In the Heart of Europe - The Dow Chemical Company

“Safety regulations
were already very
strict back then.”
Active with Dow for over
four decades – Helmut
Jödicke started at the
Rheinmünster site in 1968
as a Latex Plant Operator.
In 2008, he celebrated
his 40th Dow anniversary
as Senior Technologist
in Research and Development
at the Rhine Center.
He experienced the dynamic
change in plant
technology: “In 1968,
we still used punched
tape for programming,
the plant was manually
operated for the most
part, and chemicals were
also charged by hand.”
But, as Jödicke recalls,
“Safety regulations were
already very strict back
then.” He takes stock of
the situation with satisfaction:
“I had the privilege
of experiencing
the growth of Dow
in Rheinmünster in the
company of friendly
colleagues.”
a leading manufacturer of specialty
chemicals. In 2001, Dow purchases
a state-of-the-art production plant for
polypropylene in Wesseling near
Cologne; as well as the company Haltermann
Products. The latter produces
specialty chemicals at its Hamburg and
Speyer (Rhineland-Palatinate) sites. In
2007, Dow acquires epoxy resin system
specialist UPPC located in Baltringen
(Baden-Württemberg).
The purchase of Wolff Walsrode AG,
headquartered in Bomlitz (Lower Saxony),
is of completely different dimensions.
Approximately 1,500 employees
join the Dow family through the acquisition
of this specialist for derivatives
The green site: In 2007, Dow acquires cellulosics chemistry in Bomlitz
and simultaneously becomes owner of the Walsrode Industrial Park.
ANGUS, a leading
producer of specialty
chemicals, joins
the Dow group in 1999.
from the renewable raw material cellulose.
Wolff Walsrode, founded in 1815,
is merged with the Dow business unit
Water Soluble Polymers to form the new
business unit Dow Wolff Cellulosics.
With this acquisition, Bomlitz is Dow’s
largest research location in Germany.
In January 2009, Dow Wolff Cellulosics
launches the world’s largest production
plant for methylcellulose at the Bitterfeld
location, thus setting the stage
for growth. In 2008, DAS purchases
the Südwestsaat GbR headquartered in
Ra-statt, Baden, a specialist for breeding
new corn hybrids for the European
market. From now on, all European
DAS seed activities including breeding
research are coordinated from Rastatt,
Wesseling near
Cologne – since 2001
a state-of-the-art
Dow production site
for polypropylene.