Timely, local paper mill support is a cornerstone of Specialty Minerals Inc. (SMI) global sales and research and development. Logically then, because the growth rate of the paper industry in the Asian region is one of the fastest, we have established a new Asian Technical Center (ATC) to serve this exciting and growing marketplace. In 2006, SMI opened a new technology laboratory in Suzhou, China, located just north of Shanghai near the Pudong airport. The facility, with initial available space of about 500 square meters, can be expanded as necessary to meet future needs. This state-of-the-art laboratory is equipped with the most modern paper testing and measuring equipment, including a laboratory handsheet former and laboratory coater. The equipment is used by a local staff of research scientists and laboratory technicians. Because of the Center’s convenient proximity to the airport, it serves as a base of support operations for our precipitated calcium carbonate (PCC) satellite customers throughout the Asian region.
Establishment of the ATC in China is evidence of SMI’s commitment to the success of the Asian paper market. The ATC was modeled after the highly successful and equally regarded SMI European Research Center that has been an integral factor in the growth of SMI's European regional paper precipitated calcium carbonate (PCC) business. This new Center joins our other research and testing laboratories in Kaarina, Finland and Bethlehem, Pennsylvania to serve both the filling and coating sectors of the paper industry.
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