Speciality chemicals and materials supplier Cytec Industries (Tempe, Arizona / USA; www.cytec.com) has acquired an equity position in Penso (Coventry / UK; www.penso.co.uk), a leading engineering service, vehicle conversion and composite part manufacturing company.

The companies have also signed a joint agreement to develop fast-curing, optimised composite materials and rapid, cost-efficient composites processing technologies such as an innovative variation of hot compression moulding, to accelerate the adoption of composite parts in serial automotive applications. This agreement is based on Cytec’s resin formulation and application engineering expertise and on Penso’s experience in composite part engineering and manufacturing.

Penso, a privately held company, is partner to several European OEMs, with proprietary state-of-the-art engineering, simulation and manufacturing capabilities suited for the design and serial production of structural composite parts. It is currently investing heavily in setting up automated capabilities to produce composite parts in large volumes for transportation applications including serial automotive and rail production.

Cytec has reported a 1.6% year-on-year increase in operating profit in the third quarter of 2015 to USD 84.2m. Sales in the period fell to USD 497m, from USD 507m in Q3 2014.

In the company’s aerospace materials business, Q3 operating profit increased by 20% year-on-year to USD 54.8m, due primarily to increased volumes and selling prices. Sales in the quarter were up 4% at USD 262m thanks to increases in large commercial transport related primarily to the Boeing 787 programme, and military fixed wing related to the "Joint Strike Fighter" programme. Sales were partially offset by lower demand from the civilian rotorcraft market.

Operating profit fell in the industrial materials business to USD 1.2m from USD 6.8m in Q3 2014. Lower demand from automotive and wind energy markets led to a 19% drop in selling volumes, with sales falling 21% to USD 63.8m. In additive technologies, operating profit increased by 30% year-on-year to USD 10.8m on sales down 3% at USD 65.7m.

Shane Fleming, Cytec chairman, president and CEO, said: “I am very pleased with our third quarter performance, with earnings growth driven by aerospace materials...I am particularly excited about the ability of these businesses to translate higher sales volumes into increased operating margins. Industrial Materials continues to experience weaker market conditions versus the prior year period, but we remain excited about the longer-term growth opportunities in this segment. Overall, I remain confident in our ability to deliver our full year earnings commitment.”