The WACKER Group has been supplying chemicals to India since the 1970s. After first venturing into India through agency representation (Hoechst), WACKER went on to strengthen its presence in the field of silicones through a joint venture with Metroark (now Wacker Metroark). As early as 1999, the site began production of different silicone products, primarily for the textile and personal care industry, with today’s production capacity exceeding 20,000 metric tons every year. The facility also houses a state of the art Competence Centre for fabric, garment and personal care application. The local subsidiary, Wacker Chemie India Pvt. Ltd., located in Mumbai, was founded in 2007 in response to increasing market demands and potential in the Polymer & Bio-solution segments.

Today – with around 165 employees and offices in Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Bangalore, as well as in Dhaka in Bangladesh – WACKER operates in the most important trade centers on the Indian subcontinent. Key markets include the construction, textile, personal care, coatings, ad-hesives and packaging sectors. WACKER sees further potential in the area of polymer binders for modern construction applications, where the Indian market has witnessed double-digit growth in recent years. As a result, the workforce in India has virtually doubled over the last five years.

This Mumbai center helps local customers and business partners in India, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Nepal and Sri Lanka to develop innovative products and applications for their regional markets. The facility, for example, runs comparative lab tests on construction products, taking into account local raw materials, environmental conditions and regional building methods.

The ultramodern technical center, located in Goregaon, is itself a “showcase,” built with materials that use WACKER technology: from tile adhesives and grouts modified with dispersible polymer powders, to polymer-based wood and carpet adhesives, dispersion paints for indoor use, and exterior silicone resin emulsion paints.

This facility serves as a regional Center of Excellence for developments and applications in the construction, coatings, plastics and textile coatings industry, with its sales and technical staff located under one roof to facilitate close collaboration and thus the best possible customer support. The main focus is on construction polymers, silicone emulsions, sealants, silanes and silicone resins, offering a portfolio of high-quality construction chemicals. It provides the local construction-chemicals sector with tailored developments and solutions, and aims to promote internationally recognized quality standards in India. In doing so, consideration is given to locally available raw materials, climate conditions and local methods of construction.