Armacell acquires Fagerdala Benelux
MEBANE, N.C. - Mebane-based foam maker Armacell LLC is expanding its European production with the takeover of PET foam specialist Fagerdala Benelux SA.
Fagerdala Benelux, part of Fagerdala World Foam Group of Gustavsberg, Sweden, has a 270,000-square-foot plant in Thimister-Clermont, Belgium, making foam products including polyethylene packaging profiles and insulation materials, and polypropylene automotive foams.
The Belgian unit, formed in 1997, claims to have been a pioneer in making PET medium- and high-density plank and sheet for packaging, high-temperature insulation and composite structures. The plant makes a proprietary PET used in shipbuilding, in wind power plants and in composite foams as a substitute for balsa wood and PVC foam.
With this deal, Armacell will have 19 plants globally, including nine in Europe. Armacell said it plans to keep the Belgian plant, the 70 employees and current management.
The global market for polymer foams is estimated to generate sales of more than 50 billion euros ($42 billion) and has ``tremendous potential growth,'' said Karl Paetz-Lauter, who is responsible for the technical foam division.
Cantex moving HQ to Fort Worth, Texas
MINERAL WELLS, TEXAS - PVC products maker Cantex Inc. in April will move its headquarters from Mineral Wells to a leased site in downtown Fort Worth, Texas.
The 70-acre Mineral Wells complex will continue operating with about 300 workers, the firm said. About 60 will move to the Fort Worth location. Cantex has three plants in Mineral Wells.
The company has eight plants in total, including pipe extrusion, injection molding and fabrication operations.
Furukawa, Otsuka purchasing Trocellen
TROISDORF, GERMANY - Two Japanese companies are buying Trocellen GmbH, the cross-linked polyolefin (XLPO) foams business of German profile extruder HT Tröplast AG.
Tröplast of Troisdorf is selling the business to Furukawa Electric Co. Ltd. of Tokyo - already the world's fourth-ranked XLPO foam producer - and Osaka, Japan-based Otsuka Chemical Co. Ltd., for an undisclosed sum.
The deal will give Furukawa a presence in Europe, where the Japanese company is keen to supply the expanding automotive industry. The addition of Troisdorf-based Trocellen will double its foam sales to about 20 billion yen ($175 million), taking Furukawa to second place worldwide.
Furukawa and Otsuka Chemical will hold 60 percent and 40 percent, respectively, in Trocellen and they will maintain its 700-strong workforce, Furukawa said. The deal is to be concluded by the end of 2005.
Tröplast itself was taken over early this year by two Washington-based investment firms, Advent International Corp. and Carlyle Group.
Trocellen, Europe's leading producer of the XLPO foam products, operates plants in Germany, Spain, Romania, Hungary and Italy, Malaysia and Brazil. The company supplies materials for waterproof sheets, panels, steering wheels and interior components for the automotive sector.