SWIFT CHEMICALS

Is one of Southern Africa’s leading chemical distributors. We supply over 30 000 metric tons of high-quality petrochemical and related products each year, including aromatics, aliphatic alcohols, ketones, acetates, blended solvents and intermediates.

VISION

To be the leading chemical distributor in Southern Africa

MISSION

To act ethically and to treat our staff, customers and suppliers with a high level of respect, while offering the highest-quality products at competitive prices with outstanding service

THE INDUSTRIES WE SERVE INCLUDE:

  • Adhesives

  • Agriculture

  • Automotive

  • Coatings

  • Construction

  • Flexo Printing

  • Inks

  • Litho Printing

  • Paint

  • Personal Care

  • Pharmaceutical

  • Resin

  • Rubber

  • Soap

  • Detergents

ABOUT US

With 20 years of combined experience in the chemical industry, brothers Vijan and Diven Naidoo created Swift Chemicals with the vision of being the biggest and most trustworthy chemical distributor in the SADC region.  

Established in 2012, Swift Chemicals rapidly grew its share of the South Africa market. Within a short space of time the company has gained the reputation of being the leading distributor.

Swift Chemicals distributes chemicals of the highest quality from the largest chemical producers from across the globe.

We have steadily increased our investment in people and infrastructure, with continuous upgrades to our facilities. This enables us to achieve optimal performance and provide the fastest turnaround times to our valued customers.

Over the years, Swift has earned the reputation of being the most reputable chemical distributor in the SADC region. We supply the largest organisations in each manufacturing sector in the country.

We specialise in the distribution of break bulk into the various industries that we serve

OUR PRODUCTS

Our product range largely comprises solvents and associated products used by the various sectors that our customers operate in. In addition, we work with our customers to create custom-designed formulations to suit their applications. Swift has developed over 20 custom blends/formulations, and is able to offer premium products at the most competitive prices in the industry. Most of these products have become household names within their respective industries.

SOME OF OUR PRODUCTS INCLUDE:

A high-performance thinner designed to work with 2k paint systems.

Used as a chemical intermediate in Methyl Methacrylate (MMA), Bis-Phenol A (BPA), MIBK, DAA, and MIBC production. Used as a solvent in paints, inks, nail polish removers, acetylene cylinders, and adhesives. Also used as a solvent in the manufacture of pharmaceuticals, vitamins and cosmetics.

Used in the manufacture of aerosol sprays.

Basecoat thinners are especially designed to suit the application viscosity of car refinish products. With these thinners the application viscosity can be adjusted to optimize and guarantee ideal application under all conditions.

Commonly known as cleaning benzine, its application includes adhesive manufacture, the tyre and rubber industry, and specific paint, lacquer and ink manufacture. It is also used in industrial and domestic cleaning.

Applications are found in the surface-coatings industry and mainly as a fast-drying additive to wood coatings.

This product is pharmaceutical and contains a high omega 3 and 6 content. Application found in health margarines and supplements.

Solvent for agricultural pesticides, and printing inks for leather dyes. Used as a coalescing aid, and active solvent for solvent-based coatings. It is also a coupling agent and solvent in household and industrial cleaners, rust removers, hard-surface cleaners, and disinfectants.

Applications found in the following industries: Coatings and resins, PU, pharmaceutical, disinfectant, adhesives.

Used in making flexible plastics that are found in a variety of consumer products. Imparts flexibility in coatings & paints.

Medium-evaporating solvent with high water solubility and active solvency, used in a variety of applications such as solvent-based coatings, household and industrial cleaners, and agricultural pesticides.

An aromatic solvent used as an enamel thinner, as well as a replacement for Xylene.

Used in preparation of liquid printing inks for flexographic and gravure printing.

Ethoxy Propanol is employed mainly in the surface-coating and printing industries as it can regulate the flow, levelling, and coalescence of both coatings (including water-based paints), and flexographic printing inks. It is also utilised as a chemical intermediate in the production of agro-chemicals and in the production of de-icing/anti-icing formulations. In the cleaning industry it provides cleaning formulations with surface tension reduction, a fast evaporation rate, and low toxicity.

Used as a solvent in surface coatings, inks and as a process and extraction medium. Good solvent for a variety of resins, including epoxies, urethanes, cellulosics acrylics and vinyl, in applications such as coatings for wood furniture and fixtures, containers and closures, auto refinishing, for wood maintenance and marine purposes. General solvent in formulations for products such as adhesives and cosmetics.

This is a wide-cut aliphatic solvent which is used in paints and polishes where a slow drying rate is required. It offers some advantages over Fluiden 1520 (white spirits) in cleaning and general solvent usage, due to its slower rate of evaporation.

Used as a solvent in adhesives, paint strippers and industrial detergents. Used in the production of MTBE.

Used in nitro-cellulose, polyester and most alkyd and phenolic resins, in degreasing of metal surfaces, and in the extraction of fats, oils and waxes.

Used in nitro-cellulose and other natural and synthetic resins, adhesives, herbicides, and plastics. Also used as an extractant for certain metals, and antibiotics and dewaxing of mineral oils. Other applications are production of synthetic leather, transparent paper, aluminium
foil and degreasing of metal surfaces.

Methylene Chloride is predominantly used as a solvent for paint stripper, varnish removal, aerosol spray repellent and degreasing. It is an effective solvent because of its high volatility and stability. It is also used in the processing of plastics, and extracting fats and oils from food products. For example, it can be used to decaffeinate coffee/tea and to prepare hops. Methylene Chloride can weld certain plastics and is therefore used in the model-making industry. One final example of its use is in the garment printing industry for the removal of heat-sealed transfers. The main end-user markets are the paints, varnish, plastics, cosmetics and textiles industries.

Mono ethylene glycol is a vital ingredient in the production of polyester fibres, films, and resins, one of which is polyethylene terephthalate (PET). The second largest market for MEG is in antifreeze applications, where it is a component in the manufacture of antifreeze, coolants, aircraft anti-icer, and de-icers. MEG also has humectant properties and this makes it ideal for use in the fibre treatment of textiles, the paper industry, and in adhesives, inks, and cellophane. It is also a used as a dehydration agent in natural gas pipelines, where it inhibits the formation of natural gas clathrates before being recovered from the gas and reused.

Water-based degreaser for multipurpose applications.

Used as a solvent in lacquers, lacquer thinners, etch primers, liquid printing inks, foundry dressings and stain removers. Raw material for the manufacture of acetates, xanthates, glycol ethers and butylated resins.

The most common use of normal butyl acetate is as a solvent in the production of lacquers and paints. Its other major use is in the creation of adhesives and hardened coatings. Normal butyl acetate is also used in the pharmaceutical industry as a solvent or an extraction agent. Its minor uses include cosmetic products, as a fragrance solvent in perfumes, as an anti-corrosive agent, and in cleaning and car care products. It is also used in the synthetic fruit flouring industry. The main end-user markets are the paints/lacquers, coatings, cosmetics, leather, cleaning and pharmaceutical industries.

This is a high-flash kerosene with characteristics similar to Fluiden 1528. It is used as a replacement for Fluiden 1528 in applications where a high flash point is required. The most significant usage is as a solvent in metallurgical applications such as the liquid/liquid extraction of copper and uranium, and in the formulation of degreasing fluids for mining applications.

Hexane is the recommended solvent for edible oil extraction due to its narrow distillation range and selective power. Its fast drying rate and ability to suspend rubber leads to wide usage in the rubber industry as a base for rubber cement and in tyre manufacture. It is used in contact adhesives, paints and inks, where fast drying is required. Application is also found in the manufacture of SBR rubber, where Hexane is used as a medium in the polymerisation process.

Used as a solvent in lacquers, lacquer thinners, etch primers, liquid printing inks, foundry dressings and stain removers. A raw material for the manufacture of xanthates, acetates and mixed alkylated glycol ethers.

Raw material for pesticides, photochemicals, material for printing inks and printing ink additives. Solvent for industrial use. Also used as an automotive screen wash additive.

For use with premium grade lacquers and epoxies. Medium to fast evaporation rates.

Manufacture of intermediates. Solvents for resins, fats, oils, fatty acids and hydrocarbons. Pharmaceutical industry: Manufacture of pharmaceutical products.

Lakthin M219 is formulated to provide performance at an economical cost. It offers an above-average true solvent content of 19% for the industrial and spray equipment cleaning sectors of the market.

This is a superior grade lacquer thinner that offers superb performance at an economical cost. An active solvent content of 21% provides the assurance of performance in this latest-generation lacquer thinner.

Used as a solvent in antiseptics applications, pharmaceutical preparations, drug synthesis, cosmetic preparations and flexographic inks. Raw material for the manufacture of normal propyl amines, normal propyl paraben, di-normal propyl phthalate and normal propyl acetate.

A colourless, volatile solvent with an odour similar to acetone, posessing good solvency power for many natural and synthetic resins.

Liquid paraffin is mainly used as a lubricant in various industrial settings. It can be used to lubricate blades that cut paper and in mechanical mixing. Uses in the textile industry mostly involve lubrication. It is an oil component used for spinning, weaving and meshing materials.

Perchloroethylene, also known as perc, is a colourless, nonflammable liquid solvent with a sweet, ether-like odour. It is primarily used in industrial settings and also for dry-cleaning fabrics and degreasing metals.

Applications in surface coatings.

Slows the evaporation rate of lacquers and epoxies. Prevents blushing when lacquers are applied in high-humidity conditions.

Used as a solvent in paints, lacquer thinners, liquid printing inks, inline flexographic printing and dyes. Raw material for the manufacture of butylated resins, acetate and xanthates.

Fluidar 100 is a medium cut, high aromatic solvent. Its slow evaporation rate makes it an ideal component of blends, which require a slow-drying aromatic solvent. The aromatic tail is an important requirement for baking enamels commonly used by the automotive industry and other metal industries whose products require a durable high-gloss finish. Fluidar 100 is also used as a carrier for pesticides, especially chlorinated species.

Fluidar 150 is a heavy aromatic solvent. This high solvency, slow evaporating solvent is suited to many specialised coatings applications, including can, coil and stoving enamels. It is used extensively in the formulation of pesticides.

Shellsol D70 is an aliphatic hydrocarbon. Designed for architectural coatings, it consists of C11-C14 paraffins and naphthenes. Exhibits very low aromatic content, negligible reactive impurities and a low, sweet odour. Shellsol D70 has a shelf-life of 12 months.

SW 100 is a superior grade lacquer thinner that offers superb reduction and film performance.

SW 200 is formulated to provide performance at an economical cost. It offers an above-average true solvent content for the industrial and spray equipment cleaning sectors of the market.

A 70% aromatic solvent. With this level of aromatics, it is a blend that optimally meets the critical parameters of solvency and evaporation required in a variety of paint applications.

Toluene is a pure aromatic hydrocarbon. Its high solvent power combined with a fast avaporation rate makes is one of the most commonly used industrial solvents. It is widely used in lacquer thinner formulations and as a diluent in enamels for spray application. The printing industry uses TOLUENE or blends and aliphatic solvents as carriers for inks used in high-speed printing presses. It is also used in the rubber and adhesive industries, where higher solvency power than that of Hexane and Fluiden 512 is required.

Application found in surface coatings. Provides a hard and glossy sheen to end product.

Also known as turpentine, Stoddard solvent, mineral spirits and LAWS. It is a petroleum mixture made from distilled alkanes, cycloalkanes (naphthenes), and aromatic compounds. This product is a wide cut, slow evaporating, mainly aliphatic solvent. It is used in the paint industry, but its properties of solvency and volatility result in an extremely wide range of applications. These include industrial cleaning and degreasing, blanket washes for the printing industry, and polish manufacture. Complies with SABS716 which is the standard specification for mineral turpentine.

Xylene is a commercial mixture of the three isomers (ortho-, meta- and paraxylene) and ethylbenzene. It has a slower evaporation rate compared to Toluene and is used in its place where slower drying is required. It is used in various paint-spraying applications in both, neat and blended form, and is used in some brushing applications. Xylene is used as a carrier in the manufacture of alkyd resins and insecticides.

Do you require Technical Data Sheets (TDS) or Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS)?

CONTACT US

OUR RESOURCES

OPERATIONS AND WAREHOUSING

Swift Chemicals utilises multiple sites within the Queensmead Industrial Park area in Durban, South Africa.

Our combined facilities are capable of holding in excess of 600 000 litres of hazardous material at any one time. Our teams are capable of operating 24-hour shifts to keep up with customer demand.

 

LOGISTICS

Swift Chemicals has its own fleet of trucks certified to carry hazardous materials to our local customers. Meeting and dispatching these orders is often executed within 5.5 hours, making Swift Chemicals a trusted supplier to its clients that operate Just-In-Time (JIT) manufacturing processes.

We have a reliable network of transporters that work tirelessly to manage our distribution outside of the KwaZulu-Natal province, and into Africa.

 

COMPLIANCE

Delivery of high-quality service and products to customers is of paramount importance to Swift and we continuously assess for areas of improvement. We are ISO 9001:2015 compliant and this places great emphasis on Risk Management and Quality Management.

 

DOWNLOADS

Swift’s ISO certificate
Swift’s BEE certificate
Swift’s Company Profile

CONTACT US

Address:

5 Martin Drive

Queensmead Industrial Park

Durban, 4147

Office:

+27 (0) 31 464 0713

Emergency:

+27 (0) 84 677 2385

Email:

info@swiftchemicals.co.za