The Arkema Serquigny production unit
Specializing in the manufacture of polymers, the Arkema Serquigny plant produces Rilsan® and Rilsamid®, which are used for coating metal objects and manufacturing parts for 3D printing. Much of the plant’s production is bio-based, meaning it is made from plant-based materials.
Located in the heart of the Haute-Normandie region where the Risle and the Charentonne rivers join, the Serquigny hub, which has been in operation since 1949, combines the production of materials with the plant and Research and Development with the Cerdato Research, development, applications and technical center of the West (Centre de recherche, développement, applications et technique de l’ouest). It helps maintain the region’s economic drive.
Arkema Serquigny activity
The 405 employees of the Arkema Serquigny plant produce Rilsan® brand polyamide 11. Polyamide 11 is obtained through the polymerization of amino 11, manufactured by the Arkema plant in Marseille from castor oil.
The Serquigny unit also produces polyamide 12 granules for the Rilsamid®, brand, made from the lactam 12 supplied by the Mont plant.
In powder form, Rilsan® allows for the manufacture of coatings for metallic objects (dishwasher baskets, street furniture, water treatment plant pipes, etc.) and the manufacture of complex parts using laser sintering. Rilsan® and Rilsamid® granules are used in the automotive and petroleum industries.
At the cutting edge of innovation, the Serquigny hub has industrialized two new ranges of bio-based polymers from the Rilsan® family: Rilsan® HT polyamide, which resists high temperatures and makes it possible to replace metal and rubber in automobiles; and Rilsan® Clear, a flexible, transparent and easily transformable polyamide that is used by the optical (glasses frames), electronics, and medical markets.
In addition, the Serquigny plant produces a thermoplastic elastomer for the Pebax® and Pebax® Rnew brands
Light, flexible and impact-resistant, the Pebax® produced at the Serquigny site has applications in the fields of sports, medicine, electronics, and electricity.
Eager to ensure the safety of its teams and residents and to minimize the impact of its activities on the environment, the Arkema Serquigny plant is certified as OHSAS 18001 (2007) and ISO 14001 (2004). HSE expenses amount to around €4 million each year.
Rilsan® aboard the liner France
At the time of its launch, the iconic liner France was a floating concentrate of French know-how, especially technological know-how.
The documentary “La grande aventure du France”, recently aired on the France 5 channel, traces the history of the France cruise ship and its decidedly modern design and construction. Its designers used new materials for the time, such as Formica and fiberglass, but also Rilsan®, produced at the Serquigny plant!
At the time that the France was built, Rilsan® was particularly used in textiles and was known for its qualities of resistance to wear, moisture and mold. Quite naturally therefore, it was used for the wall fabrics and the furnishings, but also for the carpets and the curtains on board.
The documentary “La grande aventure du France” is available in playback:
Community Involvement
As part of Common Ground®, the Villers-Saint-Paul production unit carries out numerous awareness-raising actions and communications actions aimed at elected officials, residents and school groups.
Among these actions:
- Professors in Business Operation
- Contribution to communications actions carried out by the Union of Chemical Industries of Normandy
- Support for associations and local events (prizes, grants, etc.)
- Participation in the Eure d’Eté [Eure in Summer] operation and Industry Week
- Mobilization for the La Vague Bleue [Blue Wave] fundraising race
