ALTANA ACQUIRES METALLIC PIGMENTS AND PRINTING INKS BUSINESS OF WOLSTENHOLME GROUP LTD.

ALTANA AG (NYSE:AAA)(FWB:ALT)(GER:ALT), which now concentrates on the specialty chemicals business, signed a contract to acquire the worldwide effect pigments business of the British company Wolstenholme Group Ltd. In 2006, Wolstenholme achieved sales of about €29 million in this business area. The purchase price for the business is €24 million. Rutland Partners LLP, a financial investor, is the majority owner of the company, which was founded in 1938. The acquisition is subject to approval by the antitrust authorities.

The acquired business comprises bronze and aluminum pigments as well as printing inks based on these pigments for the graphic arts, coatings and plastics industries. The business will be integrated into ECKART, ALTANA’s Effect Pigments division, which generated sales of €339 million in 2006. ALTANA will not take over Wolstenholme’s production plants and employees in Great Britain. Instead, ECKART is going to increase the production capacities in its main factory in the Franconian town of Güntersthal (Bavaria) accordingly. Wolstenholme will continue to carry out the production of effect pigments on behalf of ECKART until the transfer of the production to Germany will have been fully completed.

“We are happy to purchase the effect pigments activities of Wolstenholme, a successful business with a long tradition,“ commented Dr. Matthias L. Wolfgruber, CEO of ALTANA AG. “The acquired business is a perfect fit for ALTANA and the acquisition underlines our growth ambitions.”

“In the medium term, we will invest about €10 million in our site in Güntersthal in order to take over the production from Wolstenholme,” Dr. Christoph Schlünken, President Division Effect Pigments, emphasized the importance of the transaction.

For more information, visit www.altana.com/press.

ASHLAND EXPANDS EPOXY VINYL ESTER RESIN CAPACITY

Ashland Composite Polymers, Dublin, OH, has announced plans to increase its epoxy vinyl ester production capacity to satisfy global demand for its products.

“As a market leader in this technology, Ashland is committed to serving our customers, and that means recognizing and managing market trends,” said Andy Beer, global manager o fAshland’s composite polymers, building and construction business. “We recognize that the markets for our DERAKANE^® and HETRON^® resins are rapidly growing, so over the next two years we will be adding the necessary capacity in the Americas and elsewhere to meet that demand.”

Ashland DERAKANE^® and HETRON^® epoxy vinyl ester resins are used to manufacture corrosion-resistant equipment for wastewater treatment, chemical processing and mining industries.

For more information, visit www.ashland.com.

CHEMICAL HERITAGE FOUNDATION NAMES TRITTON PRESIDENT

Thomas R. Tritton, Ph.D will become president of the Chemical Heritage Foundation ("CHF") effective January 1, 2008. He will be only the second president of CHF, succeeding Dr. Arnold Thackray, who founded the organization in Philadelphia 25 years ago and will continue with CHF in the new role of chancellor. Tritton served as 12th president of Haverford College from 1997-2007.

"I am enormously excited to be returning to my roots as a scientist," says Dr. Tritton. "My life has been devoted to education and the CHF position offers a new way to continue that calling in directions that are both original and challenging."

Tritton was selected following a worldwide search for someone with both scholarly and entrepreneurial talents, who combines a passion for the long sweep of chemistry and molecular sciences with the drive to build and sustain a successful enterprise.

"Scientist, scholar, inspiring leader, Tom Tritton is the right person at the right time for CHF," said Vincent Calarco, chairman, CHF Board of Directors. "His passion for chemistry, his energy, his leadership will help CHF achieve its ambitious goals as a global organization devoted to science history and education."

Dr. Tritton's excitement about assuming the presidency of CHF is evidenced in his words, "CHF's world class scientific collections and holdings provide an outstanding resource for scholars and a natural linkage to both the humanities and to the social sciences. Additionally, the work on science education, outreach, and public policy offers distinctive contributions to contemporary questions and societal needs."

Before assuming the CHF presidency, Tritton will spend the fall semester at Harvard University, where he will hold the title of "President in Residence" at the Graduate School of Education. He will work with graduate students in higher education, write and teach about leadership and the college presidency, and also design a new course on "Social Justice."

Under his leadership, Haverford saw its endowment increase by more than $250 million as it developed innovative forums for learning such as its Center for Peace and Global Citizenship and the John B. Hurford '60 Humanities Center. He also oversaw construction of the state-of-the-art Marian E. Koshland Integrated Natural Sciences Center as well as a world-class athletic facility, The Douglas B. Gardner '83 Integrated Athletic Center.

For more information, visit www.chemheritage.org/press/pr_07_june_19.htm.

HORIBA ANNOUNCES REVISED WEBSITE

HORIBA Instruments Inc. has announced a redesign of its Scientific Division’s website that provides more information for existing users of HORIBA analyzers and those people who want to learn more about its Particle, Petroleum & Water Quality Analyzers. The new site features simple navigation and enhanced graphics that make it easier for visitors to find information quickly. Most importantly, a library of technical information – including application notes, data sheets and manuals – has been made available for scientific professionals. The revisions include detailed product brochures for each analyzer, product videos and links to articles referencing HORIBA products.

Tanis Campbell, president and CEO of Dot Wizards (www.dotwizards.com), was selected to manage the new design. She brought over 10 years of experience in web design and marketing communication to the project. Along with her team and a technical committee of HORIBA support staff, a dynamic new space has been created to share information with the scientific community.

For more information, visit www.horibalab.com.