Dow to change focus, expand MDI capacity

By Staff -- Purchasing, 3/1/2007

The dow chemical you know today may look very different a year from now. CEO Andrew Liveris said recently the company will seek out acquisitions and sell some businesses this year.

According to a recent Bloomberg story, Dow CEO Andrew Liveris said the company is accelerating its shift to focus more on specialty materials. Dow is "steering away from the inevitable downslope of a commodity chemical company," Liveris told Bloomberg." It's very important that we...prove that we are not just a commodity cyclical company."

As part of its strategy to boost non-cyclical earnings, Liveris announced the creation of two new business units that will focus on consumer-specific end markets: coatings and footwear. Dow also said it plans to expand production at its Freeport, Texas, MDI facility by 50% over the next 36 months. In September 2006, Dow also announced plans to expand MDI production at its Estarreja, Portugal, site. These two projects will significantly increase Dow's global MDI capacity and, in effect, support the future growth plans of Dow's performance businesses, which include Dow Polyurethanes.