PolyOne Expands Color Portfolio; Sells Former Spartech Business

News from PolyOne Corp., Avon Lake, Ohio, this past summer have included an acquisition and a sale.

● The company acquired Mesa Industries of Phoenix, Az., a 17-year-old privately-owned supplier of both solid and liquid colorant technologies for plastic packaging, consumer products and outdoor equipment. The company operates two facilities in Phoenix and Fort Smith, Ark. The acquisition of Mesa in July was actually PolyOne’s fourth specialty color acquisition in the previous eight months.

● The company agreed to sell its Designed Structures and Solutions (DDS) business (formerly Spartech—acquired in early 2013), which included sheet, rollstock and packaging assets to private equity firm Arsenal Capital Partners. Said Robert Patterson, PolyOne’s chairman, president and CEO, “The decision to divest DSS comes after evaluating several strategic options for the business and concluding this the best course of action for our customers, associates and shareholders….Looking back at the Spartech acquisition, there were a number of positive value-creating elements on the deal. These include the color concentrate and formulation assets that have seamlessly integrated into the other segments of PolyOne, as well as the beginning of our IQ Design services which are now broadly used across the entire country.” Completion of the deal is expected in third quarter.