Materials firm RTP Co. has acquired the Zeotherm-brand thermoplastic vulcanizate product line from Zeon Chemicals LP.
The deal — completed in May but announced in an Aug. 6 news release — includes all products sold globally under the Zeotherm TPV name, officials with Winona, Minn.-based RTP said in the release.
The Zeotherm acquisition "is just the latest step in our rapidly expanding thermoplastic elastomer business," TPE General Manager Todd Gummersbach added in the release.
"The Zeotherm TPVs expand our product line, which includes compounds based on SEBS [styrenic block copolymers], TPV, thermoplastic urethane, POE [polyolefin elastomers], COPE [copolyether-esters], and COPA [polyether-block-amides], making it one of the broadest TPE product portfolios in the industry," he said.
RTP officials declined to provide any other details on the deal.
Zeotherm TPV products offer continuous use performance at 150° C, while withstanding long-term exposure to engine oils and lubricant greases, RTP officials said that level can't be achieved with other TPEs or copolyesters. Zeotherm TPV also bonds well to nylon substrates in overmolding applications, they added.
"For design engineers with applications that require high performance in potentially harsh environments, such as under-the-hood automotive parts or harsh industrial applications, Zeotherm TPVs can be an excellent material choice," Gummersbach said.
Louisville, Ky.-based Zeon Chemicals is a global producer of specialty elastomers, polymers and specialty chemicals with annual sales of almost $3 billion. The business is a unit of industrial form Zeon Corp. of Tokyo.
RTP is a global compounder that operates 20 plants worldwide, making compounds based on more than 60 different engineering resin systems.