Salicylate plant comes online

It is not surprising that the Infineum and construction teams are proud of this new salicylate unit because it comes with a list of impressive achievements.

• It is the first salicylate plant of its kind in Asia Pacific.
• The investment represents the company’s largest since its formation.
• During construction the teams achieved four million man hours without any lost time injury.
• The plant employs some of the latest manufacturing technology. 

Jurong Island, which is at the heart of Singapore’s energy and chemicals industry, was selected as the location for the plant because it is globally recognised for the depth and breadth of its offering in this field.

“Basing our plant here offers many advantages to Infineum,” explains Leleux. “We already have a manufacturing facility on Jurong Island, which has been producing components and finished additives packages for transportation and transmission lubricant applications for more than 30 years, so we know the area well.

The new salicylate unit complements this existing plant and its opening means we can create approximately 50 full-time positions – and one of the real advantages of Singapore is that it provides a well-qualified and talented local workforce.”

Boosting global supply capabilities

The facility is an important addition to the Infineum global supply capability for calcium salicylate, which is a unique detergent component.

Salicylate chemistry is a key building block for Infineum's highly differentiated, top tier, passenger car and heavy-duty engine oil formulations, and is also used in its marine oil additives.

“The new facility is being added to our global manufacturing footprint, and will make Singapore a manufacturing hub for calcium salicylate in Asia Pacific. This gives us an integrated supply chain across the world, which will help us to meet the growth aspirations of our crankcase and marine lubricant customers and will enable us to continue to deliver industry-leading supply performance and best in class service.”

The new facility incorporates the latest technologies andpractices in chemical manufacturing

Technology excellence in action

The development also supports Infineum’s priority of technology excellence, which helps to ensure we consistently deliver reliable performance. “We have incorporated the latest technologies and practices in chemical manufacturing and drawn on the best practices from our own manufacturing facilities, as well as from our shareholders.”  

The latest equipment has been installed to minimise waste, and process control is computerised to minimise human intervention. It will employ an integrated manufacturing process in which computer-automated operations and quality in-line systems govern the various equipment functions.

As always, the focus will not only be on the reliable delivery of high quality products, but also on maintaining safe operating conditions.

“Safety is a high priority for Infineum,” states Leleux. “This is particularly important when it comes to a project as complex as this one. We have a clear and well-documented ‘no-one gets hurt’ policy that runs throughout the entire organisation, covers all of our plants and is respected by all who work at Infineum.

This policy was rigorously applied throughout the construction phase on Jurong Island, which meant we achieved a really impressive four million man hours without any lost time injury. The safety policy will continue to be upheld to the highest standards as we move into the operational phase.”

Collaboration ensures success

A true spirit of collaboration and team work has been critical to the success of this project. “The management teams from Infineum and Chiyoda Singapore Pte. Ltd. - the company that led the Engineering, Procurement and Construction of the new plant - invested significant effort to ensure that our people worked as a single team. This was a tremendous boost for the project and enabled us to anticipate and solve any challenges together.”

"In this project, just as we do in all our operations, we have all worked hard to build a safe and positive work environment for our employees to work in."

"This new salicylate facility is a real demonstration of Reliability, Technology Excellence and Collaboration in action, and our investment here is testament to our long-term commitment to the Asia-Pacific region."

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