WILMINGTON , Del., Dec. 4 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- DuPont (NYSE: DD) today announced the sale of its Protective Coatings product lines and related assets to the Sika group, a leading Swiss company supplying specialty chemicals markets. Financial details of the sale, which is expected to be effective by year-end, were not disclosed. The sale is subject to regulatory approval.

DuPont Protective Coatings makes products designed to protect concrete, steel and other materials from corrosion, water, fire and environmental forces. In addition to products sold under the brands Permacor(R), Unitherm(R),Betonol(R), Asplit(R) and Epiter(R), Sika will acquire the DuPont manufacturing site at Vaihingen, Germany , where the coatings are made. The deal also includes agreements concerning other assets. Sika will employ approximately 150 DuPont Protective Coatings employees, primarily located at Vaihingen.

"The Protective Coatings portfolio features an excellent product line, butut no longer presents a strategic fit for DuPont," said Terry Caloghiris, group vice president for the DuPont Coatings & Color Technologies growth platform. "Since Sika specializes in these kinds of products, it offers a strong future for the business and its employees."

This divestiture and the recently announced sale of the company's Special Adhesives business are an integral part of the transformation strategy announced by DuPont Performance Coatings in March 2006 . The strategy is designed to allow the unit to focus more effectively on global growth in refinish, automotive OEM, transportation, powder and liquid coatings for industrial markets. Products sold under the DuPont Industrial Coatings brand family are not affected by this transaction.

According to Caloghiris, DuPont Performance Coatings is positioned to remain a sustainable and leading global coatings supplier, delivering value to the markets it serves, while generating top and bottom line growth.