Mitsubishi Plastics Inc. of Tokyo has acquired Quadrant Group, a global producer of shapes based on high-performance plastic resins, for an undisclosed price.
Lenzburg, Switzerland-based Quadrant “complements MPI's product lines,” Steven Yurich said in a May 29 news release. Yurich has been named president and CEO of Quadrant.
In the same release, Quadrant executive Glen Steady said the partnership is an opportunity “to better serve our international customer base by providing an even broader mix of plastic technologies.” Steady is global CEO of Quadrant's Engineering Plastic Products unit.
Quadrant makes shapes used in machined parts for markets that include food processing, semiconductors, aerospace and electronics. The shapes are based on ultrahigh-molecular-weight polyethylene, nylon, acetal and similar high-performance materials.
Quadrant has annual sales of about $750 million. The firm was founded in 1933 and employs more than 2,400 at 40 production plants worldwide, including six in the United States. The firm's U.S. headquarters is in Reading, Pa.
Quadrant officials in Reading could not be reached for comment.
Mitsubishi had owned a minority stake in Quadrant since 2009. At that time, Mitsubishi and several Quadrant executives spent almost $150 million to buy one-third of the firm. The two firms also had operated Japanese plastic shapes maker Nippon Polypenco Ltd. as a joint venture for several years.
Mitsubishi Plastics' broad range of businesses include injection molding, film extrusion, compounding and mold making. The firm has annual sales of about $3.8 billion and is part of Japanese industrial conglomerate Mitsubishi Group.