Chemical Week back issues from June 1996:
RP comes under pressure to demerge drugs or chemicals. (Rhone-Poulenc)
Jun 05, 1996; ... Rhone-poulenc (rp) is coming under increasing pressure to demerge as a way of resolving its dual problems of poor profitability and a flagging share price. It remains unclear, however, which of two businesses--chemicals or health care--would be spun off, and when. RP's management does not ...
Reexamining reengineering: down to microsurgery. (includes related article on impact on environment, health, and safety departments)
Jun 05, 1996; ... The reengineering of the early 1990s caused some chemical companies to cut muscle as well as fat--a wrenching experience that in many cases did not provide the expected gains. Indeed, statistics show a majority of companies are not satisfied with reengineering. Where the elimination of whole ...
Akzo sees promise in alliances. (Akzo Nobel)
Jun 05, 1996; ... The startup of Akzo Nobel's expansion of its fluidized catalytic cracking (FCC) catalysts and hydroprocessing catalysts (HPC) capacity (CW, May 22, p. 28), part of a $240-million capital investment program, will further the company's goal of becoming an attractive strategic partner. Akzo ...
Upbeat Greenbrier votes for endocrine research.(CMA will contribute $850,000)(Column)
Jun 12, 1996; ... Establishing a precedent, cma has voted to spend $850,000 during the next year to support research into the potential endocrine-disrupting effects of industrial chemicals. Previous research on health effects of chemicals had been organized through CMA's Chemstar panels, which tie the ...
Producers try to prolong the price party.(polyethylene producers)
Jun 12, 1996 ... Polyethylene (pe) producers, led by Dow Chemical, are pushing forward with another 5-cts/lb increase; they say that demand is not showing signs of heading south this summer. The timing of the increase surprised some observers and downstream extruders, while PE producers say margins are still ...
European plastics look to firm in June.(plastics market)
Jun 12, 1996; ... The european plastics market appears set in June to repeat the trends seen so far this year, with price hikes in polyolefins and consolidation in polystyrene (PS) and polyvinyl chloride (PVC). The polyolefins price increases are carryovers from targets that were not fully reached in May, ...
Chemical majors crowd Jurong Island sites.(land reclamation and petrochemicals project in Singapore)
Jun 12, 1996; ... Interest from investors in Singapore's S$6-billion ($4.3-billion) Jurong Island land reclamation and petrochemicals project has been so strong that almost all 624 hectares of land scheduled to be reclaimed by 1998 is already committed. Sakra Island, one of the main components, is fully ...
TRI: growing pains: expansions rile industry.(EPA's Toxics Release Inventory list)(includes related article on facility-wide permits)(Cover Story)
Jun 12, 1996; ... The 1994 toxics release inventory (TRI), scheduled to be released this week by EPA, will be the last before an aggressive expansion mapped out by EPA Administrator Carol Browner. By August 1, facilities must report on emissions and transfers of about 280 chemicals that were added to TRI in ...
Awash in new detergents, technology, and regulation.(surfactants market)
Jun 12, 1996; ... The surfactants market is poised to undergo significant changes, with denser powder detergent formulations, more energy efficient washing machines, and a step-up in environmental legislation, says J.S. Birtwistle, business manager/surfactant products at Shell Chemical. Demand for mildness ...
Canada's quiet polymer player.(AT Plastics)(Company Profile)
Jun 12, 1996; ... Former ICI Orphan at Plastics (Brampton, ON) is quietly becoming a major player in the ethylene-based polymers and packaging business. The company, which evolved from a management-led buyout in 1989, has been turned "from a largely commodity-oriented local operation of ICI to a profitable, ...
Hooking up a better supplier connection.(chemical suppliers)
Jun 12, 1996; ... Almost every chemical company proudly boasts of its "customer focus." But what about its supplier focus? The revolution in purchasing and supply chain management is changing the relationship between companies and their suppliers, but all too often this means trying to squeeze out price ...
Building and buying binge.(Tankers and Terminals)(includes related article on chemical industry use of intermodal tanks or modified box containers)
Jun 12, 1996; ... After almost a year and a half of good performance, most companies in waterborne transport and storage of chemicals are expanding operations. Several are in the midst of capital programs to increase capacity, while others are seeking acquisitions.At the same time, chemical ...
Dow confirms PP entry through Montell link.(Dow Chemical, polypropylene, Montell Polyolefins)
Jun 19, 1996; ... Dow Chemical has given details of its plans to build a $1-billion/year polypropylene (PP) business through a linkup with Montell Polyolefins (CW, May 29, p. 7). The companies have agreed to a deal under which Dow will license Montell's Spheripol PP process and apply metallocene technology in ...
Lonza acquires biotech stake.(Celltech Biologics)
Jun 19, 1996; ... Gambling that the long-expected wave of biotechnology-derived therapeutics is coming to market, fine chemicals leader Lonza (Basel) is acquiring Celltech Biologics (Slough, U.K.). To be renamed Lonza Biologics, the operation is a leading manufacturer of therapeutic proteins based on ...
Nova to acquire Arco's styrenics business.(Nova Chemicals)
Jun 19, 1996; ... Nova Chemicals will purchase arco Chemical's $310-million/year styrenic plastics business, including its Dylark styrene-maleic anhydride (SMA) and Dylite expandable polystyrene (EPS) lines.The operation, with plants in Beaver Valley, PA and Painesville, OH, has capacity for 445 ...
Monsanto enters ICP market, buys AlliedSignal's know-how.(inherently conducting polymers)
Jun 19, 1996; ... Monsanto has bought alliedsignal's patent estate covering inherently conducting polymers (ICPs) and says it plans to enter the ICP market. Initially, Monsanto will make and market Versicon--a polyaniline-based product developed by AlliedSignal--but says recent advances in ICP technology, ...
Moving up the ladder: women take key business positions.(Cover Story)
Jun 19, 1996; ... Who will be the first female CEO in the chemical industry? Women have been well represented in non-revenue areas such as environment, health, and safety; plant management; R&D; and administration for some time. Now significant numbers of women are achieving upper business management ...
Health and nutrition serve up tasty growth.(food additives)(Industry Overview)
Jun 19, 1996; ... Most consumers do not know the difference between an alginate and an acidulant. Food additives producers, however, know their industry is booming thanks to consumer demand for processed foods that would be less tasty without such products.Consumers can dictate industry trends, ...
Wanted: scientists on Capitol Hill. (profile of Dale K. Humbert)
Jun 19, 1996; ... Dale Humbert, a scientist-turned-lobbyist for dow chem-ical, had concluded over the course of his career that science takes a back seat to politics in Washington because scientists are scarce there. After 24 years with Dow, he took a leave of absence from his position as ...
Bulk actives drive ambitious sales targets.
Jun 19, 1996; ... Cambrex (East Rutherford, NJ) CEO James A. Mack, 58, has some ambitious targets for his company."There are excellent growth prospects in each of our businesses," Mack tells CW. "I see our mix as remaining the same, just bigger. In five years we'll be doubling [annual sales], to ...
Getting back into business; privatization falters, companies regroup for growth.(Mexico: Getting Back to Business)
Jun 19, 1996; ... Stunned by the peso's devaluation and sidelined by social and political opposition to privatization, Mexico's chemical producers are recovering from the country's economic crisis as if from a physical blow. Shaken but still standing, companies are repositioning themselves, testing for ...
Opposition stalks privatization plans; companies ready to act quickly.(Mexico: Getting Back to Business)
Jun 19, 1996; ... In the wake of Nafta, privatization of Mexico's many state-owned companies was essential in moving the country into a competitive, free-trade economy. Important steps were taken in 1995 toward privatizing telecommunications, natural gas distribution, and state railroad FNM. Also on the block ...
Nafta spurs business in environmental services; but does interest lead to investment?(Mexico: Getting Back to Business)
Jun 19, 1996; ... One of the fastest-growing seg-ments of the Mexican chemical industry is environmental remediation, driven both by local regulations and by global imperatives. As Mexican companies are compelled to step up to international standards, some executives say environmental remediation is quickly ...
Recession hits bottom, peso stabilizes; growth projections miss target.(Mexico: Getting Back to Business)
Jun 19, 1996; ... While Mexico's economic crisis appears to have bottomed out and most industrial sectors show modest signs of recovery, business leaders and analysts warn that the current solution of focusing on exports to recover lost domestic sales will not be enough to sustain long-term renewal. ...
Exports, specialties boost company results; chemicals a 'standout sector.'(Mexico: Getting Back to Business)
Jun 19, 1996; ... Mexico's economic crisis and the December 1994 peso devaluation have had a lasting effect on domestic demand, hurting companies that traditionally have not been exporters. In contrast, companies exporting dollar-denominated products benefited from the devaluation, especially if upgrades and ...
Mexicans, multinationals eye service opportunities; growth, despite the economy.(Mexico: Getting Back to Business)
Jun 19, 1996; ... Mexican and multinational companies alike are targeting potential growth markets in distribution and logistics services. Promising business prospects have prompted even conservative investors to target acquisitions in Mexico.For example, Ashland Chemical expanded its distribution ...
Foreign firms eye acquisitions, expansions; PET a favorite.(Mexico: Getting Back to Business)
Jun 19, 1996; ... Newcomers to mexican chemicals production face a dilemma: Acquisition or grassroots investment? With much of the country's chemical commodities production still in the hands of Pemex, as well as a shortage of acquisition targets, grassroots investment appears to be an increasingly favored ...
Investor confidence at prevaluation level; fiscal problems still loom.(Mexico: Getting Back to Business)
Jun 19, 1996; ... Reversing an all-time low late last year, investor confidence in Mexico is on the rise thanks to the government's consistent monetary policy, analysts say. Fiscal measures such as raising interest rates and restricting internal credit restored the confidence of foreign investors, but they ...
Chemical trade balance declines; imports up.(Mexico: Getting Back to Business)
Jun 19, 1996; ... Mexico's chemical industry trade association released its first-quarter 1996 trade figures earlier this month, showing a 12.2% increase in total imports, a 3.1% increase in total exports, and a nearly 40% decline in the nation's chemical trade balance. Most Mexican companies have shifted to ...
Endocrine research: part of a broader effort. (Chemical Manufacturers Association approves $850,000 to begin research effort) (Viewpoint)(Editorial)
Jun 26, 1996; ... The modest $850,000 in funding that CMA voted for endocrine research earlier this month should be the prelude to a broader and more ambitious effort, according to John Akitt, executive v.p./Exxon Chemical who succeeds Ciba's Richard Barth as chairman of CMA's ad hoc committee on health and ...
DSM plans U.S. plant for metallocene EPDM. (company studying feasibility of new ethylene propylene diene monomer production technique)
Jun 26, 1996; ... DSM has entered the race to commercialize metallocene technology for the production of ethylene propylene diene monomer (EPDM) rubber. The company is studying the construction of an EPDM plant in the U.S. involving newly developed proprietary technology based on a metallocene-related ...
Finding new strategies to boost shareholder value. (Chemical Week and Salomon Brothers investment conference in London focuses on securities)
Jun 26, 1996; ... The creation of shareholder value is a constant pressure for public companies. At the recent CW and Salomon Brothers investment conference in London, speakers from the financial community offered ways to improve share value, while representatives of chemical companies explained how they are ...
Gaining an edge: competitive intelligence takes off. (field grows in importance and respectability)(Cover Story)
Jun 26, 1996; ... When Dow Chemical announced a sizable expansion of chlor-alkali capacity last year it surprised a lot of industry people--but not everyone. One of Dow's rival producers told CW preliminary work had been spotted during a flyover of Dow's Freeport, TX site. "We looked at aerial photographs and ...
Competition puts prices under pressure. (plastics additives market becomes more competitive)
Jun 26, 1996; ... Plastics additives may be losing their long-held status as specialty chemicals. They were once high-value products that were largely immune to commodity cycles; however, with decreased product differentiation and increased price sensitivity and competition, plastics additives have become ...
DuPont's Jackson: a man of fiber. (Ned C. Jackson, Dacron division V.P.) (Companies, Management & People)
Jun 26, 1996; ... Ned C. Jackson, DuPont's v.p./Dacron, is made of incongruity. He drives a turbocharged Mitsubishi GT3000, but the mellow sounds of Ray Price and Freddy Fender croon softly over the high-revving power plant. He can give a motivational speech or sales pitch with the best of them but pepper it ...
Dormann: modern man at Hoechst. (board chairman Jurgen Dormann has brought new management system to company)(Hoechst)
Jun 26, 1996; ... Jurgen Dormann, chairman of the board of management of Hoechst, has a strong will, clear sense of purpose, and dry sense of humor. He has been tough and sufficiently visionary to achieve something rare in a European chemical company: strategic, fundamental change. In the two years since he ...
Drew's portfolio strategy. (Ernest Drew chairs company's Strategic Management Process committee)(Hoechst)
Jun 26, 1996; ... Hoechst's strategic management Process (SMP) committee is chaired by Ernest Drew, who holds board responsibility for basic chemicals, technical polymers, and the Americas. Plucked from Hoechst Celanese in New Jersey and relocated by Dormann to Hoechst headquarters in Germany, Drew could ...
Forming a drugs giant: three-way merger is a hard task. (aftermath of mergers that created Hoechst Marion Roussel)(Hoechst)
Jun 26, 1996; ... Integration is at the top of the corporate agenda for several of the world's largest pharmaceutical groups as they seek to derive the greatest possible benefit for shareholders from recent mergers or takeovers. Glaxo Wellcome, Pharmacia & Upjohn, and Novartis (Sandoz and Ciba) are all ...
Growth at AgrEvo. (company's biotech joint venture with Schering AG focuses on herbicide market)(Hoechst)
Jun 26, 1996; ... Biotechnology is set to transform the agrochemicals industry as genetic engineering brings radical changes in the types of product offered to protect crops against weeds, pests, and disease.Demand for chemical insecticides and fungicides is likely to decline in the long term as ...
Streamlined specialties portfolio. (company downsizes specialty chemicals division to increase performance)(Hoechst)
Jun 26, 1996; ... Hoechst's specialty chemicals division is a complex system of activities that goes right to the roots of the company and has needed severe pruning to get on performance track. Businesses worth DM1.5 billion were divested last year, and the headcount has been reduced within three years by ...
Competing in polyester. (Hoechst AG restructures polyester production units)(Hoechst)
Jun 26, 1996; ... Hoechst is the world's largest producer of polyester and cellulose acetate. It manufactures in 14 countries, although capacity is concentrated in North America and Europe, with smaller operations in Brazil and South Africa and some minority joint ventures in Asia. A new organization was ...
An Asian on the board? (Horst Waesche uses 25 years of experience in Asia to guide company's Asian plans)(Hoechst)
Jun 26, 1996; ... Only one area--asia--is so important to Hoechst that it retains a strategic geographic identity. Horst Waesche, who has spent more of his Hoechst career in Asia than in Germany, represents the region on the board and is regarded by Dormann as his honorary Asian.Waesche, is ...
Basic Chemicals. (management plans for company's basic chemicals division)(Hoechst)
Jun 26, 1996; ... Sales of hoechst's global basic chemicals division, headed by Thomas Kennedy, reached about $4 billion in 1995, accounting for over 10% of Hoechst's total sales of $36 billion. It also accounted for over 20% of the core industrial chemistry business area, which includes specialty chemicals, ...
Kennedy's Global View. (Thomas Kennedy, head of basic chemicals division)(Hoechst)(Interview)
Jun 26, 1996 ... Communicating Across Many CulturesQ. How much of Basic Chemicals is in North America?A. We look at it as a global business. But, maybe 40% of our sales are in North America, maybe 40% Europe, and 20% the rest of the world.Q. Where are you most excited about ...
European plastics joint ventures ahead. (company seeks partners to reduce vulnerability to cyclical markets)(Hoechst)
Jun 26, 1996; ... Hoechst is europe's second-largest producer of high-density polyethylene (HDPE) and the fourth-largest maker of polypropylene (PP). But the company wants to reduce its exposure to the cyclical plastics sector. The business, which had sales of DM3.6 billion in 1995, is extremely vulnerable to ...
Growing technical polymers. (smallest of company's seven divisions produces engineering plastics)(Hoechst)
Jun 26, 1996; ... Hoechst's technical polymers is the smallest of the company's seven divisions, accounting for about 3% of corporate sales, a little more including the unconsolidated Japanese joint venture with Daicel Chemical Industries, Polyplastics. The division employs more than 3,000 worldwide ....
International R&D. (company reaches two milestones in research and development)(Hoechst)
Jun 26, 1996; ... As befits the world's largest chemical company, Hoechst spends more on research and development than any of its competitors. Its R&D budget in 1995 was DM3.48 billion, up 5% from 1994.Hoechst's R&D reached two milestones last year. One was that for the first time, Germany accounted ...