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Rohm and Haas Company is a
manufacturer Manufacturing is the creation or production of goods with the help of equipment, labor, machines, tools, and chemical or biological processing or formulation. It is the essence of secondary sector of the economy. The term may refer to ...
of
specialty chemicals Speciality chemicals (also called specialties or effect chemicals) are particular chemical products which provide a wide variety of effects on which many other industry sectors rely. Some of the categories of speciality chemicals are adhesives, ag ...
for end use markets such as building and construction, electronic devices, packaging, household and personal care products. Headquartered in
Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Since ...
, the company is organized into three business groups of Specialty Materials, Performance Materials and Electronic Materials, and also has two stand-alone businesses of Powder Coatings and Salt. Formerly a Fortune 500 Company, Rohm and Haas employs more than 17,000 people in 27 countries, with its last sales revenue reported as an independent company at US$8.9 billion.
Dow Chemical Company The Dow Chemical Company, officially Dow Inc., is an American multinational chemical corporation headquartered in Midland, Michigan, United States. The company is among the three largest chemical producers in the world. Dow manufactures plastics ...
bought Rohm and Haas for $15 billion in 2009.


History

The company was founded in Esslingen,
Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...
, by Dr.
Otto Röhm Otto Karl Julius Röhm (; 14 March 1876, Öhringen, Germany – 17 September 1939, Berlin) was one of the founders and a longtime president of the ''Röhm und Haas'' chemical company which became later in the USA the Rohm and Haas (today '' ...
and Mr. Otto Haas in 1907. Haas moved to Philadelphia and began the American side of the business on September 1, 1909, from an office on Front Street, while Otto Röhm remained in Germany to run a company that would eventually become Röhm GmbH. Röhm improved the unhygienic working conditions in tanneries by replacing dog feces as a leather
mordant A mordant or dye fixative is a substance used to set (i.e. bind) dyes on fabrics by forming a coordination complex with the dye, which then attaches to the fabric (or tissue). It may be used for dyeing fabrics or for intensifying stains in ...
with enzymes harvested from the pancreas of slaughtered animals. Leather factories soon started buying the new product, Oropon. The American company grew rapidly as
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
approached as leather was needed in large quantities for belts and saddles. Rohm and Haas attracted national headlines in 1985 as an example of the
Internal Revenue Service The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is the revenue service for the United States federal government, which is responsible for collecting U.S. federal taxes and administering the Internal Revenue Code, the main body of the federal statutory t ...
's ineptitude after the company received an IRS demand for a $46,807.37 penalty because of a 10-cent discrepancy in the reporting of payroll taxes for 1983. Over a course of five months, the company spent many hours trying to explain their case to the IRS, tasked five accountants to investigate and wrote seven letters to the agency before the penalty was finally dropped. The company again grew rapidly as
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
approached, as it manufactured Plexiglas acrylic, a transparent plastic which was needed for aircraft canopies. They sold this part of the business in 1998 to Elf Atochem (now
Arkema Arkema S.A. is a publicly listed, multi-national manufacturer of specialty materials, headquartered in Colombes, near Paris, France. It has three specialty materials segments (or divisions); adhesives, advanced materials and coatings. A furt ...
). In 1965 Rohm and Haas moved its headquarters from Washington Square to a new building on Independence Mall a few blocks away. The new Rohm and Haas Corporate Headquarters was designed by
Pietro Belluschi Pietro Belluschi (August 18, 1899 – February 14, 1994) was an Italian-American architect. A leading figure in modern architecture, he was responsible for the design of over 1,000 buildings.Belluschi, Pietro. (2007). In ''Encyclopædia Britanni ...
and George M. Ewing Co. (now EwingCole). In 1999 Rohm and Haas acquired the
Morton Salt Morton Salt is an American food company producing salt for food, water conditioning, industrial, agricultural, and road/highway use. Based in Chicago, the business is North America's leading producer and marketer of salt. It is a subsidiary of h ...
company. The main products of Rohm and Haas are specialty materials with advanced chemistry that allows end-use products to have a particular characteristic, e.g., low-odor, water-based paints, sunscreens with greater SPF functionality, or more powerful semiconductor chips. On July 10, 2008 Rohm and Haas announced it was being bought by
Dow Chemical Company The Dow Chemical Company, officially Dow Inc., is an American multinational chemical corporation headquartered in Midland, Michigan, United States. The company is among the three largest chemical producers in the world. Dow manufactures plastics ...
for US$18.8 billion. Rohm and Haas will continue doing business under its name and will remain in its Philadelphia headquarters. Dow Chemical tried to back out of acquiring Rohm and Haas when a deal to form a joint venture with Kuwait Petroleum that would give Dow money to buy Rohm and Haas failed. On 2 April 2009, it was reported that Morton Salt was being acquired by German fertilizer and salt company K+S for a total
enterprise value Enterprise value (EV), total enterprise value (TEV), or firm value (FV) is an economic measure reflecting the market value of a business (i.e. as distinct from market price). It is a sum of claims by all claimants: creditors (secured and unsecured) ...
of US$1.7bn. The sale, completed by October 2009, was in conjunction with the Dow Chemical Company's takeover of Rohm and Haas. Dow announced their intent to sell the Rohm and Haas Powder Division.


Environmental record

On July 6, 2004, the Environmental Protection Agency charged Rohm and Haas with violating the Clean Air Act after inspecting its facility in
Louisville, Kentucky Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border ...
. The Agency claimed that the company failed to repair a deteriorated chemical storage tank, failed to maintain a complete list of monitoring regulations, and failed to remove accumulated hazardous wastes. On February 12, 2006, eleven workers were hospitalized after being exposed to fumes that leaked out of the Rohm and Haas Corporation chemical plant in
Cincinnati, Ohio Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line w ...
. On February 15, 2006, an employee died when working on a steam ejector due to the inhalation of
hydrogen sulfide Hydrogen sulfide is a chemical compound with the formula . It is a colorless chalcogen-hydride gas, and is poisonous, corrosive, and flammable, with trace amounts in ambient atmosphere having a characteristic foul odor of rotten eggs. The under ...
gas. An investigation determined that since the sewer vent was plugged, the hydrogen sulfide gas accumulated into large concentrations that became lethal. On April 25, 2006, Rohm and Haas, and other defendants, were sued in Philadelphia for failing to prevent toxic spills, to employ adequate groundwater practices, and to warn residents of any potential presence of underground contamination. This led to 18 filed cases of brain tumors and cancers among local residents of
Ringwood, Illinois Ringwood is a northwest suburban village in McHenry County, Illinois, United States. It is a commuter village, part of the Chicago metropolitan area. The population was 836 at the 2010 census. History Settlement Ringwood was settled in 1837 by ...
. As early as 1980, the company's McCullom Lake factory located in
McHenry County, Illinois McHenry County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2020 Census, it had a population of 310,229, making it the sixth-most populous county in Illinois. Its county seat is Woodstock. McHenry County is one of t ...
, underwent investigation for contamination of the town's groundwater. Studies, paid for by Rohm and Haas, showed the groundwater never affected the town's well water. The company is now one of five corporations undergoing a class-action lawsuit filed by the town's residents, claiming a direct correlation to 34 out of 1,074 residents experiencing some type of brain or pituitary gland cancer. The Northwest Herald published a six-piece investigative story on the lawsuits and residents, claiming to reveal a blatant "mishandling" of the entire affair on the part of local health officials and Rohm and Haas.


Labor relations


Deer Park

In 1969, union members with the Oil, Chemical, & Atomic Workers went on strike at the Rohm and Haas Deer Park facility in
Harris County, Texas Harris County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas; as of the 2020 census, the population was 4,731,145, making it the most populous county in Texas and the third most populous county in the United States. Its county seat is Houston, ...
. In 2010, following the purchase of Rohm and Haas by Dow, Dow attempted to fire around 60 union workers and replace them with contract workers in order to lower labor expenses. Dow also wanted to end annual raises and threatened to stop pay and benefits if workers walked out. The United Steel Workers threatened a strike, but ultimately a strike was averted after a new four-year deal with Dow was negotiated. At the time, 325 of the plant's 620 workers were represented by USW. On July 17, 2012, Brian Johns, a worker at the Deer Park facility, was injured in an explosion, and later died. The firm paid a $23,000 fine for the incident. In April 2019, following weeks of negotiations with the United Steel Workers and two rejected contracts, Rohm and Haas locked out almost 230 members of the union. A lockout is the company equivalent of a strike. This has led to daily pickets by union members. Dow states that the plant continues to run in a safe manner by salaried workers at the plant. The negotiations are in regards to safety, excessive overtime, and arbitration.


See also

* Anidex * Monsanto Co. v. Rohm and Haas Co. * List of companies based in the Philadelphia area


References


External links

*
Rohm and Haas company historyRohm and Haas workers dead from brain cancer

Rohm & Haas Company Archives
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Science History Institute Digital Collections
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rohm And Haas Chemical companies based in Philadelphia Chemical companies established in 1909 Dow Chemical Company 1909 establishments in Pennsylvania Specialty chemical companies 2009 mergers and acquisitions