CARY, N.C.—Lord Corp. plans to sell its Aeroglaze and Chemglaze product lines to Groupe Socomore S.A.
It also will license its UltraConductive lightning strike protection products for worldwide sales to Socomore, headquartered in Vannes, France.
While Lord is divesting the Aeroglaze and Chemglaze lines, the Cary-based company will continue to manufacture both for Socomore through a toll manufacturing agreement, according to a Lord spokeswoman.
The acquisition of the Aeroglaze and Chemglaze product lines is expected to close at the end of September. Lord said the transaction will not impact the company's work force. Financial details were not disclosed.
Both product lines will become part of Socomore subsidiary Dysol Inc., which is based in Fort Worth, Texas, where it operates two plants, the spokeswoman said.
Dysol, which was purchased by Socomore in 2013, is currently combining the two operations into one facility. That project is expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2017, she said.
Socomore operates another wholly owned North American subsidiary in Boucherville, Quebec, called MagChem Inc., which the company purchased in 2011.
Lord is selling the product lines and entering into the licensing pact with Socomore to focus on and continue to build the company's core businesses, according to Ed Auslander, president and CEO of Lord.
“We continually assess our product portfolio to ensure it is aligned with our strategy,” he said.
Socomore CEO Frederic Lescure said the agreement with Lord “is an important milestone in Socomore's international growth strategy, and we are enthusiastic about this partnership with one of the industry's leaders that reinforces our aerospace product portfolio with a high value added coating technology.”
Formed in 1972, Socomore is a global specialty chemicals provider. The firm operates 13 subsidiaries worldwide, employs about 210 and had sales in the $48 million range in 2015.
It designs and manufactures its products for a number of industries, providing critical surface preparation, processing and protection for companies in the commercial aviation, defense, energy and industrial markets.
Socomore has a long history of doing business in North America, where it manufactures products for major original equipment manufacturers and MROs, Lord said.