W.R. Grace and Company

The W.R. Grace and Company is a American conglomerate founded in 1854 by William Russell Grace. The company is one of the world leaders of the chemical specialities and construction materials. It holds the Brevet S of the Nickel of Raney, solid catalyst used in many industrial processes. In 2007, W.R. Grace employs more: 6500 employees in nearly 40 countries (: 3200 with the the United States) and carries out an annual turnover of more than 2,8 billion dollars, including 62% realized out of the United States. The premises of the undertaking are with Columbia, Maryland. The company is with dimensions with the Stock Exchange New York ().

Since April 2nd, 2001, the company is placed under the mode of protection of the law on the American bankruptcies ( Chapter 11 ), because of the lawsuits for contamination by the Amiante.

History of the Company

The founder of the company and the dynasty Grace

William Russell Grace was born the May 10th 1832 in Riverstown, close to Cobh, in Ireland and died the March 21st 1904 with New York. After having emigrated in the United States in 1846, it began in 1851 its career with the Peru where it became associated in the firm with John Bryce who took then the name of Bryce, Grace Brothers & Co. , before keeping the only name of W.R. Grace & Co .

In 1907, Joseph P. Grace, his son, were named president of the company. During its direction, the firm continued its progression in the maritime transport and became one of the dominating actors of the trade in the whole of the South American continent. He died in 1950.

In 1945, the third generation arrived at the capacity when J. Peter Grace reached the presidency of W.R. Grace & Co. at the 32 years age. J. Peter Grace was going to start a radical transformation of the group by introducing it with New York Stock Exchange into 1953, then by buying the chemical companies Davison and Dewey . From a family group of trade and declining transport, it was going to do one of the largest world producers of chemical specialities.

The power of the Grace group appeared with construction in 1971 of famous W.R. Grace Building , a Gratte-ciel of 50 stages and 192 meters in height on the 6th avenue in New York (Avenue off the Americas).

Member of the Democratic party, it also occupied of many political positions, becoming the adviser of three US presidents, Eisenhower, Kennedy which appointed it president of the Comité Commercial of the Alliance for Progress in 1962, and finally Reagan which required of him to direct the Commission on the reduction of the frauds, abuse and wasting of the administration , between 1982 and 1984.

" Line" grace; (1882-1969)

What became later on Grace Line finds its origin in 1882 in the creation of a regular line of sailing ships between Peru and New York. Grace establishes a regular service of steamers in 1893, by creating a subsidiary company: the New York & Pacific Steamship Co. , sailing under British house because, before 1905, the Bateau X built apart from the United States could not be registered in this country. The service under American house started in 1912 with the Atlantic & Pacific Steamship Company .

In 1916, the activities of the two companies and their head office amalgamated in the Grace Steamship Company . In 1917, the first ship of passengers of the Line Grace was baptized the Santa Anna . But, the same year, the whole fleet with the Santa Elisa , Santa Teresa , Santa Rosa and Santa Paula was requisitioned to accomplish the transport of the American troops during the two last years of the First World War.

The specialist company in the Cabotage on the west coast of South America extended its sphere of activity in the the Caribbean. With its apogee, after the Second world war, Grace Line was an actor of foreground of the American merchant fleet with 23 ships adding up 188,000 tons.

Another short diversification of the group is to be mentioned in the activity of the brewery when it controlled Miller September 1966 at June 1969, date of its resale with Philip Morris.

In 1953, Grace was introduced with New York Stock Exchange. As a " crusher and acid former of carcasses and shells of Oyster S, " it was the first to use a sulphuric room of Acid in the United States. Starting from 1923, Davison Chemical Company started to sell gel of Silice (patent of 1919) and in 1924, Davison introduces the Catalyseur S out of Nickel of Raney® for the production in organic chemistry.

In 1963, Grace Davison bought the company Raney Catalyst Company with its founder, Murray Raney, and became the holder of the patents of the Nickel of Raney, obtained in 1927.

In 1964, Davison put on the market first catalyst of cracking of fluids containing of the zeolite which was in advance on the similar products, making it possible the refiners to increase their production and the outputs. Then, Grace developed a revolutionary method of proofing with the introduction of the waterproofing membrane, and a new hermetic seal of high efficiency when world food industry adopted the Couvercle with screw.

Since 2003, Fred E. Festa is the managing director and chair Grace. The group transfers its seat to Columbia in Maryland and creates division Performance Chemicals joining together chemistry and construction materials

Activities of the group

The group now consists of two divisions which represents each one about half of the turnover (2,8 billion $ in 2006):

Grace Davison : industrial catalysts, such as the Nickel of Raney, produced Silicone. This division counts for 53% of the sales which assemble in 2006 to 1,5 billion $.
Grace Performance Chemicals : products of construction by which additives for Cement, of the Fiber S, the Pigment S, antifeux materials, the membranes of Filtration…

Human resources

At December 31st, 2006: 6,500 people are employed by Grace in forty country, of which approximately: 3,200 in the United States. On the total of the employees: 3,100 people work for Grace Davison .

The social relations are mainly controlled by collective agreements negotiated by the Syndicat S of chemical industry which represent: 2500 of: 5200 people working in the factories. The group did not list a social conflict during the ten last years of the surrounding mountains by W.R. Grace and Company. After Grace closed the mine in 1992, the Agence of environmental protection of the United States (EPA) analyzed samples of the ground and Air and could not detect contamination. Later examinations with more sophisticated equipment established that the samples were filled with tremolite (silicate natural coming from metamorphic rocks eruptive and ) which is suspectée in dozen case of attacks related to asbestos. Following an article of 1999 published in a newspaper of Seattle the Seattle-Post-Intelligencer and which updated the strong prevalence of the diseases related to asbestos in the city, the EPA, in answer, made cleaning of the site a national priority and declared that Libby was the worst case of exposure of scale to a toxic substance existing to the United States. The EPA spent 120 million dollars of the Superfund (special finance mechanism of decontaminations by the Agency on federal funds) in the cleaning of the site. In October 2006, W.R. Grace and Company made call of the fines imposed by the EPA but the Supreme court of the United States rejected it. At June 30th, 2007, Grace estimates at 267 million dollars the amount of the sums which the EPA would be suceptible to claim with the company. The government also started criminal continuations against the company and seven former executives of the mine to have been unaware of and have masked the health risks with the employees. The lawsuit which should begin in 2007 before the federal court from the Montana was pushed back on standby of judgment in first authority in the complaints.

The lawsuit for contamination of water with Woburn, Massachusetts

This lawsuit which proceeded in 1986 (Anderson v. Cryovac which was a federal dispute noticed on the toxic contaminations) in connection with pollution detected in the Années 1970 is the base of the book and of the film has Civil Action ( Préjudice according to its French title) of Steven Zaillian with Robert Duval and John Travolta, left in 1998.

The site of Superfund with " Acton" , Massachusetts

At the beginning of the Years 1950, W.R. Grace establishes an production unit with South Acton to produce additives for cement and the organic chemistry. W.R. Grace poured the by-products of this factory in spreading S not confined (lagoons) until in 1980.

In 1978, Chloride of vinylidene and other contaminants industrial were detected in 2 of the wells of the city which were condemned. In 1983, the site of Acton of W.R. Grace was placed on the list of Superfund of the EPA with national priority for cleaning. Until 2000, the firm had proceeded by way of transaction paying more than 2 billion dollars to the plaintiffs over the 20 previous years. But since, recrudescence of the requests and the class action suits (" Class action") against the zonolite, the firm chose to withdraw itself from this mode of rêglement. The company estimates to be able to be indebted of a sum of 1,7 billion dollars in payment of damage.

In January 2005, Thanks to deposited an amendment in the plan of reorganization before the Court of the bankruptcy proceedings in order to set up a trust to honor all the payments within the framework with the lawsuits of the Asbestos. This funds would be equipped with liquidities and actions by Grace. But associations representing the plaintiffs are opposed to the procedure. Hearings of the Court should proceed before the end of the year 2007.

Appendices

Random links: