W. R. Grace and Company

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

W. R. Grace and Company NYSE: GRA is a conglomerate founded in 1854 by William Russell Grace (1832-1904). Their self-description is "a premier specialty chemicals and materials company." Grace has more than 6,400 employees in nearly 40 countries, and annual sales of more than 2.5 billion. The company's stock (GRA) trades on the New York Stock Exchange.

Subsidiaries and some of their products include:

Grace Davison [1]
- industrial catalysts, such as Raney nickel.
- silica products
Grace Performance Chemicals [2]
- Grace Construction Products [3]
  - concrete admixtures, fibers, and grinding aids
  - concrete pigments
  - air and vapor barriers
  - fireproofing materials
  - bituminous, structural, waterproofing membranes (such as Roofing Underlayments [[4]]) and waterproofing materials
- Darex [5]
  - coatings, closures and sealants for soft drink cans and canned foods
- Residential Building Materials [6]
  - roofing membranes and flashings for windows, doors, decks and roof detail areas

At one time, Grace was involved in the shipping business. It also bought control of Miller Brewing in 1966; and in 1969 sold it to Philip Morris for $130 million.

In 1987, Grace became the first wholly foreign-owned company to do business in The People's Republic of China.

Grace's corporate headquarters are located in Columbia, Maryland. Although W. R. Grace commissioned the Grace Building in New York City, built in 1971, the company no longer has any offices occupying it.

[edit] Environmental Impact

W. R. Grace and Company has been involved in a number of controversial environmental incidents including the Libby, Montana asbestos contamination, the Woburn, Massachusetts water contamination lawsuit (basis of the book and film A Civil Action) and the Acton, Massachusetts Superfund site.

To date, W. R. Grace and Company has faced more than 250,000 asbestos-related lawsuits.