Leather chemicals manufacturer BASF has said it intends to present a series of new solutions for the leather industry at ACLE 2015 in Shanghai, which will take place from August 31 to September 2.

In the build-up to the exhibition, BASF said its new offering includes products that can help tanners “lower carbon and toxicity footprint”, as well as reduce water and energy use.

At ACLE, it will demonstrate its beamhouse system, DryFast, which it began talking about in 2014 and had on show at the India International Leather Fair in Chennai at the start of this year. It is a solution that “significantly reduces water, energy and process time for the tanneries”, the company has said, adding that, with DryFast, effluent will contain fewer chemicals and several washing steps can be avoided.

In addition, BASF will showcase a new generation of topcoat system for automotive finishing, which it says offers up to 20% higher durability “compared to the industry benchmark” and meets original equipment manufacturers’ requirements in terms of volatile organic compounds and consumer safety. Another introduction is the 3S (superior, secure, simple) surface coating system for corrected grain leather, which BASF says “sets a benchmark in fastness standards”, while at the same time, “reducing complexity” in the finishing department.

“Innovative chemistry is the key enabler for producing high-performance leather in a more economical and sustainable way,” said Alex Wartini, BASF’s vice-president for leather chemicals, on announcing the company’s plans for ACLE. “Experts in our global research and development centre in Shanghai, together with our teams all over the world, are committed to innovating and offering solutions for tanneries in all steps of leather manufacturing.”

He said that BASF, which is marking its 150th anniversary this year, also wanted to celebrate the heritage it has in the leather industry in 2015. “We developed the first synthetic tanning agent in 1912, the first non-benzidine dyestuff, and drove the development of polymer retanning from the beginning,” Mr Wartini said, “solutions that helped shape the course of development within the leather industry.”