Industry News (Week of 9/4/06)

ASI EXCLUSIVE MEDIA SPONSOR FOR 2007 WORLD ADHESIVE CONFERENCE AND EXPO

ASI and The Adhesive and Sealant Council, Inc. have announced that ASI Magazine will be the exclusive media sponsor for the 2007 World Adhesive Conference and Exposition to be held April 20-23, 2008 at the Miami InterContinental hotel in Miami, FL. WAC offers attendees the opportunity to: network with global industry leaders, including representatives from FEICA (Europe), ASMAC (Canada), JAIA (Japan), CNAIA (China), IASA (India), ANIQ (Mexico) and other international organizations; attend sessions addressing the latest trends in technology, business and management issues, regional market updates, and end-use market perspectives; experience the world's largest adhesive and sealant industry exposition, featuring raw material and equipment suppliers, industry consultants, and many other exhibitors; and enjoy numerous networking functions, exciting area attractions, and tours.

For more information on WAC, contact Bob Willis, Senior Manager, Conventions and Meetings, at (301) 986-9700 ext. 104, or visit http://www.ascouncil.org/industry/wac .

DOW AND IZOLAN FORM JOINT VENTURE FOR POLYURETHANE BUSINESS IN RUSSIA

The Dow Chemical Co., Midland, MI, and Izolan have announced the formation of a joint venture company that will provide customer-tailored polyurethane systems products to a growing customer base in Russia. Subject to regulatory and other customary approvals, the new company, Dow Izolan, will be based in Vladmir, a city 170 km northeast of Moscow. The new company will employ more than 100 employees, mainly from Izolan's current site in Vladimir. Further, the joint venture plans to build a new state-of-the-art production plant in the Vladimir area within the next two years. The new facility will produce a range of polyurethane systems products to meet the growing needs of customers in the region.

For more information, visit http://www.dow.ru or http://www.izolan.ru .

HENKEL EXPANDS INDIA OPERATIONS

Henkel Corp., Irvine, CA, has announced plans to broaden its scope in India, thus reaffirming the company's ongoing promise to provide support to its customer base with unrivalled local support and access to the company's immense global resources. With several top customers setting up production centers in the region, India has recently emerged as a major locale for electronics manufacturing. Henkel's development plans for India include the expansion of the local sales force through direct sales and distribution channels, growth of the technical applications staff, establishment of product manufacturing and refinement of the company's logistics operations to ensure even easier 24/7 access to Henkel's materials products.

For more information, visit http://www.electronics.henkel.com .

HUBER OPTIMIZES KAOLIN OPERATIONS IN GEORGIA

Faced with continued pressure from costs and competitive alternatives to Georgia kaolin in the paper market, Huber Engineered Materials, Atlanta, GA, has announced a restructuring initiative for its Georgia-based kaolin operations. Specifically, Huber will transition certain product lines over the next six to nine months from its Macon facility to its Sandersville facility. At the same time, the company will eliminate certain product lines that have not achieved levels of profitability that support continued investment. The restructuring is expected to affect approximately 15 to 25% of the positions at the Macon facility and impact up to 40% of plant capacity. The reduction in capacity will primarily impact paper grade output, though the transfer of some production to Sandersville will partially offset this effect.

For more information, visit http://www.hubermaterials.com .

LORD CORP. TO SELL METECH PRODUCTS UNDER LORD BRAND

LORD Corp. has announced that products formerly manufactured and distributed through Metech will now be marketed under the LORD Corp. label. LORD Corp. purchased Metech in 2000. Metech was founded in 1982 and is best known for an extensive line of cermet and polymer thick film pastes for the hybrid microelectronic, printed circuit board, and component industries around the globe.

For more information, visit http://www.lord.com .

RAHN APPOINTS TECHNICAL KEY ACCOUNT MANAGERS

RAHN has announced the appointments of John Braddock and Reto Weder to Technical Key Account Management (TKAM) positions for the U.S. and Europe, respectively. In their new positions, Braddock and Weder will oversee selected customer projects and market launches of new development products. The Technical Key Account Manager acts as an important interface between the customer and the company's labs in Europe and the U.S.

For more information, visit http://www.rahn-group.com .

SCHENECTADY INTERNATIONAL BECOMES SI GROUP

Schenectady International has changed its name to SI Group and revamped its logo as part of its centennial year celebrations. The name is the fourth evolution the company has had in its century of business. Started as Schenectady Varnish Works in 1906 by W. Howard Wright, the chemical manufacturer today operates four divisions with 21 locations in 14 countries. Previous name evolutions include Schenectady Varnish Works and Schenectady Chemicals.

For more information, visit http://www.siigroup.com .