Mar 23 2007
Air Products has brought a new nitrogen plant in China on stream for InfoVision Optoelectronics (IVO), a leading Chinese producer of flat-panel displays. It is the first nitrogen plant of its kind that was designed and built locally in China.
The new plant is based on Air Products’ high efficiency design, which delivers reliable and cost-effective nitrogen to customers in the electronics and other industries around the world. This plant is located at IVO’s factory in Kunshan, Jiangsu Province and provides nitrogen to IVO under a long term contract. IVO produces 5G TFT-LCD panels in a state-of-the-art production centre that represents a US$1 billion investment and is a major project under China’s Eleventh Five-Year Plan.
The plant is also the first Air Products nitrogen plant in China commissioned using local resources including design, manufacturing and construction. The cold box was fabricated by Air Products’equipment manufacturing facility in Caojing, Shanghai, and the main air compressor was assembled locally.
“The successful completion of this project is a milestone in our development in China. The localization not only allows us to meet the project targets on time, it also enables us to supply our customer with reliable bulk nitrogen at a competitive cost while maintaining the quality standards for which Air Products is known worldwide. This greatly reinforces our position as a leading gas supplier to China’s electronics industry,” said Andy Tuan, general manager of the Electronics Division in China, Air Products.
“We are very pleased with Air Products’ performance on this project,” said Hsueh Ching Yuan, Head of Facility Department of InfoVision Optoelectronics. “The nitrogen plant was completed on time and on budget, thanks to close cooperation between the Air Products team and our own people. A reliable and high-quality nitrogen supply is critical to the production of LCDs.”
Strategically located adjacent to ShanghaiChemical Industry Park, Air Products’ facility in Caojing has broad capabilities to design, engineer and manufacture cryogenic equipment to support air separation unit projects in China and other Asian markets. The Caojing facility is complemented by Air Products’ engineering center in Shanghai, which handles engineering design, project development and project management.