Bolstering PolyOne’s existing portfolio of thermoset composite solutions is the acquisition of Gordon Composites, which develops high strength profiles and laminates for use in vertical and crossbow archery, sports and recreation equipment, prosthetics, and office furniture systems.

The second acquired business, Polystrand, is a leader in continuous reinforced thermoplastic composite technology, a material that delivers high strength and lightweight characteristics of composites, further enhanced with the design flexibility to form more complex shapes. Current application usage includes materials for the aerospace, transportation, outdoor and security and protection markets. Both acquired businesses will join PolyOne’s existing portfolio of complementary solutions in a new platform to be called PolyOne Advanced Composites.

Craig Nikrant, president, Specialty Engineered Materials, PolyOne Corporation said;

With these acquisitions we’ve built upon our past success and portfolio of composite solutions to now serve our customers more comprehensively than ever before.

The purchase price for both businesses was $85.5 million. The price includes all assets related to the businesses, including intellectual property, trademarks and production assets. PolyOne expects the acquisitions to add $40 million to revenues and be accretive to earnings in 2017.

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Glass and carbon fibre-filled formulations retain aesthetic appeal in metal replacement and structural applications, while also offering higher stiffness, impact strength and surface finish than short-fibre filled materials.

The company, which had sales of $3.8 billion in 2014, has seen demand increase for lighter weight materials and the products being made from them. The company works closely with its customers to develop new and unique formulations to meet specific performance needs. This investment is aligned with current megatrends to better serve its customers in North America across several industries, including industrial, transportation, oil & gas, and shooting sports.

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With a purchase price of $34 million, PolyOne expects the acquisition to be accretive to earnings in 2013. Glasforms has grown sales at a 36% compound annual growth rate since 2010 and in fiscal year 2012 achieved revenues in excess of $50 million.

Glasforms makes advanced composite products for use in applications across the electrical and telecom, energy, transportation, healthcare, and security and defence markets. End products include applications for endoscopy wands, wind turbine blade stiffening components, commercial truck floors and railcar doors for light-weighting, composite utility poles to replace wood and metal, earthquake-proof bridge decks, and specialised rods used in the production of oil and gas.

Stephen D. Newlin, chairman, President and CEO of PolyOne Corporation said;

Our acquisition of Glasforms marks yet another important milestone in PolyOne’s transformation, as we further broaden our specialty solutions portfolio to include these new and adjacent technologies and applications, as with past acquisitions, we will utilize an “invest to grow” strategy and leverage PolyOne’s strengths to further enhance the consistent and strong track record of innovation, performance and growth that Glasforms has achieved in its remarkable history.”

The company will continue to operate from its Birmingham, Alabama campus, which includes six buildings and plenty of capacity for future expansion. The company employs approximately 300 associates, and its founder and president, Peter Pfaff, will continue in his leadership role along with other members of the Glasforms management team.

Glasforms will integrate as part of PolyOne’s Specialty platform, under the direction of Craig Nikrant, senior vice president and president, Global Specialty Engineered Materials.

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3D printing technology has been around for about 20 years while additive manufacturing in its current form is about 5 years old. The difference between the two processes is 3D printing is being used for making non-functioning prototypes or models while additive manufacturing is being used to create usable parts for aerospace,energy, medical and other consumer products.

It’s expected that by 2015, the sale of additive manufacturing products and services worldwide is expected to grow to $3.7 billion from $1.71 billion in 2011, according to independent consultants Wohlers Associates.

There are a number of advantages to additive manufacturing over traditional manufacturing, such as injection molding or machining, Brian Rice, head of UDRI’s Multi-Scale Composites and Polymers Division said;

Cost savings is a major benefit, because there are no moulds or tooling needed to fabricate parts. With traditional manufacturing, every time you want to make even a slight change to the design of what you are making, you have to retool or make an entirely new mould, and that gets very expensive. With additive manufacturing, you can change your design as often as you want simply by changing the design on your computer file. You can’t make complex parts with injection molding,” Rice added. “And because you can print an entire part in one piece with additive manufacturing, instead of welding or attaching separate components together as in traditional manufacturing, the finished part is stronger

The University will work with program partners, Stratasys of Eden Prairie, Minn., and PolyOne and Rapid Prototype Plus Manufacturing Inc. (RP+M) of Avon Lake, Ohio, to develop aircraft-engine components for GE Aviation – who also collaborated on the program proposal – as well as parts and components for ATK Aerospace Structures, Boeing, Goodrich, Honda, Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman.

UDRI will use part of the Third Frontier award to purchase a 3-D printer to demonstrate the technology, and UD’s School of Engineering, which recently purchase a similar machine, will provide hands-on opportunities for engineering students to become involved.

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