Bodycote acquire Nitruvid SA in France

ACQUISITION OF NITRUVID S.A.                          

Bodycote International PLC is pleased to announce the acquisition of Nitruvid
S.A. from Ascometal S.A., a member of the Russian owned SeverStal Group.

Nitruvid was founded in 1985 and has patented a number of renowned plasma
assisted nitriding processes especially for stainless steel applications. One
of the most notable techniques offered by Nitruvid is a process which
dramatically enhances the life expectancy of control rods used in nuclear
reactors. Nitruvid operates from three plants located in Paris, Saint-Etienne,
and Metz and has annual sales of €6.7m. Other processes available include the
nitriding of Titanium and Super-alloys, Low Pressure carburising and Ion
Implantation. These processes are used in a number of high profile industries
such as automotive, aerospace, medical, oil & gas and power generation and
complement many existing Bodycote proprietary processes including Kolsterising
which is also used in the surface hardening of stainless steels. The Nitruvid
website: www.nitruvid.com (shortly to be available in English) provides further
details of the technologies offered.

With its worldwide network of over 300 facilities, Bodycote intends to transfer
Nitruvid's expertise across Europe, America and the emerging markets to provide
our broad customer base with state of the art solutions. Details of Bodycote
services can be found at www.bodycote.com


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