Apr 16 2013
High-performance plastic sheets from Bayer MaterialScience have been chosen for an agricultural reconstruction project in the disaster area of northeast Japan, hit two years ago by a devastating earthquake and tsunami. The material is used in a new greenhouse of a local farming corporation called VEGi-Dream Kuhara.
It has been set up by subsidiary companies of Toyota Motor Corporation in cooperation with the local government. The transparent multiwall polycarbonate sheets have been selected mainly due to their good thermal insulation.
The reconstruction project led by Toyota aims at making agricultural production more environmentally friendly and sustainable. Hence, the new greenhouse is using waste heat from a nearby Toyota automobile plant for warm water generation. The greenhouse serves for growing paprika for domestic use. Since more than 90 percent of the Japanese paprika market consists of imported products, the project also aims at increasing the self-sufficiency of the population with agricultural goods.
The selected plastic sheets are lightweight, durable, easy to install and - as distinct from glass - unbreakable. “Bayer’s polycarbonate offers multiple benefits for the construction industry,” says Kimiyasu Yonemaru, Senior Country Representative for Bayer MaterialScience in Japan. The material is not only used in agricultural infrastructure but also elsewhere in the construction sector – for instance in roof constructions such as those of the national stadium of Brasilia, Brazil or the Baltic Arena in Gdansk, Poland which was used in last year’s European Soccer Championships. Other application areas are in transportation, consumer electronics and medical technology.
Bayer has provided nearly EUR 2.3 million in aid to the victims of the earthquake and tsunami. In the immediate wake of the catastrophe, the company provided emergency relief in the form of monetary and in-kind donations. Bayer also supports reconstruction projects through the Bayer Cares Foundation.
Source: http://www.bayer.com/