Ascend Expands Global Footprint with Acquisition of Italian Polyamide and Masterbatch Suppliers

Ascend Performance Materials announced today that it has completed its acquisition of Italian firms Poliblend and Esseti Plast. With this purchase, Ascend expands its portfolio into other engineered plastics, recycled resins, and masterbatches, said the materials supplier based in Houston.

“Poliblend and Esseti Plast complement our current business exceptionally well,” said John Saunders, Ascend’s Vice President of Europe. “Our experience as a large-scale, fully integrated polyamide 66 manufacturer coupled with Poliblend’s portfolio of recycled and virgin PA66, PA6, and POM, and Esseti Plast’s extensive masterbatch operations will offer our customers more choices for quality, high-performance materials on a global scale,” said Saunders.

The purchase provides Ascend with its second production facility in Europe, complementing a plant in Tilburg, Netherlands. The acquisition also includes Poliblend Deutschland, a distribution facility located in Germany.

“This acquisition, coupled with our new compounding facility in China, will allow us to serve our customers locally around the globe,” commented Phil McDivitt, Ascend President and CEO. “We now have production, product development, and testing capabilities in North America, Asia, and Europe, giving us additional scale to respond to our customers. Furthermore, a product developed for a customer in Europe can be quickly replicated and produced across the globe to meet shifting supply chain needs,” added McDivitt.

First announced in February 2020, the acquisition was put on hold as COVID-19 cases spiked in Italy and then in the United States. “I am extremely grateful to Poliblend’s leadership and our team in Europe for navigating unprecedented circumstances to ensure this deal closed,” said McDivitt. “The safety and health of our people is our highest priority.”

Earlier this summer in July, Ascend filed its first FDA 510(k) submission for its patent-pending Acteev technology in a medical device — a surgical mask under a new brand called Acteev Biodefend. Lab tests showed that Acteev materials achieve greater than 99% efficacy at deactivating bacteria, fungi, and viruses, including SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.