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AHWT employees volunteer for Earth Day 2009

Posted: 2009-05-05 12:00:00

Demonstrating our commitment to Responsible Care, employees in Savannah, Ga., and Burlington, Ontario, took time to contribute to their communities with Earth Day activities in April.

In Savannah's Woodville neighborhood, we presented “Ashland -- A Community Member that CAREs." Bill Kochanik, Beth Brown, Josie Cooper, and Johnnie Quiller explained our more efficient water utilization, reduced energy consumption, reduced effluent and expansion of our recycling efforts over the last five years, all as we increased production at the plant.

We participated in a community round table as part of the Environmental Protection Agency CARE (Community Action for a Renewed Environment) project. The program gives grants to local communities to take action to reduce toxic pollution. The first phase is to form a broad based partnership between community organizations, businesses, schools, and state, local, and federal government agencies to identify issues. The second phase is to implement solutions and become self sustaining. The Woodville and Hudson Hill communities joined together and recently received a $300,000 phase 2 grant which will allow them to work on some of the key issues that were identified.

The Woodville community Earth Day was a step to get community and round table members together. Over 100 community residents of all ages attended the event. The Woodville Community has plans to turn some of the open space into raised gardens for residents with the goal of raising organic vegetables for consumption or sale at local markets. They are also working with the city to improve the infrastructure and better utilize the natural features of the area.

Meanwhile, our Burlington, Ontario, plant waited until April 30, due to production demands, then employees grabbed garbage pickers and bags and spent an hour collecting garbage and debris outside the perimeter of the plant. Although it was only a short time to spend cleaning up, it helped to improve the appearance of the area.

The Burlington plant also had a battery drive to collect old alkaline and rechargeable batteries for proper waste disposal, and also started a tradition to plant a tree in the area to mark Earth Day.

"Overall, Earth Day at the Burlington plant was a great success," said Tricia Rennie, Environmental, Health and Safety leader.

For the fourth year in a row, Ashland Distribution’s Environmental Services group participated in Savannah's Earth Day Festival. The 13th annual RecycleRama festival was the largest community Earth Day event in Georgia.

Volunteering a Saturday to help were Glenn Davis, Distribution plant manager, along with his sons Glenn and Sean; Jeff Farmer, Environmental Services sales rep, and his son Will; Tracy Hale, Integrated Resource Management corporate accounts manager; Michael Hall, Integrated Resource Management site manager; Amy Keziah, Environmental Services district manager, and her friend Jay; and George McFarland, Distribution driver.

“This is a really big business community effort, and we’re proud to be a part of it,” said Keziah. “Ashland’s greatest recycling opportunity was with paint, a problematic item for many communities.”

Working with vendor/partners VLS and Giant, our volunteers were able to divert more than 5,400 gallons of paint from landfills – an increase of 1,200 gallons from the previous year.

“Our vendors properly disposed of all that paint free of charge, using an Ashland truck,” noted Keziah. “It’s great to truly make a difference – for us, for our communities and for Ashland!”

In addition to the paint recycling, volunteers also collected 1,200 tires, 250 gallons of used oil, 80 cell phones, 90 car batteries and 250 pounds of consumer batteries.

Encouragement for the future

Posted: 2009-02-24 13:09:00

Ashland Hercules Water Technologies participated in the TAPPI-PIMA Student Summit last month, highlighted by the presentation of the annual Deborah McNutt Scholarships.

The conference is held to engage and develop young people who are interested in a career in the pulp and paper industry. More than 100 members of the college chapters of the Technical Association of the Pulp and Paper Industry and the Paper Industry Management Association attended the three-day event in Panama City, Fla. The students were from multiple countries.

Bruce Hohensee, recruitment representative for Water Technologies, presented four $500 scholarships. The awards were established by Hercules Incorporated in 2006.

"In the midst of these challenging times, it was good to be able to interact with these young engineers. Some will come to work for us as interns or full-time hires and their energy is contagious,” said Hohensee.

Also participating was Erica Suding, account representative for Water Technologies, who served as a panelist in a discussion of “Making the Transition from work to School.”

Various industry professionals presented current and forward-looking viewpoints on the status and future of the industry, career opportunities and leadership. Topics included state of the industry; sustainability and eco-confusion; industry networking tips, getting the right job and more. Students also had opportunities to network with their peers and industry representatives, compete in an engineering competition, and tour the International Paper facility in Cantonment, Fla., and the Naval Air Station Museum in Pensacola, Fla.

Top 100 Employers for 2009 Announced: Ashland #78

Posted: 2009-02-04 11:00:00

Despite the gloomy economic and employment news of the past several months, the job outlook for the Class of '09 is not entirely bleak, according to employment research and hiring survey results to appear in THE BLACK COLLEGIAN Magazine.

Ashland Inc. ranked #78 with 50 hires at 30 different locations throughout the organization.

For those holding college degrees, the impact of the economic downturn and recent layoffs will be partially alleviated by a continuing demand for entry-level candidates to replace retiring baby boomers, as detailed by Dr. Philip Gardner, director of the Collegiate Employment Research Institute at Michigan State University. Although some employers may have curtailed their on-campus recruiting activity or re-adjusted their entry-level hiring projections for the early part of this year, others are still planning to recruit, many through expanded online means.

THE BLACK COLLEGIAN Magazine conducts an annual survey to determine the most active recruiters of college seniors for entry-level jobs. Employers were asked the number of projected hires from on-campus recruiting, the number of campuses they recruit on, and the top majors they are recruiting. This survey results in the list of the Top 100 Employers is published in the magazine's Second Semester Super Issue, and in an extended online feature and spring Virtual Career Fair at www.blackcollegian.com.

Ashland Completes Acquisition of Hercules

Posted: 2008-11-13 17:00:00

COVINGTON, Ky. and WILMINGTON, Del. – Ashland Inc. (NYSE: ASH) today completed its acquisition of Hercules Incorporated, creating a leading specialty chemicals company serving many of the world’s most essential needs and industries. Each share of Hercules common stock outstanding was exchanged for $18.60 in cash and 0.093 of a share of Ashland common stock. A letter of transmittal and instructions for exchanging Hercules shares for shares of Ashland stock and cash consideration will be mailed shortly to the Hercules shareholders of record at the close of business on Nov. 13, 2008.

“This is a landmark day for our combined employees, customers, shareholders and all those with whom we interact,” said James J. O’Brien, Ashland chairman and chief executive officer. “Together, we now begin working to build an exciting new future, confident that our people, technologies, products and services will drive our growth for years to come.”

Transformation overview

Ashland now comprises a core of three specialty chemical businesses that will drive the company both strategically and financially, generating approximately 75 percent of total EBITDA on a pro forma basis. These businesses – paper and water technologies, specialty resins, and specialty additives and functional ingredients – hold strong market positions and promising global growth potential. Ashland’s logistics efficiencies and well-developed marketing capabilities in consumer markets complement its core businesses and enhance its ability to deliver valued products and services.

“This transaction better positions Ashland to deliver more stable and predictable earnings, generate stronger cash flows and gain access to higher growth markets worldwide, most especially those in emerging economies,” said O’Brien.

Ashland anticipates approximately $120 million in annual run-rate savings by eliminating redundancies and capturing operational efficiencies by the end of fiscal year 2010.

“Our integration team, guided by Ted Harris and supported by key representatives of both companies, has already provided a solid foundation for our continued development as one company,” said O’Brien. “Their ongoing management of this activity is focused on successfully integrating the best processes from both companies, achieving our synergy and cost-saving targets and pursuing the new opportunities for growth.”

The expanded international presence of Ashland as a result of the transaction will increase revenue derived outside North America to roughly 35 percent of the total $10.7 billion of pro forma revenue for the 12 months ended Sept. 30, 2008.

New commercial structure

Ashland’s new structure, incorporating the former Hercules businesses effective today, is composed of five commercial units:

* Ashland Hercules Water Technologies, a $2 billion specialty paper and water chemicals business formed from the related operations of Hercules and Ashland;
* Ashland Performance Materials, the specialty resins business serving construction, infrastructure, energy and transportation segments;
* Ashland Aqualon Functional Ingredients, a fast-growing business of specialty additives and functional ingredients derived from renewable resources, and serving personal care, pharmaceuticals, food, construction, transportation and other industries;
* Ashland Consumer Markets, the Valvoline® lubricants, automotive appearance and service business; and
* Ashland Distribution, North America’s leading distributor of chemicals, plastics, composite materials and environmental services.

Transaction Details

The cash portion of the transaction was funded through a combination of cash on hand and debt financing from Bank of America and Scotia Capital. Citigroup Global Markets Inc. acted as financial advisor, and Squire, Sanders & Dempsey LLP acted as legal counsel, to Ashland. Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC acted as financial advisor, and Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz acted as legal counsel, to Hercules.

About Ashland

The corporate headquarters for Ashland will remain in Covington, Ky. The Hercules administrative facility in Wilmington, Del., now becomes the operations center for the Ashland Aqualon Functional Ingredients and the Ashland Hercules Water Technologies commercial units. To capitalize on the opportunities of emerging economies, the company recently repositioned the operations center for its Ashland Performance Materials commercial unit to Barendrecht, the Netherlands, where it can serve growing demands in Eastern Europe and as a central point for operations in the Americas and Asia Pacific. Ashland Consumer Markets (Valvoline) will maintain its operations base in Lexington, Ky., and Ashland Distribution will continue to be based in Dublin, Ohio. A series of technical and research and development centers will also be maintained around the world.

Ashland Inc. (NYSE: ASH) provides specialty chemical products, services and solutions for many of the world’s most essential needs and industries. Serving customers in more than 100 countries, it operates through five commercial units: Ashland Hercules Water Technologies, Ashland Performance Materials, Ashland Aqualon Functional Ingredients, Ashland Consumer Markets (Valvoline) and Ashland Distribution. To learn more about Ashland, visit www.ashland.com.

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Forward-Looking Statements

This news release contains forward-looking statements, within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. The statements include those made with respect to Ashland’s operating performance and Ashland’s acquisition of Hercules Incorporated. These expectations are based upon a number of assumptions, including those mentioned within this news release. Performance estimates are also based upon internal forecasts and analyses of current and future market conditions and trends, management plans and strategies, weather, operating efficiencies and economic conditions, such as prices, supply and demand, cost of raw materials, and legal proceedings and claims (including environmental and asbestos matters). These risks and uncertainties may cause actual operating results to differ materially from those stated, projected or implied. Such risks and uncertainties with respect to Ashland’s acquisition of Hercules include the possibility that the benefits anticipated from the Hercules transaction will not be fully realized; the substantial indebtedness Ashland has incurred to finance the acquisition may impair Ashland’s financial condition; the restrictive covenants under the debt instruments may hinder the successful operation of Ashland’s business; future cash flow may be insufficient to repay the debt; and other risks that are described in filings made by Ashland with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Although Ashland believes its expectations are based on reasonable assumptions, it cannot assure the expectations reflected herein will be achieved.

This forward-looking information may prove to be inaccurate and actual results may differ significantly from those anticipated if one or more of the underlying assumptions or expectations proves to be inaccurate or is unrealized or if other unexpected conditions or events occur. Other factors, uncertainties and risks affecting Ashland are contained in Ashland's periodic filings made with the SEC, including its Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended Sept. 30, 2007, and Forms 10-Q for the quarters ended Dec. 31, 2007, and March 31 and June 30, 2008, which are available on Ashland’s Investor Relations website at www.ashland.com/investors or the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov. Ashland undertakes no obligation to subsequently update or revise the forward-looking statements made in this news release to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this news release.

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