Emerald Kalama Chemical Upgrades Logistics at Kalama, WA Facility

Emerald Kalama Chemical, a business group of Emerald Performance Materials, has completed key upgrades to its logistics infrastructure at its facility in Kalama, Washington (USA), where the business manufactures K-FLEX plasticizers, Kalama benzoates and intermediates, and Kalama flavor and fragrance ingredients. The upgrades will enhance service and operational capabilities by streamlining logistics for customers worldwide.

The group’s Kalama site is one of three Emerald Kalama Chemical manufacturing facilities worldwide. As Emerald grows and demand for Kalama and K-FLEX products increases, the site must handle increased volumes of final product and incoming materials by sea, truck and rail. As a result, the latest logistics investment is designed to enable handling of larger quantities of final product. Upgrades include improvements to docks, added truck loading facilities and an additional rail line.

“The Kalama, Washington site has been used to produce Kalama benzoate-based products since 1971, and for good reason; its location on the Port of Kalama and on a rail line is highly strategic for global transports to provide expedited service to our customers and distribution partners worldwide,” said Claudia Knowlton-Chike, senior vice president, supply chain for Emerald Kalama Chemical.

In recent years, Emerald has pursued an ambitious strategy to expand its capabilities and offerings. To achieve this, the company has made a series of investments to expand the range of specialty chemicals it produces, support R&D and more than double capacity for K-FLEX plasticizers and aroma chemicals, which utilize key feedstocks produced at the Kalama, Wash. site.

“Building increased flexibility into our operation was a critical piece of this latest series of projects,”  Knowlton-Chike said. “This investment builds upon our current reputation for service, enhancing our capabilities as we continue to increase our global footprint and expand the range of our specialties.”

The company has also made recent investments to expand capabilities, offerings and global service at its other operations. For example, in 2015, Emerald completed the acquisition of Innospec’s aroma chemical business based in Widnes, UK and began construction on a $40 million project to increase capacity for Kalama® benzaldehyde and Purox® benzoic acid at its Rotterdam, Netherlands facility.

Emerald Kalama Chemical produces K-FLEX low-VOC, non-phthalate plasticizers, Kalama flavor and fragrance ingredients, and Kalama and Purox benzoates, food-grade antimicrobials and intermediates – available globally – at its ISO 9001:2008 and 14001:2004-certified facilities in Kalama, Washington; Widnes, UK and Rotterdam, Netherlands.