Global Material Technologies

What Global Material Technologies does

Global Material Technologies, Inc. ("GMT") is a privately held US-based manufacturer of metal wool and non-woven metal fiber technology products, founded in 1896 and headquartered in Buffalo Grove, Illinois. The company produces steel wool, non-ferrous metal fibers (bronze, brass, copper, aluminum), and proprietary needle-punched and sintered non-woven metal textiles under the Metrix™ brand, using patented processes that combine metal wool with synthetic fibers for composite polishing cloths and foam-laminate soap pads. Its product portfolio spans seven categories — Abrasives & Polishing, Automotive Products (metallic friction fibers for brake pads, sintered gaskets, exhaust system components), Filtration Products (VersaFilter sintered metal fiber media), Industrial Products (Metrix™ non-woven fabrics, non-ferrous alloy wools), Janitorial Supplies, Reinforcing Materials (ASTM A820-compliant steel fibers for concrete), and Silver Recovery & Reactive Materials — plus branded and private-label consumer soap pads (DuraBlu®, Dura super Size®).

GMT operates 5 ISO/TS-certified manufacturing locations globally producing to identical specifications, supplying automotive OEMs and Tier 1/2 suppliers, industrial filtration and process engineers, concrete and construction firms, janitorial distributors, mining and photoprocessing operators, and consumer/food-service cleaning markets. The company does not publicly disclose pricing; revenue is generated primarily by selling raw sheet and roll goods to OEMs for further processing, supplemented by custom conversion services (slitting, die cutting, forming, sintering), wholesale distribution of janitorial/cleaning products, and direct-to-consumer e-commerce via steelwool.com.

The go-to-market is sales-led: a North American direct-sales lead at the Buffalo Grove HQ handles US/Canada/Mexico, while independent regional sales agents cover South America, Europe, Africa, Australia/New Zealand, China, India, Japan (via Sojitz Corporation), Malaysia, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey, and Ukraine. There is no public disclosure of financial performance, headcount, ownership structure beyond apparent independent private status, or M&A activity in the source data.

Name

Global Material Technologies

Legal name

Global Material Technologies, Inc.

Website

https://gmt-inc.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1896

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Global Material Technologies is a privately held, 128-year-old US manufacturer of metal wool and non-woven metal fiber products, serving automotive OEMs, industrial filtration, construction, janitorial, mining, and consumer cleaning markets from 5 ISO-certified global plants via regional sales agents and direct channels.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Industrial Metal Fibers and Wool Products

NAICS

Textile Mills (313)

SIC

Textile Mill Products (2200)

akta.pro primary industry

Nonwoven Fabric Mills (Spunbond/Meltblown/Needle-punched) (IMAOABAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

Technical Fabric Mills (Performance/Protective/Medical Substrates) (IMAOABAH), Coated & Laminated Base Fabric Mills (Pre-finish Substrates) (IMAOABAI), Protective & Safety Textiles (FR/Arc/Heat/Cut/Chemical) (IMAOADAA), Finishing, Converting & Die-Cutting Services (IMALAKAN)

Keywords

• Metal wool manufacturing
• Sintered metal fiber media
• Metallic friction fibers
• Non-woven metal textiles
• Industrial abrasive products

Headquarters

HQ city

Buffalo Grove

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Raw Material Sales (Sheet/Roll Goods): GMT is primarily a raw material supplier, shipping the majority of volume in sheet or roll goods form to OEM customers and industrial buyers who further process the materials.
2. Finished Consumer & Industrial Products: GMT sells finished products directly to consumers and businesses: steel wool hand pads, floor pads, soap pads, polishing cloths, and related cleaning/janitorial supplies through e-commerce and distribution.
3. Custom-Processed Materials: GMT offers additional processing of roll goods including slitting, die cutting, forming, and light fabrication to specification, adding value through custom conversion.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels2 records

Core offering

GMT manufactures metal wool and non-woven metal fiber textile products using proprietary needle-punching and sintering processes. The company supplies raw materials in sheet, roll, and die-cut form to industrial OEMs (automotive friction, filtration, gaskets, exhaust, concrete reinforcement, silver recovery), and also sells finished consumer and janitorial products (soap pads, floor pads, hand pads, polishing cloths) under brands including DuraBlu®, Dura super Size®, and Metrix™. Operations span five ISO-certified global manufacturing locations.

Product overview

Global Material Technologies is a manufacturer of metal wool and fiber technology products, operating since 1896. The company offers a diversified portfolio organized into seven product categories: Abrasives & Polishing (steel wool reels, floor pads, hand pads, laminated abrasives, polishing cloths, bronze polishing pads for wood, metal, glass, and marine surfaces); Automotive Products (metallic friction fibers for brake pads, gaskets and sealing materials using sintered metal fiber technology, and exhaust system components including stainless steel wool and tubes); Filtration Products (Versafilter sintered metal fiber media for high-temperature applications, and separation materials for mist elimination and tower packing); Industrial Products (Metrix non-woven metal fabrics, non-ferrous alloys including bronze, aluminum, stainless steel and brass wool, and industrial steel wool reels); Janitorial Supplies (floor pads, hand pads, steel wool reels, and institutional soap pads); Reinforcing Materials (concrete reinforcement steel fibers meeting ASTM A820 and structural panel reinforcement textiles); and Silver Recovery & Reactive Materials (steel wool for photographic silver recovery and electrowinning products for gold and precious metal mining). The company also produces private label and branded soap pad products including DuraBlu, Dura super Size, and Metrix soap pads. Products are manufactured at 5 global locations with ISO certification, and the company primarily supplies raw materials in sheet, roll, or die-cut form.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• DuraBlu®: Consumer soap pad brand with antimicrobial properties, 100% phosphate free, strong on grease and grime.
• Dura super Size®
• Metrix™
• MMT™

Products and services

• Steel Wool Reels Continuous steel wool ribbon available in 8 grades of thickness, used for polishing, abrading, and cleaning applications. Offered in 5 lb and 20 lb reels approximately 1/2 inch thick and 4 inches wide.
• Floor Pads Continuous 4-inch wide steel wool ribbon formed into radial or Metrix flattened style floor pads for marble, wood, tile, and granite floor surfaces. Available in 13-24 inch diameters.
• Steel Wool Hand Pads Hand-held steel wool pads for fine surface finishing, cleaning porcelain, tile, grout, and removing paint, varnish, rust and dirt. Available in grades from ultra fine to coarsest, packed 16 pads per poly bag, 12 bags per case.
• Laminated Abrasives Steel wool abrasive laminated to synthetic backing for power tool use. Features hook-and-loop and peel-and-stick attachments, ideal for random orbital, detail, and palm sanders. Available in die cut shapes or master rolls.
• All Purpose Polishing Cloth Fine grade steel wool combined with soft synthetic fibers in a patented composite textile. Reusable polishing cloth for wood, glass, and metal surfaces that brightens without scratching soft metals like copper and aluminum.
• Bronze Polishing Pads Marine grade bronze wool fibers with soft synthetic fibers in a patented composite textile. Non-corrosive and reusable for exterior cleaning, polishing wood, glass, and metal surfaces.
• Metallic Friction Fibers Metal fibers for brake pad production including low carbon steel fibers for semi-metallic/low-metallic formulations, copper fibers (99.9% purity) for NAO/ceramic applications, and brass fibers (65/35 lead-free) as copper alternatives. Produced at 5 global ISO-certified locations.
• Gaskets and Sealing Materials Non-woven metal fiber felt with sintering process for gaskets. Offers high thermal conductivity, electrical conductivity, and mechanical strength. Available as sheets, roll goods, or die-cut to specification. Sintered metal fiber structures can be as low as 5% density with high bond strength.
• Exhaust System Components (MMT™ Tubes and Stainless Steel Wool) Stainless steel wool products for exhaust and muffler applications including Common Reels (5 lb and 10 lb), Metrix Type NR (needle punched, up to 60 inches wide), Metrix Type CL (cross-layered, 1/4 to 1 inch thick), and MMT Tubes (1 inch diameter and up, up to 8 feet length). Heat resistant up to 700°C.
• VersaFilter Sintered Metal Fiber Filtration Media Sintered metal fiber filtration media with high thermal tolerance (720°F), good dirt holding capacity, low pressure drop, strength and cleanability. Available in ratings from 30 to 300 microns in 300 and 400 series stainless steel. Can be washed and reused. MVF and MVFM series combine VersaFilter with stainless steel wire mesh.
• Separation Materials Metal fiber separation media for mist eliminators, coalescers, and tower packing. Available in stainless steel and non-ferrous alloys from 2 to 200 microns, densities from 2% to over 70%. Sheets up to 105 inches wide x continuous length.
• Metrix™ Non-Woven Metal Fabric Non-woven metal fabric produced to customer specifications for filtration, head shielding, noise attenuation, structural panel reinforcement, composite reinforcement and electrical conductivity. Available in carbon steel, 434 stainless, copper, and brass. Fiber sizes from 25 to 125 microns, basis weights from 200 g/m² to 4 kg/m², rolls up to 2.6 meters wide.
• Non-Ferrous and Unique Alloy Wool Products Non-ferrous alloy wool products including bronze wool for marine polishing and RF shielding, stainless steel AISI 434 and 316LU for industrial applications, aluminum wool for sensitive decorative metals, and brass wool for wet applications. Available in fine, medium, and coarse grades.
• DuraBlu® Consumer Soap Pads Consumer soap pad products with antimicrobial properties, available in various packaging configurations including bulk. Phosphate-free soap effective on grease and grime. Private label products available.
• Dura super Size® Institutional Soap Pads Large format soap pads designed for restaurants, hotels, and large food service applications using DuraBlu soap. Available in private label and bulk packaging.
• Metrix Soap Pads (Steel Wool + Foam Sponge) Revolutionary 2-in-1 scouring product combining patented steel wool sheet impregnated with soap, laminated to a foam sponge for cleaning ability with soft hand feel.
• Silver Recovery Steel Wool Products Steel wool products for recovering silver from spent fixer and rinse water via metallic ion exchange process. Steel wool reels and chopped fibers with high surface area to weight ratio. Products made of low carbon steel.
• Electrowinning Steel Wool Products Low carbon and stainless steel wool for electrowinning cells used to recover gold and other precious metals from mining slurries. High surface area, consistent fiber sizes (60 to 130 microns), available in 4 inch continuous bulk reels (5 lbs or 20 lbs) or needle punched batt up to 2.7 meters wide.
• Concrete Reinforcement Steel Fibers Steel fibers for concrete reinforcement complying with ASTM A820 standards. More cost-effective than traditional reinforcement with easier mixing, placing, and finishing. Reduces cracking due to concrete shrinkage. Applications include industrial slabs, airport pavements, loading docks, and retaining walls. Produced at 5 global TS/ISO certified locations.
• Structural Panel Reinforcement Materials Metrix metal fiber textiles for structural applications including filtration, abrasives, noise attenuation, and industrial textiles. Fabric-like sheet with uniform random fiber distribution providing superior mechanical properties. Available in carbon steel, 434 stainless, copper and brass with fiber sizes 25 to 125 microns.

Quantifiable outcome

• Sintered metal fiber structures can be as low as 5% density while dramatically increasing mechanical strength — blowout, creep, and tearing are virtually eliminated
• +3 more outcomes

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles7 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered regional.

• VIE TECHMAT INC. (Hugo Galarza)regionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorVIE TECHMAT INC. serves as GMT's exclusive sales agent for South America, handling customer relationships and sales within the region. Contact: Hugo Galarza, Phone: (860) 571-9467.
• Timbs Pty. Limited (Ian Lanz)regionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorTimbs Pty. Limited serves as GMT's sales agent for Australia and New Zealand. Contact: Ian Lanz, Phone: +61 02 9979 2144.
• Beser Otomotiv Makina ve Dis Ticaret Ltd. Sti (Murat Beser)regionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorBeser Otomotiv serves as GMT's sales agent for Turkey. Contact: Murat Beser, Phone: +90 (232) 445 22 40.
• GMT Ukraine (Olena Zinenko)regionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorGMT Ukraine serves as the company's sales agent for the Ukraine region. Contact: Olena Zinenko, Phone: +38 06257 4 37 01.
• GMT China (Howard Hui)regionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorGMT China serves as the company's sales agent for China. Contact: Howard Hui, Phone: +86 756 323 1572.
• Super Circle Auto Ltd. (Pravin Jain)regionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorSuper Circle Auto Ltd. serves as GMT's sales agent for India. Contact: Pravin Jain, Phone: +011 91 11-51446500.
• Sojitz Corporation (Naoaki Kondo)regionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorSojitz Corporation, a major Japanese trading company, serves as GMT's sales agent for Japan. Contact: Naoaki Kondo, Phone: +81 03 5520 3613.
• Topaz Dynasty Sdn. Bhd (K. H. Poh)regionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorTopaz Dynasty Sdn. Bhd serves as GMT's sales agent for Malaysia. Contact: K. H. Poh, Phone: +603 7726 4486.
• Dure Trading (Kang-Wook Lee)regionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorDure Trading serves as GMT's sales agent for South Korea. Contact: Kang-Wook Lee, Phone: +82 43 211 2233.
• Topgo Co., Ltd. (Wei-Ding Lu)regionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorTopgo Co., Ltd. serves as GMT's sales agent for Taiwan. Contact: Wei-Ding Lu, Phone: +886 2 2366 1168.
• Phongporn Intertrade Co., Ltd. (Somphong Nitisahakul)regionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPhongporn Intertrade Co., Ltd. serves as GMT's sales agent for Thailand. Contact: Somphong Nitisahakul, Phone: +66 2 46 2868-9.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Market position

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/global-material-technologies

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

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 Global Material Technologies