Ceradyne Inc. and Yamanaka EP Corp. have jointly announced that Ceradyne has acquired a minority interest in Yamanaka EP for an undisclosed amount. Yamanaka EP, a privately owned company based in Kyoto, Japan, processes advanced technical materials in its Shiga, Japan, processing facility and markets these materials in Japan, Asia, the U.S., and Europe primarily for nuclear power plant, solar, optical fiber, and semiconductor applications.

Ceradyne’s wholly owned subsidiary, Ceradyne Boron Products, supplies nuclear power plant and semiconductor materials to Yamanaka. The companies plan to change the name of Yamanaka EP Corp. to Yamanaka Ceradyne Inc. A Ceradyne Inc. representative will be added to the Yamanaka Ceradyne Inc. board of directors.

“We are very pleased to have our long-term supplier, Ceradyne Boron Products, as an integral part of the Yamanaka family,” said Takao Danno, president of Yamanaka.

“Our strategy in Asia is to have a regional ‘on the ground’ presence,” said Michael Kraft, vice president of Ceradyne’s Nuclear and Semiconductor Business Units. “We have achieved this in China, and now our formal partnership with Yamanaka EP Corp. ensures a close professional presence in Japan and the rest of Asia. Yamanaka EP Corp. has been working with Ceradyne’s Boron Products subsidiary and its predecessor in Quapaw, Okla., for over 15 years, and we are looking forward to expanding this relationship into other Ceradyne products.”

For more information, visit www.ceradyne.com or www.yepc.co.jp.