Nagase America LLC, a North American subsidiary of NAGASE & Co. LTD., has acquired Alexander Technical Institute LLC, a coatings testing, training and technical innovation laboratory based in Costa Mesa, California.

The lab has been rebranded as Nagase Coatings Lab – Americas (NCL-A) and will operate as part of Nagase America’s technical capabilities serving the coatings industry.

According to the company, the acquisition adds dedicated laboratory capabilities in product development, quality testing, formulation support and competitive benchmarking. Nagase America said the acquisition strengthens its ability to serve as a full-service technical partner in the coatings market.

“This acquisition is a direct result of listening to our customers,” said Hiroyuki Kayashita, president and COO of Nagase America. “Quality testing and technical support are among the most in-demand services across our customer base. With NCL-A, we can now deliver those capabilities in-house, giving us more opportunity to add value to the coatings industry.”

Alexander Technical Institute was founded in 2015 by Cyriac Alexander, a 50-year coatings industry veteran. According to Nagase America, ATI has trained more than 140 professionals through in-person courses, graduated more than 45 students from its online eCourse program and supported more than 15 technical innovations for companies across the coatings value chain.

“When I founded ATI, my goal was to develop and expand industrial knowledge for professionals in the coatings industry and to help companies commercialize innovative products,” said Alexander, founder and former president and CEO of ATI. “Nagase America shares that commitment to technical excellence and innovation. I am confident that under the Nagase umbrella, NCL-A will have the global resources and reach to carry this mission forward and make a great impact for customers and for the industry.”

NCL-A will continue to operate from its laboratory in Costa Mesa. Services include quality and performance testing, competitive benchmarking, raw materials evaluation and formulation assistance, custom color matching and technical training for sales, marketing and R&D professionals.

Nagase America is a distributor and manufacturer of specialty chemicals, with material science solutions across the chemicals, life sciences, functional materials, electronics and mobility industries. Nagase America is part of NAGASE Group, a chemical trading firm in Japan founded in 1832. The company reports more than 100 Group companies in 30 countries and regions.