AZMEC

What AZMEC does

AZMEC Inc. (株式会社AZMEC) is a Japanese specialty-chemical company founded in 2004 as a spin-off from Waseda University, focused on environmental purification technologies for industrial water treatment and contaminated soil remediation. The company develops and sells proprietary mineral-based products in the Catenaccio product family, which fall into three series: (1) immobilization agents (Catenaccio N, C, B, F) using iron hydroxide co-precipitation, pyrite (FeS2) sulfide formation, and ettringite chemistry for arsenic, mercury/heavy metals, boron, and fluorine fixation in soil and incineration ash; (2) granular adsorbents (Catenaccio AB, ABe, ABL, and the magnetically separable ABLm co-developed with DOWA Eco System) for the adsorption-layer method and anion-type contaminants including hexavalent selenium, arsenic, hexavalent chromium, and boron; and (3) water treatment agents (Catenaccio aquaB and aquaC) using coagulation-precipitation for boron, fluorine, selenium, mercury, and heavy metal removal in industrial wastewater. The technical foundation is built on more than 20 years of joint research with Waseda University Professors Matsukata and Yamazaki, yielding 4 granted Japanese patents with multiple pending applications.

The business model is direct B2B sales of one-time-purchase chemical agents (packaged in 20kg paper bags and 1000L flexible containers) on a quote-based pricing structure, with no publicly listed prices. The company employs 11–50 staff and serves industrial customers (electroplating, ceramics/glass manufacturers, recycling facilities, coal-fired power plants), environmental remediation service providers, and government/public works projects across Japan (from Hokkaido through Kyushu), with additional exports to Japanese-operated facilities in China and Taiwan. Distribution is conducted through direct enterprise sales, public-sector procurement, and resellers/distributors added in 2020. Documented applications include disaster-waste treatment in Ishinomaki City following the 2011 East Japan Earthquake and decontamination technologies for radioactive cesium-contaminated soil from the Fukushima disaster. Reported operating outcomes include mercury concentration reduced from 0.11mg/L to 0.0005mg/L, lead from 121mg/L to below 0.01mg/L, boron from 132mg/L to 0.3mg/L, and treatment of over 30,000 m³ of mercury and heavy-metal contaminated soil. AZMEC is privately held, founder-controlled by Representative Director Takenori Shoda, with no parent company, no institutional investors, and no funding rounds disclosed in the available materials.

Name

AZMEC

Legal name

株式会社AZMEC （ AZMEC Inc. ）

Website

https://azmec.jp

Company type

Private

Founded year

2004

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

AZMEC is a Japanese specialty-chemical company founded in 2004 as a Waseda University spin-off that develops and sells proprietary mineral-based Catenaccio immobilization agents, adsorbents, and water treatment agents for mercury, boron, fluorine, and selenium contamination in industrial wastewater and soil, serving industrial customers and public works projects across Japan.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Environmental Remediation Chemicals

NAICS

Other Basic Inorganic Chemical Manufacturing (325180), Chemical Manufacturing (325), Ground or Treated Mineral and Earth Manufacturing (327992), All Other Miscellaneous Nonmetallic Mineral Product Manufacturing (327999)

SIC

Industrial Inorganic Chemicals (2810), Miscellaneous Chemical Products (2890)

akta.pro primary industry

Water Treatment Adsorbents (GAC/PAC/Media) (IMAEAIAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

Industrial Wastewater Treatment Chemicals (IMAEAJAC), Mining & Metals Process & Water Chemicals (IMAEAJAJ), Industrial Wastewater & Effluent Treatment Services (BPALAHAD)

Keywords

• Water treatment chemicals
• Soil remediation agents
• Heavy metal immobilization
• Industrial wastewater treatment
• Contaminated soil cleanup

Headquarters

HQ city

Seta

HQ country

Japan

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Water Treatment Agent Sales: Sale of coagulation-precipitation water treatment agents (aquaB for boron, aquaC for mercury/selenium) to industrial customers for wastewater treatment applications.
2. Soil Remediation Product Sales: Sale of immobilization agents (Catenaccio N, C, B, F) and adsorption layer agents (Catenaccio AB, ABe, ABL) for contaminated soil treatment in public works and private sector projects.
3. Hydrotalcite Adsorbent Sales: Sale of granular hydrotalcite adsorbents (ABL, ABLm) for water treatment, soil remediation, and gas treatment applications.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels2 records

Core offering

AZMEC manufactures and sells proprietary inorganic water treatment agents and soil immobilization/adsorbent products under the Catenaccio brand, using hydrotalcite, pyrite (FeS2), and ettringite mineral-based technologies. The products target difficult-to-treat contaminants including mercury, boron, fluorine, selenium, arsenic, and heavy metals in industrial wastewater and contaminated soil for industrial, manufacturing, and public works customers in Japan, China, and Taiwan.

Product overview

AZMEC provides three main product lines for environmental remediation: (1) Catenaccio immobilizing agents for heavy metal fixation in contaminated soil and incineration ash, including variants for arsenic (N), mercury/heavy metals/selenium (C), boron (B), and fluorine (F); (2) Catenaccio AB series adsorbents for adsorption layer method in naturally contaminated soil, including AB for arsenic, ABe for boron/arsenic/lead/fluorine, and ABL for hexavalent selenium; (3) Catenaccio aqua water treatment agents including aquaB for boron treatment and aquaC for selenium/mercury treatment. The company also develops granular hydrotalcite adsorbents including magnetically separable ABLm, all based on proprietary synthesis methods from Waseda University research.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• カテナチオ (Catenaccio): Series of inorganic stabilization agents for contaminated soil and incineration ash treatment, including products for arsenic (N), mercury/heavy metals (C), boron (B), and fluorine (F) processing
• カテナチオaquaC (Catenaccio aquaC)
• カテナチオaquaB (Catenaccio aquaB)
• カテナチオABL (Catenaccio ABL)
• カテナチオABLm (Catenaccio ABLm)
• カテナチオAB series (Catenaccio AB)

Products and services

• Catenaccio N (不溶化剤 カテナチオN) Inorganic immobilizing agent for arsenic treatment in contaminated soil and incineration ash, using iron hydroxide co-precipitation and adsorption. Main components: CaO, Fe2O3, SiO2, Al2O3. For industrial and public works contaminated site remediation.
• Catenaccio C (不溶化剤 カテナチオC) Immobilizing agent for mercury, heavy metals (lead, zinc, cadmium), and selenium treatment using pyrite (FeS2)-based sulfide fixation. Main components: SiO2, Al2O3, Fe2O3, SO3. Powder form in 20kg bags or 1000L flexible containers.
• Catenaccio B (不溶化剤 カテナチオB) Immobilizing agent for boron and coal ash treatment using ettringite-based chemical adsorption. Main components: CaO, Al2O3.
• Catenaccio F (不溶化剤 カテナチオF) Immobilizing agent for fluorine treatment. Main components: CaO, Al2O3.
• Catenaccio AB (吸着剤 カテナチオAB) High-performance inorganic adsorbent for adsorption layer method in naturally contaminated soil remediation. Primarily for arsenic with adsorption capacity of 3mgAs/g or higher. Main components: SiO2, Al2O3, Fe2O3, CaO. Particle size 100-2000μm dry powder.
• Catenaccio ABe (吸着剤 カテナチオABe) Adsorbent for boron, arsenic, lead, fluorine treatment, and composite contamination using ettringite-based chemical adsorption. Main components: SiO2, Al2O3, CaO, Fe2O3. Packaged in 1000L flexible containers.
• Catenaccio ABL (粒状HT吸着剤 カテナチオABL) Granular hydrotalcite adsorbent for hexavalent selenium, fluorine, arsenic, and boron treatment. Uses Cl-type hydrotalcite structure [Mg1-xAlx(OH)2][Clx·mH2O] with 20nm or smaller crystallite size. Particle size 0.5-2.0mm. Main components: MgO, Al2O3.
• Catenaccio ABLm (磁力選別用HT吸着剤 カテナチオABLm) Magnetic-separable granular hydrotalcite adsorbent for fluorine, hexavalent selenium, arsenic, hexavalent chromium, and boron treatment. Co-developed with Waseda University and DOWA Eco System. Contains iron powder for magnetic separation. Particle size -0.5mm. Main components: MgO, Al2O3, Fe2O3.
• Catenaccio aquaB (ホウ素用水処理剤 カテナチオaquaB) Coagulation-precipitation type water treatment agent for boron removal. Jointly developed with Waseda University. Uses ettringite-based chemical adsorption. Can simultaneously treat fluorine and arsenic along with boron. Two-component system. Main components: CaO, Al2O3.
• Catenaccio aquaC (セレン・水銀用水処理剤 カテナチオaquaC) Coagulation-precipitation type water treatment agent for selenium, mercury, heavy metals, arsenic, and composite contamination. Contains pyrite (FeS2) powder for sulfide-based fixation. Main components: Fe2O3, SO3. Powder form with bulk density ~1.4. Packaging: 20kg paper bags, 1000L flexible containers.

Quantifiable outcome

• Lead concentration reduced from 121mg/L to <0.01mg/L with 150mg/L aquaC dosage
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and important.

• Waseda University (、早稻田大学)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerWaseda University is AZMEC's founding institution. AZMEC was established as a Waseda University spin-off venture (、早大発ベンチャー企業) in 2004, under guidance of Professor Matsukata (松方正彦) and Professor Yamazaki (山崎淳司) from the Faculty of Science and Technology. The partnership involves ongoing joint product development and technology research.
• DOWA Eco System Co., Ltd. (ＤＯＷＡエコシステム)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint development partner for magnetic separation hydrotalcite adsorbent (Catenaccio ABLm). AZMEC collaborated with DOWA Eco System and Waseda University to develop the iron powder-containing adsorbent that enables magnetic separation for contaminated soil remediation.
• Green Deal Association (グリーンディール)importantStrategic or Co-development PartnerDevelopment partner for high-pressure washing technology for radioactive cesium contaminated soil volume reduction. Green Deal Association collaborated with AZMEC and Waseda University in the practical application of this decontamination technology.
• Waseda University (、早稻田大学)coreOthersSource of fundamental research behind AZMEC's technologies. Multiple joint academic conference presentations from 2009-2020 covering mercury, boron, selenium, fluorine, and arsenic treatment technologies.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Organo Corporation: Japanese water and wastewater treatment specialist serving industrial and semiconductor customers with both chemicals and treatment systems; overlaps with AZMEC in industrial water treatment chemistries and engineered solutions.
• Kurita Water Industries: Japan's largest industrial water treatment chemicals and services company; directly comparable to AZMEC as a domestic specialist in water treatment chemicals for industrial customers, but at vastly larger scale and broader portfolio.
• DOWA Eco System: Major Japanese environmental services and recycling group with soil remediation and mining waste management; AZMEC's joint development partner on the magnetic separation hydrotalcite adsorbent, making it both a comparable and a channel partner.

Broad incumbents

• Ecolab (Nalco Water): Global water treatment chemicals and services giant with industrial and municipal offerings; broad incumbent in the same product category as AZMEC's water treatment agents but with a much wider portfolio and global footprint.
• Solvay: Global specialty chemicals producer with water treatment, mining, and environmental remediation product lines; competes broadly with AZMEC's industrial chemical portfolio, particularly around heavy metal and mineral-based treatment chemistries.
• Veolia Water Technologies: Global water and wastewater treatment chemicals and infrastructure provider; competes with AZMEC across industrial water treatment chemistries and serves similar heavy industry and mining customers.
• BASF: Global chemical major with water treatment and environmental solutions segments; comparable to AZMEC as a diversified inorganic and specialty chemicals supplier to industrial water and soil treatment customers.

Regional players

• Resonac Holdings (formerly Showa Denko): Japanese diversified specialty chemicals company producing inorganic chemicals, adsorbents, and electronic materials; comparable to AZMEC in inorganic specialty chemicals manufacturing for industrial customers, primarily in Japan.
• Tosoh Corporation: Japanese specialty chemical producer of inorganic chemicals, zeolites, and adsorbent materials; relevant comparable to AZMEC's inorganic adsorbent and water treatment chemical business, with stronger scale and broader product range.
• Hitachi Zosen Inova / Hitachi Zosen Corporation: Japanese engineering and environmental solutions provider active in soil remediation and contaminated site services; overlaps with AZMEC's public works and disaster remediation projects in Japan.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

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 AZMEC