One of the raw materials used in Stainmaster carpets could save the auto industry from a serious shortage.
Faced with a shortage of a critical resin used for everything from seat fabric to fuel tanks, as well as brake and fuel lines, automakers may turn to an unlikely ally, the Kansas firm best known for its Stainmaster carpets.
Wichita-based Invista, Inc., it turns out, is one of the world’s few manufacturers to have a surplus of a chemical called CDT – a primary ingredient needed to make resin PA-12. Also known as Nylon-12, it has been in increasingly short supply since a March explosion and fire killed two workers and put a factory in Germany out of action.
That plant, operated by supplier Evonik, is the primary source of both CDT and Nylon-12 for use in the auto industry. With supplies dwindling, automakers around the world face the prospect that many of their assembly lines could grind to a halt in the coming weeks.
More than 200 automotive industry officials met in Detroit earlier this week to plot out a strategy. They formed six working groups that, among other things, have been fanning out to search for alternative supplies of the resin and its raw materials.
It turns out one of the big producers is Invista, which uses Cyclododecatriene, or CDT, in products like Stainmaster carpets and rugs. The company says it is already running flat out at a plant in Texas – the only U.S. facility producing CDT — but could generate some surplus for diversion to the auto industry.
“We will do what we can,” said Invista communications chief Jodie Stutzman, cautioning that the firm must still meet existing contracts with other customers for the material.
With a supply of CDT, other manufacturers of Nylon-12 hope to be able to fill in the demand for Nylon-12, meanwhile, other chemical firms, including DuPont Automotive, are reportedly searching for a replacement material with properties close enough to serve as a substitute.
Invista was originally a DuPont subsidiary but was later sold to Kansas-based Koch Industries.
The resin has found expansive applications in the auto industry, particularly in vehicle fuel systems, because it is resistant to the ethanol now commonly blended into gasoline. It is especially desirable for so-called flex-fuel vehicles that can run on gasoline or E85 ethanol.
“The shortage is real and immediate. The possibility of production interruptions at some of your facilities in the next few weeks is high,” William Kozyra, chairman of chief executive officer of TI Automotive Ltd., said in a memo to customers.
General Motors has, meanwhile, cautioned that its supplier network is feeling the pinch. GM is one of the largest suppliers of flex-fuel vehicles in the world.
However, a spokesman for Toyota issued a statement saying that while, “The material provided by Evonik is in our North American supply chain…until we complete an assessment with our suppliers, the impact is unknown. At this time, there is no need to adjust production, and we will continue to work closely with our suppliers to ensure ongoing production.”
Toyota has particular reason to fear a shortage of key parts, components and raw materials, however. The maker lost an estimated 700,000 units of production last year as a result of the March earthquake and tsunami in Japan. That led to a slide from world’s best-selling automaker to number four in the industry’s ranks and a sharp downturn in earnings.
Complicating the impact of that disaster on Toyota and – primarily – its Japanese rivals last year, flooding in Thailand led to additional parts shortages and production cuts.