Doubling Production
Samsung SDI is actively seeking to target the Chinese materials market by constructing a large polarizer film facility in the country.
Samsung SDI announced on May 25 that it signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the local government in Wuxi to establish a polarizer film factory. Polarizer films are attached to LCD panels, and they control pixel density and color by allowing or blocking light. They are core materials of the screens used in numerous devices like TVs, laptops, or smartphones.
The facility is expected to produce 30 to 40 million m² polarizer films per year, which could be used in 20 million to 30 million 48-inch LCD TVs. The Korean company is going to invest 200 billion won (US$182 million) in the plant, aiming to finish construction by the latter half of 2016 and start mass-production by the end of next year.
Once the 2nd facility is completed in Wuxi, the company will be able to double the production of polarizer film. Currently, Samsung SDI is operating three local production lines at one hundred percent capacity.
The firm is planning to target the Chinese market by building a manufacturing base in the country, stemming from an increasing demand for polarizer films amid the rapid growth of the TV and display industries. According to Samsung SDI, the size of the global polarizer film market is expected to grow 6 percent per year, from 312 million m² in 2014 to 425 million m² in 2020. The Chinese market, in particular, is predicted to grow more than 16 percent a year during the same period.