WeylChem starts large scale production of Grignard type reagents

WeylChem is to produce reagents on an industrial scale for major manufacturers of pharmaceuticals, agrochemicals and poly-functionalised products in the US.

A complete series of Grignard type reagents will be produced at the company's Elgin, South Carolina facility. The scale-up in Grignard reagent production is in response to an industry need for suppliers with the capability to deliver higher volumes than is currently available in the US.

Headquartered in Frankfurt and one of the world's largest custom manufacturers of chemical intermediates, WeylChem says it can offer the technical packages and production capacity to reliably supply manufacturers with starter reactions, like the Grignard reaction. Grignard chemistry is an important tool in the formation of carbon-carbon bonds and for the formation of carbon-phosphorus, carbon-tin, carbon-silicon, carbon-boron and other carbon-heteroatom bonds.

According to Alain Angelac, sales and marketing project manager, the move to supply the market with Grignards on an industrial scale is aligned with changes taking place in the manufacturing programs of large multi-national manufacturers. "A number of our customers have asked us if we can supply them with Grignard reagents on a commercial scale as they reconfigure plants for new projects, or as they adopt chemistries and processes that make it uneconomical to produce the reagents in-house," he said.

"Our customers know we have a long history of sound production and management practices - the kind needed to reliably deliver hazardous chemistry wherever it is needed, like Grignard reagents. And they know that we have the ability to make these reagents on a scale large enough to ensure reliable supplies in the long-term.

"With the start-up of commercial scale Grignard reagents production at Elgin, we have taken the first step in serving customers as both a supplier of custom synthesis and a producer of functional products," he said.

Products widely used in the marketplace, like EtMgBr (THF) and MeMgBr (THF/Toluene), can be made on a high volume basis quickly, and cost-efficiently, given that the technical team manages Grignard reagent production from start to finish. Uncommon Grignard chemistry will also be produced cost-efficiently in limited volumes for manufacturers with special synthesis requirements.