Polymer Binders – At a Glance
The dispersions business first saw the light of day in 1938. On April 1 of that year, WACKER filed the patent for its polymerization process. Ever since then, we have produced dispersions on an industrial scale in Burghausen under the VINNAPAS® brand name.
In about 1953, chemist Dr. Max Ivanovits had a stroke of genius while drinking instant coffee. He thought the principle of pouring water onto powder would also work with WACKER’s liquid dispersions. In 1957, WACKER brought the first spray dryer on stream in Burghausen to produce what are known today as dispersible polymer powders. VINNAPAS® polymer powder from WACKER has now been a best-selling product for some 60 years. In that time, WACKER has supplied over three million metric tons all over the world.
WACKER is the global leader in dispersible polymer powders and VAE dispersions.
In the early 1960s, WACKER engineers experimented with the chemical structure of polymer chains. They used other monomers to create entirely new properties. With vinyl acetate-ethylene copolymers (VAE), they achieved a quantum leap in effectiveness, and this innovative technology still forms the basis of WACKER POLYMERS’ global success. The twin-track product line of dispersions and polymer powders still makes up some 25 percent of Group sales.
Over 3,000 Formulations
WACKER dispersions, dispersible polymer powders and solid resins are based on vinyl acetate. The raw material vinyl acetate monomer, in combination with other substances, such as ethylene, is the basis of over 3,000 applications-specific formulations for our customers around the world.
Each VINNAPAS® formulation offers special properties.
Dispersible Polymer Powder Market
VAE Market
Market Worth Over US$30 Billion
Binders are in demand: the global market for polymer dispersions is currently worth over US$30 billion. For a long time, the world market was dominated by acrylic-based binders. In the last five years, however, vinyl acetate-ethylene dispersions have caught up. WACKER is the global leader in polymer dispersions and dispersible polymer powders based on VAE.
45%
of WACKER POLYMERS’ sales are generated in Europe. We are currently achieving the highest growth rates in Asia, particularly China. In 2017, WACKER POLYMERS sold significantly more than 800,000 metric tons of dispersions and dispersible polymer powders.
Breakdown of Sales
Five Sites
WACKER operates 23 production sites around the world, five of which are part of the WACKER POLYMERS integrated production system. From Cologne and Burghausen (Germany), Calvert City (USA), Nanjing (China) and Ulsan (South Korea), they supply growth markets around the world. The commissioning of the new dispersion reactor and spray dryer for dispersible polymer powders in Ulsan in 2019 will give WACKER POLYMERS a global production capacity of 1,000,000 metric tons, twice as much as in 2015.
The WACKER plant in Burghausen is the world’s biggest integrated production site.
15 Technical Competence Centers
WACKER POLYMERS differs from other manufacturers in its close proximity to customers. Its goal is, together with the customer, to develop a solution tailored to local requirements. For this reason, it has a network of technical competence centers, which serve as a development and test lab for tailored polymer dispersions and dispersible polymer powders – thus creating optimum customer support locally. In parallel, the construction experts at the WACKER ACADEMY provide industry insider knowledge on construction trends, application expertise and practice-oriented training to local specialists.
Singapore Technical Center
1,500 Employees
Approximately one in every ten employees at WACKER works at WACKER POLYMERS, most of them in research, technical support and production. Almost 60 percent of them are based in Germany. Investments and expanding sales markets, especially in Asia, are causing the number of employees based outside Germany to rise at an above-average rate.
There’s nowhere finer than your own home – and WACKER binders help make that living space even more comfortable and pleasant. Whether you live in a small apartment or large house, our polymers can be found in most modern construction applications.
