Hanwha Buys Azdel from Sabic, PPG
By Staff | February 2008
Hanwha Living & Creative Corp. (Forest, Va.), part of the Hanwha Group (Seoul, South Korea), has finalized the acquisition of Azdel Inc. (Lynchburg, Va.), a 50/50 joint venture of SABIC Innovative Plastics (formerly GE Plastics, Pittsfield, Mass.) and PPG Industries (Pittsburgh, Pa.). The acquisition of Azdel will enable Hanwha to expand its offering of composite and advanced material solutions for the transportation and industrial segments. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Azdel makes high-performance thermoplastic composites for interior and exterior applications in several markets, including automotive, heavy truck, recreational vehicles, industrial, and other transportation applications, including hood and door panels on GM’s Volt hybrid gas/electric concept car that made its debut a year ago (see “Related Content” at left).
“We’re thrilled to add this leading brand to our world-class portfolio of products,” says Woong Jin Choi, CEO of Hanwha. “The acquisition of Azdel is another step along our path for global expansion and will position us as a premier supplier of composite and high-performance material solutions to the transportation and industrial segments.”
Hee-Cheul Kim, who was vice president of the Hanwha Auto & Industrial Material Div., has been named CEO for Azdel. Melanie Cook, Azdel president, will remain in that role. Azdel will continue to operate from its headquarters in Lynchburg, Va., and sell its products under the Azdel brand name.
In conjunction with the transfer of ownership, Azdel has established long-term strategic supply agreements with SABIC and PPG to sustain the supply and research relationships that have existed since Azdel’s inception 20 years ago. SABIC will continue to provide thermoplastic resins to Azdel and, through a joint development agreement, continue to work with Azdel to bring new products to market. Similarly, PPG will supply fiberglass reinforcement materials to Azdel under a long-term supply agreement.
