Dow coatings firm to close NJ plant

By Patrick Raleigh ERJ On-line news editor

Cary, North Carolina- UCAR Emulsion Systems (UES), part of Dow Chemical Co., is to cease manufacturing operations at Union Carbide's Somerset, New Jersey, site. The closure is linked to a Union Carbide decision to shut down the entire Somerset site, UES said 7 May.

Production at Somerset is scheduled to cease during the second quarter and it is anticipated that customers will experience no disruption in service, according to a UES statement. The facility manufactures latex for use in paints, coatings, adhesives and sealants and employs 28, all of whom are being offer jobs elsewhere within Dow.

UES recently launched a $100-million plan to construct a new latex facility at St. Charles Operations, Hahnville, Louisiana, and upgrade existing units in Alsip, Illinois and Sarnia, Ontario. The new capacity is to replace existing manufacturing sites in Tucker, Georgia, and Garland, Texas, which will be shut down in 2006.

UES supplies acrylic, vinyl acrylic, styrene-acrylic, styrene-butadiene and branched vinyl ester latices for architectural coatings, adhesives, construction products, industrial coatings, textile, and paper markets. The firm has 14 production facilities worldwide, including six operating in North America.