Union Carbide history

In 1919 the first production of synthetic ethylene began.

Doctor Curme and his associate, James A. Rafferty, predicted a future need for synthetic organic chemicals, and America’s petrochemical industry and the Corporation’s chemicals business were established in 1920.

A plant was built and operated by the Electro Metallurgical Company (acquired in 1922) to provide extensive metallurgical research, and manufacture uranium.

The holding company added to its battery business with the purchase of Manhattan Electrical Supply Co. in 1926.

UCC annexed two domestic industrial gases interests in 1928 and strengthened its industrial electric furnace business with the acquisition of the Acheson Graphite Corporation in 1928.

The Company Union Carbide India Limited (UCIL) was a diversified manufacturing company incorporated in 1934.

The introduction of catalytic cracking in 1937 and increased supplies of natural gas brought further expansion of the industry.

The company continued to acquire related chemical producers, including the Bakelite Corporation in 1939.

And in 1941, Carbide made permanent-press fabrics possible with its development of glyoxal.

UCC scientists demonstrated that gaseous diffusion could be used to separate quantities of uranium-235 and contracted with the federal government in 1943 to operate the Oak Ridge Gaseous Diffusion Plant.

A succession of well-meaning chief executives kept UCC in "turnaround mode." Under the direction of CFO Morse G. Dial, Carbide absorbed its major operating subsidiaries and formally relinquished its holding company status in 1949.

Restructuring of the Union Carbide Company began during the 1950’s.

The public was becoming increasingly aware of its activities, so the company decided to change its name to the Union Carbide Corporation in 1957.

To accommodate this, a separate division strictly for consumer products was established in 1959.

Then in the early 1960’s the Glad line of plastic wraps, bags, and straws was introduced and became a leading brand in its field.

But Carbide finally capitalized on this discovery in 1964, when Glad branded plastic wraps, bags, and straws were introduced.

By the late 1970’s, Union Carbide had established itself as having one of the better safety records in the chemical industry throughout all its subsidaries, including India.

In 1971, UCC capitulated to federal orders that it immediately use more expensive low-sulphur coal to reduce noxious sulfur dioxide emissions by 40 percent.

The company was given a fall 1974 deadline to install $8 million in advanced emissions scrubbers.

In 1975, the Indian government granted Union Carbide a license to manufacture pesticides, and a plant was built on the sparsely populated outskirts of the regional capital of Bhopal.

The Agricultural Products Division, developed in 1976, began producing Sevin insecticide, Temik pesticide, and similar materials.

William S. Sneath continued these trends when he became chairman and CEO in 1977.

Steadily rising expenses in Europe resulted in a $32 million loss in 1978, which forced Carbide to divest virtually all of its European petrochemicals and plastics operations.

That same year, UCC was forced by its creditors to retire $292 million in long-term debt, which forced it to borrow another $300 million in 1979.

Chairman Sneath embarked on another round of cost-cutting in 1980, pruning the executive staff by 1,000 and divesting a total of 39 businesses.

Sales hit $8.3 billion (one-third below the 1981 peak), profits were up to more than $300 million, and the company had a new CEO, Robert D. Kennedy.

The massive disaster at Union Carbide’s pesticide plant in Bhopal, India, in December 1984 struck the corporation just as it was beginning to make lasting strides toward profitability.

In addition to the human toll, the tragedy set off a chain reaction at Carbide: by 1985, the company’s market value dropped by two-thirds to less than $3 billion, and GAP Corp.’s Samuel Heyman accumulated enough stock to mount a hostile takeover bid of $5.3 billion.

The business, including Energizer alkaline batteries, was sold to Ralston Purina in 1986, following a hostile takeover attempt.

Income rose 78 percent in 1987 to $232 million, but high debt service made it hard for the company to develop and introduce new products.

By 1988, Union Carbide’s corporate identity had begun to take clearer shape.

Net income decreased 46 percent from 1990.

As a fitting mark to Union Carbide's 75th anniversary in 1992, the company had the year's best-performing stock on the Dow Jones list of 30 industrials.

Sales showed a slight gain in the 1993 first quarter, closing at $1.19 billion.

The program had a cost reduction goal of $400 million a year by the end of 1994.

A second expansion into the Chinese market came later in 1996 with Carbide's subsidiary Amerchol Corp. announcing that it would be constructing a plant in Guangdong Province, China.

Carbide teamed with Exxon Chemical Company in 1997 to create the joint venture company Univation Technologies.

On August 4, 1999, it was announced that Union Carbide would become a subsidiary of The Dow Chemical Company.

In 2000, net sales were $6.52 billion with a profit of $162 million.

Finally, all discussion was over and Dow acquired Carbide for $11.6 billion on February 6, 2001.

In 2003, however, Carbide moved into the black again with net sales of $5.16 billion and a profit of $313 million.

For the first quarter of 2005, Carbide reported net sales of $1.68 billion and a profit of $280 million.

In 2013, the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in New York concluded that UCC was not the entity responsible for any environmental pollution resulting from operation of the UCIL plant prior to the disaster.