High Performance Plastics Business unit of
Sumitomo Bakelite Co., Ltd.

WORLD CLASS. INNOVATIVE. HANDS-ON.

Sumitomo Bakelite Co., Ltd. offers the Plastics Industry a unique combination of materials, world class production, innovative design and hands-on industry support.

We are a global organization committed to exceeding our customers' expectations in material performance, customer service, technical expertise, and product quality. We drive market innovations through our strong heritage in polymer knowledge for more than a century. We offer you properties and benefits that are important to giving your products an extra competitive advantage.

History

Phenolic technology is the foundation of our business through history for over 100 years.

Among the various plastics, phenolic resin has the oldest history. It was developed by Dr. Leo H. Baekeland, an American of Belgian ancestry, in 1907 and he named that synthetic resin "Bakelite". In 1911, Sankyo Company (currently Daiichi Sankyo Co., Ltd.) was assigned the rights to execute the patents in Japan through the good offices of Dr. Jokichi Takamine, a close friend of Dr. Baekeland. Trial production of phenolic resin was started at the Shinagawa Plant of Sankyo Company. That was the origin of Japan's plastics industry, and the namesake of our company.

In 1932, phenolic resin business of Sankyo Co., Ltd. was separated and formed Nippon Bakelite Co., Ltd. In 1955, Nippon Bakelite Co., Ltd. merged with Sumitomo Synthetic Resin Industries, Ltd. to found Sumitomo Bakelite Co., Ltd. As a pioneer in plastics, with our expertise in and up-to-date facilities for plastics, we have been always developing new technologies for use in various fields in order to contribute to establishing safe and comfortable living.