What Material Sciences Corporation does

Material Sciences Corporation (MSC) is a privately held, U.S.-domiciled industrial manufacturer founded in 1951 and headquartered in Canton, Michigan, majority-controlled since May 2019 by Dallas-based middle-market private equity firm Sky Island Capital. The company designs and produces proprietary engineered metal laminates and coated metal products for noise, vibration, and harshness (NVH) management, vehicle lightweighting, and corrosion protection. Its branded product portfolio includes Quiet Steel, Quiet Aluminum, MSC Smart Steel (the first-ever spot-weldable low-density composite laminate for body-in-white applications), MagnaDamp, Deco Steel, Soundtrap, and RepliKote decorative coil products, supported by a service portfolio of electrogalvanizing (including the only U.S. Zi-Ni line), coil coating, laminates and strippable films, supply chain management with Just-in-Time delivery, and value-added processing (cut-to-length, slitting, embossing, tension leveling).

MSC operates six manufacturing facilities across the U.S. Midwest automotive corridor (Canton MI; Walbridge OH; East Chicago IN; Elk Grove Village IL; Canfield OH; Burr Ridge IL) plus a Toronto facility serving North American and European markets, with sales offices in Shanghai and Turin (with a Salerno warehouse). It employs 350+ people globally, ships to 12 countries, and serves three primary verticals — Automotive (primary), Construction, and Consumer Goods — with named enterprise customers including Ford Motor Company and Chrysler Group and qualified production platforms on multiple 2019 global automotive programs. The business model combines direct B2B sales of branded laminate products (hardware sales) with fee-based electrogalvanizing, coil coating, supply chain management, and value-added processing services (professional and managed services), with quote-based pricing negotiated directly with OEMs, Tier 1 suppliers, and consumer/construction manufacturers. Revenue is not publicly disclosed. The company is certified to ISO 14001, IATF 16949, and ISO 9001:2015 and complies with EU RoHS, and has received multiple industry recognitions including the 2019 Automotive News PACE Award and the 2019 Altair Enlighten Award for MSC Smart Steel.

Name

Material Sciences Corporation

Legal name

Material Sciences Corporation

Website

https://matsci.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1951

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Material Sciences Corporation is a privately held U.S. metal manufacturer producing proprietary NVH acoustic laminates, lightweight steel composites, electrogalvanizing, and coil coating services for automotive, construction, and consumer goods customers across North America, Europe, and Asia.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Specialty Coated and Laminated Metal Products

NAICS

Metal Coating, Engraving (except Jewelry and Silverware), and Allied Services to Manufacturers (332812), Other Fabricated Metal Product Manufacturing (3329)

SIC

Sheet Metal Work (3444)

akta.pro primary industry

Automotive NVH, Insulation & Acoustic Components Manufacturing (Sound Deadening/Thermal Barriers) (IMACAKAH)

akta.pro secondary industries

Automotive Surface Materials & Coatings for Interiors/Exteriors Manufacturing (Upholstery Materials/Decor Films/Paints for Trim) (IMACAKAL), Aluminum Fabrication & Finishing (Machining, Anodizing, Coating) (IMAKACAI), Automotive Thermal Insulation, Sealing & NVH for HVAC/Thermal Systems (IMACALAJ)

Keywords

• Coated metal products
• NVH acoustic laminates
• Electrogalvanizing services
• Automotive lightweighting
• Coil coating services

Headquarters

HQ city

Canton

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices9 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Coated and Laminated Metal Products: Sale of proprietary acoustic NVH products including Quiet Steel, Quiet Aluminum, MSC Smart Steel, MagnaDamp, and Deco Steel to automotive, construction, and consumer goods manufacturers.
2. Electrogalvanizing Services: Processing services for zinc and Zi-Ni coating on steel. MSC is the largest independently owned electrogalvanizing company in North America with four versatile lines.
3. Coil Coating Services: Custom coil coating of steel, aluminum, and other metals with various coating systems including polyesters, epoxies, PVDF, plastisols, and film laminates.
4. Supply Chain Management: JIT stocking programs and supply chain solutions for steel and metal products, including Just-in-Time delivery to automotive, appliance, construction, and consumer goods industries.
5. RepliKote Printed Products: Pre-finished coil-coated products replicating wood, stone, metal, and custom imagery on metal substrates for construction and consumer applications.
6. Value Added Processing: Secondary processing including cut to length, slitting, embossing, tension leveling, and strippable film application.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Material Sciences Corporation manufactures proprietary acoustic NVH laminate metal products (Quiet Steel, Quiet Aluminum, MSC Smart Steel, MagnaDamp, Deco Steel, RepliKote, Soundtrap) and provides metal processing services including electrogalvanizing (including the only U.S. Zi-Ni line), coil coating, laminate and strippable film application, value-added processing, and JIT supply chain management. The company supplies automotive OEMs/Tier 1 suppliers, construction manufacturers, and consumer goods producers with engineered coated and laminated steel and aluminum for lightweighting, NVH, corrosion protection, and decorative applications.

Product overview

Material Sciences Corporation (MSC) offers a diversified portfolio of metal-based solutions for acoustical, lightweighting, and coating applications. The product portfolio consists of seven core branded products: Quiet Steel® and Quiet Aluminum® (NVH acoustic laminates for steel and aluminum respectively), MSC Smart Steel® (lightweight steel laminate offering up to 35% weight savings), MagnaDamp® (magnetic damping solution), Deco Steel® (stainless steel alternative laminate), RepliKote® (pre-finished decorative metals), and Soundtrap® (constrained layer damping for cast aluminum). These products are complemented by five service lines: Coil Coatings (applying various coatings to metal), Electrogalvanizing (zinc-based corrosion protection), Laminates & Strippable Film (decorative/functional films), Supply Chain Management (JIT logistics), and Value Added Processing (cutting, slitting, embossing). The company serves the automotive, construction, and consumer goods industries with a focus on mass reduction and acoustic performance.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• MSC Smart Steel: Innovative lightweight laminate offering up to 35% weight savings compared to monolithic steel. First ever spot weldable low-density composite laminate for body-in-white applications.
• Quiet Steel
• Quiet Aluminum
• MagnaDamp
• Deco Steel
• RepliKote
• Soundtrap

Products and services

• Quiet Steel® Engineered laminate with a viscoelastic layer laminated between two sheets of steel, providing NVH damping for automotive and industrial applications; formable and weldable to reduce or eliminate cost and weight of add-on sound deadening materials.
• Quiet Aluminum® Lightweight NVH damping alternative for aluminum panels using an engineered viscoelastic layer laminated between two sheets of aluminum, offering the same damping performance as Quiet Steel with a fraction of the mass.
• MSC Smart Steel® Innovative multilayer steel laminate offering up to 35% weight savings versus monolithic steel; the first-ever spot-weldable low-density composite laminate for body-in-white applications, providing a formable, weldable, paintable substitute for steel.
• MagnaDamp® Magnetic constrained layered product that adds damping and stiffness to flat, ferritic-based materials; no welding required, magnetically applied and processed through e-coat and paint cycles for localized NVH treatment.
• Deco Steel® Laminate consisting of a thin stainless steel surface, a structural core, and a cold-rolled or electrogalvanized backer substrate, providing stainless steel appearance and performance at reduced cost and optional mass reduction (up to 42% mass reduction versus monolithic stainless in bumper applications).
• Soundtrap® Engineered add-on constrained layer damping material for reducing noise in automotive cast aluminum parts such as oil pans and transmission housings, providing NVH performance through constrained layer damping for engine temperature applications.
• RepliKote® Pre-finished coil-coated products that convincingly emulate precious metal finishes, exotic woods, natural stone, or custom imagery on metal substrates; available in Wood, Stone, Metal, and Image series for construction and consumer applications.
• Coil Coatings Custom coil coating solutions applying polyesters, siliconized polyesters, plastisols, polyurethanes, PVDFs, epoxies, primers, dry film lubricants, weldable primers, and film laminates to steel, aluminum, and other metal substrates.
• Electrogalvanizing Electrolytic process bonding a uniform layer of zinc to steel for corrosion protection, including Zi-Ni coating offering superior corrosion protection for demanding applications such as automotive fuel tanks; MSC is the largest independently owned electrogalvanizing company in North America with four versatile lines and the only U.S. producer of Zi-Ni electrogalvanized steel.
• Laminates & Strippable Film Application of film laminates and strippable films providing decorative and protective solutions for steel and metal surfaces, including Specular+ MSVD reflective laminates for LED lighting with reflectance up to 97%.
• Supply Chain Management JIT stocking programs and strategic supply chain planning providing reduced working capital, single-invoice billing, just-in-time deliveries, and reduced inventories for Tier 1/Tier 2 automotive, appliance, construction, electronics, and consumer goods customers.
• Value Added Processing Cut to length, embossing, slitting, strippables, and tension leveling services for processing metal from .0075 to .110 thickness.

Quantifiable outcome

• Up to 35% weight savings with MSC Smart Steel compared to monolithic steel
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature8 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• AltaircoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2021Joint webinar series on vehicle lightweighting technology advancements with Center for Automotive Research. MSC CTO Matt Murphy participated as Altair Enlighten Award winner discussing materials, production processes, and design methods.
• Center for Automotive Research (CAR)coreGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2021Joint webinar hosting with Altair on technology advancements in vehicle lightweighting, featuring MSC and other Altair Enlighten Award winners.
• Fabricators & Manufacturers Association, International (FMA)coreGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2021Conference hosting partner for Stamping in EV World Virtual Conference exploring transition to Electric Vehicles and its impact on stamping manufacturers.
• ASTM InternationalminorOthersIndustry standards organization membership demonstrating commitment to quality and industry standards.
• Fabricators and Manufacturers Association International (FMA)minorOthersIndustry association membership supporting manufacturing and fabrication excellence.
• National Coil Coating Association (NCCA)minorOthersIndustry association for coil coating industry promoting quality and standards.
• North American Steel Alliance (NASA)minorOthersStrategic alliance with other steel producers for industry collaboration and market development.

Scale indicators11 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Worthington Industries: Worthington Industries is a major North American steel processor with significant coil coating and electrical steel lamination capabilities serving automotive, construction, and consumer end-markets. It directly overlaps MSC's coated and laminated metal products business and competes for OEM processing volumes.
• Olympic Steel: Olympic Steel is a U.S.-based metal processing service center with flat-rolled steel processing, coil coating, and value-added services serving automotive, construction, and industrial customers. It competes directly with MSC's coil coating, electrogalvanizing, and value-added processing service lines.
• Shiloh Industries (Magna): Shiloh Industries, acquired by Magna International, specializes in lightweight acoustic and structural components for automotive OEMs using laminated steel and aluminum products. It is the most direct NVH laminate competitor to MSC's Quiet Steel and Quiet Aluminum product families.
• Wolverine Advanced Materials: Wolverine Advanced Materials acquired MSC's Global OE and Aftermarket Brake Shim business in 2014 and continues to operate in the automotive NVH/brake shim space. The historical relationship makes Wolverine one of the closest direct competitors in NVH laminates.
• Steel Technologies (Heidtman): Steel Technologies, a Heidtman company, is a major flat-rolled steel processor with extensive coil coating, blanking, and value-added capabilities serving automotive and appliance OEMs. It directly competes for processing volumes and JV partnerships with steel mills.

Broad incumbents

• Russel Metals: Russel Metals is a Canadian-based metal processor and distributor with operations in steel processing, coil coating, and energy tubular products across North America. Its coatings/service center operations overlap MSC's coil coating and electrogalvanizing service lines at broader scale.
• ArcelorMittal: ArcelorMittal is the world's largest steel producer with significant automotive flat products, coated steel, and NVH-related laminate offerings including S-in motion and Usibor. As an integrated mill, it competes with MSC's specialty coating/laminate business while also being a potential upstream partner.
• Voestalpine AG: Voestalpine is a major European steel and technology group with significant automotive lightweighting, NVH, and advanced coating solutions including phs-ultraform and similar technologies. It competes with MSC in automotive OEM specifications globally.

Regional players

• Ternium: Ternium is a Latin American-based flat steel producer with growing North American operations through its Ternium Mexico and U.S. service center network. It supplies coated and galvanized flat steel to automotive, construction, and consumer goods customers, partially overlapping MSC's end-markets in Latin America and the southern U.S.
• NLMK (Novolipetsk Steel): NLMK operates NLMK USA with significant flat-rolled steel and coated products operations serving North American automotive and construction customers via its Indiana, Pennsylvania, and other facilities. Its coating capabilities and OEM relationships create partial competitive overlap with MSC's electrogalvanizing service lines.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/material-sciences-corporation

Compliance6 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

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 Material Sciences Corporation