Kaneka to establish a new manufacturing facility for Kanekalon/Kanecaron acrylic fibers in Malaysia

Kaneka Corporation (Osaka, Japan; President: Kimikazu Sugawara) will establish a new manufacturing facility, for acrylic fibers* (commercial name: Kanekalon/Kanecaron) in the premises of Kaneka (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd. (Pahang State, Malaysia; President: Masahiro Kozai; hereinafter referred to as Kaneka Malaysia) with a yearly production capacity of 12,000 tons and capital investment of approximately ¥9 billion. The facility is expected to begin operations in October 2015.

Kaneka has been manufacturing Kanekalon/Kanecaron in the Takasago Plant (Takasago City, Hyogo Prefecture; Plant Manager: Atsushi Kawakatsu) since 1957, and this new facility marks the first production base established overseas. We will introduce innovative processes that will differentiate Kaneka more greatly, while leveraging Kaneka’s proprietary technology that has been developed over the years.

All Kanekalon/Kanecaron manufactured in Malaysia will be sold to the African market. They will be mainly used in hair extensions, which are necessities among African women. Within Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa (south of the Sahara Desert) in particular is expected to continue to experience steady population growth, and overtake China and India in 2040 to emerge as the world’s most populated region. In view of the robust demand surge accompanying population growth, Kaneka will continually seek to provide stable supply of raw materials for hair extensions, as well as new products and services.

Apart from hair accessories, Kanekalon/Kanecaron uses include pile materials especially eco fur, and flame-retardant materials used in protective wear and interior products. The demands for these uses are expected to grow in response to the needs of the times ahead of us, and Kaneka will continue to expand supply for them from Japan.

Kaneka Malaysia is now Kaneka’s largest manufacturing base in Asia, and we see it as the most suitable location to establish a new overseas facility, because of factors including the comprehensive infrastructure, stable raw material supplies, and interconnectivity to Singapore, the world’s seaport hub. On top of the existing 61,000 tons per year production capacity of the Takasago Plant, this new facility will bring the yearly total production capacity of Kanekalon/Kanecaron to 73,000 tons.

Kaneka endorses the objective of the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP)―eradicating hunger and poverty―and takes part in the WFP corporate program to support the related activities. In line with the concept that “the beauty of African women comes not only from personal beauty, but also from the happiness of their families,” Kaneka supports the mothers of today and tomorrow through the sales of Kanekalon/Kanecaron, and contributes a portion of the proceeds from sales of Kaneka’s products in Africa to the United Nations WFP, thereby supporting African women and children through the school meal program.