Rivals' link will double elastomer sales

DuPont and Dow Chemical Co., bitter rivals in past material wars, are forming an elastomer product alliance that would have the potential for growth at more than twice the industry rate. Combined total global elastomer sales for the two companies are about $1 billion. Within five years, a combined effort would hit $2 billion in sales.

The enterprise would combine DuPont's expertise in synthetic rubber with Dow's INSITE proprietary catalysis technology. One area of focus is ethylene propylene diene (EPDM) and related ethylene octene (EO) and ethylene propylene (EP) elastomers. Under a joint-development agreement, the pair are exploring the use of INSITE technology to produce EPDM for all market application areas.

The companies expect that the technology will provide improved quality, superior polymer architectural capability and significant cost advantages compared to conventional processes.