Poland’s MAKROchem opening carbon black distribution center in South Carolina

MAKROchem, a carbon black distributor based in Lublin, Poland, is investing $7.5 million on its first distribution center in the United States, which will be located in an existing building in Lancaster, South Carolina. The 183,000-square-foot facility is expected to be operational this year, and the company will begin hiring up to 20 employees for the site in May. Jacek Niemczyk, MAKROchem’s North American project coordinator, has said that the new trans-loading station will supply North American customers with carbon black for tire and non-tire rubber markets. MAKROchem is a leading distributor of carbon black in Europe.

According to sources at MAKROchem, the new operation will import carbon black primarily through Charleston, as well as Norfolk, Baltimore, Greer Inland Port, and the Charlotte Inland Terminal. The site will offer 12,000 tons of warehousing capacity for supersacks, as well as up to 2,000 tons in bulk rail cars. The site will provide delivery of carbon black in bulk silo trucks and supersacks, with railcar delivery to be added by the end of 2016.