Chemical Week Associates To Acquire Modern Plastic

Chemical Week Associates Enters Agreement To Acquire Modern Plastics, Chemical Engineering

Chemical Week Associates, through its affiliate Chemical Week Publishing, has entered into an agreement to acquire the magazine titles Modern Plastics, Modern Plastics International, Modern Mold and Tooling and Chemical Engineering from the McGraw Hill Companies. Chemical Week Associates is a business-to-business media platform company of VSA Communications Partners Fund II, a private equity fund affiliated with Veronis, Suhler and Associates, the leading communications and media investment bank.

"These acquisitions are very significant for our company and for the markets we serve," says Michael Silber, President and Chief Operating Officer of Chemical Week. "Chemical Week Associates is one of the strongest information companies in the worldwide chemical industry. Modern Plastics, Modern Plastics International, Modern Mold and Tooling and Chemical Engineering are powerful market leaders in their respective segments.

Silber says the acquisitions nearly triple the size of Chemical Week Associates and dramatically expand its market presence. "Plastics is the single largest product segment in the chemical industry, but an area where we previously had limited presence," he says. "Chemical Engineering gives us the leading magazine for engineers, plant managers and product development managers -- another area where we did not have a leading position. These properties also bring with them strong trade shows and other ancillary products."

"The acquisitions will enable Chemical Week Associates to provide information products to the entire global chemical industry-from the boardroom to the plant and for the most important downstream product niches," says Silber. "Because we have concentrated all our acquisition and growth activity on our served market of chemicals, we have a focus and expertise that is second to none." Over the last year, Chemical Week Associates has acquired or launched five niche magazines that focus on critical but narrow industry niches. Chemical Week now publishes 8 magazines, 5 newsletters, and produces 16 conferences and trade shows worldwide. "What makes this acquisition particularly meaningful is that since all of our products serve the chemical industry, we have a tremendous shared knowledge base," said Silber. "All of our staffs will be able to work with each other to react quickly to market dynamics and to position our magazines." He pointed out that a company with a presence in diverse markets would not have this advantage.

"With its expanded portfolio of products, Chemical Week Associates will be able to create high-quality vibrant magazines, and offer comprehensive marketing packages to both readers and marketers who want to deliver unique messages to different segments of the chemical industry," Silber says. The company will be in a strong position to offer attractive subscription packages to readers, and multiple trade shows and conferences to companies.

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