De Beers Group, the world's leading manufacturer and supplier of supermaterials, takes the synthesis and processing of supermaterials as its core business, and is a provider of innovative superhard material solutions
Element Six Group (E6) is the world's leading producer and supplier of supermaterials. Headquartered in Luxembourg, Element Six operates globally, with major manufacturing facilities in China, the Netherlands, Sweden, South Africa and the United Kingdom.
For more than 50 years, the synthesis and processing of supermaterials has been at the core of our business, including synthetic diamond and other supermaterials such as cubic boron nitride (CBN) and silicon-based polycrystalline diamond, as well as cemented carbide. Synthetic diamond is the hardest known material on Earth, with many extreme properties, making it one of the most versatile and unusual materials. Synthetic diamond is made up of carbon, the sixth element in the periodic table, hence the company's name: element six.
Element Six's mission is to meet our customers' needs for extreme performance through innovative supermaterial solutions. Element Six is focused on working closely with customers on strategic development to deliver customised, innovative, high-performance products. The company constantly pursues to provide excellent customer service and help customers continuously improve their productivity.
Element Six's business consists of two parts: technology and abrasives. Among them, the technology business is 100% owned by the De Beers Group; Shares in the abrasives business are jointly held by De Beers Group (approximately 60 percent shares) and global materials group Umicore (approximately 40 percent shares).
The abrasives business covers oil and gas, advanced materials and tungsten carbide. Abrasive products include synthetic diamond and cubic boron nitride synthesized at high temperatures and pressures, as well as cemented carbides sintered at high temperatures. Products used for cutting, grinding, drilling, shearing and polishing are driving demand growth in a variety of industries, including automotive, aerospace, oil and gas drilling, mining, electronics, pavement repair, stone, construction, and wood processing.
The Technology Division uses chemical vapor deposition technology to produce ultra-high purity synthetic diamond, which is used to develop extreme properties beyond its hardness. Potential applications for these extreme properties include optics, power transmission, water treatment, semiconductors, and sensors. Based on the future potential of chemical vapor deposition technology, Element Six has established a venture capital division to undertake investment projects to pursue new synthetic diamond-based applications. The unique, extreme properties of synthetic diamond will help us solve some of the world's most challenging industrial challenges, enabling synthetic diamond to enter an exciting new era of growth in the coming decades.
