Novapex, a European company in the phenol and oxygenated solvents industry, is launching a new isopropyl acetate (IPA) unit as part of its downstream development strategy. The IPA unit will enhance Novapex's range of oxygenated solvents and will be used in various industries such as pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, perfumes, and food packaging. The unit, operational from the end of 2015, required an investment of €4 million and is in line with Novacap Group's Sustainable Development policy. Novapex aims to become a leader in the chemical supply for the pharmacy industry within five years.
Novapex, a leading European player in the phenol and oxygenated solvents chain, is pursuing its downstream development strategy on specialty products by launching a new isopropyl acetate (IPA) unit.
As an organic chemical subsidiary of the French group Novacap, Novapex was born at the end of 2002 to take over Rhodia's phenol / acetone business on the Roussillon chemical platform. The company inherited a unit of phenol and a unit of acetone on site. The decision to enter the IPA dates back to 2008 for several economic and strategic reasons.
Isopropyl acetate, IPA now comes to enrich the range of oxygenated solvents already produced by Novapex, including isopropanol and acetone. As part of the manufacturing process for many types of synthetic resins, IPA is also widely used as an extraction solvent in the pharmaceutical industry, in the manufacture of inks for food packaging or in the cosmetics industry. perfumes because of its intrinsic qualities. Operational from the end of 2015, this new unit, built on the Roussillon chemical platform, required an investment of € 4 million for a capacity of more than 5,000 t. Novapex has developed an innovative concept combining both process intensification and energy and environmental efficiency, in line with the Novacap Group's Sustainable Development policy.
Become the leader within 5 years
"This investment, made with the support of our shareholder Ardian, is part of Novapex's organic growth and innovation initiative. It will offer our customers a broad product portfolio offering the highest levels of quality. Isopropyl acetate will further strengthen our position in key markets such as pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, perfumes and food, "said Laurent Castor, vice president of the performance chemicals division. "Novacap has a development strategy in pharmacy. 45% of our profitability comes from paracetamol, aspirin but also new assets that serve pharmacy. We are on the chain of major pharmacy intermediaries. In the near future, we will be looking at the research activity in small chemical molecules. We do not hide wanting to become a leader as a chemical supplier for pharmacy within 5 years. This new solvent is for us a third foot in the pharmacy and we aim to do more to consolidate our position on the chemical platform of Roussillon, "concludes Pierre Luzeau, CEO of Novacap.