ISSRP Appoints New Executive Committee in Delhi

(India/Rubber Asia) The 48th International Institute of Synthetic Rubber Producers Inc (IISRP) AGM held in New Delhi, India, recently discussed subjects including the new EU quality regime and the marketing scenarios in the galloping economies of China and India. The organisation also appointed new executive committee members that reflect the growing importance of the Russian market.

The newly elected president Vasily Nomokonov will also serve as the European section president of IISRP. Speaking to Rubber Asia on the sidelines of the AGM, Mr Nomokonov said he would like to see that the institute has a broader platform during his tenure. He would also like to see that Russia continues to play a vital role in the growth of global SR industry. The AGM ended with a mesmerising farewell luncheon hosted in a characteristic Russian red ambience and a hearty invitation from the new president to meet in Moscow for the 49th edition of the AGM.

The presentations mainly related to developments in elastomers, petrochemicals, economic analysis, market and various challenges ahead of the SR community. Mr Ramamurthy, the outgoing president of the IISRP, hoped that the knowledge shared would definitely contribute to the benefit of the SR and transport industry.

Speaking to Rubber Asia, Mr James L. McGraw, Managing Director and CEO of IISRP said the Delhi meet was one of the most outstanding AGMs. “The need for more epidemiological studies and challenges posed by the REACH (Regulation, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals) as per EU norms as well as the health concerns dominated the agenda of the AGM”, he added. In fact, Mr McGraw and his staff and colleagues could be genuinely proud of making the meet one of the momentous events in the annals of IISRP’s history.

Mr S. Suryanarayan, Vice President of Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL), India, in his presentation gave a comprehensive overview of the Indian rubber industry. The paper pointed out that Indian rubber consumption was to touch 2.1 million tonnes by 2020. It was observed that more investments are required in the tyre/SR sector pointing out that consumption of SR is to go up remarkably and India is likely to be a net importer of NR in the coming years.

The panel discussion on regional economic overview was one of the liveliest at the AGM. Mr Gaurav Kapur, of ABN AMRO Bank dealt on the economy of Europe while Wandderli Passarrela and Yoichiro Hibiya of ETIC Inc, Japan made presentations on the economy of the Americas and the Far East respectively.

The paper on “Chemical trespass” by Dr Michel Bird, ExxonMobil Biomedical threw light on the vexed issues relating to chemical abuses in the SR industry and its implications. The opening session was brilliantly moderated by Mr. Dodd May, a nearly 30-year veteran of the SR industry who is currently president of Sales& Marketing for Lion Copolymer, LLC in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.