Bayer investing $245 billion to expand polymers sector.

Bayer, Leverkusen, Germany, is acquiring the global polyols business of Houston, TX-based Lyondell Chemical for $2.45 billion in a move to strengthen its core polymers business in the long term. As an integral part of the transaction, Bayer will acquire an equity interest in the production of propylene oxide (PO), a raw material for the manufacture of polyols. Bayer and Lyondell will also form an alliance for joint technology development and the expansion of PO production capacities. The acquisition covers the U.S. polyol production sites in Institute and South Charleston, WV, and Channelview, TX. In Europe, the sites are in Reime, Belgium and Fos-sur-Mer, France, and there are also majority holdings in joint ventures in Indonesia and Taiwan. The facilities have a total annual production capacity of approximately 700,000 metric tons. The number of employees is almost 1,000.

Union Carbide, Danbury, CT, announced that its shareholders have voted to adopt the agreement and plan of merger between the corporation and Dow Chemical. More than 99.9 million shares were voted in favor of the merger, representing approximately 96% of the shares voted and 74% of the outstanding shares as of the record date of October 4, 1999. Filings also have been made with the U.S. Federal Trade Commission, the European Commission and other regulatory authorities. The merger is expected to take place following completion of the necessary regulatory reviews.

Cooper Tire & Rubber, Findlay, OH, has agreed to acquire the automotive fluid handling division of Invensys plc for a purchase price of $244.5 million. This automotive fluid handling division reported sales of approximately $400 million over the past year, and earnings of approximately $34 million. The division, which operates under the name Siebe Automotive, is headquartered in Southfield, MI and manufactures fluid handling automotive components, modules and sub-systems, selling directly to most major vehicle manufacturers. The company employs nearly 4,000 people in 16 operating locations with business extending across North and South America, Europe and Australia.

EniChem, Milan, Italy, has initiated the construction of a production plant for hydrogenated thermoplastic elastomers SEBS (styrene-ethylene-butene-styrene). The unit with a nominal capacity of 30,000 metric tons per year will utilize a proprietary hydrogenation technology recently developed, based on metallocene (titanium) catalysts. The start-up of the plant is forecasted during the second half of 2001. The investment will take place at EniChem's Ravenna, Italy site. EniChem is also considering a second plant at its Baytown, TX industrial site as a future development in SEBS production strategy.

Rhodia, Cranbury, NJ, has acquired certain assets of Applied Silicone's healthcare and medical application businesses. The transaction excludes silicones dedicated to breast implant applications. That business will continue to be owned and operated by Applied Silicone. The acquisition involves a broad range of specialty silicones, including elastomers, fluids, gels, adhesives, dispersions, sheeting, tubing and moldable silicones that are used in the healthcare market. These products will be marketed under Rhodi [Illegible] xisting Silbione tradename. Also included in the acquisition is a manufacturing facility located in Ventura, CA with 74 employees.

Krupp Elastomertechnik GmbH, Hamburg-Harburg, Germany, is investing in the expansion of the technical center at its Freudenberg plant. The research and development facility is now equipped with two laboratory internal mixers, a GK 5 E (intermeshing rotors) and a GK 4 N (tangential rotors), plus a fully automated mixing line featuring a GK 45 E internal mixer with a newly developed roll mill and batch-off unit.

The Polyurethane Manufacturers Association has created an HPV/MBOCA Subcommittee to demonstrate the PMA's commitment to responsible product stewardship and environmental safety by facilitating the organization of a consortium of companies for voluntary sponsorship of MBOCA in the Environmental Protection Agency's High Production Volume (HPV) Program. The MBOCA Consortium has already volunteered to the U.S. EPA as an industry coalition to sponsor 4,4'-methylene bis (2-chloroanilene)(CAS#101-14-4) in the HPV Challenge and plans to submit a test plan to EPA in 2002. The Sub-Committee's scope is to use the resources of the HPV Consortium to fund sponsorship of MBOCA. Its objective will be to identify and coordinate all known MBOCA manufacturers and/ or importers (as defined by TSCA) and have them join the consortium and to elicit financial support for sponsorship.

Nordson, Amherst, OH, has formed the Spectral UV Systems group by consolidating its two UV (ultraviolet) curing companies. The new group will design, develop, manufacture, market and service high-powered UV curing and drying systems for industrial markets worldwide.

DSM Industrial Resins & Compounds, Zwolle, the Netherlands, a business group of the Dutch chemical group DSM, and Menzolit-Fibron (Bretten, Germany), part of the Dynamit Nobel group, have reached agreement on the transfer of DSM's compounds activities (DSM Compounds) to Menzolit-Fibron. DSM Compounds, with annual sales of approximately EUR 50 million, has production sites and sales offices in Italy (Turate), the U.K. (Eastwood), Spain (Granollers), Germany (Weiden) and France (Saint Symphorien d'Ozon). The total number of employees involved is approximately 175.

DSM and AlliedSignal opened the world's first large-scale carpet recycling plant in Augusta, GA. The plant, which cost EUR 80 million to build, will operate under the name of Evergreen Nylon Recycling and will convert 90,000 metric tons of nylon 6 carpet waste into the nylon 6 raw material caprolactam each year. The annual amount of nylon 6 carpet waste landfilled in the U.S. currently totals 450,000 metric tons. With the new facility on stream, this amount will be reduced by one fifth. The 45,000 metric tons of caprolactam to be produced each year by Evergreen Nylon Recycling can be used to make new nylon 6 of the same quality as virgin nylon 6.

Dyneon, Oakdale, MN, commissioned a two-inch Davis-Standard wire and cable line to be located in the Oakdale, MN fluorothermoplastics application and product development facility. The high-temperature, high-speed line provides another means to develop and evaluate the new Dyneon FEP grades of fluoropolymers targeted for the wire and cable industry.

Flexaust, Warsaw, IN, has purchased Drossbach USA, Aurora, OH. Drossbach USA is a manufacturer of continuous blow molded plastic hose, supplying the vacuum cleaner market, as well as a range of other equipment manufacturers. Flexaust manufactures a range of non-metallic and metallic flexible hose and ducting sold to distributors and equipment manufacturers throughout North America.

PPG Industries, Pittsburgh, PA, will add a second manufacturing unit at its Barberton, OH chemical facility to produce Teslin sheet. When completed in late 2000, the unit will double the facility's production capacity. Teslin sheet is a silica-polymer synthetic printing material that prints like paper, yet is durable and waterproof like plastic, according to the company.

Cumberland Engineering, South Attleboro, MA, is now affiliated with AEC Sterling through its acquisition by the Harbour Group of St. Louis, MO. AEC Sterling, with its subsidiaries, is said to be one of the largest manufacturers of auxiliary equipment for the plastics molding and extrusion industries in North America. Its products include temperature control units, chillers, granulators, robots, blenders, dryers and material handing equipment. Cumberland Engineering is a producer of size reduction equipment for the plastics processing industry.

Thomas Swan & Company, Consett, U.K., acquired the specialty chemicals business of Fort James of Camas, WA. This includes all products, processes and technology. The company plans to integrate these products into its manufacturing facility in Consett.

Hosokawa Micron International, New York, NY, has entered into an agreement with Beacon Industrial Group LLC, Charlotte, NC, for the sale of its global Product Recovery Product Line operations. Hosokawa Micron International's core business is in powder and particle processing technologies.

ABB Automation has opened a fully automated and modular assembly facility at its production plant in New Berlin, WI.