NexPoint Materials plans to close its polycarbonate resin and compounding plant in Lowndes County, Alabama, near the end of the first quarter of 2027, shifting that production to its facility in Mount Vernon, Indiana. The move will see the company transfer its Lexan-brand polycarbonate materials production out of the state entirely, ending decades of manufacturing at the site.
Slowing Demand Cited as Driver
NexPoint Materials will close its Alabama polycarbonate plant, according to Plastics News, which first reported the shutdown and the planned transfer of Lexan-brand polycarbonate production from Alabama to Indiana. The polycarbonate resin and compounding plant will close near the end of the first quarter of 2027, with production moving to the company's facility in Mount Vernon, Indiana, as reported by Resource Recycling. That outlet reported that slowing polycarbonate demand has led NexPoint to close its Alabama manufacturing site.
The company has framed the consolidation as an effort to more closely align output with demand, per the same report. NexPoint said it will continue to operate its other North American sites in Illinois, Missouri, Mexico and Brazil, and that employees will be dedicated to working directly with affected customers to manage the transition, with impacts varying depending on each customer's products and requirements.
A Plant With Roots Stretching Back to 1987
The Lowndes County site has a long industrial history. The plant was built in 1987 and acquired by SABIC in 2007, according to AL.com, which described the 6,300-acre site as a chemical and compounding plant that manufactures polycarbonate resin and compounded polycarbonate, among other products. AL.com also reported that the plant was part of a reported $450 million acquisition of SABIC's engineering thermoplastics business.
NexPoint is the engineering thermoplastics business previously part of SABIC, now operating on its own, according to the company's own description on its website, and it lists LEXAN among its thermoplastic product families. NexPoint became a standalone company earlier in 2026 after its acquisition by Mutares SE & Co. KGaA, Resource Recycling noted. An August 2026 report from IndustryLinqs said Mutares had completed its purchase of the European and U.S. engineering thermoplastics operations, which then began operating under the NexPoint Materials name.
Open Questions for Workers and the Community
What the closure means for the plant's workforce remains unclear. Alabama's Department of Workforce maintains a WARN list describing a Rapid Response Team that provides on-site assistance and meets with employers and employees when plants close or substantial layoffs are implemented.
NexPoint has not detailed a specific final operating date for the Lowndes County plant beyond the expected closure window near the end of the first quarter of 2027. For now, the company's public message has centered on customer continuity and its broader manufacturing footprint, rather than on the specifics of staffing at the Alabama site.
