Business Model

Nanomaterials are strictly defined at Nanophase as metal oxides that are truly less than 100 nm in each direction. Nanophase products are manufactured from the ground up, that is, they are built from individual atoms in vapor-phase plasma processes. While the quality and purity of these materials are very high, they are almost always more costly than readily available micron-sized products of similar composition. As such, focus is limited to applications and market segments where the product delivers performance that is justified on a system cost basis and where the larger material simply does not work due to a defined performance need, such as the maintenance of clarity. If a solid value proposition that justifies the use and cost of nanomaterials cannot be formulated and supported, the application is not pursued.

Nanophase development projects focus on near-term business opportunities in which initial commercial sales are envisioned as 12 to 24 months in the future. As a small company with a strong focus on technology and commercial manufacturing, the Nanophase business model revolves around strategic partnerships. Nanophase does not strive to become experts in applications or to directly supply the end user, but rather to partner with companies who currently occupy the market channel. As examples, Nanophase has worldwide exclusives with BASF for the supply of zinc oxide into sunscreen applications and with Rodel, a division of Rohm and Haas Company, for ceria dispersions used in CMP (chemical mechanical planarization) semiconductor applications. While products are available as powders, they are also offered as coated materials and/or stable dispersions in aqueous or organic media, providing partners with nanomaterials in readily-usable forms which often lead to decreased time to market.