POLARIS International’s new waterproofing membrane plant in Bahrain has been running at a utilisation rate of 80 per cent since its launch earlier this year, with a second line set to boost capacity next year.

An affiliate of the Dammam-based Khalifa Al Algosaibi Holding Company in Saudi Arabia, Polaris invested in a new factory at the Bahrain International Investment Park (BIIP) incorporating the latest co-extrusion technology for the production of polymeric waterproofing membranes with a total capacity of 4 million sq m a year.

The new plant’s PVC (polyvinyl chloride) and TPO (thermoplastic polyolefin) membranes are designed on European know-how, expertise and customs and comply with the waterproofing industry’s European EN-DIN and American ASTM standards.

A revival of the construction sector will see the demand for single-ply waterproofing systems increase by at least 10 per cent annually in the GCC from 2013 to 2017, and Polaris International expects to capture a major share of that market once its second co-extrusion line is commissioned next year, said general manager Bernard Weissenborn.

“Generally, I think the volume and value of budgeted projects are already very high in the GCC, mainly in Saudi Arabia and the UAE, but also in Oman, Kuwait and Bahrain. An outstanding project volume is poised to come up in Qatar due to the planned infrastructure for the Qatar 2022 Fifa World Cup. For example, the Qatar Metro project alone is one of the biggest projects for single-ply waterproofing in history,” Weissenborn said.

“I believe the gaps between budgeted and contracted projects in the GCC will ultimately narrow from 2013 as the project demand is fundamental and that the increase in project implementation will likely result in a much higher demand for waterproofing,” he added.

“Based on this assessment, I foresee a steady increase in demand for single-ply waterproofing of a minimum 10 per cent per year from 2013 till 2017,” he says, adding that Polaris will be ideally positioned to meet a large part of that demand.

Another major factor fuelling demand for single-ply is the increase in the number of market segments – from traditional roofing to geo membranes and new applications – while in roofing and basement waterproofing applications single-ply PVC and TPO is taking an ever-bigger share from traditional waterproofing with bituminous membranes and liquid waterproofing.

The very same phenomenon had been taking place in Europe and the US from the 1970s, he points out, adding that the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) region are following the growth of the single-ply waterproofing industry, driven by single-ply’s outstanding benefits in productivity and economics and innovation.

However, the most important market for synthetic membranes is the ever-growing geo-membrane segment, where the design and parameters of synthetic single-ply membranes apply as the only product group, he said.

Polaris’ plant boasts the first wide-die co-extrusion line in twin-screw configuration in the Mena region, able to produce PVC and TPO membranes on the same production line with a very narrow switch time.

“The second line from 2013 will increase our capacity sharply and provide many different features for various membrane designs, formulations and process technologies. It will be a novel configuration in our industry as well as producing the new generation of multi-layer TPO-PE-PP membranes,” Weissenborn said. “This technology from our European industry partners not only cuts production costs by 30 per cent for traditional membranes for roofing, basements, tunnels and swimming pools, but also greatly enhances the production of geo membranes and new-segment liners in various designs and formulations.”

He continued: “Our research clearly points to a world-wide rise in demand for geo membranes and new application segments, which are still infancy. Also, our research and monitoring of the GCC market gives empirical evidence of a market size of approximately 12 million sq m for PVC and TPO membranes. Polaris will be a strong regional player in the established and rising PVC market as well as in the strongly expanding TPO market.”

About Polaris’ target markets, he said: “The GCC is our core market and we are appointing distributors in each country for our products. On completion of the second line, we will change the market approach in several countries of our peripheral market from a spot-sales approach to a regular distribution strategy while several Mena countries will become core markets. We also will increase our scope of spot sales to many more countries of the Mena region and beyond.”

Polaris is aiming for a market share of 20 to 30 per cent in all the GCC countries. As part of its distribution strategy, Polaris has signed agreements with the Bin Tami Group (group’s affiliate Absar) for Saudi Arabia and Mmetco (Moh’d Bucheery group) for Bahrain, and plans to sign distribution and applicator agreements with partners in the UAE, Oman Kuwait and Qatar shortly.

Polaris started production of PVC membranes in April this year and expects to start producing green-friendly multilayer TPO-PE-PP membranes next year.

All products are extruded through twin-screw extruder systems with wide dies, enabling membrane widths of 2.12 m. For reducing or avoiding the welding of membranes at construction sites, Polaris provides sheet sizes of up to 1,500 sq m, tailor-made for optimising waterproofing and lining projects, thereby greatly enhancing welding safety and reducing application time.