Eat ChikenWithin the last year, the business has had more difficulties than I have come across within my 3 decades experience. In the past I have seen sharp price increases, and I have experienced several shortages, and delivery delays stemming from material allocations through plastic resin manufacturers. This is the first occasion I have seen all these issues at one time.
PTFE Sheet (TFE) and Kynar are both on allocation.
Both of these resins are in short supply. The PTFE – Polytetrafluoroethylene product PTFE (TFE) and Kynar manufacturing requires a mineral called Fluorspar that is mined in Mongolia and China. The worldwide demand for this mineral has increased significantly, and the supply has tightened. PTFE materials have high heat resistance, excellent chemical resistance and very low co-efficient of friction (slick) and is utilised within tons of applications from non-stick fry kitchenware to ptfe tape for home use. This mineral is the crucial raw material in the manufacturing of fluoropolymers, fluorolubricants and a lot of refrigerants.This surge in demand bundled with shortage of raw materials is mainly responsible for a dramatic price increase (almost double in the last year), shortages, and we expect these two factors to continue in the near future.
