CENTRAL ISLIP, N.Y.—Universal Photonics, Inc., a manufacturer and global distributor of critical surface preparation materials, has acquired Massachusetts-based J.I. Morris Company’s surface polishing pads and materials business. Details of the transaction were not disclosed. J.I. Morris Company has more than 75 years of professional experience in developing materials to improve surface finishes, offering a broad range of high quality interfaces for industrial polishing discs, polishing pads and other custom applications. The business will operate in the JH Rhodes Company, Inc. manufacturing facility in Vernon, New York. JH Rhodes Company, Inc. is a subsidiary of Universal Photonics, Inc. and specializes in manufacturing polishing pads, typically for glass, crystal, metal and ceramic applications.

“UPI continues its mission to provide and advance critical surfacing materials with the acquisition of J.I. Morris Company’s polishing pad business,” said Neil Johnson, president and CEO of Universal Photonics. “J.I. Morris Company’s high quality products and services fits well into the polishing material business of Universal Photonics. The acquisition will expand our ability to meet specialized customer applications with an even larger variety of pad materials and technology.”

UPI offers a wide selection of polishing pads for processes from pre-polish to final-polish with surface requirements ranging from commercial grade to zero defect levels. Applications for UPI’s products include silicon wafers, ophthalmic lenses and quartz crystal.