In the second quarter of 2021, Lydall’s net sales of $221.7 million increased by $75.6 million, or 51.7% from the second quarter of 2020. Net of $9.8 million of favorable FX and $3.8 million related to divestitures, sales were up 47.4% organically compared to prior year. Sales were down $5.4 million sequentially, primarily on weaker sales in Thermal Acoustical Solutions (TAS) partially offset by seasonal strength in Technical Nonwovens (TNW) geosynthetics sales.

“Over the past year, Lydall has gone through an incredible transformation proving our flexibility and responsiveness in the face of the Covid pandemic. The Lydall team continued to deliver strong results in the second quarter, executing on our strategic roadmap and leveraging our focused portfolio to take advantage of a period of broader economic confidence,” says Sara A. Greenstein, president and chief executive officer.

“Our Performance Materials (PM) business saw continued strong demand in specialty filtration led by higher sales of fine fiber meltblown media as well as sealing solutions which benefited from favorable trends in transportation, agricultural, and construction end markets,” comments Greenstein.

PM sealing and advanced solutions products were up 49.5% and specialty filtration sales grew 14.9%. “The PM team commissioned additional fine fiber meltblown capacity at our Rochester, NH, and St. Rivalain, France, facilities, ahead of schedule and under budget,” she adds.

In the Thermal Acoustical Solutions (TAS) segment, parts sales grew 119.5% from prior year which was heavily impacted by Covid related automotive facility shutdowns. Compared to the first quarter parts sales were down 17.7%. TAS volumes were impacted by semiconductor shortages affecting global automotive production, but the team rapidly adjusted to changing customer requirements to mitigate the profitability impacts.

Lydall’s Technical Nonwovens segment saw sales growth of 39.4% from prior year as industrial end markets continued to recover from Covid-19 related slowdowns last year. Greenstein adds, “The TNW business continues to build healthy backlog as industrial activity strengthens, delivering sequential sales growth of 17.5% while expanding adjusted EBITDA over 40%.”