UPDATED: Cleveland — IDI Composites International and SMC Composites Inc. have formed a thermoset molding compound joint venture in Mexico: IDI Composites International Mexico.
“Our mission is to be the global industry leader in the thermoset space,” said Tom Flood, IDI North America vice president and general manager, in an April 19 interview at SPE Thermoset Topcon in Cleveland. “We have manufacturing ability in the major areas of the world. Mexico now is big enough that we needed a facility there.”
The JV will expand IDI's worldwide footprint, according to Noblesville, Ind.-based IDI. SMC Composites — based in Weslaco, Texas — operates a plant in Mexico City that will be used by the new JV.
Flood said global demand for its products is growing, and IDI sees the growth continuing for the foreseeable future.
The JV now will add 10,000 square feet of manufacturing space and invest in new equipment in Mexico City by the end of 2016, according to Flood.
SMC formulates and compounds thermoset composites, including bulk molding and sheet molding compounds. The firm serves customers throughout North and South America.
IDI makes BMC, SMC and structural thermoset composites based on thermoset polyester and vinyl ester for a wide range of applications. The firm, whose full name is Industrial Dielectrics Inc., operates plants in the United States, France, China and Puerto Rico. It recently completed a multimillion dollar rebuilding of its headquarters plant and offices in Noblesville.
The Noblesville project including spending $1.5 million to convert 7,000 square feet of space into a technical center that includes an expanded lab and a dedicated SMC development line, Flood said. Manufacturing improvements in Noblesville also doubled IDI's SMC manufacturing capacity there.