Emerald Performance Materials, Formerly Certain Polymer and Performance Materials Businesses of The Lubrizol Corporation, Has Been Formed

CLEVELAND, May 4 /PRNewswire/ -- Emerald Performance Materials, Inc. ("Emerald"), formerly doing business as certain polymer and performance materials business units of The Lubrizol Corporation , today announced that the Company has been formed in conjunction with its acquisition by an affiliate of Sun Capital Partners, Inc. ("Sun Capital"), a leading private investment firm specializing in leveraged buyouts and investments of market-leading companies.

Emerald's polymer and performance materials businesses serve niche consumer and industrial end-market applications. The Company's broad product range is used in food and beverage, personal care, textiles, paper, tires and industrial rubber, adhesives, and diverse other applications. Included in the sale are six manufacturing sites located in Illinois, North Carolina, Ohio, Washington, and Wyoming with approximately 625 employees. Emerald plans to establish its headquarters in Northeast Ohio. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Tom Holleran, President and CEO of Emerald Performance Materials, Inc., stated, "In the past, our team has been passionately focused on our businesses as part of a very fine larger corporation. We believe that by operating as a stand alone company, together with the world-class financial and operating expertise of Sun Capital Partners, Inc., we will be well positioned to capitalize fully on a wide range of new growth opportunities. We are truly excited about our future as Emerald Performance Materials."

The operations of Emerald Performance Materials consist of six business units:

Antioxidants and Accelerators ("AOA"): One of the largest North American producers of polymer additives and only producer of TMQ. Antioxidant additives and process accelerators improve the performance of rubber, lubricants and plastics and enhance the processing of rubber compounds. Antidegradants are used to prevent oxidative degradation in rubber products and provide thermal oxidative stability in motor oil and other lubricants. Leading AOA brand names include Cure-Rite(R) and Good-Rite(R). Other tradenames marketed globally include Stalite and Superlite.

Dyes and Dispersions: Produces dyes and lakes to add color to food, cosmetic, and pharmaceutical products. It is the largest producer of Acid Blue 9 dyes and the second largest North American producer of food, drug, and cosmetic dyes. Also produces pigment dispersions for graphic arts and coating applications. It markets its dye and dispersion products under the Hilton Davis (R) trade name.

Fine Chemicals: Largest domestic producer of benzoic acid, benzaldehyde, and their derivatives for a broad group of food and beverage, flavor and fragrance, pharmaceutical, consumer product, and industrial customers. Marketed under the Kalama(TM) and K-Flex(TM) trade names.

Foam Control and Silicones: Produces foam control additives and silicone- based products for a broad range of applications. Foam Control additives are used to improve product performance and production throughput. The silicone product line includes silicone emulsions, functional fluids and reactive fluids used in diverse applications. A broad range of technically advanced foam control and silicone products, including those with a large number of certifications for food applications, such as Kosher, Halal, FDA, and HACCP are sold under numerous brand names including Masil (R) for defoamer products and Masilwax (TM) for silicone products.

Glyoxal and Auxiliaries: The largest U.S. producer of glyoxal and the only integrated producer of glyoxal resins. These products are used in the paper and textiles industries to improve wet strength, impart wrinkle resistance, and control shrinkage. Carolina Chemical, the new name of this business unit, is also a manufacturer of sulfated oils, water repellents and waxes for a variety of applications.

Specialty Polymers: Specialty Polymers consists of two product lines: reactive liquid polymers ("RLP") and nitrile emulsions ("Nitrile"). RLP is a unique technology used to improve the toughness, flexibility, adhesion, and impact resistance of thermoset resin systems. RLP is used in technically challenging applications such as structural and engineering adhesives for aerospace, transportation, and electronics. This group has historically marketed its RLP and Nitrile products under the Hycar(R) brand. The new company will be rebranding these products.

About Emerald Performance Materials, Inc.

Emerald Performance Materials is a leading producer of polymers and performance materials that serve niche industrial end-market applications including the food and beverage, automotive, textiles and paper, personal care and household products, aerospace, and defense industries. Emerald sells globally-recognized branded products such as Kalama, CureRite(R), Hilton Davis(R), Masil(R), and Masilwax(R), and others to over 2,000 customers including many marquee industrial and consumer companies such as 3M, Archer- Daniel-Midland, BASF, Goodyear, Kimberly-Clark, PepsiCo, and Procter & Gamble.

About Sun Capital Partners, Inc.

Sun Capital Partners, Inc. is a leading private investment firm focused on leveraged buyouts, equity, debt, and other investments in market-leading companies that can benefit from its in-house operating professionals and experience. Sun Capital affiliates have invested in and managed more than 115 companies worldwide with combined sales in excess of $30.0 billion since Sun Capital's inception in 1995. Sun Capital has offices in Boca Raton, Los Angeles, New York, London, and Shenzhen.