SABIC, Lockheed Martin to partner on carbon nanostructure materials

Thermoplastic material supplier SABIC is partnering with Lockheed Martin to explore the establishment of a new joint venture company in Saudi Arabia to develop carbon nanostructure materials for a variety of security and aerospace end markets and applications.

Under a newly signed Memorandum of Understanding, SABIC and Lockheed Martin will coordinate on the development, industrial validation, testing, scale-up, production and sale of carbon nanostructure materials and carbon nanostructure infused products. A carbon nanostructure is a cross-linked, entangled arrangement of carbon nanotubes on a base material. Carbon nanostructures can be grown at scale on various substrates and formed into materials that offer superior structural and conductive properties.

“We believe the combination of Lockheed Martin’s advanced nanotechnologies with SABIC’s premier capabilities will lead to exciting opportunities for new and innovative materials,” said Dale Bennett, executive vice president of Lockheed Martin Mission Systems and Training.

Headquartered in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, SABIC operates in more than 40 countries across the world with around 40,000 employees worldwide. Lockheed Martin is headquartered in Bethesda, Md., and is a global security and aerospace company that employs approximately 113,000 people worldwide.