What ARMOR GROUP does

ARMOR GROUP is a privately held French industrial group founded in 1922 and headquartered in Nantes, France, with approximately 2,400-2,450 employees and €427 million of revenue in 2025. The group operates through five subsidiaries that share materials-science and coating competencies: ARMOR-IIMAK (thermal transfer ribbons for industrial printing, holding roughly 40% global market share following the IIMAK and THS Germany acquisitions), ALTKIN (remanufactured printing consumables, rebranded from ARMOR PRINT SOLUTIONS in 2024), ARMOR BATTERY FILMS (coated current collectors for lithium-ion batteries, featuring the patented SolFree water-based coating process and the En'Safe product line targeting EV and energy storage cells), ALQIO (functionalized films and sensors, rebranded from ARMOR SMART FILMS in 2025), and KIMYA (3D printing filaments supported by the OWA recycled-material ecosystem).

The company's core technology platforms are its water-based SolFree coating chemistry, the En'Safe current-collector technology for battery cells, and remanufacturing processes for printer consumables. ARMOR runs a co-industrialisation model with roughly 30 production and distribution sites across more than 100 countries, enabling localized B2B service to customers in automotive, electronics, logistics, healthcare, energy storage, defense, and aerospace. The business model combines direct B2B sales, multi-year qualification cycles in regulated segments like EV batteries, and a circular-economy element through ALTKIN's remanufactured cartridges and KIMYA's recycled feedstock streams.

ARMOR's growth posture combines organic capacity expansion (the €35 million Factory 4.0 inaugurated in September 2025) with disciplined inorganic moves (IIMAK in 2021, THS Germany in 2023, Thermal Ribbons Australia in 2026), and product launches such as the En'Safe NG4/NG5 coated current collectors and the AWR XL ribbon. The group is privately held and family-influenced, reinvesting earnings into battery films scale-up, with ARMOR BATTERY FILMS planning headcount growth from approximately 40 to 180 employees by 2030.

Name

ARMOR GROUP

Legal name

ARMOR S.A.S.

Website

https://armor-group.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1922

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

ARMOR GROUP is a French industrial group with five subsidiaries producing thermal transfer ribbons, coated battery current collectors, functional films, remanufactured printing consumables, and 3D printing filaments for global B2B customers across automotive, energy storage, logistics, and healthcare.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Industrial Specialty Coatings and Thin Films

NAICS

Paint and Coating Manufacturing (32551), Fabric Coating Mills (31332), Fabric Coating Mills (313320)

SIC

Paints, Varnishes, Lacquers, Enamels & Allied Prods (2851), Coating, Engraving & Allied Services (3470), Adhesives & Sealants (2891)

akta.pro primary industry

Industrial & Protective Coatings (IMAEAGAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Industrial Protective Coatings (IMAEAHAB), Automotive & Transportation Coatings (IMAEAGAC)

Keywords

• Thermal transfer ribbons
• Battery current collectors
• Remanufactured printer cartridges
• Functional surface films
• Industrial thin film coating

Headquarters

HQ city

Nantes

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices6 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Thermal Transfer Ribbon Sales (ARMOR-IIMAK): ARMOR-IIMAK generates revenue through the design, manufacture, and marketing of thermal transfer ribbons (wax, wax-resin, and resin grades) sold globally to industrial, logistics, and distribution players. Ribbons are sold directly and through local distributors. The company reported €348 million turnover in 2025 and holds approximately 40% global market share.
2. Battery Current Collector Sales (ARMOR BATTERY FILMS): ARMOR BATTERY FILMS designs, manufactures, and commercializes coated current collectors (En'Safe brand) for lithium-ion batteries, supercapacitors, and emerging applications including electric vehicles, data centers, stationary energy storage, defense, aerospace, and e-buses. Revenue is generated through direct sales to battery manufacturers.
3. Printing Consumables and Remanufactured Cartridges (ALTKIN): ALTKIN generates revenue through the sale of remanufactured laser cartridges (OWA brand), alternative consumables, managed print services (Dyalog), industrial inks (A2I lab), and private-label/tailored products. Products are sold in France and across Europe. The company is the European leader in remanufactured printing solutions.
4. Functionalized Films and Sensors (ALQIO): ALQIO (formerly ARMOR SMART FILMS) generates revenue through the sale of high-tech films, membranes, sensors, electroactive devices, and printed electronics components to manufacturers in MedTech, GreenTech, and information technology sectors. Services span from R&D and prototyping to large-scale industrial production.
5. Managed Print Services: ALTKIN's Dyalog division provides managed print services simplifying printer fleet management for customers, delivering ongoing service revenue.

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

ARMOR GROUP is an industrial manufacturer specializing in ink formulation and high-precision coating of thin films, with five subsidiaries producing thermal transfer ribbons for industrial identification and traceability printing, coated current collectors for lithium-ion batteries and supercapacitors, remanufactured laser printer cartridges and alternative printing consumables, functionalized films/membranes/sensors for healthcare, energy and connected devices, and organic photovoltaic films and 3D printing filaments.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• ARMOR-IIMAK: World leader in thermal transfer ribbons for printing traceability and identification data on labels and flexible packaging
• ARMOR BATTERY FILMS
• ALTKIN
• Alqio
• KIMYA
• OWA
• WECARE
• THS
• Dyalog
• En' Safe
• ASCA
• SolFree
• Rec'PET

Products and services

• ARMOR-IIMAK Thermal Transfer Ribbons (wax, wax-resin, resin) Designed, manufactured and marketed by ARMOR-IIMAK, thermal transfer ribbons (wax, wax-resin, and resin grades) are sold globally to industrial, logistics and distribution customers for printing traceability and identification data on labels and flexible packaging. They are manufactured using the patented SolFree 100% solvent-free coating process and reach customers in over 100 countries, including through ARMOR-IIMAK Australia for Oceania.
• En'Safe Coated Current Collectors for Batteries (ARMOR BATTERY FILMS) ARMOR BATTERY FILMS designs, manufactures and commercializes coated aluminum and copper current collectors for lithium-ion batteries and supercapacitors under the En'Safe brand. The collectors enhance battery performance, safety, lifespan and number of cycles, and are sold to manufacturers of EV batteries, e-buses, stationary energy storage systems (including for data centers), defense, and aerospace applications. The range includes the En'Safe NG4 and NG5 grades optimized for electric vehicles.
• OWA Remanufactured Laser Toner Cartridges and Alternative Printing Consumables (ALTKIN) ALTKIN (formerly ARMOR PRINT SOLUTIONS) is the European leader in remanufactured printing solutions and manufactures/sells the OWA range of remanufactured laser toner cartridges, alternative consumables and private-label products in France and across Europe. The Moroccan site in Bir Jdid produces up to 3 million cartridges per year and is ISO 14001 / EcoVadis Platinum certified. Products are sold via wholesale/reseller channels and white-label arrangements.
• Dyalog Managed Print Services (ALTKIN) Dyalog, an ALTKIN division, provides managed print services that simplify printer fleet management for enterprise customers, delivering recurring service revenue by reducing the complexity of mixed-fleet printing environments.
• Functionalized Films, Membranes and Sensors (ALQIO) ALQIO (formerly ARMOR SMART FILMS) designs and produces functionalized surface components at industrial scale — including electroactive films for haptic actuators, sensors and transducers, ceramic separators and membranes for energy generation/storage, RFID antennas and conductive matrices for printed electronics, and smart inks and CNT dispersion formulations. Customers are manufacturers in MedTech, GreenTech, sports technology, VR, construction and connected devices. ALQIO operates several million m² of coated-material capacity and produces several million screen-printed sensors per year.
• ASCA Flexible Organic Photovoltaic Film ASCA is ARMOR GROUP's low-carbon, third-generation flexible organic photovoltaic film weighing 500 g/m² versus 10–15 kg/m² for conventional silicon panels. With an environmental payback of approximately 3 months (vs 18+ months for standard solar panels) and containing no rare metals, it is positioned as a renewable-energy enabling technology for buildings and connected objects.
• AWR XL Ultra-Thin Wax Thermal Transfer Ribbon AWR XL is a wax-grade thermal transfer ribbon made with zero solvent in the ink and protective backing layers and built on a 3.35 µm PET film — the thinnest on the market. Designed for flat-head printers used in logistics, retail and shipping applications, it delivers up to 40% additional printer uptime and a 26% reduction in plastic waste from used film.
• KIMYA Recyclable 3D Printing Filaments KIMYA, the ARMOR GROUP subsidiary, produces recyclable filaments for 3D printing using recycled materials sourced from OWA cartridges, closing the loop between ALTKIN's remanufacturing operations and additive manufacturing customers.
• AWR XL and OWA Thermal Transfer Ribbon Range for Textile Labels ARMOR-IIMAK's dedicated textile-label thermal transfer ribbon range enables durable printing of identification data on garment labels for the EMEA market, marketed through the EMEA Product Manager Nicolas Seguin.

Quantifiable outcome

• Battery life improvement of 20% and faster charging capability through En'Safe coated current collectors
• +8 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature8 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Thermal Ribbons Australia (TRA)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 8 July 2026ARMOR-IIMAK acquired Thermal Ribbons Australia (TRA), a family-owned business with 24+ years of expertise in thermal transfer ribbon slitting in Australia. TRA's director Ron Lusk will continue to support the transition. The new entity ARMOR-IIMAK Australia will serve the entire Oceania market, doubling market share to approximately 25% with a target of 40% in Australia and New Zealand.

Scale indicators18 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Asahi Kasei: Japanese specialty chemicals and materials group producing coated films, battery separators (Hipore/Hipore+) and functional films used in batteries, electronics and packaging. Overlaps with ARMOR BATTERY FILMS' coated current collectors and ALQIO's functional films as a much larger incumbent.
• 3M: Diversified industrial conglomerate with broad portfolios in specialty films, adhesives, and coating technologies. Comparable to ARMOR GROUP in thin-film coating know-how and industrial-scale specialty materials, though far larger and more diversified.
• Honeywell International: Industrial conglomerate with specialty materials, performance films and battery safety solutions. Overlaps with ARMOR's advanced materials direction and provides a benchmark for a diversified industrial group scaling battery-adjacent businesses.
• Toray Industries: Japanese leader in advanced functional films, coated separators and battery materials (Toray separators are widely used in lithium-ion cells). Overlaps with both ARMOR BATTERY FILMS' coated current collectors and ALQIO's functional film portfolio at significantly greater scale.
• Sumitomo Metal Mining: Major Japanese battery materials supplier producing cathode materials and surface-treated current collectors. A scaled incumbent competing for the same EV gigafactory specifications ARMOR BATTERY FILMS is targeting with En'Safe products.

Direct peers

• Eastman Kodak (Kodak): Long-standing thermal transfer ribbon manufacturer with the well-known KODAK and NEXXRIN brands. Directly competes with ARMOR-IIMAK in wax, wax-resin and resin ribbons across industrial labeling and packaging applications.
• Dai Nippon Printing: Japanese conglomerate with a large Information Communication segment producing thermal transfer ribbons and printing/labeling materials. Most direct head-to-head competitor of ARMOR-IIMAK globally, with comparable scale and similarly diversified adjacent businesses.
• Clover Imaging Group: North-American leader in remanufactured and compatible printer consumables (ink, toner, cartridges). Directly competes with ALTKIN's OWA brand in remanufactured laser cartridges and alternative printing consumables across Europe and beyond.
• Ricoh: Global leader in thermal transfer ribbons and printing consumables, also producing office printing hardware and industrial inkjet. Directly comparable to ARMOR-IIMAK and ALTKIN in ribbons and remanufactured/aftermarket cartridges.

Emerging players

• JSR Corporation: Japanese specialty materials company focused on functional coatings, display films, and emerging battery materials. Comparable to ALQIO's functional film and ARMOR BATTERY FILMS' coated current collector strategy at a more advanced R&D stage in adjacent applications.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCtKcSsK2jMqDHhB0K9kAmPA/videos
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/armorgroup

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles12 records

Subsidiaries5 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 ARMOR GROUP