Imerys Ceramics | History & growth

The beginnings of Imerys Ceramics date back to 1987 with the purchase of Damrec, however the acquisition of English China Clays (ECC) in 1999 is the key turning point. With ECC came a wealth of experience in supplying the ceramics industry and raw materials of very high quality. This move also represents a major turning point for the Imerys group as a whole and culminated with a name change from ‘Imetal' to ‘Imerys' in the same year.

Vision

The main stakeholders of Imerys are two families, which offers the long-term corporate vision and stability typical of family-led businesses. Imerys is also a market-driven group and acquisitions play a crucial role in our growth strategy. This business strategy is based on two key factors: (1) expansion into new geographical areas and / or (2) opportunities to expand our product portfolio.

Key dates

1987	Damrec KPCL, France
	Imerys Ceramics origins are to be found in Europe. More than half of all our industrial sites are located in this region, the majority of which are concentrated in France, Germany and the United Kingdom.

1990	Cératéra, France
	This acquisition enabled us to expand our ball clay range.

1995	Spica, Italy
	Spica's expertise in the production of ceramic bodies and in supplying the best fine fireclay designers is a key part of our offering for the sanitaryware market.

1996	Cesar, France
	This year Imerys Ceramics added Grès de Thiviers to our mineral range which is an essential part of our offering for the tiles market.

1997	KPCL, Czech Republic
	This purchase increased our capacity for the production of ceramic bodies especially for the tableware market.

1999	English China Clays (ECC), UK
	The acquisition of ECC consolidated our position as a leading European supplier for ceramics and triggered the change of the group's name to 'Imerys'.

2000	New Zealand China Clays (NZCC), New Zealand
	This year we added halloysite to our mineral range and established a presence in the Asia-Pacific region.

2001	Kentucky-Tennessee Clay Company (K-T Clay), US and Mexico
	The acquisition of K-T Clay took us into North America and expanded our range of mineral products and our offering for ceramic bodies.

2002	MRD-ECC and MRD, Thailand
	This year we strengthened our presence in Asia and made key additions to our product range.

2005	Denain Anzin Mineraux (DAM), Europe
	With this purchase Imerys Ceramics established Europe as the core of our industrial presence while expanding our mineral products for the manufacturers of ceramics globally.

2006	AGS, France
	AGS is a leader in the production of chamottes, an acquisition which enabled us to become the only one-stop provider of all minerals for fine fire clay production.

2007	Jumbo Mining, India The Feldspar Corporation, US Milas feldspar deposit, Turkey Vatutinsky, Ukraine
	This year the focus was on increasing our feldspar offering. Imerys Ceramics now has feldspar production facilities in Asia, Europe and North America.

2008	Yavuzlar Mining, Turkey
	Imerys Ceramics now holds a strong position in Turkey and intends to use this as a base to grow sales in the Middle East, Eastern Europe as well as in Italy and Spain.

Further information

World map of the Imerys Ceramics production sites