Supplier News

Nalco Chemical Co. has acquired Unico Corp., a provider of wastewater treatment/process chemicals based in Seoul, South Korea. Nalco Chemical also acquired Paper Chemicals Inc. and the related business, Paper Chemicals of Alabama Inc., based in Texarkana, Texas. Both companies provide a range of specialty chemical products, services, and systems to the pulp and paper industry.

Aspen Technology Inc. (AspenTech), a provider of smart manufacturing software for process industries, has agreed to acquire Chesapeake Decision Sciences Inc., a supplier of software solutions for the manufacturing supply chain market. The acquisition unites Chesapeake’s supply chain expertise with the process knowledge embodied in AspenTech’s Plantelligence solutions. In addition, AspenTech has acquired Nottingham, U.K.-based Zyqad Ltd. Zyqad provides software for integrating, automating, and managing workflow between engineers who are designing new process plants or improving existing facilities.

Rhodia Inc., Rhone-Poulenc SA’s new specialty chemicals company, has divested its North American paper additives and related mining chemicals business to Vinings Industries. The sale includes manufacturing facilities in Marietta, Ga., and St. Catharines, Ont. Employees at these facilities will be retained by their new owner.

Fisher Rosemount’s parent company, Emerson Electric, has acquired PC&E, a process automation consulting and electrical engineering business. PC&E will retain its name and will be managed as a separate company within the Emerson Process Group.

Air Products and Chemicals Inc. has announced that its wholly-owned subsidiary, Air Products Korea, has agreed to acquire the vinyl acetate ethylene emulsions business of TaeYoung Chemical Corp. in Ulsan City, Korea.

Osmonics Inc. has completed its acquisition of Membrex Inc., Fairfield, N.J. Membrex manufactures membrane products and fluid treatment systems for industrial customers.

Global Industrial Technologies Inc., a supplier of industrial products headquartered in Dallas, Texas, has agreed to purchase A.P. Green Industries Inc., a supplier of refractory products headquartered in Mexico, Mo. In addition, Global Industrial Technologies has sold its industrial tool business to Cooper Industries of Houston, Texas.

Minerals Technologies, New York, N.Y., has announced that its affiliate, Specialty Minerals Lifford, has acquired a precipitated calcium carbonate (PCC) business in Kings Norton, England, from Rhodia Ltd., a specialty chemicals company. In addition, Minerals Technologies has sold its limestone operation in Port Inland, Mich., to the Oglebay Norton Co. of Cleveland, Ohio.

Ameron International Corp., a provider of coating systems and piping systems, has acquired the worldwide Croda Coatings business from Croda International plc. Croda Coatings provides protective coatings and finishes for industrial markets.

Atrion International Inc. has acquired the intellectual property rights of Rosetta, a material safety data sheet (MSDS) software, from Haskoning Group BV. Atrion will integrate Rosetta with its flagship product—Chemmate—to create a comprehensive environmental, health, safety, and transportation software. Technical support and sales staff will be employed by Atrion, and Atrion will also service Rosetta’s existing customer base.

Degussa has completed an expansion at its Mobile, Ala., plant. This expanded facility is now configured to serve customers of QUAB cationizing agents worldwide.

Cincos Technology, a Swiss software developer specializing in operations support systems for process plants, has expanded into the U.S. market. Its system support software is a suite of process plant information and operations sup-port tools that helps increase efficiency and decrease downtime. Cincos’ U.S. operations will be based in Atlanta, Ga.

Callaway Chemical Co. has announced completion of the second phase of an expansion of organophosphonates and phosphorous acid production capacity at the Smyrna, Ga., facility of its Mayo Div. This phase of the expansion increases production capacity by 15%.

Chemineer Inc. opened a new rapid response center in Dayton, Ohio. The facility is first in a planned network of rapid response centers designed to provide accelerated parts order fulfillment. It can quickly manufacture Chemineer and Prochem agitator replacement parts.

As part of its Metalworx expansion program, Stowe Woodward, a supplier of roll coverings, has overhauled six suction rolls ranging from 36 in. to 50 in. in diameter at its Griffin, Ga., plant. It is also in the process of fabricating four felt rolls and two couch rolls at the plant. Expansions include large floor plans, new overhead cranes, lathes to handle 76-in. diameters, lathes for journal fabrication, milling machines, and other machine shop equipment. Other expansions are at Stowe Woodward’s Concord, N.H.; Ruston, La.; and Neenah, Wis., plants.

Kaneng Industries Inc., a supplier of paper machine auxiliary equipment, has announced that it will be expanding its manufacturing facility in Kirkland, Que. The renovation, enlarging the facility by 10,000 ft², will house a new doctor blade and blade holder.

ASAP, a provider of open architecture, integrated control solutions, has expanded its customer support services with the addition of a certification laboratory at its corporate headquarters in Chagrin Falls, Ohio. The new lab’s purpose is to alleviate customer uncertainty over the viability of specific open control configurations.

Centracor, a manufacturer of cores, pallets, and packaging products, has broken ground for a 25,000 ft² expansion to its core plant in Oshkosh, Wis.

Motion Industries, a Birmingham, Ala.-based distributor of bearings, mechanical and fluid power transmission equipment, and hose products, has opened a new branch in Canton, Ohio.

JBC Industries, distributor of the ATD PowerShot system for fighting material buildup in storage facilities, kilns, and feeder systems, has opened a new regional office in Caldwell, Texas. The office will handle customer service, sales, and training for the southern U.S.

Air Products and Chemicals Inc., Lehigh Valley, Pa., and Wacker-Chemie GmbH, Munich, Germany, have decided to combine their emulsions and redispersible powder businesses within two joint-venture entities that will start up in October of 1998. The emulsions joint-venture entity will combine Wacker’s vinyl acetate-ethylene (VAE) operations at Cologne, Germany, with Air Products’ emulsion-producing facilities in the U.S. to produce approximately one billion lb/yr of emulsions. The redispersible powders joint-venture entity will combine Wacker’s VAE-based redispersible powders production facility at Burghausen, Germany, with Air Products’ powder manufacturing capabilities at Calvert City, Ky., to produce dry emulsions for building product applications.

Aspen Technology Inc. (AspenTech), a provider of smart manufacturing software for process industries, and Intergraph Corp., a provider of software for detailed plant design, have announced a strategic alliance. Intergraph and AspenTech will work together to develop and market integrated solutions for process and physical plant design, operations, and management.

Honeywell Industrial Automation and Control has signed an agreement with Plant Automation Services Inc. (PAS) to license the PAS DOC3000 software package for Honeywell’s internal use in documenting all of its TotalPlant Solution (TPS) system implementation projects. Honeywell’s use of this software should provide more accurate and consistent documentation. In addition, Honeywell will provide customers with a viewer-only license of DOC3000 at the end of each project and will offer customers several options for the continued use of DOC3000 as their documentation management tool.

Huron Tech Corp. will construct a new facility in Eastover, S.C. The plant is Huron Tech’s fifth sodium chlorate plant and its third merchant plant. The initial phase of the plant will have a 90,000 tpy capacity, increasing Huron’s supply to 245,000 tpy in the Southeast.

Farr Co. has opened a new laboratory and test center in Jonesboro, Ark., to assist customers in the proper design and application of air pollution control equipment. The new 3,400-ft² facility is equipped to perform a battery of tests on dust samples. For applications that do not require full-scale testing, Farr also offers a small sample test and analysis program at the lab.

Degussa Corp. has postponed plans for the construction of a hydrogen peroxide manufacturing facility in Quebec City, Que. Degussa plans to reactivate the project when pricing for hydrogen peroxide in North America begins to improve.

Thomason Mechanical Corp. (TMC), a provider of pump repairs, generator overhauls, and maintenance and other services, has broken ground at what will become its new 20,000 ft² Texas headquarters in Houston.

Johns Manville, a manufacturer of insulation and building products, has announced that its Roofing Systems Group will construct a new plant in Macon, Ga. The plant will be ready for production by the fall of 1998.

Bentofix Technologies Inc. (BTI), a manufacturer of needlepunched geosynthetic clay liner (GCL) materials, has approved a plan to double its manufacturing capacity by establishing an advanced needlepunched Bentofix thermal lock GCL plant in Reno, Nev.

Ingersoll-Dresser Pump Co. has announced that PNUCOR, an authorized distributor for all brands of Ingersoll-Dresser Pump products in North Carolina and South Carolina, now offers the company’s products to customers in eastern Tennessee and most of Virginia.

EIMCO has repurchased exclusive Brazilian distribution rights for its products and services from Minningtech Equipamentos Industriasis SA. In conjunction with the repurchase, EIMCO has announced the formation of a new national subsidiary, EIMCO Brazil.

Dec-E-Tech, a supplier of patented high-efficiency web processing dryers and systems for pollution control, has relocated its offices and manufacturing facility to 5 Progress Ave., Tyngsborough, Mass., from its former location in Pepperell, Mass.

GenCorp has announced plans to exit the plastic extrusions business. This involves closing facilities in Evansville, Ind., and Ft. Smith, Ark.