Kaneka Corp buys US formulated advanced resin supplier Applied Poleramic

With this, Kaneka makes a full-scale entry into aerospace market

Last Updated : Jun 29 2017 | 3:54 PM IST

Kaneka Corporation has acquired Applied Poleramic Inc (API), the California-based formulated advanced resin supplier in the aerospace area, for approximately $ 15 million.

In the area of aerospace, there is a rapid growth for high performance composites in demanding applications such as engines, hot areas of the aircrafts, rockets and launch vehicles. Due to its superior properties over metal and metal alloys of: weight to strength ratio, heat-resistance and durability, Kaneka sees high growth potential in this sub-segment compared to the general structural composites market. “We anticipate this sub-segment to grow more than 10 percent annually within the next 10 years or exceed $ 2 billion in market value,” said Kaneka Corporation officials.

Established in 1992, API possesses formulated advanced resin technology used in high performance composites. API has been a strategic supplier of high performance composites to OEMs and their subcontractors. Kaneka currently also supplies high performance materials such as polyimide films (Apical) and resin modifiers (Kane Ace MX) to the same key end customers. Kaneka sees the acquisition of API as a way of achieving an accelerated synergistic growth through the integration of advanced core technologies from both companies.

After the acquisition of API, Kaneka will continue to seek M&A and partnership opportunities to further strengthen growth, sales and market position of high performance composites in the area of aerospace. By 2025, Kaneka aims to achieve more than $ 200 million in sales. Growth will be achieved by fully utilising and uniting Kaneka global resources in corporate research, product research, and product development; located in institutes and research centres throughout Japan and North America.