1948–1970s

Hexcel, originally named the California Reinforced Plastics Company, was founded in 1948 by a group of engineers from the University of California at Berkeley. The company's first contract was for the research and development of honeycomb materials for use in radar domes on military aircraft.^[3] In 1954, the company changed its name to Hexcel Products, Inc. The name was derived from the hexagonal cell-shaped honeycomb materials manufactured by the company.^[4]

In the 1960s, Hexcel sold aluminum honeycomb and pre-impregnated fiberglass to Hubert A. Zemke and Dave McCoy for use in building skis.^[5]

Hexcel expanded from military and commercial aviation to the United States space program. The landing pads on the lunar module Apollo 11 that carried men to the moon in 1969 were built from Hexcel honeycomb materials.^[6][7][8]

In 1970, Hexcel licensed the ski from McCoy.^[9] A few years later, Hexcel decided to focus on its core aerospace business and sold the ski enterprise to Hanson Boots.

1980s–2000

In the 1980s, Hexcel purchased Stevens-Genin S.A., a French company that manufactured glass-fiber and woven industrial materials.^[3][10]

In 1981, it provided materials for the nose, doors and wings of the space shuttle Columbia.^[11][12] In 1986, Hexcel made most of the material used in the fuselage and wings of the aircraft Voyager – the first aircraft to make a nonstop, around-the-world trip on a single tank of fuel.^[13]

2000–2019

In 2017, Hexcel was selected by Airbus to supply the composite materials for the H160 helicopter's fuselage structures and rotor blades.^[14] Hexcel acquired the aerospace and defense business of Oxford Performance Materials, a manufacturer of carbon fiber-reinforced 3D printed parts for commercial aerospace and space and defense applications.^[15]

In March 2018, Hexcel opened its manufacturing facility at the MidParc Free Trade Zone in Casablanca, Morocco.^[16] The facility oversees the transformation of lightweight honeycomb materials into engineered core parts for aircraft structures, engine nacelles and helicopter blades. Hexcel also signed a strategic alliance with Arkema in Colombes, France, to combine work in carbon fiber and PEKK.^[17] The alliance will result in a joint research and development laboratory in France. The companies aim to develop carbon fiber-reinforced thermoplastic tapes to produce lightweight parts for aircraft.^[18]

Also in 2018, Hexcel opened a carbon fiber plant at the Les Roches-Roussillon Chemicals Industry Platform in Isère, France.^[19] The plant is based at the Osiris Chemicals Industry Platform.^[20] Hexcel's composite materials were used as part of a new boat design used in the Tour de France à la voile.^[21]

In July 2018, Hexcel opened an integrated factory in Salaise-sur-Sanne near Lyon, manufacturing polyacrylonitrile (PAN), the carbon fiber precursor, the second after its Decatur, Alabama plant.

In December 2018, Hexcel announced the hiring of Colleen Pritchett as President - Aerospace, in America.^[22] In March 2019, Hexcel partnered with Lavoiseier Composites to up-cycle composite by-products to reduce CO₂ emissions of 13 kg per kg of Carbonium used.^[23]