Polycoat Products (a Division of American Polymers) Announce appointments of Executive Leadership Team

PRESS RELEASE: January 9, 2023 (Santa Fe Springs, California)

American Polymers Corp.

• Polycoat Products (a Division of American Polymers)
• Chemco Systems, Inc (a wholly owned company of American Polymers)
• SuperSkinSystems (a Division of American Polymers)

Laxmi “Lax” Gupta built one of the largest family-owned systems houses in the United States under his leadership over his 50-year career in the polyurethanes industry. He ran a family and customer-centric business enterprise and focused on innovation through Research and Development, leading to high-performance products produced under the strictest quality control procedures. He left an enduring legacy which will be continued by his wife Urmila Gupta and his three children, Dr. Shalesh Gupta, Dr. Anjula Gupta and Dr. Sandeep Gupta, who are actively involved in managing all his businesses. Many other family members and now the third generation, Lax’s grandchildren, have started to enter the businesses as well.

The owners of American Polymers Corp. would like to announce the appointments of Ashish Dhuldhoya as the new President of Polycoat Products and of Dev Kumar and Dr. Mahesh Kotnis, as Executive Vice Presidents of American Polymers Corp.

Executive Leadership Team consisting of the owners, Ashish Dhuldhoya, Dev Kumar and Dr. Mahesh Kotnis will oversee the management of all group companies, including American Polymers, under the current ownership.

Ashish Dhuldhoya has proven to be an innovative and effective leader for the past 35 years. Coming from India with a B.S. in Chemical Engineering from LD College of Engineering, Ashish started as a plant operator at Polycoat in 1987. In 1999, when Polycoat faced a pivotal moment, Ashish stepped in and engineered a plan that put the company back on a growth path and has continued to grow the company ever since. His strategic thinking and strong leadership have made him an invaluable asset to American Polymers.

Dev Kumar holds a master’s degree in Industrial and Production Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology, Roorkee. Prior to joining Polycoat Products in 1998, Dev held various leadership roles in Engineers India Ltd (formerly Bechtel India) for 28 years and was responsible for many large complex projects involving grass root refineries, gas processing, fertilizer and naphtha cracker plants. At Polycoat, Dev was responsible for the modernization and expansion of the Santa Fe Springs facility and then for strategic planning and M&A.

Prior to joining American Polymers as Executive Vice President, Dr. Mahesh Kotnis worked in various senior leadership roles in multinational companies such as Huntsman, Ciba Specialty Chemicals and ICI Americas over the last 30 years. He has a proven track record of building profitable businesses and high-performing teams, which have delivered consistent above-market growth in diverse economic conditions. Dr. Kotnis holds a Ph.D. from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst in Polymer Science & Engineering.

The ownership of American Polymers is committed to making investments in human and plant assets to keep the aggressive growth trajectory of American Polymers through organic and inorganic growth. We recently completed acquisitions and successful integrations of two new companies, namely, SuperSkinSystems and ChemCo Systems. We are proud to share that our team has completed projects to set up new plants for the manufacturing of aromatic and aliphatic polyesters in Arlington, Texas. In addition, plans and implementation of a low-free TDI plant are underway, with planned completion sometime in 2024. We wish all of our customers, suppliers, employees and your families a very happy and prosperous 2023.

In loving memory of Lax Gupta, August 13, 1937, to November 8, 2022.