Conforma Clad in New Albany

Kennametal Inc. (USA) has acquired Conforma Clad Inc. (USA) for approximately USD $65 million.

Conforma Clad manufactures highly engineered components and wear-protection solutions employing a patented low-drag metal cladding technology. Infiltration brazing is used to bond tungsten carbide to the base material of a component -- forming a hard, uniform protective cladding for protection against abrasion, erosion and corrosion. The company says only 1.5mm of Conforma Clad provides the same wear protection as 25.0mm of chrome carbide weld overlay, with an unmatched weight-to-erosion ratio.

Conforma Clad is the major supplier of radial bearings used in oil and gas drilling rigs, where its tungsten-carbide and nickel-chrome boron clad bearings last at least ten times longer than standard radial bearings. Backing it up is the claim, "To our knowledge, a Conforma Clad radial bearing has never failed down hole."

It also produces the flow diverters, tool joints, wash pipes, hangers and valve components for drilling. Extruder barrels are used by plastics manufacturers and food processors, and other engineered components are found in a wide variety of wear-sensitive industrial applications.

Started in New Port, Delaware in 1968 as Composite Sciences, Inc., the company spent 1981-89 as a part of Gould -- parent of Clevite Bearing division -- and later Imperial Clevite, finally becoming Conforma Clad in a 1989 spinoff from the Pullman Company.

Conforma Clad is located in New Albany, Indiana and employs approximately 100 people. Before the Kennametal acquisition, it was owned by a group of private investors led by Jacobsen Partners, a New York City-based private equity investment group.

Kennametal is a USD $1.8 billion (sales) corporation, employing 13,500 people worldwide. It provides metal cutting and tooling systems and is the world's second-largest cutting tool maker behind Sandvik AB (Sweden).

Jim Breisinger, President of Kennametal's Advanced Materials Solutions Group, said, "The acquisition of Conforma Clad will expand Kennametal's capabilities to provide customers superior solutions for extreme wear environments involving corrosion, erosion and abrasion. As a technology and solutions based business, Conforma Clad is very complementary to Kennametal's Advanced Materials Solutions Group's business model, markets, and materials expertise."

Kennametal representatives said Conforma Clad will most likely continue to operate as a semi-autonomous business, sharing only financial and back-office operations with Kennametal. Company President and COO Mike Harlan is expected to stay on in his current capacity.

Mr. Harlan said the acquisition will allow Conforma Clad to more proactively expand its markets outside North America. Although it has made sales overseas, most notably bearings for Russian oil drilling rigs, it has limited sales and marketing efforts outside North America. Kennametal, on the other hand, recently celebrated a turning point when sales outside North America crossed the 50% mark.




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