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The number of employees in Dupont dropped from 105,000 in 1995 to 60,000 in 2005, as many of them joined new firms after Dupont sold out its large businesses. A new group of companies, mostly involved in life sciences, is growing up in the Wilmington region under the leadership of people who left Dupont, and such firms are providing opportunities for ex-Duponters in an entrepreneurial environment.

This article provides an overview of the difficulties that chemical companies are facing in their efforts to provide new chemicals for the semiconductor industry, and stay profitable all while the semiconductor industry is cutting costs.

Midland, Mich.-based Dow Chemical Co., which recently acquired Union Carbide for $7.4 billion, is led by president and chief executive officer Michael D. Parker. Dow, which was founded in 1897, has become one of the largest and most diverse chemical companies in the world.

Wacker Chemic, a private company owned 51% by the Wacker family and 49% by the Hoechst unit of Sanofi-Aventis invests some 6% of its annual sales into research and development (R&D). Private ownership allows the company to invest such large amounts on R&D, without having to fend off investor complaints of high spending and put the research into practice with expensive plant construction projects that public companies might shy away from.

Le Henaff, President and chief executive officer of Arkema, the newly named chemical arm of the oil giant 'Total' announces that by 2006, Total is set to spin Arkema as a separate company. Le Henaff is confident that Arkema will not fail as other chemical-spin-offs', which ran into trouble in the past, and that Total's spin-off will be a sure success.

As far as major specialty chemical companies go, Cognis is prominent for its unusual origins and focus on renewable resources. The company, which just became independent and has a new CEO, Antonio Trius, wants to leverage its uniqueness into sales that are doubled and an IPO within the next couple of years.

Philadelphia-based chemical company Rohm and Haas Co., has bolstered its earnings with developing products for the semiconductor devices market. This year, Rohm and Haas would report $1.2 billion sales in electronic components.

Santa Clara, California-based Symyx technologies has conducted high throughput experimentation (THE) for firms like Dow Chemical and ExxonMobil or sold them tools to quicken their own research. Chief Executive Officer Steven D. Goldby and President Isy Goldwasser aim to accelerate and transform every step in the scientific experimentation process, from discovery to design, testing, and analysis.

PolyPeptide Laboratories, regarded as one of the world's top three bulk peptide producers, operating five facilities in the U.S. and Europe stands out even in the specialized world of pharmaceutical chemical production. The group's annual sales has started growing at double-digit rates, attributed both to the firm's successful manufacturing track record and to a new wave of peptide therapeutics that are coming through drug company labs.

The Chairman of the Dutch chemical maker DSM, Peter Levering, has adopted a new rule, which suggests that one should sell business before buying them in his company's five-year program to change from commodities into specialties in 2005. DSM succeeded at its revamp by focusing on the second basic rule that meant that a company has to clearly communicate objectives and targets both inside and outside the company.

With growing demand by semiconductor manufacturers for chemical mechanical planarization (CMP) slurries, companies such as JRS Micro are scrambling to provide products at a time when the semiconductor industry is considering new technologies to polish computer chips.

Tartaric acid, which occurs naturally in grapes, is about to be manufactured in the United States for the first time in 50 years. Companies in California like Faencal Tartaric Products are gearing to connect with the wine making industry in that state in spite of difficulties arisng from environmental concerns.

Occidental Chemical Corp. will begin to eliminate intermediate chemicals product development at its Grand Island Technology Center and will cease production at its Niagara Falls, N.Y. facilities. Reasons behind Occidental Chemical Corp.'s change to these facilities, including a lack of sales in the pharmaceutical and agricultural markets, are discussed.

The growth of adhesives formulators is dependent upon a close relationship with chemical suppliers.

FMC Corp. reported 1999 financial results, showing the company's management of industrial chemicals is effective.

Sao Paulo, Brazil-based midsized chemical company Oxiteno wants to be the instigator for major restructuring of Brazil's chemical industry.

DuPont and Dow Chemical are the latest companies to utilize the revolutionary management method developed by Motorola, Sigma Six, which has 99.9997% error free operation as its goal.

BASF Corp, the North American branch of BASF AG, will be utilizing the total integration technique dubbed Verbund, which was developed at the firm's Ludwigshafen, Germany site. The firm's chemicals unit will be receiving about 50% of the planned $4 bil investment for the next 5 years that will be using the Verbund technique at BASF's facilities in Geismar, LA and Freeport, TX. The Geismar, LA site, which includes an acetylene, aniline and nitrobenzene units, will be receiving about $1 bil while the Freeport, TX site will receive $400 mil for an additional oxo alcohol plant.

Executives with Akzo Nobel NV's surface chemistry business unit feel they have put their specialty surfactants house in order; now they are waiting for the rest of the industry to [...]

Two buys since privatizing show deals can still be made. FAR FROM DISAPPEARING from the map when it was taken private a year and a half ago, Sterling Chemicals Holdings [...]

Ferro Corp's plan to restructure its $350 million glass coatings and colorants segment will help the company reach new financial goals as part of a three-year realignment. Its present objective is to bring gross margins up to 28% by the end of 1999, up from 25% in 1995. The company will consolidate 80 foreign plants into 50 plants and bring employment from 6,900 down to 5,700. Ferro is on the lookout for acquisitions and will keep its successful specialty chemicals, plastics colorants, and powder coating operations.

The success of the Alco Chemical Division of National Starch & Chemical Co as a stand-alone company is expected to serve as the model for future forays into the specialty chemicals market by new National owner, Imperial Chemical Industries PLC. Alco has been able to blend its small company market savvy with the specialty chemical approach of National to quietly expand and compete effectively in the acrylic polymer market.

Hatco Corp is extending its production of synthetic lubricants with an $8 million expansion. The move represents a shift away from basic petrochemicals to specialty chemicals, basestocks, and custom manufacturing. The shift was partly prompted by the loss of an intermediates contract with Monsanto. Hatco subsequently acquired synthetic lubricant businesses from Huls and Shell Oil Co and landed a large specialty surfactant contract.

Hercules Inc. and its resins unit, Hercules Chemical Specialties Co., remain committed to producing resins from both hydrocarbons and rosin, says R. Michael Alberts, division VP. Other companies point out that Hercules' two types of resins compete with each other. Most of Hercules' capital investment has gone into hydrocarbon projects, but Alberts says the firm's solid position in rosin resins is demonstrated by its ability to make the chemical from three feedstocks. Hercules official Juan Magrans says the company already has secured crude tall oil supplies for 1997.

Henkel Group plans to focus on integration of its various chemical businesses during 1997 following the acquisition of Loctite Corp in 1996. The company's chemical units faced a 4% increase in sales and an 15% decrease in operating profit in 1996. Henkel plans to focus on cost leadership in the oleochemicals market and on chemical specialties for the cosmetics, food additives and surfactants markets.

Union Carbide Corporation's different approaches to its specialty and commodity surfactant businesses helps the company remain a significant force in the surfactant market. Union Carbide strives for a low-cost position for its nonylphenol ethoxylate (NPE) commodity surfacants, while seeking research-driven differentiation for a range of specialty surfactants. Union Carbide is the lowest cost NPE producer.

The American Chemistry Council (ACC), the chemical industry's main trade association is seeing a renewal of members' faith in 2006 under a new leadership and a new advertisement campaign. Observers assert things began improving at the council after the new Chairman Gary A. Cappeline implemented a cost-cutting and restructuring campaign in 2005, focusing on a set of core issues such as energy policy, plant security, and rail transportation, and limiting the proliferation of programs.

Paul Burg, founder and chairman of Spectrum Chemicals& Laboratory Products speaks on his company's statistics and the way in which he survived the Fascists and the Communists. He is proud of Spectrum's new generation of executives, who are upgrading computer systems, padding customer service, and generally giving the firm a more corporate appearance.

Cargill has just launched a new initiative to develop specialty chemicals, polymers, and other industrial products starting with renewable material. Jim 'Stoppert has been named senior director for industrial bioproducts development to spearhead the project.

Chemical companies are finding that they are better off if they improve poorly-performing companies rather than sell them. Generally, companies would rather trade up rather than fix. However, fewer companies are available for purchase.

Both Huntsman Corp. and Huntsman International, two companies controlled by the Huntsman family, are restructuring. The restructuring will lead to a third party Credit Suisse First Boston's Global Opportunities private equity fund, assuming ownership of nearly half of the $8.5 billion Huntsman 'chemical empire.'

The article explores the history of Fisher Scientific's Fisher Catalog and details the company's business as manufacturer and supplier of chemicals and laboratory equipment for a growing variety of industries.

Midland, Mich.-based Dow Chemical Co., which is led by president and chief executive officer Michael D. Parker, has improved its earnings through a program called Six Sigma. The program, which was developed by Motorola in the 1980s, is expected to help Dow add $1.5 billion to its earnings by 2003.

Akzo Nobel Surface Chemistry improves its profitability significantly, after several years of restructuring under Jan Svard which included $80 million invested in the U.S. and another $180 million invested in Europe.

Global chlorine manufacturers have worked out a groundbreaking agreement on environmentally sustainable manufacturing processes in an attempt to unite management and labor on the issues of chlorine's future. The agreement is incomplete, however, due to the absence of key industry leaders.

Technology driven chemical companies are aware that wholesale improvements in the manufacturing process bring success. Such companies thrive becuase of their willingness to recognize process setbacks and adopt better methods of making things. Better methods may include a new synthesis and a more fundamental shift to production in a totally different kind of plant. For instance, production process acquisitions by Dow Chemical and BASF indicate that firms that long have applied and defended one chemistry are more inclined to employ new technologies.

A number of small chemical companies are acquiring the businesses big companies have unselected and benefit from the transactions. Santa Fe Springs, CA-based specialty surfactants manufacturer Pilot Chemical recently purchased Olin's alkyl diphenyl ozide disulfonate surfactants unit, which would add additional capacity to Pilot's own disulfonates market. Detroit-based PVS Chemicals in its purchase of Rhodia's sulfur dioxide unit, will use Rhodia's technology at its planned 40,000-ton-per-year sulfur dioxide facility in Chicago. Rhodia's sulfur dioxide business adds strength to PVS-owned capacity, which posted as much as $200 mil sales in 1998.

Stepan Company likes its position as the leading US producer of sulfonated surfactants, but it is turning more and more to specialty surfactants and overseas markets for growth. Improved volumes [...]