Korea Engineering Plastics Co.

What Korea Engineering Plastics Co. does

Korea Engineering Plastics Co., Ltd. (KEP) is a South Korean chemical manufacturer founded in 1987 that produces polyacetal (POM) copolymer resins and a portfolio of related engineering plastics. The company operates two production sites: the Ulsan Plant, established in 1988 as Korea's first POM facility and now one of the world's largest at 145,000 MT/year, and the Pyeongtaek Plant completed in 2002 with 5,000 MT/year of PA6, PA66, and PBT capacity. KEP also produces high-performance engineering polymers including PPS, LCP, KEP-PEEK (since 2004) and MXD6 (since 2008), with a portfolio of approximately 30 standard and 100 special-grade POM products. Its certified quality systems (ISO 9001, IATF 16949, ISO 14001, ISO 45001, KOLAS) make it a qualified supplier to automotive OEMs and industrial manufacturers globally, holding over 12% of world polyacetal production.

KEP is privately held as a joint venture owned approximately 50% by Celanese Corporation, 40% by Mitsubishi Gas Chemical (MGC), and 10% by Global Polyacetal Co., Ltd. (the latter acquiring its stake from Mitsubishi Corporation in 2021). The company generates revenue through B2B direct sales of polymer resins and compounds to industrial customers, primarily serving the automotive industry along with broader industrial and consumer product manufacturers. Pricing is not publicly disclosed but follows typical commodity-and-specialty chemical contract structures tied to feedstock costs and grade specifications. KEP markets itself through a corporate website (kepital.com), Facebook, and YouTube, and operates an internal CRM/E-biz system for customer engagement. The company underwent a JV restructuring in 2022 to sharpen its manufacturing-oriented focus, and continues to hire into production and quality roles at its Pyeongtaek facility.

Name

Korea Engineering Plastics Co.

Legal name

Korea Engineering Plastics Co., Ltd.

Website

https://kepital.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1987

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

South Korean chemical manufacturer founded in 1987, producing polyacetal (POM) copolymer resins and engineering plastics at its Ulsan (145,000 MT/year) and Pyeongtaek plants, supplying over 12% of global polyacetal production to automotive and industrial customers as a joint venture majority-owned by Celanese Corporation.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Engineering Plastics

NAICS

Resin and Synthetic Rubber Manufacturing (32521), All Other Plastics Product Manufacturing (326199)

SIC

Plastic Materials, Synth Resins & Nonvulcan Elastomers (2821), Industrial Organic Chemicals (2860)

akta.pro primary industry

Engineering & High-Performance Thermoplastics Resin Manufacturing (PA, POM, PC, PBT, PEEK, PPS) (IMANAAAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Specialty Polymers & Resins (Engineered Materials) (IMAEABAK), High-Performance & Specialty Polymers (PPS, LCP, PI/PAI, PAEK) (IMAEANAI)

Keywords

• Engineering plastics manufacturing
• Polyacetal copolymer resins
• High performance polymers
• Polyamide compounds
• Thermoplastic resin production

Headquarters

HQ city

Seoul

HQ country

South Korea

HQ region

Asia

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Korea Engineering Plastics manufactures copolymer polyacetal (POM) resin as its flagship product at the Ulsan Plant (145,000 MT/year capacity), alongside a portfolio of engineering plastics and high-performance polymers (PA6, PA66, PBT, MXD6, PPS, LCP, KEP-PEEK) compounded at the Pyeongtaek Plant (5,000 MT/year capacity). The company supplies these thermoplastic resins to industrial customers worldwide, with automotive applications being the primary end-market.

Product overview

KEP operates as a traditional engineering plastics manufacturer with two main production facilities. The Ulsan Plant (established 1987, first POM production in Korea) has 145,000 MTs/year capacity for polyacetal (POM) products and occupies over 12% of world polyacetal production. The Pyeongtaek Plant (completed 2002) has 5,000 MTs/year capacity for engineering plastics (PA6, PA66, PBT) as New Compounding Products (NCP). Since 2004, KEP expanded into high-performance engineering polymers including PPS, LCP, and KEP-PEEK. In 2008, they launched MXD6 super high modulus polymer. The product portfolio includes about 30 types of standard grade and 100 types of special grade products.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Polyplastics: Major POM producer (DURACON) and a JV with Daicel; competes head-to-head with KEP in standard and specialty POM grades, especially across Asia.
• Asahi Kasei: Produces Tenac POM homopolymer and copolymer as well as engineering polyamides. Directly competes in the same automotive and industrial engineering plastics segments.
• Mitsubishi Engineering-Plastics: Sister JV entity co-owned by MGC (KEP's 40% shareholder) and others. Direct POM and PA66 producer with overlapping technology lineage and similar Korean/Japanese automotive customer base.
• DuPont: Former producer of Delrin POM homopolymer; divested its Mobility & Materials POM business to Celanese in 2022. Directly comparable POM/engineering plastics product portfolio to KEP.

Broad incumbents

• Celanese Corporation: 50% parent and global POM leader with Hostaform/Celanex XFR brands following the 2022 DuPont M&M acquisition. Operates competing POM assets globally, sharing technology and commercial reach with KEP.
• SABIC: Global petrochemical/engineering plastics producer with broad POM, PA, and PBT offerings; large-scale Asian footprint and shared automotive customer base.
• BASF: Global chemical major producing Ultraform POM and a broad engineering plastics portfolio (PA, PBT, PPS). Comparable scale and customer overlap in automotive and industrial end markets.

Regional players

• Kolon Industries: Korean specialty materials producer with engineering plastics and industrial films. Regional competitor in Korean automotive and industrial supply chains.
• LG Chem: Korea's largest chemical company producing engineering plastics including POM, ABS, and EP compounds. Domestic Korean competitor sharing the same OEM customer relationships.

Emerging players

• Solvay: Specialty polymers player in PPS, PEEK, and high-performance polymers — overlapping with KEP's KEP-PEEK and PPS product lines for high-end electronics and aerospace uses.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/KepNews
• Facebookfacebook.com/TheKepStory

Compliance5 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

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 Korea Engineering Plastics Co.