There are many reasons that customers choose to toll process. For example, some clients already have their own in-house mineral capabilities but turn to Arctic Minerals when then need extra capacity. In this way they can meet unexpected spikes in demand instantly without needing to waste time and money investing in new internal capacity. Similarly, when companies experience a disruption at their factory, they can seamlessly meet demand by temporarily meeting their needs via Artic Minerals capabilities.

Certain customers are particularly concerned about supply security and want to have a US-based manufacturer as a primary or secondary source for their critical raw materials. They provide Arctic with a small sample of the raw material and we match the mineral type, specifications, particle size and so on, to create a clone that’s a drop-in replacement. The same concept applies to those wanting a crystalline silica free alternative to an existing grade in order to allay safety concerns and reduce abrasivity.

The previous examples were for existing products, but it also makes sense to use external facilities for development and commercialization of new products. One company wanted to complete their product portfolio by offering a smaller sized mineral grade. The milling technology at Arctic was ideal because it could attain lower particle size than the client could achieve on their existing equipment.

Very large companies can find it easier to develop new grades outside of the constraints of their internal processes. Working with Arctic Minerals allows new products to be created, validated and commercialized in weeks rather than months or years. Being nimble, allows companies to be first to market instead of being late.

Advantages include:

• Very large scale production capability enables low cost
• Various milling technologies to suit your needs (jetmills, hammermill)
• Specialized milling to preserve aspect ratio for reinforcing fillers like mica
• Surface treatment in-line (solids and liquids including stearates and organosilanes)
• Arctic has pioneered a revolutionary low-cost continuous surface treatment process
• Ultra-low moisture products can be produced
• Ceramic-lined mills to avoid metal contamination
• Sieving to remove coarse particles (important for spray paints and coatings)
• Custom packaging (bags, drums, supersacks, bulk)
• ISO 9000 certified with in-house QC lab
• Dual USA-based facilities (redundant / backup supply options)
• Fast turn-around
• Spans CaCO3, talc, mica, fibers, iron oxides, TiO2 and many more
• Decades of experience

Each situation is unique, but in general, the process is:

1. Call Arctic Minerals and describe your requirements.
2. For milling provide a sample of your target product so we can check the particle size.
   • Send 1-2 metric tons (about 2 pallets / skids) for milling trials.
   • We send you the milled material for evaluation and quote a price.
3. For surface treatments, provide 5-10lb of particles to be coated.
   • We apply tailor-made treatments at the optimal dosage level.
   • The coated particles are returned to you for validation.
   • Scale-up proceeds to plant equipment (1-2 tons then to truckload amounts).

Customers often ask for a price up front. It is not possible to provide an exact price before conducting the milling trial on the production equipment. Only they can we determine the throughput and the energy costs which are needed in order to provide a price quotation. Based on the feedback we have had, our milling and surface treatment services are not only the most cost-effective anywhere but cheaper than our clients can achieve by making large internal plant investment. So, contact us today!