Ascend Performance Materials European footprint BTP acquisition - Arhive

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Ascend Performance Materials gains European footprint with BTP acquisition   Ascend Performance Materials European footprint BTP acquisition

by: Norbert Sparrow

Ascend Performance Materials European footprint BTP acquisitionAscend Performance Materials (Houston, TX), which describes itself as the largest fully integrated producer of nylon 6,6 resin, announced today the purchase of Britannia Techno Polymer (BTP), an engineering plastics compounder based in Tilburg, Netherlands.

This is a big step for us, President and CEO Phil McDivitt told PlasticsToday during a phone interview. “It’s our first production facility outside of North America. As our European business has grown, it became necessary to have a manufacturing footprint in Europe,” said McDivitt.Ascend Performance Materials European footprint BTP acquisition

Ascend Performance Materials operates six production facilities in the United States and maintains an office in Shanghai.Ascend Performance Materials European footprint BTP acquisition

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Founded in 2006, BTP specializes in nylon 6, 66 and 66/6 copolymer, ABS, PC, and PP compounds. Prior to the acquisition, Ascend had a long, fruitful relationship with Ascend, said McDivitt.Ascend Performance Materials European footprint BTP acquisition

“Even before Ascend, when it was Solutia, we had a great relationship with BTP founder and CEO Andy Leigh. The company has been our primary source for manufacturing in Europe since 2006,” said McDivitt.Ascend Performance Materials European footprint BTP acquisition

 

Phil McDivitt and Andrew Leigh, Ascend Performance Materials

Phil McDivitt, CEO (left), and Andrew Leigh, Director of Compounding Technology at Ascend Performance Materials.Solutia Inc. was spun off Monsanto’s Chemicals Division, which included the production of nylon 6,6 in its portfolio, in 1997. Private investment firm SK Capital Partners purchased Solutia’s Integrated Nylon business in 2009 and established Ascend Performance Materials.

BTP’s employees will transition immediately to Ascend, and Leigh will join Ascend’s global management team as Director of Compounding Technology.

During the call, Scott Rook, Senior Vice President, Nylon, provided an update on the force majeure on nylon 6,6 polymers the company declared following a fire at its Pensacola, FL, plant. Production came back on line July 27, said Rook. Deliveries slowed down, he added, but Ascend is quickly ramping back up.Ascend Performance Materials European footprint BTP acquisition

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