InterviewUS Syrgis could seek more acquisitions

19 October 2007 21:18  [Source: ICIS news]

By Clay Boswell

NEW YORK (ICIS news)--US fine and specialty chemicals company Syrgis Performance Products will focus on organic growth to achieve its expansion goals while considering additional acquisitions chief executive Andy Harris said on Friday.

The comments follow last month's deal to buy Norac’s organic peroxide business.

Early this year, Harris said that the group’s goal was to double its revenues within two years. He reaffirmed that goal on Friday.

“We’re on track to do that, and we want to stay the course,” he said.

Annual revenues for the Norac business, renamed Syrgis Performance Initiators, are expected to exceed $50m (€35m). The combined revenues of the company's other businesses - H&S, Lycus and P Chem - are about $60m.

“We are primarily focusing on organic growth, taking care of our customers first and foremost,” he said. “And then, additional to that, if there’s further value we can bring to them, or more diversification or strength we can bring to the group through acquisitions, we will look at those opportunities as well.”

Syrgis would consider acquiring companies that bring entirely new markets to the group; strategic acquisitions similar to existing business that bring more economies of scale, capacity or market share; or “bolt-on” acquisitions that would complement an existing business by bringing a new capability or product line into the offering.

Harris stressed the importance of diversification to the company's strategy, explaining that it helps deliver more consistent year-over-year performance.

For example, whereas important segments of the organic peroxides business - housing and marine - are currently slow, the oil and gas market is booming, he said. P Chem, which serves that market, is reaping the benefits.

Added value is the other keystone of the company's strategy for the same reason.

“When a market goes down, niche specialty products are one of the last places customers look to cut back on because they add so much value and make a difference,” Harris explained. “And when the market is going up, they have the money to add value where they didn’t before.”

The Norac acquisition fulfils both criteria, he pointed out, providing “exceptional quality products that add tremendous value to their customers through the end-use application expertise” as well as “new end-use markets, new products and raw materials for greater diversification.

“So, from an overall business perspective, it provides more opportunities to deliver year-over-year growth in a more consistent, reliable fashion, especially if you look at some of the uncertainties over the next five years,” he said.

Syrgis Performance Initiators will invest in R&D, process improvement and staffing. Syrgis has facilities in Helena, Arkansas, and Sweden.

($1.00 = €0.70)

By: Clay Boswell
+1 713 525 2653

< previous article(VIDEO – ICIS news Americas Lunchtime Bulletin 29 Oct 2009)

For the latest chemical news, data and analysis that directly impacts your business sign up for a free trial to ICIS news - the breaking online news service for the global chemical industry.

Get the facts and analysis behind the headlines from our market leading weekly magazine: sign up to a free trial to ICIS Chemical Business.

Printer Friendly