Rubbermaid acquires Graco, expands juvenile products.

Rubbermaid, Wooster, OH, signed a definitive agreement to acquire Graco Children's Products for $320 million in cash. Graco is privately owned by a group of investors, including AEA Investors and Management. It is anticipated that closing will occur no later than October 31. Graco, headquartered in Elverson, PA, is a manufacturer and marketer of juvenile products, such as infant strollers, portable play yards, swings, activity centers, high chairs and other infant products. Graco's net sales for full year 1996 are expected to be approximately $270 million.

Campine America L.L.C.'s activities, including developing, producing and selling fire-retardant masterbatches and fire-retardant compounds for the U.S. market, will be continued by O'Neil Color & Compounding. O'Neil Color A Compounding, an affiliate of ICC Industries, is a manufacturer of color, plastic additive and specialty compounds and concentrates. The company's production facilities are in Paterson, NJ and Jasper, TN. Campine S.A. is a Belgian producer of high-grade antimony trioxide.

Hosokawa Bepex, a designer and manufacturer of solids processing equipment and systems for polymers, chemicals and food processing, announced the opening of PolyQuest, a polymer development center to enhance the quality of polymers, particularly solid phase polymerization of polyester. PolyQuest is a $3 million facility funded by Hosokawa Bepex's parent company, Hosokawa Micron, headquartered in Osaka, Japan. PolyQuest will help polymer customers take theoretical information about polymer processing from bench scale to pilot test, which will lead to the design of full-scale polymer processing plants for commercialization.

PPG Industries is expanding production of a chopped strand fiber glass reinforcement for nylon resin shown to retain and even increase toughness and tensile strength when exposed to engine coolant in radiator and other under-the-hood automotive applications. PPG produces Type 3660 chopped strand at its fiber glass manufacturing plants in the Netherlands and the United States, and has the capability to produce it at facilities in England, Taiwan and Venezuela.

Elf Atochem, a producer of polyvinylidine fluoride (PVDF), marketed under the tradename Kynar, announced a 25% increase in manufacturing capacities. The new capacities are due to come on stream in the second half of 1996 at Pierre-Benite in France, and in early 1998 at Calvert City, KY. At the same time, Elf Atochem is to increase capacities for vinylidine fluoride (VF2), which is used as a raw material for Kynar, as well as in the manufacture of fluorinated elastomers.

Laurel Industries, a Cleveland, OH-based producer of antimony oxide, has been acquired by Occidental Petroleum, making Laurel a wholly owned subsidiary of Occidental Petroleum and a business unit of Occidental Chemical (OxyChem). Acquired from private investors, Laurel Industries maintains an antimony production facility in La Porte, TX.

A United Kingdom CAD/CAM supplier, Delcam International, announced the opening of a subsidiary in North America. The subsidiary is based in Windsor, Ontario, Canada. The office will coordinate the efforts of Delcam's resellers in North America, with particular emphasis on raising Delcam's profile through a range of marketing activities.

Ansell Protective Products, a manufacturer of synthetic industrial gloves, opened a new glove production line at its Troy, AL manufacturing facility. The highly-automated line will augment the production of Ansell's thin mil nitrile glove called Nitrilite.

Markem, providing in-plant printing solutions, has improved its ability to provide customers with a comprehensive range of coding, marking, labeling and logistics solutions with the acquisition of Prestek Ltd., a state-of-the-art supplier of coding and labeling systems located in Nottingham, England. Prestek will operate as a subsidiary of Markem.

Ross Systems & Controls moved into new headquarters in Savannah, GA. By consolidating engineering and manufacturing functions which had been distributed among Ross's four U.S. manufacturing plants, the move will accelerate production to meet rising demand. It also provides plenty of room for SysCon to expand. In addition to the control systems it produces to accompany new Ross equipment for mixing, blending and dispersion, the division designs and manufactures controls for process equipment built by virtually any other manufacturer.

Appryl (15% Elf Atochem/49% BP Chemicals) chose Grangemouth, Scotland as the site for a 300,000 metric ton polypropylene plant. The plant is to operate with Appryl's own technology, producing copolymers and homopolymers. Construction will start in 1997, and the plant will come on stream in 1999, which will make Grangemouth's capacity one of the largest in the world, according to the company.

RKG Enterprises, dba RAM Technologies, received the Small Business Association's approval for $969,000 in Section 504 funds from Evergreen Community Development Association, Seattle, WA, to construct a 40,000 square foot manufacturing plant on a five acre site in Mukilteo's Harbour Pointe Business Center. The $2.4 million project, with partnership financing provided by First Interstate Bank, will allow RAM Technologies to expand and modernize. RAM Technologies was purchased in 1991 under the original name of PAC National Foam and Rubber Products. They fabricate foam rubber and provide rubber products for a specific niche of the market in the sports equipment area.

Honeywell, Freeport, IL, acquired the measurement and control business of Leeds Sc Northrup. As part of this acquisition, Leeds & Northrup's HyCal Division, headquartered in El Monte, CA, is reporting to Honeywell's Micro Switch Division. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Thomas Swan & Co., Ltd., acquired the U.S.A.-based Pepton peptizer and guanidines rubber chemicals products of Cytec Industries. In North America, these products will be marketed via Swan Chemical.

Following the approval of the relevant authorities, the sale of the Packaging Division of UCB to the Australian group Amcor has come into effect. UCB will continue its current film activities in the context of the company's Film Sector.