BASF and Greentech, a renowned Chinese synthetic leather manufacturer, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on June 12 to launch a joint laboratory for synthetic leather development.

Housed in Greentech’s research hub in Suzhou, East China’s Jiangsu province, the new facility will focus on making the manufacture of synthetic leather more efficient and sustainable with BASF’s innovative solutions. The facility will also serve as a platform for two companies to develop prototypes that can be commercialized for various applications.

The joint laboratory builds on the long-term collaboration between the two companies. BASF will focus on technical know-how, product development, and production of polyurethane solutions, while Greentech will be responsible for the research and development of synthetic leather for a wide variety of industries, such as automotive, fast moving consumer goods, and furniture.

“The widespread use of synthetic leather in everyday products and the quest for eco-friendly materials have led to increasing demand for more innovative and sustainable synthetic leather manufacturing processes. Since 2014, we have worked with Greentech to enhance the performance and development of synthetic leather. Through in-depth technology exchange, we have created many state-of-the-art synthetic leather solutions. We will continue to accelerate our efforts to enhance the quality, texture, and appearance of synthetic leather,” said Mr. Manfred Pawlowski, Head, Consumer Industry, Performance Materials Asia Pacific, BASF.

BASF recently made significant improvements to the synthetic leather manufacturing techniques with the introduction of non-organic solvent tops made without the use of organotin. These are also complimentary with water-based top coat – a solution that is integral to the production process.

“We approached BASF for collaboration as we wanted to tap into their expertise in developing sustainable synthetic leather without the use of organotin or other solvent based technologies. Through the joint research facility with BASF, we hope that we can develop breakthrough innovations that meet and exceed our customers’ expectations for the new generation of synthetic leather,” said Mr. Gao Jingang, Chairman, Suzhou Greentech Material Co., Ltd.