The firms said Performance Additives, based in Philadelphia, will be the exclusive marketer for all of Rike’s products in North America, including acrylic and ABS impact modifiers, acrylic processing aids for PVC foam and other specialty chemical products.

Rike, based in Changle, Shandong province, says it is one of China’s largest makers of acrylic impact modifiers and processing aids, and employs more than 500 at its factory and research center there, according to Rike’s Web site. Company officials did not respond to a request for comment.

The companies said they have established labs at Rike’s factory dedicated to the North American market.

“We expect we will be able to respond to customer needs quicker than U.S. producers, which have continued to cut costs in this area,” said Arthur Van Nostrand, founder of Performance Additives and former president of additives at chemical firm Arkema Inc. Performance Additives is a marketing and logistics company.

Van Nostrand said the additive market started to shift to Asia in 2003, beginning with tin stabilizers, a trend he said has happened faster than he expected in the economic downturn, as the additive industry has been particularly hurt by the sagging U.S. construction business.

“The poor profitability of U.S. additive producers due to poor economic conditions has accelerated the shift,” he said. “I believe this shift will continue in the coming years with other products. … We believe we are well positioned with unique technology, a low cost manufacturing base, the broadest product line in the area of impact modifiers and processing aids.”

The companies are targeting an annual volume of 20,000 metric tons within three years, Van Nostrand said, and sees particular opportunities in housing applications like PVC foam trim board, PVC siding, windows, decking, fencing and pipe, and some injection molding applications.

He said the two companies have been working together since 2005 to develop products for the North American market under the trade name Merkon.

Rike was founded in 2001 by Zhao Dongri and has production capacity of 100,000 metric tons, according to its Web site. Rike said it plans to add 50,000 metric tons capacity by November to make ABS modifiers, SAN processing aids and acrylic processing aids as well as MBS and AIM.

Other Chinese firms have recently made similar inroads into the additives market, Van Nostrand said, after Dow’s 2008 decision to close its chlorinated polyethylene facility in Plaquemine, La. CPE can be used as an additive, and most of that demand has been filled by Chinese firms, he said.