CHEMWORLD
WINTER/SPRING 1995
Annual Total Quality Recognition Awards Celebrated
On November 10, 1994 in Southbury, Connecticut, USA, Uniroyal Chemical’s Chairman, President and CEO Robert J. Mazaika presented the year’s Total Quality Recognition Awards and Lifetime Career Achievement Award to the following associates:
BRIEFS
New Sales Agent Named For Polymer Modifiers Business
Uniroyal Chemical has assigned a new sales agent, Velox Trading GmbH, to market and sell Polybond® and Royaltuf® polymer modifier products to both the packaging and custom compounding markets, effective August 1, 1994.
Velox Trading GmbH, based in Hamburg, Germany, will market and sell Uniroyal Chemical’s complete polymer modifiers product line in Germany, France, Switzerland, Austria, Belgium, and The Netherlands through their facilities located in Hamburg and Paris, France.
Malcolm Jackson, Uniroyal Chemical Ltd.’s European marketing manager for Polymer Modifiers and Specialty Chemicals said, “Velox will help our sales expansion in Europe by servicing the market with knowledgeable and dedicated people, backed by Uniroyal Chemical’s strong technical resources. This will allow us to continue to support our existing customer base while focusing on new market opportunities.”
Polybond products are acrylic acid or maleic anhydride grafted polyolefins used as tie layers in multi-layer packaging; coupling agents for glass filled polypropylene compounds; and compatibilizers for polyolefin polymer blends and alloys.
Royaltuf products are maleic anhydride or SAN grafted ethylene propylene elastomers used as tougheners for engineering thermoplastics (polyamides, polycarbonate, PBT and PET); compatibilizers for polar and nonpolar (prime and recycled) polymer blends and alloys; and impact modifiers for weatherable polymer systems. ■
UNIROYAL CHEMICAL
■ RAMAN IYER
In July 1993, a tank truck filled with Naugard® I-5/Vinyl Toluene exploded in Port Allen, Louisiana, USA and Uniroyal Chemical’s Manager of Environmental Engineering, Raman Iyer, was sent to the site. Raman managed the company’s Emergency Response team and oversaw the massive cleanup effort, even though the cause of the incident and the potentially libel parties had not yet been identified.
Working closely with an independent contractor, Louisiana state and local officials, and others, Raman supervised the clean-up, while handling this potentially devastating project efficiently and cost-effectively. Through skillful negotiation and a keen knowledge of regulations, Raman was able to limit site remediation costs substantially, and helped to save millions of dollars by averting out-of-state incineration costs.
Raman’s professionalism and concern for the environment is great testimony to Uniroyal Chemical’s corporate goal of “Zero Damage to People and the Environment.” His actions also helped to increase the company’s visibility among Louisiana authorities, showing Uniroyal Chemical as a responsive member of CMA’s Responsible Care® program.
■ NELSON PORTER
A determination to create new sales opportunities in his territory in 1994 led Nelson Porter, Uniroyal Chemical’s senior technical sales representative for Crop Protection located in Raleigh, North Carolina, USA to target both growers and distributors for a new pump program involving liquid Terraclor® TSX-EC. He designed an improved pump model, which the manufacturer of the existing model agreed to put into his line. Nelson then personally met with the most influential growers to introduce them to the new pump program and benefits of a liquid system.
By the time the selling season arrived, Nelson’s pump program had already been adopted by the majority of growers he called on, and TSX-EC filled virtually every distributor warehouse in his region.
The results of Nelson’s actions were a sizeable gain in market share from Uniroyal Chemical’s key competitor; an increase in Terraclor TSX-EC sales by 538 percent over 1993; and gained support of distributors who had not been committed to Uniroyal Chemical/ Terraclor products in the past.
Nelson’s efforts have truly established Uniroyal Chemical as the “Supplier of Choice” in the Crop Protection business.
■ POLYTRIO QUALITY CIRCLE
Mike Swain, Bob Holcomb, Gerald Dean, Mike Hampton, Roger Watson, Emmett Hood, Ed Gould, Troy Legendre and Kevin Harrel are the dynamic members of the Polytrio Quality Circle in Geismar, Louisiana, USA. This volunteer, cross-functional, problem-solving team completed five major projects in 1993, working with a number of departments to develop innovative solutions to costly, chronic issues in the workplace.
Team members found creative ways to improve safety, productivity and quality – and reduce scrap – while keeping implementation costs at a fraction of the annualized savings.
One of the team’s major projects, “Royalene Poly III Slurry Crossover”, was selected to represent Geismar in the 1994 Association for Quality and Participation (AQP) National Team Excellence Award competition. Polytrio received first place in their region, and scored among the top five teams, from a total field of 18, in national competition.
The Polytrio Quality Circle has demonstrated true team-based excellence in support of Uniroyal Chemical’s corporate goal of “Total Associate Involvement.”
■ LIFETIME CAREER ACHIEVEMENT RECIPIENT
Eli Schwartz, director of Technology Acquisition and Licensing, located in Middlebury, Connecticut, USA, is this year’s recipient of Uniroyal Chemical’s prestigious Lifetime Career Achievement Award.
As a 43- year career professional, Eli has been instrumental in developing global markets through innovative technology development and licensing. He developed a first-of-its-kind technology exchange program with Bayer in Germany and helped to establish the company’s joint venture with Sumitomo Chemical in Japan, which continues today as a strong technical and business partnership.
Eli’s outstanding combination of global perspective, technical background and business savvy, has led Uniroyal
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