The New Zealand subsidiary of multinational chemical company Chemetall has acquired Tergo Industries, giving the German-owned company its first manufacturing presence in this country.

Auckland-based Tergo makes industrial chemical products while Chemetall is one of the world’s leading suppliers of surface finishing, aerospace and industrial products. It opened a branch here in 1998.

The five Chemetall New Zealand staff will move from their base in Penrose to Tergo’s Avondale site, where 16 are employed.

Tergo began in 1946 as part of the Auckland Gas Company using by-products of coal gas to manufacture a variety of chemical products.

During the 1950s and 1960s, it employed industrial chemists, who created new products for the military, marine, aerospace, transport and food industries.

Tergo was sold to Demi Holdings Group in 1987 and general manager Ray Walker bought the business in 2004. Consideration for the latest deal was not disclosed.

Tergo has operated from its Avondale site since 1997 and has warehouses in Christchurch, Wellington and Dunedin with resellers in Hawke’s Bay, Nelson, Taranaki and Rotorua.