Dow West Virginia Operations

The chemical industry has brought stability and economic growth to West Virginia. Residents understand the good quality of life and a sense of pride for residents who live and work in the Mountain State can be attributed to this partnership. Union Carbide Corporation, a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Dow Chemical Company, has become a part of the community and has an abiding respect for the hard work, honesty and genuine friendship for which West Virginians are known.

Union Carbide became a subsidiary of Dow through an acquisition on February 6, 2001.

Dow is a leader in science and technology, providing innovative chemical, plastic and agricultural products and services to many essential consumer markets. With annual sales of $40 billion, Dow serves customers in 175 countries and a wide range of markets that are vital to human progress: food, transportation, health and medicine, personal and home care, and building and construction, among others. Committed to the principles of sustainable development, Dow and its 43,000 employees seek to balance economic, environmental and social responsibilities. References to “Dow” or the “Company” mean The Dow Chemical Company and its consolidated subsidiaries unless otherwise expressly noted.

West Virginia Operations includes the South Charleston Site, the South Charleston Technology Park and guest operations at a site in Institute that is owned and operated by Bayer CropScience.

Population: 1.8 million 
Capitol: Charleston 
Border States: Kentucky, Virginia, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Maryland 
Major Industries: Coal, Steel/Aluminum, Chemicals, Timber, Retail

Labor Force and Productivity
West Virginia's labor force is as respected as its chemical industry. Superior product quality and a strong work ethic are the major factors that attracted companies more than eighty years ago, and continues to be an important consideration for new businesses. According to the U.S. Department of Commerce-Bureau of Economic Analysis, each employee of West Virginia's chemical industry produces $7,900 more annually than the national average. This is due to high productivity, a combination of technology and the local work ethic.

Education
There are several public institutions of higher learning in close proximity to West Virginia Operations. West Virginia State University borders the manufacturing site in Institute. Marshall University Graduate College borders the Technology Park in South Charleston. The school was built on land donated by Union Carbide. WVU Institute of Technology is located in Montgomery, WV and provides workforce training and engineering programs. Dow has established a partnership with University of Charleston, a private institution, to establish a business speaker's bureau. The colleges and universities have joined with the industry to look at workforce needs and develop training programs.

Business and Economic Development
Investing in West Virginia is an intelligent decision. Central West Virginia offers tremendous benefits to companies that locate here: availability of land and infrastructure, an excellent labor force, collaboration with academia to educate engineers and other workers, as well as an outstanding quality of life. Companies seeking a new site to expand, relocate or build new facilities will discover that West Virginia offers a promising future, based on a history of success.

Chemical Industry
The chemical industry supports a total of 22,500 jobs in Kanawha and Putnam counties alone – equaling 59.8% of all manufacturing jobs in the Kanawha Valley. The average employee of the chemical industry earned $60,500 in 1999. This is over twice the area's average annual wage. Most important to West Virginians is that the chemical industry supports the 22,500 highest paying jobs.

With regard to production, every dollar of output generated by the chemical industry, an additional $.72 in output is produced in Kanawha and Putnam counties through indirect and induced effects. This amounts to additional output in the region valued at $2.1 billion. The Kanawha Valley chemical industry's total annual impact on regional output, therefore, is measured at $5 billion. The direct impact is $2.9 billion but the indirect impact is $5 billion.

West Virginia Operations is based in South Charleston, West Virginia. Operations consist of three separate facilities including the South Charleston Manufacturing Site, the Technology Park and guest operations at a site in Institute that is owned and operated by Bayer CropScience.

WVO possesses some of the industry's most advanced process and catalyst technologies, and operates some of the most cost-efficient, large-scale production facilities in the world.

WVO primarily produces chemicals and polymers that undergo one or more further conversions by customers before reaching consumers. Some of these materials are high-volume commodities, while others are specialty products meeting the needs of smaller market niches. The end-uses served include paints and coatings, packaging, wire and cable, household products, personal care, pharmaceuticals, automotive, textiles, agriculture and oil and gas.

A new chapter in the history of West Virginia Operations began when Union Carbide Corporation became a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Dow Chemical Company in 2001. The company’s past has laid the foundation for WVO’s success.

The world's first petrochemical plant was constructed by Union Carbide Corporation in 1920 at Clendenin, West Virginia. By 1925 the manufacture of chemicals had grown to the point that another plant was leased (later purchased), and the Clendenin operation and personnel were moved to the new location at South Charleston, West Virginia.

The research, development and production experience at Clendenin paved the way for the growth of the South Charleston Site that occupies Blaine Island and extends across the Kanawha River into Charleston. Many of the plant's current product lines were developed and first produced at the South Charleston Site. They were later moved to other plants when increased production capacity became necessary. Major corporate products were produced at the plant and over time, other major technological advances developed here including olefin gas separation techniques and vinyls technology. Other major technological advances developed here including olefin gas separation techniques and vinyls technology.

In an effort to enhance business development the Technical Center became an open campus in 2003 and is now known as the South Charleston Technology Park. The South Charleston Technical Center’s first research laboratory was officially dedicated in 1949. Prior to that time, research and development for petrochemicals and plastics were performed at the South Charleston Site. In 1959, with the addition of two large development laboratories and an engineering building, the facility became a full-scale Technical Center. Then, in 1977, a large data processing building was constructed and placed in operation.

The Institute Site was originally built in 1943 as a government facility for production of synthetic rubber for the war effort. In 1947 Union Carbide purchased the plant from the government to produce commodity-type products. Over the years, the make-up of the plant has changed from production of commodity chemicals to specialty chemicals.

In December 1986, the plant was sold to a French chemical manufacturer, Rhone-Poulenc. The plant was later purchased by Aventis CropScience, under agreements that the plant would share certain facilities. In 1990, the Polyols Unit of the plant was sold to ARCO Chemical. Today, the plant is owned by Bayer Corporation. Bayer owns the plant site proper, the general facilities and the agricultural producing units at Institute. Thus, Union Carbide is now a tenant at the site.

West Virginia is more than just a good place to work-it is a great place to live. People live here not just for the jobs, but also for the quality of life. With cultural events, community activities, high quality education, reasonable housing costs and low-crime rate, we have found a productive and pleasant home in West Virginia.

It all begins in West Virginia. The community actively supports the continued development of a prosperous and diversified business base. From the local to the state level, governmental leaders have been instrumental in facilitating business tax incentive programs that appeal to new business. We invite you to investigate for yourselves – to see the opportunities that exist for you in our home in the Valley.

The following list comprises the current WVO tenants:

• Univation Technologies
• Marshall University
• CDI Engineering Solutions
• Bayer MaterialScience
• Electronic Data Systems (EDS)
• Chemical Alliance Zone (CAZ)
• Mid-Atlantic Research Innovation Center (MATRIC)
• Cinergy Solutions of South Charleston, LLC
• Sparkle Klean