Kelly-Moore Paint Company calls them High Society, Feisty, and Center Field. But never mind silly names for paint colors, Kelly-Moore aims to show that the paint business isn't entirely run by multinational big brushes like Sherwin-Williams and DuPont. The regional firm produces approximately 20 million gallons of paint per year from three manufacturing facilities and has more than 160 stores in eight states west of the Mississippi River. Kelly-Moore sells about 400 types of paints, finishes, and sundries to professional contractors and painters and to the do-it-yourself market. The employee-owned company was formed by William Moore and William Kelly in 1946.

The company, now known as TOR Minerals International, was founded by Benelite Corporation of America in 1973. Benelite developed and patented the “Benelite Process” for producing synthetic rutile, the raw material used in HITOX TiO2 pigment. Benelite licensed and helped build several plants throughout the world, which utilize this process, including a plant in Malaysia, which remains the primary supplier of synthetic rutile to TOR Minerals International.The company also offers ALUPREM (premium alumina) products, which are used for color critical applications as fillers and flame retardants; SYNTHETIC RUTILE used as a feed stock for white TiO2 and as a component in welding rod flux; BARTEX, an inert extender pigment, used in coatings; HALTEX, which is used in technical applications, including SMC/BMC thermoset molding compounds, thermoplastic profiles, electrical wire and cable insulation, mining conveyor belts, and specialty coatings as well as adhesives and sealants; and TIOPREM, a series of heat stable colored TiO2 hybrid pigments used in various applications, including engineered plastics, laminates, window profiles, plastic lumber, roofing granules, and ceramic coatings. Its mineral products are used as pigments, pigment extenders, and flame retardants for the manufacture of paints, industrial coatings, plastics, catalysts, and solid surface applications.

They say you reap what you sow, and that's just fine with fertilizer company Hanfeng Evergreen. Through its operations in China, Hanfeng makes nitrogen and phosphate-based fertilizers for soybean, rice, corn, and wheat crops, as well as for lawns, trees, flowers, and other urban greenery. The company specializes in slow-release fertilizers, which unlike more traditional fertilizers, are coated or chemically altered for slow and controlled release into soil. It produces about 725,000 metric tons (or about 800,000 US tons) of fertilizer annually, targeting its products primarily to the growing agricultural market in China.

Migao Corporation Company Profile Demand for fertilizers is growing in China, and Migao makes products that facilitate that growth. Migao produces two specialty potash-based fertilizer products -- potassium nitrate and potassium sulfate -- that are typically used to grow tobacco, cotton, fruit, and vegetable crops. Sold primarily to agricultural companies in China, the two fertilizers account for about 85% of Migao's revenue. The other 15% of revenue comes from sales of hydrochloric acid, ammonium chloride, and nitrogen-bearing fertilizer, all of which are by-products of potash fertilizer production. Established in 2003, Migao operates four production facilities which are capable of producing 320,000 tons (353,000 tons) of potash annually.

Global Nuclear Fuel-Japan Co. (GNF-J) is part of a joint venture formed by General Electric, Toshiba, and Hitachi as early as 1967 to introduce to Japan a boiling water reactor developed by GE. The company now designs, develops, and manufactures nuclear fuel in Japan (since 1971) and offers core management services and quality control for the fuel. General Electric has the controlling 51% stake in the venture, and Toshiba and Hitachi split the remaining share. Formerly Japan Nuclear Fuel Co. (JNF), GNF-J integrated into the GE Energy division in 2000.

Allegro Biodiesel Corporation does not have significant operations. It intends to merge or acquire with an operating entity. Previously, the company owned a biodiesel production facility that used renewable agricultural-based feedstock/soybean oil to produce biodiesel fuel in Louisiana. Allegro Biodiesel Corporation was formerly known as Diametrics Medical, Inc. and changed its name to Allegro Biodiesel Corporation in January 2005. The company was founded in 1990 and is based in Los Angeles, California.

Henkel focuses on home and hearth. The international company makes branded products for laundry and home care (Persil, Purex, Pril), cosmetics and toiletries (Schwarzkopf, Fa, Dial), and adhesives (Loctite, Ceresit, Teroson). Most of Henkel's operations are centered in Europe, although its ownership of The Dial Corporation gives it access to the US market. Henkel serves customers in more than 125 countries from offices extending nearly everywhere but Greenland and Australia. Relatives of the founding Henkel family control the company, which began in 1876. Amid an economic downturn in the US and abroad, Henkel in 2009 initiated a long-term strategy with financial targets that extend into 2012.

Metabolix, Inc., a bioscience company, develops and commercializes alternatives to petrochemical-based plastics, chemicals, and energy. It applies metabolic engineering and molecular biology tools to produce biobased plastic in microbial systems and directly in non-food plant crops. The company offers its proprietary microbial fermentation system to produce a family of polymers known as polyhydroxyalkanoates under the Mirel name. Mirel is used for injection molding, cast sheet, cast and blown film applications, and thermoforming. It sells these bioplastic alternatives to petroleum-based plastics for use in a range of commercial applications, including products used in agriculture and horticulture, compost and organic waste diversion bags, marine and aquatic applications, consumer products, business equipment and durable goods, and general packaging materials. In addition, the company is also developing a proprietary platform technology for co-producing plastics, chemicals, and energy from crops, such as switchgrass, oilseeds, and sugarcane. It has a strategic alliance with ADM Polymer Corporation. The company was founded in 1992 and is headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Japan's oldest paint company is also its largest. Founded in 1881, Nippon Paint produces paints and coatings for makers of automobiles (one of the company's major markets), industrial products, and ships. It also makes paints for residential and commercial buildings and for the do-it-yourself market. Nippon Paint's fine chemicals unit produces adhesives, as well as surface treatment chemicals. The company's manufacturing operations are located principally in Asia, but also in North America and Europe. In the US, Nippon Paint makes automotive coatings and powder coatings through Nippon Paint (USA). The influx of auto makers into China bodes well for the company's already strong automotive division.

Lenzing AG manufactures cellulose fibers made from beech wood. The company produces about 525,000 tons of textile fibers and nonwoven fibers every year. Its fibers are sold to the textile industry for use in apparel, upholstery, fire hoses, and US military uniforms. Nonwoven fibers are used to make cleaning pads, and wound care and feminine products. Lenzing's plastics division makes thermoplastics, PTFE fibers (Teflon), polymer fibers such as acrylic, and carbon fibers. The company traces its roots back to 1892 as a paper mill in Lenzing, Austria. Lenzing is 85% owned by B&C Holding.

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