Mitsui Chemicals, Inc. will expand its production facilities for meltblown nonwovens at wholly owned subsidiary Sunrex Industry Co., Ltd. The investment responds to growing demand for industrial-use meltblown nonwovens, which will boost Mitsui Chemicals Group’s overall meltblown capacity by 30%.

As part of its new Vision 2030 Long-Term Business Plan, Mitsui Chemicals will be positioning nonwovens as a growth business under Life & Healthcare Solutions in the revised portfolio. Mitsui Chemicals is therefore looking to supply nonwovens not only as sanitary materials for products like disposable diapers but also as industrial materials for a variety of applications.

Products targeted toward this end will include Tafnel, which can be used as an oil-adsorbing material, a structural material for automotive seats and a civil engineering material; Syntex, a structural material for filters and masks, and other such high-quality nonwovens. In particular, Syntex nano – a brand consisting of superfine fibers – is expected to find use in products such as highly advanced precision filters.

In January 2021, Mitsui expanded its meltblown capacity by 50% at its Sunrex subsidiary. This move also responded to demand for the substrate in industrial applications.