Diversified Plastics in Missoula merges with rubber manufacturer, widens reach

Martin Kidston

(Missoula Current) An established Missoula company specialized in plastics joined a long-time rubber manufacturer to expand their manufacturing platform and widen their geographical reach.

Diversified Plastics on Tuesday said it's new union with The Rubber Group will strengthen both companies and their line of plastic, rubber and urethane products.

“The combination is about growth. We are bringing together complementary capabilities to better serve customers,” Rob Pruyn, president of The Rubber Group, said in a statement. “By combining rubber, plastics and urethane capabilities, we can offer a broader range of engineered solutions to both customer bases, and the cross-selling opportunity is significant.”

Diversified Plastics engineers plastic and cast urethane components that serve a number of industries including wastewater, lumber, food processing, mining, agriculture and grain handling.

The company will now be known as Diversified Plastics Industrial Solutions. It will continue to operate from Missoula with the same leadership team and workforce, the company stated.

“After 50 years of building Diversified Plastics, we were deliberate about what the next chapter would look like,” said Brad Reid. “Combining our expertise with The Rubber Group makes perfect sense, as it positions DPI to continue and even enhance our service to customers for another 50 years.”

While the companies serve overlapping industries, The Rubber Group provides precision rubber sealing systems, custom-molded rubber component and a full range of molding and fabrication processes.

The union of the two companies establishes facilities in New Hampshire, Chicago and Montana.

“The partnership expands TRG’s geographic footprint while providing DPI with access to a broader material platform, increased resources, and expanded commercial opportunity,” the companies stated.