Northstar Elastomers has ambitious plans for growth

MINNEAPOLIS—Terry Korupp has negotiated an unconventional path to becoming president of a custom mixer that has roots dating back more than five decades.

An experienced commercial industry real estate broker by trade, Korupp said he was fascinated by an opportunity to acquire the property and its mixing assets. Four years and several court battles with a onetime partner later, Korupp and three other employees are committed to reviving the now-named Northstar Elastomer L.L.C.

The firm manufactures custom blended base rubber compounds and additives used in the manufacture of caulks, sealants, adhesives, coatings, tapes, asphalt and other products. It dates back to the 1960s, when it was called Rubber Research Elastomerics. It suffered some hard times, according to its website, culminating in 2012 when it was purchased by Minnesota Elastomers. Not long after, the company split again and re-emerged as Northstar.

Today, the Minneapolis-based company still specializes in custom polymer mixing as well as the Tirecycle technology, a type of custom polymer process that converts used tires and other rubber wastes into a raw material the company said can be converted into tire tread and other thermoset and thermoplastic compounds

“I didn't dive in blindly,” said Korupp, who operates the company along with Plant Manager Mark Dupree, a 30-year employee; Jim Judson, sales; and Mike Fischer, technical sales. “I have friends and relatives who are chemical engineers, and a couple worked in rubber, and another worked with Goodyear for many years. They all looked at various things and gave it a good bill of health.

“It just needed to be run well.”

The 20,000-sq.-ft. facility offers nine mixers that can handle mixing, masticating, dispersing, dissolving and blending very high viscosity materials, with batch size ranging from 500 pounds to 10,000 pounds.

For more than three decades, the company has used a process that evolved from the varnish and glue industries called mechanochemistry to manufacture a series of inter-polymerized liquid elastomers, which offer tackiness with high elongation.

According to the executives, the multi-stage process relies on solid phase interactions with energy input from high sheer. It often has a series of equilibrium stages with key raw material additions.

The IPLE can be used in a range of systems from original equipment manufacturers/fabricators to traditional adhesive, sealant, caulk and coating manufacturers.

One of the niche markets for the company is waterproofing. The product the company produces, Korupp said, is popular because “it's got the high elasticity but at same time great tact and does not dry out. It is used in all kinds of caulks and seals” used underground, he said, and it is effective in temperatures between -70° to 450° Fahrenheit.

Because of the success of that, the Northstar executives say they have produced an offshoot adhesive product with a very high molecular weight that is extremely strong, does not dry out, is highly elastic and can withstand temperatures of up to 800°F. The product has potential in aerospace applications where it can withstand a flash of heat and maintain tact, according to Dupree.

“It all comes down to butyl rubber, which is the foundation,” he said.

“This gives us a leg up on the market, but at the same time, it takes time to get there,” said Korupp, who said the product has been in development for 18 months. “You don't get there overnight. You have to have it working in your mind, (and) a customer has to be receptive to it, even if they're the ones who triggered (the idea), and they have to think it's a good idea before you proceed and start the testing procedure.”

Northstar is seeking business opportunities for its Tirecycle technology, which produces rubber that can be used in standard rubber compounds, mats, brake pedals and retread tires, among other things. Some of the material is manufactured in Minneapolis, while some of the scrap compound is shipped to other manufacturers, who use it for other purposes.

“All the ingredients go in one pipe and come out the other. The process doesn't generate any waste, there's not a high gas throw-off, and no scrap product comes out,” Korupp said. “There is no environmental disturbance.”

With the price of natural rubber low and the mining industry struggling, Korupp said the market for Tirecycle is flat. But he sees opportunities abroad, where recycling standards are much stricter. He is pursuing inquiries from several countries, including India, South Africa, Indonesia and Germany.

“We need partners in Europe that we can work with, and begin our own established business and reputation,” he said.

The company said its products serve a variety of markets, including hot melt adhesives; pressure sensitive tapes; marine, oil well and electric cable insulation; caulking sealants; back bedding for insulated glass; moisture barrier coatings; high temperature resistant pressure sensitive adhesives; modified asphalt (roofing); and shingle tab adhesive.

As Northstar looks to rebuild its business, it is working with Columbia Consulting L.L.C. of Brooklyn, Mich., as a consultant and sales representative in the Midwest. D.N. Lukens Inc. of Westboro, Mass., serves as Northstar's distributor in the Northeast. Korupp said the firm is seeking a distributor in the Southeast.

The executive hopes to grow the company five-fold by the end of the year and 50-fold in the not-too-distant future. “We're swimming uphill,” Korupp said, “but we're making progress.”