Technology & Materials

ACI maintains and cultivates its ceramic process and materials technology. ACI takes on multiple research and development projects each year to further its capability and expertise. ACI operates two full service labs to support these efforts as well. Going back to 1980, ACI maintains a heavy focus on product development and research with a high percentage of sales each year going to new products that were sold the previous year. To further this, the company employees a strong contingent of Materials Science engineers partnered with multiple PhD and Masters degreed ceramic engineers and scientists.

Tooling Design, Manufacturing & Customization of Products

ACI routinely designs ceramic products for varying applications. Beginning with customer collaboration with ACI Sales or Engineering, ACI creates the application criteria which lead to selection of materials and products best served. If the application is within the typical production criteria, it can continue along this path. Once agreed, ACI works with the customer to determine the tolerances and then the design the appropriate tooling. ACI typically manufactures its tooling in its own tool and die shop to minimize deliveries and insure quality. Samples are made to test with the customer and then approved in service. Once agreed, full production can begin to meet the schedule generated along with the customer.

If the customer request is outside ACI’s normal manufacturing, then R&D will be brought in to assess product development or product design. Many times in collaborating with the customer, this leads to a R&D project or adjusting the application requirements and back into the normal production.

Partnerships and Joint Development Agreements

ACI continues to expand its partnerships globally as it has done since 1980. While there are multiple agreements in various forms, ACI seeks to provide win-win partnerships with its customers. Many times there is technology or materials expertise that ACI brings to unlock a potential product or provide a solution in a market. ACI has the capacity to structure a variety of potential business agreements to successfully collaborate with its customer to take advantage of these opportunities.

ACI maintains its positions in its ventures from joint development agreements, to joint ventures, to separate spin-off companies, to minority positions to licensing opportunities among others. In some cases, ACI has bought companies or technology to advance its growth or product capability or knowledge. In other cases, ACI brings its technology to offer to others. ACI actively seeks projects that will be mutually beneficial both for ACI and its customer or partner over the long term.