Saflex Implements Price Increases

Saflex®, a unit of Solutia Inc, has announced that effective May 1st, 2008, it will begin implementing price increases of up to 40% on its Saflex PVB sheet products (depending on grade and location) to address dramatically rising raw material, energy and transportation costs.

Luc De Temmerman, senior vice president of Solutia Inc. and president of the Saflex business, made the announcement in light of further upward movement in raw material costs and increasing tightness in the supply of critical chemical feedstocks. ‘Industry forecasts in late 2007 did not predict cost increases of this magnitude, and we are now at a point where sourcing raw materials at continuously higher prices makes no sense for our business unless the effects are passed on,’ said De Temmerman.

Dramatic increases in the price of oil, which occurred since Saflex PVB sheet contract prices were set during late 2007, have resulted in significantly higher prices for chemical feedstock raw materials. Higher energy prices have also increased chemical manufacturing costs and driven up the cost of transportation. In addition, shortages of key raw materials for PVB resin have exacerbated the situation.

Saflex has been investing heavily to meet growth in demand for its PVB sheet. It has constructed a new PVB sheet production facility in Suzhou, China; added capability at its PVB sheet production facility in Santo Toribio, Mexico; and is close to completing a major new PVB sheet production line at its facility in Ghent, Belgium. Saflex has also been adding capacity for PVB resin, the key raw material for PVB sheet, in the United States and Europe to meet this new demand.

Saflex says that it is known globally as a leader in PVB quality and reliability. When laminated between layers of glass, Saflex PVB interlayers greatly enhance the performance characteristics of glass, providing benefits such as safety, security, UV protection, and sound attenuation. For more information about Saflex visit: http://www.saflex.com