Since its inception, Rowad National Plastic Group (Rowadplastic) has strived to locally manufacture products that meet globally-competitive standards and has been contributing to Saudi Arabia’s industrial advancement through manufacturing advanced plastic products using the latest technology, says Hesham Bin-Mahfoudh, marketing manager for the group.

Equipped with state-of-the-art equipment and well-trained teams at its Riyadh and Dammam factories, the company offers high-quality products at competitive prices and has risen to become one of the leading advanced engineering plastic converters in the Middle East, he adds.
Rowadplastic has five industrial divisions:
• Plastic sheets: manufacturing polycarbonate, acrylic, high-impact density polystyrene and ABS sheets;
• Injection moulding: producing plastic components such as automotive battery cases and covers, and pails for paints and other industrial liquids;
• Recycling polymer materials: recycling polypropylene (PP), polyethylene (PE) and polystyrene (PS);
• Geosynthetic liners: producing PE geomembrane liners for protection, transportation, collection and containment of liquids, solids and gases; and
• Packaging films: manufacturing bi-axially oriented polypropylene (BOPP) films for printing, lamination, packaging and coating.
Rowadplastic has worked closely with leading manufacturing, development and consulting companies, both within and outside Saudi Arabia, in order to enhance its product range and improve its after-sales services. Its keenness to attract international expertise and partnership, has resulted in the creation of two companies: Rowad International Geosynthetic Company, a venture with American and Egyptian firms, and Rowad Global Packaging Company with Austrian partnership.
Rowadplastic commissioned the first geosynthetics manufacturing facility in the GCC region last year, to expand its diversified product portfolio with innovative products that meet the market requirements.  Called Rowad International Geosynthetic Company (Rowadgeo), the company is a joint venture with Wasew Technology from the US and Golden Trade from Egypt, producing four types of products, including smooth and textured HDPE (high-density polyethylene) and LLDPE (linear low-density polyethylene). These geomembrane liners are manufactured as rolls with a standard width of 8 m and in thickness ranging from 0.5 mm to 2.5 mm, conforming to international standards and specifications.
Rowadplastic is now building a facility to produce packing films in Dammam called Rowad Global Packaging Company (Rowadpack), which will start commercial production in the third quarter of this year, with a production capacity of 30,000 tonnes annually, which will be doubled by 2010.  The company specialises in producing films for packaging fast food, spices, milk powder, ketchup, macaroni, and other products.  Austria’s DMT Technology Holding has been awarded the contract to build the plant in Dammam.
In addition, the company has expanded its existing portfolio with new European lines of polycarbonate and acrylic sheets.  These thin sheets – ranging from just 0.7 mm to 2.0 mm in thickness – will be produced at the company’s Riyadh plant.
Rowadplastic has been recently awarded a contract to provide industrial high-density polyethylene membranes for lining of vapour basins, as well as sewage treatment basins, sewage projects for Jeddah and Riyadh municipalities as well as the Ministry of Water and Electricity.  It has also signed a contract to provide geomembranes for Saudi Electricity Company’s 10th substation in Al Kharj, and it is currently negotiating with a number of deals which will be signed shortly.
An affiliate of the National Industrialization Company (Tasnee), Rowadplastic was established in 1992, and launched production in Riyadh in 1994.  Tasnee is a Saudi company listed in Tadawel and recognised as one of the largest petrochemical manufacturers in the Middle East and the second largest petrochemical company among the top 100 Saudi companies.
“The company was rebranded to reflect its core values and image as one that aims to meet its clients’ desires for innovative solutions,” says Bin-Mahfoudh.
Products are manufactured according to ISO-9001:2000 quality assurance system and comply with American (ASTM), British (BSI), Japanese (JIS) and German (DIN) standards as well as Saudi Arabian Standards Organization (SASO) standards and have been subjected to testing by the UK-based Rapra Technologies (Certificate of testing) and Bayer Quality Test (Germany).