TENCATE GEOSYNTHETICS
BECOMES SOLMAX

Our History

The North Sea Flood of 1953 launched TenCate’s quest for innovative product development. This catastrophic flood destroyed the coast of The Netherlands, leaving in its wake nearly 2,000 dead. With a strong will to survive, the Dutch immediately began work on a new generation of dike protection that would be strong enough to withstand nature’s harshest forces. The search ended at Nicolon B.V. of Holland, a company dedicated to creating stronger, more advanced industrial textiles.

Over time, as the use of geosynthetics developed worldwide, TenCate has remained at the forefront of this expansion in geosynthetics usage.

In Europe in the late 1960’s the French chemicals company Rhône Poulenc established a factory at Bezons, France to manufacture nonwoven geotextiles under the well-known brand Bidim® which was registered in more than 100 countries. This range of nonwoven geotextiles has been used in many large projects worldwide over the last 45 years.

Also in Europe, Polyfelt GmbH was founded in Linz, Austria in the early 1970’s to manufacture nonwoven geotextiles under the brand Polyfelt®. In 1990, the Polyfelt and Bidim businesses were combined to form a major force in geosynthetics engineering having a worldwide coverage.

In 2005, TenCate Geosynthetics acquired the combined Polyfelt and Bidim Group to form TenCate Geosynthetics Europe with Headquarters in Linz, Austria.

In the Americas, TenCate’s history began in the late 1960’s with the development of a new experimental product from “MIRAcle Fibers” - Mirafi® geosynthetics. The brand Mirafi® has become synonymous with geosynthetics usage in North America and is known as “the company that started an industry.”

To meet the growing demand for geosynthetics and industrial fabrics in the Americas, Nicolon Corporation constructed its first production facility in the United States in 1979. In 1991, Nicolon Corporation acquired Mirafi® Inc. and formed the Nicolon/Mirafi® Group. The Nicolon/Mirafi® Group soon became known as TenCate Geosynthetics Americas with Headquarters in Pendergrass, Georgia, United States.

In Asia, Polyfelt Geosynthetics Sdn Bhd was founded in Malaysia in the late 1980’s, pioneering the market of nonwoven geotextiles. TenCate Nicolon Asia was formed in 1996 to also focus on the fast growing geosynthetics opportunities in Asia. TenCate Geosynthetics acquired the Polyfelt Group in 2005 to form TenCate Geosynthetics Asia with Headquarters in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

In 2008, plans for expansion and a wider market coverage for geosynthetics and industrial fabrics continued with the construction of a production plant in Zhuhai, China through the establishment of Ten Cate Industrial Zhuhai Co, Ltd.

With the rapid growth in infrastructure, environmental and water management applications in the Asian region, TenCate acquired the geosynthetics business of Emas Kiara Industries Bhd, a public listed manufacturer based in Malaysia in 2011. The acquisition further strengthened TenCate Geosynthetics’ leading market position in Asia with a significantly larger capacity and wider range of geosynthetics solutions for Asian markets.