KIESOW Austria

What KIESOW Austria does

KIESOW Austria GmbH is a privately held Austrian specialty chemicals company, founded in 1968 in Aurolzmünster under the original name METALLCHEMIE Ges.m.b.H., operating as the Austrian subsidiary of the German-headquartered KIESOW Oberflächenchemie GmbH & Co. KG family-owned group. The company develops, produces, and distributes chemical surface treatment processes for metals and plastics, with a portfolio exceeding 500 products spanning twelve product lines: polishing pastes and emulsions, industrial degreasing and pre-treatment, phosphatizing, galvanotechnik (electroplating including zinc, zinc-nickel, and chrome systems), passivations, sealings, electroless nickel, basic chemicals and anodes, tarnish protection (SYSTOPASS), accessories, and wastewater treatment. Branded product families include SAPHIR 2000/2050 trivalent chrome processes, OPAL & JADE zinc-nickel alloys, PROSEAL passivations, and SURFASEAL/SURFACOTE/SURFACLEAN conversion coatings, with notable proprietary platforms such as the boric-acid-free Azur HT BF zinc electrolyte and the QUALICOAT/GSB-approved SURFASEAL 440 chromate-free conversion coating.

Name

KIESOW Austria

Legal name

KIESOW Austria GmbH

Website

https://kiesow.at

Company type

Private

Founded year

1968

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

KIESOW Austria GmbH is the Austrian subsidiary of the German KIESOW Oberflächenchemie group, supplying over 500 chemical surface treatment products — including polishing compounds, electroplating baths, passivations, phosphatizing, and sealings — to industrial manufacturers across automotive, appliance, sanitary, and metal finishing sectors in over 30 countries.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Industrial surface treatment chemicals

NAICS

Paint and Coating Manufacturing (325510), Other Chemical Product and Preparation Manufacturing (3259), All Other Miscellaneous Chemical Product and Preparation Manufacturing (325998), Polish and Other Sanitation Good Manufacturing (325612)

SIC

Miscellaneous Chemical Products (2890), Paints, Varnishes, Lacquers, Enamels & Allied Prods (2851), Specialty Cleaning, Polishing And Sanitation Preparations (2842), Adhesives & Sealants (2891)

akta.pro primary industry

Industrial & Protective Coatings (IMAEAGAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Application Equipment & Coating Services (Contract Coating, Surface Prep) (IMAEAGAL), Specialty Surfactants & Performance Additives (IMAEABAL)

Keywords

• Surface treatment chemicals
• Electroplating processes
• Metal finishing chemicals
• Phosphatizing passivation
• Industrial cleaning degreasing

Headquarters

HQ city

Aurolzmünster

HQ country

Austria

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

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. Surface treatment chemicals: Development, production and distribution of polishing compounds, industrial cleaning products (degreasers), process baths for electrolytic metal deposition, passivation systems, phosphatizing for powder coating pretreatment, sealers, and electroless nickel processes. Also supplies basic chemicals, anodes, and accessories.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

KIESOW Austria develops, produces, and distributes chemical and mechanical surface treatment processes for metal and plastic surfaces. The product portfolio includes polishing compounds and emulsions, industrial cleaning/degreasing agents, phosphatizing for powder coating pre-treatment, electroplating process baths (zinc, zinc-nickel, trivalent chrome), passivations, sealers/TOP-coats, electroless nickel processes, tarnish protection, basic chemicals, anodes, and wastewater treatment chemicals. The company sells these consumables and associated process know-how to industrial manufacturers across more than 30 countries, supported by a field sales team, technical consulting, and an in-house analytics laboratory.

Product overview

KIESOW Austria operates as a single unified product portfolio company specializing in mechanical and chemical surface treatment processes for metals and plastics. The company functions as a system supplier offering complete solutions from polishing to final coating (sealing). The product portfolio encompasses 12 core product lines: Polishing Pastes & Emulsions for mechanical surface refinement, Degreasing/Pre-treatment products for industrial cleaning, Phosphatizing for powder coating pre-treatment, Galvanotechnik (Electroplating) including zinc, zinc-nickel, and chrome systems, Passivations for corrosion protection, Sealings/TOP-Coats for final protection, Electroless Nickel processes, Basic Chemicals & Anodes for electroplating, SYSTOPASS tarnish protection, Accessories, and Wastewater treatment products. Key branded product families include: SAPHIR 2000/2050 (trivalent chrome plating for decorative and functional applications), OPAL & JADE (zinc-nickel alloy processes), PROSEAL CF/XZ (passivation systems), SURFACLEAN (neutral pickling), SURFACOTE (phosphating), SURFASEAL (conversion coatings with QUALICOAT/GSB approval), and Azur HT (zinc electrolytes). The company also serves as a trading enterprise for raw materials, anodes, and accessories, supplying over 500 products across more than 30 countries.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Polishing Pastes & Emulsions (Polierpasten & -emulsionen) Polishing pastes and emulsions for mechanical surface refinement and buffing of metal surfaces, used by industrial manufacturers in metal finishing shops.
• Degreasing / Pre-treatment (Entfettungen / Vorbehandlung) Industrial cleaning products for degreasing metal and plastic surfaces prior to further treatment processes, used by industrial surface treatment operations.
• Phosphatizing (Phosphatierungen) Phosphate conversion coatings for pre-treatment in powder coating applications, providing corrosion protection and improved paint adhesion on metal components.
• Galvanotechnik (Electroplating) Electrolytic metal deposition processes including zinc, zinc-nickel, and chrome plating systems for decorative and functional coatings on metal parts.
• Passivations (Passivierungen) Passivation systems for zinc, zinc alloys, and chrome layers providing corrosion resistance and color stabilization (blue, black, yellow passivations) for industrial surface finishing operations.
• Sealings / TOP-Coats (Versiegelungen) Sealing and top-coat systems applied as final surface protection, providing additional corrosion resistance and finish quality on previously treated metal surfaces.
• Electroless Nickel (Chemisch-Nickel-Verfahren) Electroless nickel plating processes for uniform nickel-phosphorus alloy deposition without electrical current, providing wear and corrosion resistance on metal parts.
• Basic Chemicals & Anodes (Grundchemikalien / Anoden) Basic chemicals, plating salts, anodes, and process consumables required for electroplating operations, distributed as part of KIESOW's trading enterprise activities.
• Tarnish Protection SYSTOPASS (Anlaufschutz SYSTOPASS) Tarnish protection system for preventing corrosion and discoloration on metal surfaces during storage and transport between the finishing shop and end customer.
• Accessories (Zubehör) Accessories including equipment, testing supplies, and process monitoring tools for surface treatment operations, sold alongside chemistry products.
• Wastewater Treatment (Abwasser) Wastewater treatment products and systems for processing and neutralizing effluents from surface treatment operations, supporting environmental compliance at customer sites.
• SAPHIR 2000 Trivalent Chrome Process Trivalent chrome (Chromium III) plating process positioned as an environmentally friendly alternative to hexavalent chrome, enabling bright chrome layers without carcinogenic Cr(VI) compounds.
• OPAL & JADE Zinc-Nickel Alloy Processes Alkaline and acidic zinc-nickel alloy plating processes for enhanced corrosion protection on steel components used in industrial surface finishing.
• PROSEAL CF 560 Cobalt-Free Black Passivation Cobalt-free black passivation system specifically designed for high corrosion protection requirements on zinc and zinc alloy coatings.
• PROSEAL XZ 160 Trivalent Black Passivation Trivalent black passivation process specifically formulated for acidic zinc coatings, providing a durable black finish on plated parts.
• SURFACLEAN 688 Neutral Pickling Agent Neutral pickling agent free from labeling requirements, used for removing oxide and scale layers from iron and steel surfaces at pH values between 6.0 and 7.0.
• SURFACOTE 240 Low-Temperature Zinc Phosphating Low-temperature thin-layer zinc phosphating process (nickel-free) for pre-treatment prior to painting or powder coating on metal components.
• SURFASEAL 440 Chromate-Free Conversion Coating Chrome-free conversion coating with QUALICOAT and GSB approval for aluminum surface treatment, providing excellent paint adhesion and corrosion protection as a pre-treatment before painting.
• SAPHIR 2050 Barrel Chrome Plating Process Barrel chrome plating process using trivalent chrome technology, enabling direct chrome plating after barrel nickel without manual piece mounting, achieving 0.1-0.3 µm chrome layers in 30 minutes with cobalt-free electrolyte.
• SAPHIR 2000 BL Trivalent Chrome Process for Automotive Modified trivalent chrome process enabling depositions with b*-values in the negative range (-0.5 to -1), specially developed for the automotive industry with uncomplicated wastewater treatment.
• Azur HT BF Boric Acid-Free Bright Zinc Electrolyte Boric acid-free weakly acidic bright zinc electrolyte of the latest generation, suitable for barrel and rack applications, with the boric acid replacement already included in the base additive to simplify bath management.

Named customers9 records

Segments2 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

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• KIESOW OBERFLÄCHENCHEMIE GmbH & Co. KG (Germany)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerParent company of the KIESOW Group headquartered in Detmold, Germany since 1950. Responsible for manufacturing of polishing compounds, degreasers, additives for galvanic metal deposition, and phosphatizing. Also houses administration, development, application technology, and service laboratories.
• HAWKING Benelux BVminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorDistribution partner for Benelux region.
• FUTURE COATING TECHNOLOGIES PVT Ltd. (India)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorDistribution partner for India market.
• Futaba Sangyo Co. Ltd. (Japan)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorDistribution partner for Japan market.
• KM-Chimie Group S.a.r.l. (Morocco)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorDistribution partner for Morocco market.
• AFEROL Comércio de Produtos Quimicos, Lda. (Portugal)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorDistribution partner for Portugal market.
• SICHEM d.o.o. (Slovenia)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorDistribution partner for Slovenia market.
• METALCHIMIE (Tunisia)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorDistribution partner for Tunisia market.
• KIESOW CZ s.r.o. (Czech Republic/Slovakia)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorDistribution partner for Czech Republic and Slovakia markets.
• Agro Anatolia Gıda Tarım Sanayi ve Ticaret A.S. (Turkey)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorDistribution partner for Turkey market.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Atotech: Global leader in specialty chemicals and equipment for surface finishing, including electroplating, passivation, and phosphatizing. Direct competitor to KIESOW across the same product categories and automotive/appliance customer base.
• Coventya: European-headquartered specialty chemical supplier focused on metal finishing, electroplating, and surface treatment. Highly comparable mid-sized competitor with overlapping product lines and customer base.
• MacDermid Enthone Electronics Solutions: Specialty chemistry supplier for electronics and industrial surface finishing, including zinc, zinc-nickel, and trivalent chrome processes. Direct competitor in functional plating and automotive applications.
• Chemetall (BASF Coatings): BASF subsidiary specializing in surface treatment chemicals including pretreatment, passivation, and coating for metals. Competes head-to-head with KIESOW in automotive, aerospace, and industrial finishing applications.
• Technic Inc. US-based specialty chemical supplier for electronics and industrial surface finishing, including precious and base metal plating processes. Overlapping product portfolio in electroplating and passivation.
• SurTec (Freudenberg): German-based specialty chemicals supplier for surface treatment, offering zinc, zinc-nickel, passivation, and sealing processes. Closely comparable mid-sized European competitor with overlapping product lines.

Broad incumbents

• PPG Industries (Industrial Coatings): Global coatings and specialty materials giant with industrial pretreatment and finishing product lines. Competes with KIESOW at the OEM pretreatment stage via the broader portfolio offering.
• Henkel Surface Treatment: Diversified global chemical conglomerate with a surface treatment division offering conversion coatings, cleaning, and plating processes. Competes in automotive pretreatment and industrial finishing markets.

Emerging players

• Daiwa Fine Chemicals: Japanese manufacturer of specialty surface treatment chemicals including zinc plating and passivation. Regional competitor with similar chemistry focus but limited European footprint.
• JCU Corporation: Japanese specialty chemical manufacturer focused on surface treatment chemicals for electronics and automotive plating. Comparable in product portfolio but with primary focus on Asian markets.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/kiesow-austria-gmbh

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Subsidiaries5 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 KIESOW Austria