Plant Watch: Business News for April 2021

Plant Watch Thermo Fisher Scientific plans $600-million bioprocessing expansion March 12, 2021 — Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (Waltham, Mass.; www.thermofisher.com) plans to invest more than $600 million in capital investments to expand its bioprocessing production capabilities through 2022. These investments are expected to more than double the company’s current manufacturing capacity. Highlights of the investment include capacity expansions at several sites in the U.S., China, Scotland and Singapore. Furthermore, the company will open a new resin-manufacturing facility in Chelmsford, Mass.   Hexion to expand Portland manufacturing plant March 11, 2021 — Hexion Inc. (Columbus, Ohio; www.hexion.com) intends to expand its Portland, Ore., manufacturing site with a second automated manufacturing line to produce fire-resistant protective wrap materials. The new production line is expected to start up around year-end 2021. Hexion’s proprietary wrap material can be applied to either new or existing wood utility poles to protect against fire.   BASF doubles acrylic dispersions capacity in Pasir Gudang, Malaysia March 9, 2021 — BASF SE (Ludwigshafen, Germany; www.basf.com) started up its new acrylic-dispersions…