PGI Specialty Materials is continuing its aggressive growth strategy. The Charlotte, NC-based nonwovens producer, who is currently planning an initial public offering, has announced that it has reached an agreement to acquire Dounor SAS, a French manufacturer of spunbond and spunmelt materials used in hygiene, healthcare and industrial applications. The acquisition of Dounor is expected to help accelerate the growth of PGI’s specialty materials business in Europe, particularly in hygiene applications. Last year, PGI announced it would significantly expand its European operation with spunmelt investments in Spain as well as an expansion to its carded business in Italy.

Based in Neuville en Ferrain, France, Dounor operates six spunbond/spunmelt lines at one site, where it makes 40,000 tons of nonwovens per year. Situated near major European ports, Dounor serves all of Europe, where 85% of its business is done, as well as  customers in the Middle East and North Africa, where the remaining 15% of sales are conducted, according to the company. Its sales are estimated at about $100 million per year.
 

“Dounor has grown into one of the top providers in materials for adult care and other hygiene applications in the European region, making them an ideal addition to our business,” says PGI CEO J. Joel Hackney, Jr. “This acquisition will enable us to better serve our customers in the hygiene market, particularly in northern Europe, and we are excited about the new opportunities this will create for our growth.”

PGI has been growing aggressively in recent years, acquiring industrial nonwovens producer Fiberweb in 2013 and spunmelt specialist Providencia in 2014 and investing significantly at its exsiting sites around the world.

PGI expects to close the acquisition of Dounor in the second quarter of 2015.

“We are honored to join the PGI family,” says Christophe Willot, president, Dounor. “Doing so means we join a leading provider of specialty materials in the world, and becoming a part of this growing company will allow us to provide our innovative products to a broader set of customers in the markets PGI serves.”