Teknor Apex Company has acquired Plastic Technologie Service (PTS), a German-based custom compounder of thermoplastic elastomers (TPEs) and engineering thermoplastics (ETPs), for an undisclosed amount.
PTS operates a manufacturing plant at Steinsfeld, Germany with more than 20,000 tonnes of installed capacity, as well as a technical support facility. The product portfolios of PTS are diverse. TPEs include block copolymers based on a number of polymer chemistries, TPVs, and polymer blends. ETPs include several types of polyamide plus PBT, polycarbonate (PC), and PC / ABS blends.
“PTS is well known for innovation and is the European leader in developing ‘hard/soft’ solutions that combine elastomers with rigid polymers. They will bring to our partnership a range of unique technologies and service capabilities,” said Suresh Swaminathan, senior vice president in charge of the global TPE business of Teknor Apex.
Among proprietary specialties of PTS is a hard/soft technology for over-moulding TPEs onto polar ETP substrates, such as nylon and acetal, and producing a durable bond. Another specialty is radiation-crosslinked grades of ETPs and TPEs.
For the past year, PTS has manufactured TPE and ETP compounds for Teknor Apex under a tolling agreement. Now the PTS compounding facility at Steinsfeld becomes the second manufacturing site in Europe for Teknor Apex, which already compounds TPEs at a facility in Genk, Belgium. Teknor Apex also produces compounds at locations in the US, Singapore, and China.
“The acquisition of PTS is a natural fit in the strategic vision of Teknor Apex to support the market with a global footprint and local presence. It also brings together two companies that have shared the unique culture of being privately owned and intensively customer-centred,” said Jonathan Fain, chairman and CEO of Teknor Apex.
PTS was founded in 1986 by Uwe Stenglin, who will continue in his role as managing director. As a subsidiary of Teknor Apex, PTS will continue to supply products under its existing brands.