in 2009 and currently around 14,400 employees in 23 countries. The company is represented at 42 production sites worldwide. The core business of LANXESS is the development, manufacturing and marketing of plastics, rubber, intermediates and specialty chemicals.

Leverkusen, 	October 27, 2010
rei		(2010-00173e)

Forward-Looking Statements.
This news release may contain forward-looking statements based on current assumptions and forecasts made by LANXESS AG management. Various known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors could lead to material differences between the actual future results, financial situation, development or performance of the company and the estimates given here. The company assumes no liability whatsoever to update these forward-looking statements or to conform them to future events or developments.

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