LANGLEY, British Columbia—Epic Polymer Systems Corp expects to double its sales within 18 months after completing the acquisition of BC Rubber Supply Ltd.
The Jan. 2 deal combines companies that manufacture engineered elastomers, rubber and cast polyurethane products for clients throughout North America, especially Western Canada and the Pacific coast of the U.S., according to Greg Fraser, Epic Polymer president and general manager. Epic has operations in Woodland, Wash., and Langley, while BC Supply has a 15,000-sq.-ft. factory six blocks away from Epic in Langley.
Fraser said there will be no change in the manufacturing facilities, and the company will continue to operate BC Rubber's Langley site.
All product lines and markets from BC Rubber will be served under the Epic Polymer brand. Fraser expects most of BC Rubber's 20 employees will remain with the company. They will join about 25 staff members from Epic Polymer, and the executive said six to 12 additional personnel—mostly in sales development, account management, customer service and manufacturing—will be hired during the next 12 months.
The two private companies didn't release the terms of the sale. Epic Polymer itself has grown by 40 percent over the last 12 months, Fraser said. "We're trying to integrate the two companies as quickly as possible right now and conclude the operations so that we can move forward with our business," Fraser said. "There was a lot of synergy between the two companies."
Epic Polymer specializes in polyurethanes and BC Supply focuses on natural and synthetic rubbers, and that means the combined company now can operate as a whole service provider of its entire range of engineered elastomer products, Fraser said. Its customers primarily are in industries such as mining, oil and gas, and civil construction.
Epic Polymer designs and manufactures engineered elastomers, cast polyurethanes and machined mechanical plastic parts; engineered parts such as polyure-thane wear liners, lagged rollers, bumpers and vibration pads; and mechanical parts such as bearings, sprockets and gears.
Fraser bought majority control of Epic Polymer two years ago and has led the company on a revitalization path during that period. The company's recent growth has been a result of an enhanced focus on customer values and more effective anticipation of customer expectations, he said.
The expanded company will help customers with in-house engineering services and newly engineered products, he said.
Epic Polymer now will have a great level of crossover services as well, allowing it to expand its services in design and fabrication, including structural steel components, Fraser said.
"Both companies are manufacturers at heart and we can expand our ability to provide casting equipment infrastructure and compression molding infrastructure, which can mean extra revenue," he said.
The acquisition of BC Rubber also will allow Epic Polymer to become the largest warehouse of certain runner and elastomer products on the West Coast of North America, Fraser said.
The current Epic Polymer management team also includes Bill Fulton, vice president of business development, and Kris Fraser, Greg Fraser's brother, who is vice president of manufacturing operations. In the coming years, Fraser plans to look for other acquisition targets in the U.S. and Canada as part of its growth strategy.
The company also intends to invest in and expand its rubber and polymer product lines. "What is key for our clients is increased access to mechanical design and engineering capabilities and the ability for our customers to quick time consultation on application engineering," Fraser said. "Our improved capabilities help to bring more solutions to eliminate our customers' downtime."