Paint and Coatings Industry News

Main News Page

Polycorp Named a ‘Best Managed’ Firm

Wednesday, March 21, 2012

More items for Coating Materials

Protective linings maker Polycorp Ltd. has been named one of Canada’s 50 Best Managed Companies in a new ranking.

Polycorp was the only coatings industry company to make this year’s list, sponsored by Deloitte, CIBC Commercial Banking, the National Post /Financial Post and Queen’s School of Business.

Polycorp Ltd.

Polycorp Ltd. produces more than 80 types of protective polymer linings for the North American market.

The award, established in 1993, recognizes excellence in Canadian-owned and -managed companies with revenues over $10 million. Hundreds of companies compete for the award; recipients are listed alphabetically.

Judging by an independent panel is based on how companies address various business challenges, including new technologies, globalization, leadership, developing core competencies, and hiring the best talent to facilitate and support growth.

Linings Leader

Established in 1996 as the successor to BF Goodrich Engineering Products of Canada, Polycorp designs and manufactures engineered polymer products for three major applications:

• Protective linings for industrial markets;

• Grinding mill liners for mining; and

• Track Encapsulation Systems for the transportation sector.

The privately held company manufactures more than 80 different lining formulations for corrosion, impact and abrasion protection over a wide temperature range. Based in Elora, Ontario, Polycorp is the largest manufacturer of rubber linings in North America.
 
‘Getting Traction’

In an interview with the Financial Post, Polycorp founder Peter Snucins described his company as a 15-year overnight success.

“It took a little bit longer to get here than I had thought,” said Snucins, who is also president and CEO.

GreenCentre Canada

Polycorp Ltd. founder Peter Snucins calls his company a 15-year overnight success.

His goal, he said, was to make Polycorp the North American leader in its niche markets, then grow globally.

“The idea was to expand the product offerings and geography in each of those product lines,” he told the paper. “To do that, I focused on technology and innovation. We have 13 patents pending. We had to get the people in place who would allow us to get there, and their mandate was to achieve balanced, profitable growth, which we have.”

Snucins said the company’s international market “is just getting some traction” and has increased its exports by 64% in three years.

The company has multi-year contracts with a variety of major rail, mining and steel concerns and has formed a research alliance with the University of Utah, he said.

“We spend a lot in terms of intellectual property and how we can differentiate us from the competition,” he told the Financial Post, adding: “I think we can become fairly significant internationally.”