Arakawa Chemical Industries

Name

Arakawa Chemical Industries

Legal name

Arakawa Chemical Industries, Ltd.

Website

https://arakawachem.co.jp

Company type

Public

Founded year

1876

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Specialty Chemicals

NAICS

Paint, Coating, and Adhesive Manufacturing (3255), Adhesive Manufacturing (32552), Paint and Coating Manufacturing (325510), Adhesive Manufacturing (325520), Resin and Synthetic Rubber Manufacturing (32521)

SIC

Adhesives & Sealants (2891), Chemicals & Allied Products (2800), Paints, Varnishes, Lacquers, Enamels & Allied Prods (2851), Miscellaneous Chemical Products (2890)

akta.pro primary industry

Adhesives (Structural & Assembly) (IMAEAGAH)

akta.pro secondary industries

Adhesives & Sealants Chemicals (IMAEABAA), Specialty Surfactants & Performance Additives (IMAEABAL), Textile, Leather & Paper Specialty Chemicals (IMAEABAM), Coating & Adhesive Raw Materials (Resins, Additives, Solvents) (IMAEAGAK)

Keywords

• Specialty chemicals manufacturing
• Rosin-based industrial materials
• Paper sizing chemicals
• Adhesive tackifying resins
• Electronic materials cleaning

Headquarters

HQ city

Osaka

HQ country

Japan

HQ region

Asia

Offices26 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Paper chemicals sales: Sales of paper chemicals including sizing agents, paper strengthening agents, and water repellents to papermaking companies. Domestic market leader with growing Asian market share.
2. Printing ink resin sales: Sales of rosin-modified phenolic resins (TAMANOL), alkyd resins, maleic resins, and other coating/printing ink materials to printing ink manufacturers.
3. Adhesive and tackifier resin sales: Sales of tackifying resins, hydrogenated petroleum resins (ARKON), rosin esters, and emulsion tackifiers to adhesive and tape manufacturers. Also includes polymerization emulsifiers for synthetic rubber.
4. Electronics materials sales: Sales of electronic materials including cleaning agents, fluxes, solder materials, polyimide resins, and battery binder resins to electronics and semiconductor manufacturers.
5. Functional coating chemicals sales: Sales of UV/EB curable resins (BEAMSET), functional coating agents, release agents, and polyurethane resins to coating and film manufacturers.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Arakawa Chemical Industries is a specialty chemicals manufacturer that develops, produces, and sells rosin-based industrial intermediate materials including paper chemicals (sizing agents, paper strengthening agents, water repellents), printing ink resins (rosin-modified phenolic resins, alkyd resins, maleic resins), adhesive and tackifier resins (hydrogenated petroleum resins, rosin esters, emulsion tackifiers), and electronic materials (CFC-free cleaning agents, solder fluxes, low-dielectric polyimide resins for 5G, battery binder resins). Products are sold to industrial manufacturers in paper, printing, adhesives, electronics, coatings, and life sciences sectors globally.

Product overview

Arakawa Chemical Industries is a specialty chemical manufacturer offering a diverse portfolio of industrial materials organized across four main business segments: Functional Coating Chemicals (photocurable resins, alkyd resins, polyurethane resins), Paper Chemicals and Environmental Business (paper strengthening agents, sizing agents), Adhesive and Biomass Materials (tackifiers, hydrogenated hydrocarbon resins, rosin esters), and Fine Chemicals and Electronics (cleaning agents, solder materials, polyimide resins, battery binder resins). The company leverages rosin (pine-derived natural resin) as a core raw material, producing both intermediate materials for industrial use and advanced materials for electronics, healthcare, and environmental applications. The product portfolio includes flagship brands like BEAMSET (photocurable resin), ARKON (hydrogenated hydrocarbon resin), PINECRYSTAL (ultra-pale rosin), and PIAD (low-dielectric polyimide for 5G), along with sustainability-focused products like PLAFIT (plastic additives), EcoRosin (biostimulant), and CO2 Polyamine (carbon capture materials).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• BEAMSET: Photocurable resin used for functional coating, pressure sensitive adhesive, printing ink and paint applications
• Polystron
• ARKON
• PINE ALPHA
• ARACOAT
• Sizepine
• PINECRYSTAL
• PIAD
• TAMANOL
• PINEALPHA
• EcoRosin
• PLAFIT
• Matsutaro & Rosina

Products and services

• BEAMSET Photo-curable resin that cures instantly by irradiating ultraviolet rays or electron beams, used as hard coating material for smartphone and LCD TV displays and other applications.
• Polystron Internal paper strengthening agent based on polyacrylamide resins that increases paper strength and corrugated cardboard durability for paper manufacturers.
• ARKON World's first hydrogenated hydrocarbon resin with heat resistance, weatherability, colorless and transparent properties, FDA-registered for food contact applications, used as tackifier for adhesives, hot-melt adhesives, and plastic modifiers.
• PINE ALPHA Precise parts cleaning agent using glycol ether, developed as CFC-free solvent for cleaning high-precision electronic parts and semiconductors in electronics and component manufacturing.
• Sizepine Internal size agent containing rosin derivatives, alkyl ketene dimers, and alkenyl succinic anhydrides that prevents ink feathering and improves printability in papermaking processes.
• PINECRYSTAL Ultra-pale rosin (world's first almost colorless transparent rosin) with extremely low impurities, used in medical applications, solder, and high-specialty adhesive fields.
• PIAD Thermoplastic polyimide resin with low dielectric properties for 5G/sub6 and millimeter-wave applications, used in flexible substrate adhesives for high-frequency communications.
• TAMANOL Rosin-modified phenolic resin providing gloss and quick-drying properties for offset printing ink, paint varnish, and electrical insulation varnish applications.
• UREARNO Polyurethane resin for package-gravure ink applications, used by printing ink manufacturers.
• MALKYD Maleic resin for printing ink and paint applications.
• ARAKYD Alkyd resin for paint and printing ink applications, used by coating and ink manufacturers.
• ARAPOL Polyester resin for paint applications used by coating manufacturers.
• ARACOAT Functional coating agent for films providing protective and functional surface properties used by film manufacturers.
• MODEPICS Modified epoxy resin for various industrial applications used by manufacturers.
• ESTER GUM / PENSEL Rosin ester used as tackifier for adhesives and pressure sensitive adhesives, and as chewing gum base by adhesive tape and confectionery manufacturers.
• SUPER ESTER Highly stabilized rosin ester with excellent stability for adhesive applications used by adhesive manufacturers.
• SUPER ESTER E / TAMANOL E Emulsion tackifier for water-based adhesives and pressure sensitive adhesives used by adhesive manufacturers.
• PLAFIT Plastic additive for polymer alloying and filler dispersion, improves flowability and compatibility of plastics while enabling biomass content increase for plastic manufacturers.
• EcoRosin Pine-derived biostimulant that promotes plant growth, increases CO2 absorption, improves crop yield, and contributes to biodiversity and climate change response for agricultural applications.
• CO2 Polyamine Polyamine for carbon dioxide adsorption developed using water-based polymer synthesis technology, offering high safety, controlled adsorption/desorption properties, and durability for repeated long-term use for industrial carbon capture applications.
• MMS-003 Low cytotoxicity PDMS hydrophilizing agent that solves cell culture water dissolution issues while maintaining hydrophilicity for life science and medical applications.
• Cell Culture Coating Agent Biomass-derived coating agent for cell culture containers that enables cell culture of mesenchymal stromal cells with weak adhesiveness for medical and biotechnology applications.
• POMIRAN Hybrid polyimide film for flexible printed circuit boards developed jointly with Taimide Technology in Taiwan for electronics applications.
• PINE SOLDER / PINE FLUX Solder products with proprietary rosin-based flux for electronic assembly in electronics manufacturing.
• COMPOCERAN Organic-inorganic hybrid resin for electronic materials and functional coating applications used by electronics manufacturers.
• Lithium-ion Battery Binder Resins Water-soluble binder resins with high heat resistance and metal/ceramic adhesion for lithium-ion batteries used in EV battery applications. Also applicable to ceramic coating binders for separators.
• Photosensitive Polyimide PR-P1 Photosensitive polyimide for MEMS sealing applications in semiconductor and electronics manufacturing.
• Low/High Refractive Index Resist Materials Low and high refractive index resist materials for display applications offering high brightness and low power consumption for electronics and display manufacturers.
• Semiconductor Backend Materials Materials for semiconductor backend processes including cleaning and soldering used by semiconductor manufacturers.
• Low-Dielectric Adhesive Low-dielectric adhesive for 5G/6G communications equipment used by electronics and telecommunications equipment manufacturers.

Quantifiable outcome

• Pine sap (rosin) absorbs approximately 3 tonnes of CO2 per tonne, contributing to carbon cycle society
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability1 record

Feature9 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• SoPros Co., Ltd.coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Arakawa Chemical Industries acquired SoPros' Aurantiochytrium (microalgae) business in 2026. This acquisition accelerates Arakawa's entry into the life sciences domain, adding microalgae-based products to its portfolio alongside existing pine-derived and rosin-based offerings. The deal is part of Arakawa's strategy to develop new business areas in healthcare, agriculture, and cosmetics.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Harima Chemicals Group: Japanese specialty chemicals company also founded on pine chemistry, producing tackifier resins, rosin derivatives, printing ink resins and adhesive raw materials — directly overlapping Arakawa's core adhesive and ink resin business.
• Kraton Corporation: Global producer of styrenic block copolymers and pine chemistry-based tackifiers, directly competing with Arakawa's hydrogenated hydrocarbon resins and rosin ester tackifiers used in adhesives and hygiene products.
• Toyo Ink (Artience Co., Ltd.): Japanese printing ink and specialty chemicals manufacturer whose resin and ink product lines compete directly with Arakawa's TAMANOL, MALKYD, and UREARNO printing ink resins.
• Lawter (a Harima Chemicals subsidiary): Specialty resin producer focused on rosin-based and hydrocarbon resins for printing inks, adhesives, and coatings — directly comparable to Arakawa's adhesive and biomass materials segment.

Broad incumbents

• BASF SE: Global chemicals major whose performance chemicals and coatings portfolios include dispersants, additives and resins overlapping with Arakawa's PLAFIT plastic additives, BEAMSET photo-curable resins, and paper chemicals.
• DIC Corporation: Japanese diversified chemicals and printing ink manufacturer whose pigments and printing inks businesses overlap with Arakawa's TAMANOL rosin-modified phenolic resins and printing ink resin offerings.
• Mitsubishi Chemical Group: Large Japanese chemicals conglomerate with specialty resins, performance polymers and electronic materials portfolios that overlap with Arakawa's polymer-based functional coatings and electronics materials.
• Resonac Holdings (formerly Showa Denko): Japanese diversified specialty chemicals producer active in resins, electronic materials, and adhesives — overlapping with Arakawa's functional coating chemicals and fine chemicals & electronics segments.
• Eastman Chemical Company: US-listed global specialty chemicals major with a sizable Additives & Functional Products segment that includes hydrocarbon tackifier resins (e.g., Regalite, Eastotac) competing directly with Arakawa's ARKON hydrogenated petroleum resins.

Emerging players

• TotalEnergies Cray Valley (Specialty Polymers): Specialty hydrocarbon and tackifier resin producer (part of TotalEnergies' Polymers division) competing with Arakawa's hydrogenated petroleum resins and rosin esters in the global adhesive tackifier market.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/arakawachem
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/arakawa-chemical-usa-inc.

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles14 records

Subsidiaries16 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A

Investments1 record

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

Frequently asked questions about Arakawa Chemical Industries