Summary

Unitika is just over twenty years old. The company was formed in 1970 through the merging of Nichibo, a fiber producer founded in 1889, and Nippon Rayo, a fiber and plastics producer founded in 1926. The current research and development center in Uji was opened in 1939 (Nichibo). Current business in Unitika is divided into eleven divisional lines:

Technical Development
New Business Development
Fibers and Textile #1
Fibers and Textile #2
Plastics
Spunbonded
Glass Fibers
Engineering
Construction and Real Estate
International
Synthetic Spun Textile

The research philosophy at Unitika is to maintain current business and extend into new areas that are considered viable long-term opportunities. Biodegradable polymers, particularly for fibers, are seen as such an opportunity. This opportunity is being exploited in the Fine Chemicals, Nonwovens, Plastics, and Synthetic Fibers divisions.

Highlights

• The company has well thought-out goals developed through understanding its available options.

• Unitika is open to new ideas and has very active collaborations outside the company.

• The company projects that biodegradable plastics will probably only comprise a niche market.

• Unitika has a serious concern about costs, and believes this to be very limiting for the market.

• Company representatives express honest doubt, and are reserving decisions and commitment to biodegradables to a later date.

• The company considers biodegradability to be total removability from the environment.