SAFC Hitech Ltd., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Sigma-Aldrich Corporation, a leading Life Science and High Technology company, has signed an agreement to create a 50/50 joint venture (JV) with Korean-based Soulbrain Co. Ltd. (Soulbrain). The joint venture, known as Soulbrain Sigma-Aldrich Ltd., is subject to customary closing conditions and is expected to be finalized early in the first quarter of 2013.

Soulbrain is a specialty chemical company serving the flat panel display, semiconductor and electronic materials market.

The newly formed JV will serve the Korean market and will focus on developing and commercialising advanced metal organic precursor technologies used in the semiconductor and LED markets. Soulbrain will contribute certain electronic material product know-how, intellectual property (IP), and development personnel to the venture.  SAFC Hitech Ltd. will contribute related manufacturing and product know-how and IP for metal organic compounds used to manufacture semiconductors and will license its technology to the joint venture for products used to manufacture light emitting diodes (LED). The combination is expected to leverage the strong market position and customer intimacy of Soulbrain, and utilize SAFC Hitech's precursor technologies to better serve Korean customers.

Soulbrain will be the exclusive distributor for products manufactured or otherwise acquired by the newly formed joint venture within the Korean market. With limited exceptions, joint venture-developed products for export outside Korea will be distributed by SAFC Hitech Ltd. or its affiliates.

Commenting on the arrangement, Sigma-Aldrich Corporation president and CEO Rakesh Sachdev stated, "We continue to grow our presence in the Asia Pacific region, where the majority of electronic products are manufactured today. The creation of this joint venture enables us to extend our capabilities in the region and gain greater customer access through Soulbrain's established technical competencies, infrastructure and customer relationships. We are pleased to partner with Soulbrain to bring new advances to the semiconductor and LED markets."

Ji-Wan Chung, Soulbrain chairman, said, "Soulbrain's manufacturing capabilities combined with SAFC Hitech's precursor know-how and semiconductor electronic material product pipeline offer the growing Korean market more technologically robust solutions. SAFC Hitech is a well-known specialty chemical manufacturer with a broad range of technical competencies and is an ideal partner to help better serve the needs of our customers in Korea."

Sigma-Aldrich is a leading Life Science and High Technology company whose biochemical, organic chemical products, kits and services are used in scientific research, including genomic and proteomic research, biotechnology, pharmaceutical development, the diagnosis of disease and as key components in pharmaceutical, diagnostics and high technology manufacturing.

SAFC is the custom manufacturing and services business unit of Sigma-Aldrich Corporation. It is recognised as a top 10 global fine chemical supplier and trusted manufacturer of specialty chemicals and biologics for the life science and high technology industries. Utilizing global "Centres of Excellence" and dedicated manufacturing facilities, SAFC can often resolve development and manufacturing challenges and accelerate the production of custom materials. Its rich portfolio includes high-purity inorganic materials for high technology applications, cell culture products, services for biopharmaceutical manufacturing and biochemical production, and complex, multi-step organic synthesis of APIs and key intermediates.

SAFC Hitech provides a unique chemistry service translating application understanding into performance materials worldwide.