Teijin has committed to expand its automotive capabilities globally, following the acquisition of CSP in 2017. Technology developments include Sereebo, the world's first mass -production technology for carbon fibre reinforced thermoplastic (CFRTP), and in Europe, TENAX Part via Preform (PvP). Developed by Teijin Carbon Europe, the group’s core carbon-fibres business, PvP is a material process technology that enables the efficient production of thermoset carbon fibre-reinforced plastic (CFRP). PvP is recognised as a Tier One technology by European OEMs and is in production as a structural application on a current automotive platform.

Jun Suzuki, president and CEO, Teijin said that, “We are leveraging our lightweight, strong, high-performance materials and integrated composite technologies as one of the key focuses of the transformation strategies for our medium-term management plan.” “The acquisition of Continental Structural Plastics (CSP) positioned us as a Tier One supplier of high-performance composites to the global automotive market. In July, we announced the acquisition of J.H. Ziegler GmbH (Ziegler), a leading supplier of automotive interior materials in Germany. “Now the acquisition of Inapal enables us to deliver on our promise to stakeholders to expand our technologies on a global basis, including in Europe. We will seek synergies by leveraging the business capabilities of CSP, Ziegler and Inapal to continue to grow as a supplier of multi-material components. It also enables us to demonstrate our commitment to evolve for future society as an enterprise that delivers new value.”

Finally, CSP’s European facility in Pouancé, Maine-et-Loire, France, announced that it will be installing a sheet moulding compound (SMC) line, making the company’s patented, award-winning composite material technologies readily available to customers in Europe. Teijin will continue to boost Inapal’s operations, developing expansion opportunities, investing in growth and creating value for all stakeholders, especially employees, partners and clients.

Steve Rooney, CEO of CSP said that, “The addition of Inapal positions CSP well as a global leader in the lightweight composites industry,” Also, “With this, we can truly say we are among the world’s largest suppliers of lightweight composite components to the automotive industry, we are strategically located to meet our customers’ needs, and we’re ready for the rapid changes that are taking place in the industry today.”

Teijin expects its automotive composite business sales to reach approximately EUR 1.7 billion by 2030. The company say it now has the ability to serve customers in most major regions of the world, including North America, Europe and Asia, and has established business with every major global automotive OEM.

Inapal, headquartered in Leca do Balio, Porto, Portugal, is a Tier One supplier of composite components to the automotive and heavy truck industries. The company has two manufacturing locations in Portugal serving a variety of European OEM customers including Jaguar, Land Rover, BMW, Mercedes, Volkswagen and Bentley. The company’s capabilities include Class A body panels, structural and underbody components using a variety of materials and processes, including sheet moulding compound (SMC), carbon fibre SMC, prepreg compression moulding (PCM), direct long fibre thermoplastic (D-LFT), and glass mat thermoplastic (GMT). In addition to its automotive and heavy truck business, Inapal supplies components to the heating and cooling industry, as well as passenger seating components to the bus and rail industries. The company had sales of EUR 31.9 million in 2017.

Teijin has consented to procure Inapal Plasticos, a leading automotive composite supplier in Portugal and the shares of Inapal will be purchased by Teijin Holdings Netherlands, the Teijin Group's holding company in the Netherlands. The acquisition was completed at the beginning of August 2018.