Speciality business

The Dow Chemical Company has created a new specialty business unit that encompasses all the activities of what were previously Wolff Walsrode and Dow's Water Soluble Polymers business.

The new business, operating under the name of Dow Wolff Cellulosics, encompasses cellulosics and related chemistries, providing formulation expertise and other technical services to a range of industry sectors, including construction, paint, personal care, pharmaceuticals and food.

Dow's cellulosics and their derivatives are produced from renewable raw materials – mainly wood pulp and cotton – sourced primarily from suppliers that implement certified sustainable forestry practices.

The newly formed unit will sell high-performance cellulosics - methylcellulose, hydroxypropyl methylcellulose, hydroxyethyl methylcellulose, carboxymethyl cellulose, ethylcellulose, hydroxyethyl cellulose and nitrocellulose - as well as companion products such as polyethylene oxide, redispersible latex powders and cationic polymers.

Dow Wolff Cellulosics had revenues of more than $1bn in 2006 and employed 2,200 people worldwide.