Dow goes big on speciality silicones

Dow will spend about $100 million by the end of 2027 to expand its global speciality silicones capabilities in response to growing demand, particularly in mobility, electronics and medical applications. This will be done via a series of targeted investment projects at sites in the US, China and Japan. 

Investments include: expansions in liquid silicone rubber at Carrollton, Kentucky, and Zhangjiagang, China, which are expected online in 2027 and will go into applications across mobility, electronics and health care; and in engineered silicone materials at Songjiang, China, and Fukui, Japan, this year, and at Auburn, Michigan, and Zhangjiagang in 2027, for advanced electronics.

This follows on the expansion of Dow’s cooling science labs at Shanghai and in Midland, Michigan, this year to support faster innovation in the development and scale-up of next-generation thermal management materials. It will all complete the silicones investments announced at Dow’s Investor Day in 2024, with some updates. Dow is the world’s largest and most integrated silicones producer. Demand for them is outpacing GDP growth.