History

Essentra's strong competitive position in the various international markets within which it operates has been developed through a combination of organic growth and acquisition activity.

A chronology of major events in the history of Essentra is set out below:

• 
  2022
  • December
    Sale of Filters division to a wholly owned subsidiary of Centaury Management Limited for an enterprise value of approximately £262.1m
    
    Acquisition of of Wixroyd Holdings Limited, a leading UK supplier of industrial parts for the engineering sector
  • October
    Sale of Packaging division to Mayr-Melnhof Group, a leading producer of carton board and folding cartons based in Austria, for a cash consideration of £312 million, on a cash-free, debt-free basis.
• 
  2021
  • October
    Announcement of strategic goal to become a pure play Components business
    
    Strategic reviews of Filters and Packaging divisions launched
  • August
    Acquisition of Hengzhu an access hardware manufacturer and distributor in China operating from a Yichun, Jiangx.
• 
  2020
  • September
    Acquisition of 3C! Packaging, Inc. a leading designer and manufacturer of custom folding cartons, printed literature, foil and flexible packaging and labels focused on the pharmaceuticals and healthcare sectors, headquartered in North Carolina, USA.
  • April
    Establishment of Filters JV in China, China Tobacco Essentra (Xiamen) Filters Co., Ltd’.
• 
  2019
  • September
    Acquisition of Nekicesa Packaging S.L, one of the leading converters of folding cartons supplying the pharmaceutical end-market in Spain with two well-invested facilities in Madrid.
  • August
    Announcement of simplification of the Company’s portfolio:
    1) Specialist Components division dissolved by the end of Q3 2019.
    2) The remaining two businesses in Specialist Components division, Tear Tapes and Industrial Supply (Reid), absorbed into the Filters and Components divisions respectively owing to the complementary nature of the end-markets served.
  • July
    Divestment of the Card Solutions business in the Specialist Components division to Barcodes, Inc.
  • June
    Divestment of the Extrusion business in the Specialist Components division to Inter Primo A/S for EUR 16.2m.
    
    Divestment of the Speciality Tapes business in the Specialist Components division to OpenGate Capital for US$77m.
    
    Acquisition of Innovative Components Inc. and Componentes Innovadores Limitada. Headquartered in Chicago, US, Innovative Components is one of the leading manufacturers and distributors of knobs, pins and handles in North America for a broad range of end-markets.
  • March
    Acquisition of the 49% minority interest in the Filters joint venture, Essentra (MEA) Pte. Ltd, being the holding company of Essentra FZE which undertakes the Company’s Filters activities in Dubai.
  • January
    Divestment of the Pipe Protection Technologies (PPT) business in the Specialist Components Division to National Oilwell Varco, Inc. for US$48.0m (approximately £38m).
• 
  2018
  • July
    Acquisition of Hertila, a leading manufacturer and distributor of caps and plugs and other plastic components, based in Sweden. The acquisition expands the Components division’s product range and adds manufacturing capacity in Scandinavia, complementing Essentra’s existing facility in Sweden.
    
    Divestment of Swiftbrook, Ireland in the Packaging division, a paper merchant based in Dublin, that serves customers in end-markets such as office supplies, commercial print and pharmaceutical.
• 
  2017
  • December
    Acquisition of Micro Plastics, based in Arkansas, US, a leading manufacturer and distributor of nylon fasteners and other plastic components for a wide range of industrial end-markets - including general industrial, automotives and white goods.
• 
  2016
  • August
    Agreement to divest Porous Technologies business for £220m, a leading developer and manufacturer of custom vapour- and fluid-handling components engineered from three material technologies: bonded and non-woven fibre, polyurethane foam and porous plastic.
• 
  2014
  • November
    Agreement to acquire 100% of the share capital of Clondalkin Specialist Packaging Division for US$455m, a leading global provider of a broad suite of specialist secondary packaging solutions for the pharmaceutical and health & personal care industries.
  • September
    Agreement to acquire 100% of the share capital of the major operating subsidiaries of Abric Berhad, based in Malaysia, a global leading manufacturer and distributor of security sealing products and solutions for use in a diverse range of growing end-markets.
  • April
    Acquisition of Kelvindale Products Pty Ltd, based in Australia, a leading manufacturer and distributor of an extensive range of plastic protection and finishing products.
• 
  2013
  • December
    Acquisition of Mesan Kilit A.S., the leading Turkish manufacturer and distributor of a range of locks, hinges, latches and hardware accessories for use in a wide variety of attractive growth end-markets.
  • December
    Strategic expansion of activities in India, with the formal opening of a new purpose-built, standalone facility in Bangalore with the capacity to accommodate manufacturing, warehousing and the appropriate commercial infrastructure for all Essentra's businesses (excluding the JV in Filter Products).
  • November
    Acquisition of Dakota Packaging Limited, a well-positioned supplier of printed, folding and litho-laminate cartons to the pharmaceutical and healthcare end-markets in Ireland.
  • June
    Filtrona plc announces that it will rebrand as Essentra plc with effect from 26 June.
  • March
    Agreement to acquire 100% of the share capital of Contego Healthcare Limited for £160m, a leading pan-European specialist business providing a range of innovative print, packaging and support services to the pharmaceutical and healthcare markets from operational sites across Europe.
  • February
    The formation of a joint venture with BBM Bommidala Group ("BBM") in the United Arab Emirates, to manufacture filters.
  • February
    Acquisition of Ulinco Components AB, based in Sweden, a leading distributor of plastic protection and finishing products, hardware and specialist masking solutions in the Nordic region.
• 
  2012
  • June
    Acquisition of Lymtech Scientific, based in Westover, Massachusetts, a manufacturer and distributor of porous speciality wiping materials used within the clean environments increasingly required by the medical, life science, electronic and industrial markets.
  • April
    Acquisition of Jae Yong Co.Ltd, based in South Korea, a globally recognised manufacturer of reservoirs, nibs, and tubes for the writing instruments industry.
  • February
    Acquisition of Securit World Ltd, based in the UK, a distributor of desktop personal identification ("ID") card systems, providing printers, software and associated accessories across a wide range of growing end-markets, including Trade Distribution, Education, Government, Health and General Industry.
• 
  2011
  • December
    Acquisition of Richco, Inc, based in Chicago, a leading international designer, manufacturer and distributor of engineered plastic and elastomeric solutions for fastening and cable management applications.
  • August
    Acquisition of Reid Supply, based in Muskegon, Michigan, a leading distributor of standard industrial components to a vast range of markets and customers via catalogues.
• 
  2010
  • November
    Acquisition of Stera Tape, based in Bridlington, a manufacturer of high quality speciality adhesive tapes
  • March
    Acquisition of BP Labels, based in Cardiff, a manufacturer of high quality, creative and secure self adhesive labels.
• 
  2009
  • March
    Disposal of Filtrona's North American Plastic Profile and Sheet business
• 
  2008
  • October
    Acquisition of Lendell Inc Manufacturing based in Michigan, a producer of speciality hydrophilic foam products, following the acquisition Filtrona Fibertec changed its name to Filtrona Porous Technologies
• 
  2007
  • June
    Disposal of Globalpack its Brazilian consumer packaging business
  • May
    Acquisition of Duraco Inc, based in Chicago, a leading provider of adhesive coated products to many industries
• 
  2005
  • June
    Filtrona demerged from Bunzl plc and became a separately listed company on the London Stock Exchange
• 
  2004
  • Acquisition of the Skiffy Group, based in the Netherlands, which provides expertise in the manufacture and supply of small nylon parts for protection and finishing applications
• 
  2003
  • Acquisition of Baumgartner Fibertec, a Swiss based business engaged in the development, manufacture and supply of cigarette filters and writing instrument reservoirs
• 
  2000
  • Acquisition of Davidson Plastics, a profile extrusion operation located in Washington State and Pexco, a specialist medical tubing extruder located in Massachusetts. Expansion of MSI into the Latin American market by opening a manufacturing facility in Veracruz
• 
  1998
  • Acquisition of Enitor, a leading Dutch extruder
• 
  1997
  • Acquisition of American Filtrona Corporation which delivered significant extra filter and bonded fibre technology and an extrusion business
• 
  1996
  • Acquisition of Payne and entry into the self-adhesive tear tape market
• 
  1994
  • Acquisition of MSI Oilfields Products a market leader in OCTG thread protectors and pipe protection products
• 
  1955
  • Formation of Moss Plastic Parts, Moss manufactures and distributes protection and finishing products for a wide range of industries and applications
• 
  1950s
  • Filtrona Corporation was formed in the United States
• 
  1940s
  • The Austrian business Bunzl commenced its manufacturing operations in Jarrow, United Kingdom