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Top Industry News                            April 9, 2007 Issue

NPCA Responds to Lead-Poisoning Lawsuit Filed by Ohio Attorney General Dann
The National Paint and Coatings Association, Inc. (NPCA), Washington, strongly opposes the decision by Ohio Attorney General Marc Dann to sue 10 companies over the issue of lead poisoning ... Read full story here

SEI Chemical Purchases 21st Century Coatings
According to SEI, the buyout will enable customers in more markets worldwide to access a range of leading-edge coating, additive and specialty cleaning technologies from a single source ... Read full story here

Mitsui Chemicals to Acquire Toner Resin Business From Sekisui Chemical
The transfer includes all goodwill and intellectual property related to resins for toner binders for copy machines and printers ... Read full story here

Akzo Nobel Divests Methylamines and Choline Chloride Business to Balchem
Akzo Nobel, Arnhem, the Netherlands, has agreed to sell its European-based Methylamines and Choline Chloride (MACC) businesses to Balchem Corporation, New York, a deal that completes the company's Chemicals divestment program ... Read full story here

The People File

International Paint Hires Randy Bauknecht as Senior Account Executive
International Paint LLC, Houston, a division of Akzo Nobel, has hired Randy Bauknecht to serve as senior account executive over protective coatings sales in Wisconsin, Minnesota and the Dakotas ... Read full story here

ANGUS Chemical Makes Site Leadership Changes at Its Louisiana Plant
Karen Kay has been named site leader for ANGUS Chemical Company, a wholly owned subsidiary of The Dow Chemical Company, at the company’s flagship manufacturing plant in Sterlington, La. ... Read full story here

D'Antoni, McGarry and Percy Re-elected to the Board of Directors of OMNOVA Solutions
Shareholders of OMNOVA Solutions, Fairlawn, Ohio, have re-elected David J. D'Antoni, Diane E. McGarry and Steven W. Percy to serve as directors of the company.  All will serve three-year terms expiring at the 2010 Annual Meeting of Shareholders ... Read full story here

H.B. Fuller Increases Quarterly Dividend
H.B. Fuller Company, St. Paul, Minn., announced that its board of directors voted to increase the company's regular quarterly dividend from $0.0625 per share of common stock to $0.0645 per share of common stock. The dividend is payable on May 3, 2007, to shareholders of record at the close of business on April 19, 2007.

Reichhold Makes Territory Changes for Its Coatings Distribution
Reichhold, Inc., Research Triangle Park, N.C., has announced changes to its coatings distribution representation in two U.S. regions ... Read full story here

Reliance Industries and Rohm and Haas Explore Construction of an Acrylic Acid and Esters Facility in India
Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) and Rohm and Haas Company have entered into a Memorandum of Understanding to explore the joint construction of a world-scale acrylic-monomer complex in Jamnagar, India ... Read full story here

OMNOVA Solutions Facility Receives Ohio Chemistry Technology Council Award
The OMNOVA Solutions Performance Chemicals facility in Mogadore, Ohio, was presented with a 2006 Award for Excellence in Environmental, Health, Safety and Security Performance from the Ohio Chemistry Technology Council for the second year in a row ... Read full story here

Orange Pigment From Ciba Creates Novel Shades and Widens Design Scope
Ciba is launching a new-generation, high-performance orange diketo-pyrrolo-pyrrole (DPP) pigment at the European Coatings Show in Nuremberg, Germany (May 8-10, 2007) ... Read full story here

BASF’s New Specialty-Amines Plant Scheduled to Begin Production in July
BASF, Florham Park, N.J., is scheduled to bring on line its new alkylethanolamine (AEOA) plant in Geismar, La., in July 2007 ... Read full story here

Interactive Inks & Coatings Moves to a New Office
Interactive Inks & Coatings, manufacturer of UV-curable and water-based inks and coatings, has relocated its office to 1610 Shanahan Dr., PO Box 158, South Elgin, IL 60177. Phone 800-344-4650 or 847-289-8710, fax 847-289-8762, or visit www.interactiveinks.com.

Songwon Opens New Swiss European Headquarters and Customer Service Center
Songwon, Ulsan, Korea,has opened the European headquarters of its affiliate, Songwon International AG, in Frauenfeld, Switzerland ... Read full story here

MeadWestvaco Specialty Chemicals Expands Pine Chemicals Business
MeadWestvaco Specialty Chemicals, North Charleston, S.C., announced the status of two major capital-investment projects under way at its DeRidder, La., and Charleston, S.C., plants ... Read full story here

OPC Polymers Increases Prices for Solvent-Based Products
OPC Polymers, Columbus, Ohio, has announced a price increase across all solvent-based product lines due to the recent run-up of solvent prices. The new prices will be effective on April 23 2007, and will increase by up to $.04 per pound. Actual increases are dependent on the solvent content and type in each product. Customers will be contacted individually regarding the effect of this increase on the products they purchase.

See recent price adjustments at www.pcimag.com by clicking on Supplier Price Alerts.

Global Auto Coatings Is Topic of Annual Detroit Society Conference on May 3
The Detroit Society for Coatings Technology (DSCT) is sponsoring the 32^nd Annual FOCUS Conference. The one-day meeting will be held on Thursday, May 3, 2007, at the MSU Management Center in Troy, Mich., and will concentrate on Global Challenges in Automotive Coatings ... Click here for details

e-Training Course Gives Benefits of Nanotechnology in Coatings
Mark Drunkenbrod, dispersion specialist and graduate physicist, will present an e-training course on the “Use and Benefits of Nanotechnology in Coatings” on April 17th at 10 a.m. U.S. Eastern time ... Click here for details

Manufacturing Philosophies Among Japanese and U.S. Companies Examined in Chicago and Detroit Areas
The Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) will present seminars on Monday, April 23 (in Chicago), and Wednesday, April 25 (in Plymouth, Mich.), examining the philosophies that are changing the development and quality of both the manufacturing processes and supplier relationships between the United States and Japan ... Click here for details