Tennessee Industry News

Dupont Tate & Lyle to expand Loudon, TN facility

Dupont Tate & Lyle Bio Products LLC next month will begin work on a $20 million expansion of its Loudon facility, adding more production equipment for making its corn-based substitute for petroleum used in products like shampoos and carpeting.

Steve Mirshak, president of the company, said a fifth fermenting machine and related equipment would be added, with construction to begin in June and completion estimated for second quarter 2011. This will result in some jobs in Loudon County, although mostly temporary, he said.

"We anticipate about 130 construction and engineering jobs to complete the project, but we will add fewer than five permanent jobs as we will be primarily relying on existing staff," Mirshak said.

Dupont Tate & Lyle, a partnership that began operations in Loudon County in 2006, produces Bio-PDO, which is a highly pure glycol based on corn sugar fermentation. It is used as a building block in making polymers that in turn are used to make fibers for clothing and carpeting. As a glycol, which is a type of alcohol, Bio-PDO also is an ingredient in shampoos, skin creams, liquid detergents and other personal-care products. It also is used in engine coolants and other heat-transfer fluids.

The advantage of Bio-PDO is that it replaces petroleum in these applications, Mirshak said. It is 100 percent renewable and has performance advantages over petroleum-based products, he said. In engine coolants, it is less toxic and more biodegradable. In cosmetics, it has less tendency to cause skin irritation, according to the company's website.

The addition of an extra fermenter will allow the plant to increase production by about 35 percent as demand for green products has been increasing, Mirshak said.

"We are shipping product around the world," he said. "We are exporting a large quantity of our product to China and have customers around the globe."

Source: Knoxville News Sentinel