What King Industries does

King Industries, Inc. is a privately held specialty chemicals manufacturer founded in 1932 and headquartered in Norwalk, Connecticut. The company designs, manufactures, and distributes performance additives organized into four product divisions: Coatings (catalysts, resin modifiers, corrosion inhibitors, thixotropes, dispersants, rheology modifiers under the NACURE, K-FLEX, K-KAT, NACORR, K-POL, DISPARLON, K-STAY, and K-SPERSE brands), Lubricants (rust inhibitors, extreme pressure additives, antiwear, antioxidants, friction modifiers, and alkylated naphthalene synthetic base stocks under the NA-SUL, K-CORR, and NA-LUBE brands), Rubber (peptizing aids, plasticizers, processing aids under BONDOGEN, PLASTOGEN, and REOGEN), and Specialty (metal-free catalysts, thermal acid generators, and corrosion inhibitors under the K-PURE brand). Its technical differentiators include proprietary metal-free and tin-free catalyst chemistries, alkylated naphthalene synthetic base stock technology, and ashless antiwear additives qualified for the EU LuSC-List.

The company sells its additives directly to enterprise customers through a technical sales organization, supported by regional sales offices in the Americas (Norwalk, CT), Europe (Amsterdam, Netherlands — located within the Matrix Innovation Centre at Science Park Amsterdam), and Asia-Pacific (Zhongshan, China). A key part of the go-to-market is complimentary technical service and testing support (ASTM, DIN, IP standards), used to help customers qualify formulations for end-applications spanning aerospace, automotive, industrial, marine, food-grade, wood, coil, and construction coatings, as well as industrial lubricants, greases, hydraulic fluids, metalworking fluids, and rubber compounds. Pricing is quote-based and not publicly disclosed, consistent with a B2B specialty chemicals model.

Operationally, King Industries remains independent and privately owned, with no disclosed institutional investment, M&A, or capital raises. The company recently commissioned a new fully automated production facility in Waterbury, Connecticut (operational 2026), expanding capacity for next-generation synthetic lubricants, and continues to invest in product development (e.g., NA-LUBE AW-6110 ashless antiwear additive achieving EU LuSC-List inclusion in 2025, novel metal-free catalysts for epoxy-carboxy systems) and geographic depth in Greater China through a dedicated technical marketing manager hire in 2025.

Name

King Industries

Legal name

King Industries, Inc.

Website

https://kingindustries.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1932

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

King Industries, founded in 1932 and headquartered in Norwalk, CT, is a privately held specialty chemicals manufacturer producing catalysts, corrosion inhibitors, anti-wear additives, rheology modifiers, and synthetic lubricant base stocks for coatings, industrial lubricants, rubber, and electronics customers worldwide.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Specialty Chemical Additives

NAICS

All Other Chemical Product and Preparation Manufacturing (32599)

SIC

Miscellaneous Chemical Products (2890)

akta.pro primary industry

Specialty Surfactants & Performance Additives (IMAEABAL)

akta.pro secondary industries

Fuel Additives & Lubricant Additives (IMAEAMAL), Lubricant Additives & Performance Chemicals (EUALAJAB)

Keywords

• Specialty chemical additives
• Corrosion inhibitors
• Lubricant additives
• Coatings additives
• Alkylated naphthalenes

Headquarters

HQ city

Norwalk

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Specialty Chemical Additives Sales: King Industries designs, manufactures, and distributes specialty chemical additives for coatings, lubricants, rubber, and specialty markets. Revenue is generated through direct product sales to customers across various industries including aerospace, automotive, industrial, and construction.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

King Industries designs, manufactures, and distributes specialty chemical additives across four divisions: coatings, lubricants, rubber, and specialty. Its portfolio includes corrosion inhibitors, anti-wear and extreme pressure additives, alkylated naphthalenes, catalysts, resin modifiers, rheology modifiers, dispersants, antioxidants, friction modifiers, and rubber processing aids sold globally to industrial formulators.

Product overview

King Industries is a specialty chemicals manufacturer that designs, manufactures, and distributes additives across four distinct product divisions: Coatings (NACURE, K-FLEX, K-KAT, NACORR, K-POL, DISPARLON, K-STAY, K-SPERSE), Lubricants (NA-SUL, K-CORR, NA-LUBE product lines including KR, BL, EP, ADTC, AO, AW, FM), Rubber (BONDOGEN, PLASTOGEN, REOGEN), and Specialty (K-PURE CXC, TAG, CDR, CDI). The portfolio includes catalysts, resin modifiers, corrosion inhibitors, thixotropes, dispersants, rheology modifiers, rust inhibitors, extreme pressure additives, antioxidants, anti-wear additives, friction modifiers, peptizing aids, plasticizers, and processing aids for coatings, industrial lubricants, greases, and rubber compounds.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• NACURE®: Acid catalysts for coatings applications
• K-FLEX®
• K-KAT®
• NACORR®
• K-POL®
• DISPARLON®
• K-STAY®
• K-SPERSE®
• NA-SUL®
• K-CORR®
• NA-LUBE® KR
• NA-LUBE® BL
• NA-LUBE® EP
• NA-LUBE® AO
• NA-LUBE® AW
• NA-LUBE® FM
• BONDOGEN®
• PLASTOGEN®
• REOGEN®
• K-PURE®
• K-PURE® TAG

Products and services

• NACURE Acid Catalysts Acid catalysts for amino crosslinked coatings systems, providing higher performance alkylated naphthalene-based solutions for coatings formulators.
• K-FLEX Resin Modifiers Resin modifiers including acetoacetate reactive diluents, polyester diols, and urethane diols for high-performance VOC compliant coatings and 2K epoxy coatings.
• K-KAT Tin-free Catalyst Non-tin catalysts for 2K PU and blocked isocyanate systems, providing effective curing without tin-based catalysts.
• NACORR Corrosion Inhibitors Liquid organic corrosion inhibitors for waterborne and solventborne coating systems.
• DISPARLON Thixotropes and Dispersants Highly effective additives for surface control and thixotropy for both waterborne and solventborne coating systems.
• NA-SUL Rust Inhibitors Rust and corrosion additives for general and high-performance lubricant applications.
• NA-LUBE KR Alkylated Naphthalenes High-performance alkylated naphthalene synthetic base stocks for lubricant applications.
• NA-LUBE AW Anti-wear Additives Anti-wear additives for hydraulic fluids, gear oils, and other lubricant applications, including the EU LuSC-Listed NA-LUBE AW-6110 ashless antiwear product.
• NA-LUBE EP Extreme Pressure Additives Extreme pressure additives for industrial lubricants and greases.
• NA-LUBE AO Antioxidants Antioxidant additives for lubricant oxidation stability.
• BONDOGEN Peptizing Aids Peptizing aids for rubber processing applications.
• PLASTOGEN Plasticizer Plasticizer for rubber compound formulations.
• K-PURE CXC Catalysts Catalysts for epoxies and electronic applications, including metal-free catalysts for epoxy carboxy coatings.
• K-PURE TAG Thermal Acid Generators Thermal acid generators for specialty curing applications.

Quantifiable outcome

• NA-LUBE AW-6110 effective at low treat rates of 0.10-0.15%
• +1 more outcomes

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered minor.

• ACS (American Chemical Society)minorOthersAffiliate membership/organizational association in the coatings and chemicals industry community
• European Coatings JournalminorOthersAffiliate membership/organizational association with European coatings industry publication
• LNG PublishingminorOthersAffiliate membership/organizational association with lubricant industry publisher
• NLGI (National Lubricating Grease Institute)minorOthersAffiliate membership/organizational association in the lubricating grease industry
• American Soybean CouncilminorOthersAffiliate membership/organizational association with agricultural industry organization
• Coatings WorldminorOthersAffiliate membership/organizational association with coatings industry publication
• SME (Society of Manufacturing Engineers)minorOthersAffiliate membership/organizational association with manufacturing engineering society
• STLE (Society of Tribologists and Lubrication Engineers)minorOthersAffiliate membership/organizational association with lubrication engineering professional society
• American Coatings AssociationminorOthersAffiliate membership/organizational association with coatings industry trade association

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Lubrizol (Berkshire Hathaway): Lubrizol is the global market leader in lubricant additives and a major coatings additives supplier; it directly competes with King's NA-LUBE antiwear/extreme-pressure/antioxidant line and with its coatings catalyst and rheology modifier offerings, serving the same industrial formulators.
• Innospec: Innospec's Performance Chemicals division supplies specialty additives for fuel and lubricants, including extreme-pressure and rust-prevention chemistries that directly overlap with King's NA-SUL, K-CORR, and NA-LUBE EP ranges, serving similar industrial customers.
• Afton Chemical (NewMarket Corporation): Afton Chemical is a leading global supplier of lubricant and fuel additives; its antiwear, antioxidant, and extreme-pressure additive packages compete head-to-head with King's NA-LUBE family for industrial and grease applications.
• Element Solutions (Versum + MacDermid Enthone): Element Solutions operates specialty chemical businesses serving electronics, industrial, and energy markets; its specialty additives and high-purity catalysts overlap with King's Specialty division K-PURE catalysts and corrosion inhibitors used in electronics and industrial coatings.
• Troy Corporation: Troy is a privately held specialty chemicals manufacturer focused on coatings and industrial biocides/additives, making it a closely comparable niche peer to King's coatings-focused additive business.

Broad incumbents

• Evonik Industries: Evonik is a global specialty chemicals major with extensive additives for coatings, lubricants, and rubber processing; it competes with King across corrosion inhibitors, rheology modifiers, and rubber-processing aids from a much broader portfolio.
• LANXESS: LANXESS is a major specialty chemicals producer whose additives include lubricant and rubber-processing chemistries that overlap with King's NA-LUBE and BONDOGEN/PLASTOGEN/REOGEN rubber additive ranges.
• BASF (Coatings & Industrial Solutions): BASF is the world's largest chemical company with a deep specialty additives portfolio across coatings and industrial chemicals; it competes broadly with King's NACURE catalysts, NACORR corrosion inhibitors, and DISPARLON rheology additives.
• Croda International: Croda supplies specialty additives for coatings and lubricants globally; its performance technologies (antiwear, friction modifiers, corrosion inhibitors) overlap with the NA-LUBE and NA-SUL product lines.
• Eastman Chemical: Eastman supplies specialty chemicals for coatings, including resin modifiers and additives; its specialty fluids and coatings additives overlap with King's K-FLEX resin modifiers and K-PURE specialty catalysts.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/kingindustries
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/KingIndustriesInc
• Facebookfacebook.com/king-industries-inc-specialty-chemicals-182461871770507
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/king-industries

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about King Industries