Chemtura

Founding and early years Chemtura Corporation was the successor to Crompton & Knowles Corporation, which was incorporated in Massachusetts in 1900 and engaged in the manufacture and sale of specialty chemicals beginning in 1954. Crompton & Knowles traces its roots to Crompton Loom Works incorporated in the 1840s. Meanwhile, in 1843 Charles Goodyear formed the Goodyear Metallic Rubber Shoe Company, Connecticut. A year later he patented the vulcanization of rubber. Goodyear's company then became one of nine companies that formed the founding of the United States Rubber Company in 1892 by Charles R. Flint also in Naugatuck, Connecticut. The rubber company manufactured a large array of products through two world wars, the Cold War, and became the Uniroyal company (Uniroyal Incorporated) in 1961. In 1986, Uniroyal Chemical Company was formed as a subsidiary of Avery Inc. Then, in 1989, Uniroyal Chemical Company Investors Holding bought Uniroyal Chemical Company from Avery and became Uniroyal Chemical Corporation. In 1996, Uniroyal Chemical Corporation went public and merged with Crompton & Knowles. In 1999, Crompton & Knowles merged with Witco Corporation to form Crompton Corporation. In 2005, Crompton acquired Great Lakes Chemical Company, Inc., of West Lafayette, Indiana, to form Chemtura Corporation. Additionally, Great Lakes Chemical Corporation still existed as a subsidiary company of Chemtura. By January 2014 the company had manufactured and marketed a new brominated polymer flame retardant, replacing the traditional hexabromocyclododecane (HBCD) flame retardant. all cash. The boards of both companies unanimously approved the deal that September, with Chemtura's enterprise value estimated at US$2.7 billion. After US antitrust authorities approved the deal in December 2016, Chemtura shareholders approved the acquisition in February 2017. On April 21, 2017, Chemtura was officially acquired by Lanxess for $2.1 billion in cash. It was the largest acquisition in Lanxess' history, with Lanxess absorbing around 2,500 Chemtura employees at 20 sites in 11 countries. ==Products and distribution channels==

Chemtura operated in various industries including automotive, construction, electronics, lubricants, packaging, plastics for durable and non-durable goods and transportation ==Locations and facilities==

The company had plants in 11 countries, in locations such as Connecticut, New Jersey, Arkansas, Germany, Italy, China, Taiwan, Mexico, Brazil and the United Kingdom. On April 21, 2017, the company's locations were acquired by Lanxess. ==Legal==

Firemaster 550 is one of Chemtura's brominated flame retardants. It is marketed as a flammability-decreasing additive for polyurethane foam used in upholstered furniture. As polyurethane foam ages and breaks down into fine dust, additives like Firemaster 550 can leach out and be absorbed, inhaled, or ingested. In a 2012 investigative series, the Chicago Tribune reported that a team of researchers detected harmful effects from Firemaster 550 at levels that were significantly lower than those used in the studies conducted on behalf of Chemtura. In response to the studies linking flame retardants to accumulation in humans and resulting potential harm, California Governor Jerry Brown proposed a regulation phasing out flame-retardant chemicals in furniture. In mid-January 2014, Chemtura filed a lawsuit against the state of California alleging the (California) Bureau of Electronics and Appliance Repair, Home Furnishings, and Thermal Insulation failed to comply with its legislative mandate by issuing a revised fire safety standard that does not address the risk of ignition from open flame ignition sources. On September 30, 2014, California Governor Jerry Brown signed a bill requiring upholstered furniture labeling indicate whether the product contains toxic flame-retardant chemicals. This labelling requirement has triggered demand for furniture free of flame retardants. ==See also==