Bayer MaterialScience AG has signed a contract for the sale of its Thermoplastics Testing Center (TTC) to Underwriters Laboratories Inc (UL), Northbrook, Illinois, United States. The sale of the accredited test centre underscores Bayer MaterialScience's focus on the development of high-tech materials for innovative applications. The transaction should be completed during the second quarter of this year. Financial details have not been disclosed.

"The TTC provides outstanding services in the field of materials testing. The acquisition by Underwriters Laboratories provides us with a partner who will very effectively support the work of Bayer MaterialScience in the future," says Dr Günter Hilken, head of the Polycarbonates Business Unit and a member of the executive committee of Bayer MaterialScience. "At the same time we will be focusing even more on developing innovative materials for growth markets and providing our customers with intelligent solutions." With its capacity to carry out more than 200 different testing procedures - primarily for thermoplastics - the TTC, which is based in Chempark Krefeld-Uerdingen, is one of the leading testing and certification institutes in Europe.

The sale of the company with its extensive range of services also represents an important milestone for the TTC in terms of expanding its testing activities. It employs 65 people, all of whom will be taken on by Underwriters Laboratories. The TTC will extend UL's portfolio of testing and certification service offerings. After the acquisition is complete, UL International TTC GmbH will operate as a subsidiary of UL International Germany GmbH, Neu-Isenburg. UL is a leading global conformity assessment, safety certification and testing organization. It is actively seeking opportunities to increase its market share, support its customers in securing international approval for their products and expand its public safety mission with the global introduction of product standards.

Underwriters Labs is an independent product safety certification organization that has been testing products and writing Standards for Safety for over a century.