The Dow Chemical Company is an American company that operates in many countries and is based in Midland, Michigan, United States. In 2021, it was one of the three largest chemical producers in the world. It is owned by Dow Inc., a company that sells shares to the public and is registered under Delaware law.

Dow has operations in about 160 countries and employs approximately 36,000 people worldwide. It is known as the "chemical companies' chemical company" because it sells products to other industries rather than directly to consumers. Dow is a member of the American Chemistry Council.

In 2015, Dow and another chemical company, DuPont, agreed to reorganize their businesses. This involved merging the two companies to form DowDuPont in 2017. The reorganization was completed in April 2019, when the materials science division of DowDuPont became a separate company named the Dow Chemical Company.

History

Dow was founded in 1897 by chemist Herbert Henry Dow, who invented a new method of extracting bromine that was trapped underground in brine at Midland, Michigan. The company originally sold only bleach and potassium bromide, achieving a bleach output of 72 tons a day in 1902. Early in the company's history, a group of British manufacturers tried to drive Dow out of the bleach business by cutting prices. Dow survived by also cutting its prices and, although losing about $90,000 in income, began to diversify its product line.

In 1905, German bromide producers began selling bromides at low prices in the U.S. to stop Dow from expanding its sales of bromides in Europe. Instead of competing directly with the German producers, Dow bought the cheap German-made bromides and sent them back to Europe. This strategy helped Dow beat its German competitors. Even in its early years, Dow focused on quickly expanding its product line. Within twenty years, Dow became a major producer of agricultural chemicals, elemental chlorine, phenol and other dyestuffs, and magnesium metal. In 1907, Dow hired Charles J. Strosacker, another Case alumni.

During World War I, Dow supplied many war materials that the United States had previously imported from Germany. Dow produced magnesium for incendiary flares, monochlorobenzene and phenol for explosives, and bromine for medicines and tear gas. By 1918, 90 percent of Dow's production was used for the war effort. At this time, Dow created the diamond logo that is still used by the company. After the war, Dow continued research in magnesium and developed refined automobile pistons that improved speed and fuel efficiency. The Dowmetal pistons were used in racing vehicles, including the 1921 winner of the Indianapolis 500.

H. H. Dow died on October 15, 1930, from cirrhosis of the liver while receiving treatment at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota. He had received over 90 patents and was awarded the Perkin Medal the month before his death.

Willard Dow was born in 1897, the year his father founded Dow Chemical. He was the oldest son and his father required him to work in every department at the Midland plant to learn about the company. In 1922, Willard became a company director and general manager of the Dow plant in 1926. When his father died, Willard was 33 years old, but he proved he could successfully operate the company. Strosacker was added to Dow's board of directors. Dow invested heavily in research and development during the Great Depression.

In the 1930s, Dow began producing plastic resins, which would become one of the corporation's major businesses. Its first plastic products were ethylcellulose, made in 1935, and polystyrene, made in 1937.

From 1940 to 1941, Dow built its first plant in Freeport, Texas, to produce magnesium extracted from seawater instead of underground brine. The Freeport plant is Dow's largest site and the largest integrated chemical manufacturing site in the country. The site grew quickly, with power, chlorine, caustic soda, and ethylene also soon in production. When Japan attacked Pearl Harbor in December, the plant became the primary source of magnesium in the United States. After the attack, the U.S. government asked Dow to increase its magnesium production. Dow doubled its capacity in Freeport, built a second plant in Velasco, Texas, and added two new plants on the shores of Lake Michigan and Lake Huron in Michigan. In 1942, a critical year in gaining air supremacy over Europe, Dow-operated plants produced 84 percent of the nation's magnesium output. Magnesium was needed to make lightweight parts for aircraft. Growth of this business made Dow a strategic company during World War II.

When World War II began, access to natural rubber was cut off. Polybutadiene was the synthetic rubber selected for use by the federal government. The product is made from butadiene and styrene. Dow was the only styrene producer in the United States. In 1942, Dow agreed to help the government produce synthetic rubber during the war. Dow also operated several plants at the government's request to supply synthetic rubber to the military. Dow began its foreign expansion with the formation of Dow Chemical of Canada in Sarnia, Ontario, to produce styrene for use in synthetic rubber.

Dow produced several plastics used by the military in World War II, such as Ethocel, foamed polystyrene (marketed as styrofoam), and Saran, later sold to consumers as Saran Wrap.

In 1943, Corning Glass Works (now Corning Inc.) and Dow formed Dow Corning, established to explore silicone products for military use. Their first product was Dow Corning 4 Compound, an ignition-sealing compound that allowed airplanes to fly at high altitudes. After the war, Dow Corning began producing products for civilian use and became the largest producer of silicone products in the world.

The Ethyl-Dow Chemical Co. plant at Kure's Beach, NC, the only plant on the East Coast producing bromine from seawater, was attacked by a German U-boat in 1942.

Carl Gerstacker was discharged from the Army in 1946 as a Major and returned to Dow in Midland. He was a production engineer before the war, but his military service gave him experience in solving problems and managing the finances and operations of facilities producing war materials. He shifted to finance and accounting and quickly moved up in the company. He was added to Dow's board of directors in 1948.

Dow President and CEO Willard Dow died in an airplane crash on March 31, 1949. L

Products

Dow is a major manufacturer of plastics, including polystyrene, polyurethane, polyethylene, polypropylene, and synthetic rubber. It also produces ethylene oxide, various acrylates, surfactants, and cellulose resins. Dow makes agricultural chemicals, such as the pesticide Lorsban, and consumer products like Styrofoam. Some consumer products, including Saran wrap, Ziploc bags, and Scrubbing Bubbles, were sold to S. C. Johnson & Son in 1997.

Performance plastics account for 25% of Dow's sales. These products are used in the automotive and construction industries. Examples include polyolefins like polyethylene and polypropylene, as well as polystyrene used to make Styrofoam insulation. Dow also makes epoxy resin intermediates, such as bisphenol A and epichlorohydrin. Saran resins and films are made from polyvinylidene chloride (PVDC).

The Performance Chemicals segment (17% of sales) creates chemicals and materials for water purification, pharmaceuticals, paper coatings, paints, and advanced electronics. Key products include nitromethane, a chemical used in the pharmaceutical industry and made by Angus Chemical Company, a company fully owned by Dow. Other important materials are Dowex ion-exchange resins, acrylic and polystyrene latex, and Carbowax polyethylene glycols. These specialty chemicals are used to make agrochemicals and pharmaceuticals.

Dow Water and Process Solutions (DW&PS) is a business unit that makes Filmtec reverse osmosis membranes used to clean water for human use in the Middle East. This technology was used during the 2000 Summer Olympics and 2008 Summer Olympics. The DW&PS unit remained with DowDuPont after the April 2019 spin-off.

Until June 2019, Dow AgroSciences produced insecticides (such as Lorsban), herbicides, fungicides, and sold seeds for genetically modified plants. Seeds were sold under brands like Mycogen (grain corn, silage corn, sunflowers, alfalfa, and sorghum), Atlas (soybean), PhytoGen (cotton), and Hyland Seeds in Canada (corn, soybean, alfalfa, navy beans, and wheat). The AgroSciences unit became part of Corteva Inc in June 2019.

Basic plastics (26% of sales) are found in items like diaper liners, beverage bottles, and oil tanks. These products are made from three main polyolefins: polystyrene (such as Styron resins), polyethylene, and polypropylene.

Basic chemicals (12% of sales) are used by Dow as raw materials and sold worldwide. They are used in dry cleaning, paints and coatings, snow and ice control, and the food industry. Major products include ethylene glycol, caustic soda, chlorine, and vinyl chloride monomer (VCM, used to make PVC). Ethylene oxide and propylene oxide, along with their derivatives ethylene glycol and propylene glycol, are key materials for making plastics like polyurethane and PET.

The Hydrocarbons and Energy operating segment (13% of sales) manages energy use at Dow. It also procures fuels and oil-based raw materials. This group provides major raw materials for Dow, including ethylene, propylene, 1,3-butadiene, benzene, and styrene.

In March 2020, during the Coronavirus outbreak, Dow increased hand sanitizer production in Europe and gave the product free to hospitals.

Finances

In the fiscal year 2023, Dow Chemicals earned US$0.6 billion and had a total income of US$44.9 billion. Each share of Dow Chemicals was worth more than $67, and the total value of all its shares was over US$121.1 billion in September 2018.

Environmental record

In 2003, Dow agreed to pay $2 million, the largest penalty ever in a pesticide case, to the state of New York for making illegal safety claims about its pesticides. The New York Attorney General's Office said that Dow AgroSciences had broken a 1994 agreement with the state to stop advertising safety claims about its pesticide products. Dow said it did not admit any wrongdoing and agreed to the settlement to avoid a costly court battle.

From 2019 to 2023, Dow's chemical plants had multiple unauthorized pollutant releases in Louisiana, the United States, and the Netherlands. Independent journalists found that rivers in these areas were "already heavily polluted." Some of these releases caused explosions at the plants. After a chemical release caused by a rail crash involving Dow rail cars, the rail operator was held solely responsible for the cleanup.

According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Dow is responsible for 96 of the United States' Superfund toxic waste sites. One site, a former UCC uranium and vanadium processing facility near Uravan, Colorado, is listed as the sole responsibility of Dow. The rest are shared with other companies. Fifteen sites have been fully cleaned up, and 69 have completed all required plans and equipment for cleanup.

In 2022, Dow was the top water polluter and 12th highest air polluter in the United States, based on population toxic exposure, according to the University of Massachusetts. In 2023, Dow was the 33rd highest carbon greenhouse gas polluter in the United States, producing 0.2% of total greenhouse emissions.

In 2007, the American Chemical Council, a chemical industry trade association, gave Dow an award called "Exceptional Merit" for long-term energy efficiency and conservation efforts. Between 1995 and 2005, Dow reduced energy intensity (BTU per pound produced) by 22 percent. This is equal to saving enough electricity to power eight million US homes for one year. That same year, Dow AgroSciences won a United Nations Montreal Protocol Innovators Award for helping replace methyl bromide, a chemical linked to ozone layer depletion. Additionally, Dow AgroSciences received an EPA "Best of the Best" Stratospheric Ozone Protection Award. The EPA also named Dow a 2008 Energy Star Partner of the Year for excellence in energy management and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

In April 2019, the company was added to the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA).

In December 2022, the company was added to the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index.

Dow Chemical Company reported Total CO2e emissions (Direct + Indirect) for the twelve months ending December 31, 2020, at 33,100 Kt (+700/+2.2% year-over-year) and plans to reduce emissions by 15% by 2030 from a 2019 base year.

Leadership

Before the merger with DuPont was completed on September 1, 2017, the board of directors of The Dow Chemical Co. included the following members:

• Ajay Banga – former president and CEO, MasterCard
• Jacqueline Barton – chemistry professor, California Institute of Technology
• James A. Bell – former president and CFO, Boeing
• Richard K. Davis – chairman of the board and chief executive officer of U.S. Bancorp
• Jeff Fettig – chairman and CEO, Whirlpool Corp.
• Jim Fitterling – chairman and CEO, Dow Inc.
• Andrew N. Liveris – former chairman and CEO, The Dow Chemical Co.
• Mark Loughridge – former chief financial officer, IBM
• Raymond J. Milchovich – lead director of Nucor and former chairman and CEO of Foster Wheeler AG
• Robert S. (Steve) Miller – International Automotive Components (IAC) Group
• Paul Polman – CEO Unilever PLC and Unilever
• Dennis H. Reilley – former chairman, Covidien Ltd.
• James Ringler – vice chairman, Illinois Tool Works Inc.
• Ruth G. Shaw – former president and CEO, Duke Energy Corp.

The ten members of the board of directors of the current version of Dow are:

• Samuel R. Allen – chairman and former CEO, Deere & Company
• Ajay Banga – president & CEO, MasterCard
• Jacqueline Barton – chemistry professor, California Institute of Technology
• James A. Bell – former president and CFO, Boeing
• Wesley G. Bush – chairman, Northrop Grumman
• Richard K. Davis – chairman and CEO of U.S. Bancorp; Make-A-Wish chairman
• Jeff Fettig – former chairman and CEO, Whirlpool Corp.
• Jim Fitterling – Dow Inc. chairman and CEO
• Jacqueline Hinman – former chairman, president and CEO of CH2M Hill
• Jill S. Wyant – Executive Vice President and president of global regions, Ecolab, Inc.
• Daniel W. Yohannes – former U.S. Ambassador to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development

Past chairmen of The Dow Chemical Co. include:

• Herbert Henry Dow – from 1897 to 1930
• Willard H. Dow – from 1930 to 1949
• Leland Doan – from 1949 to 1962
• Ted Doan – from 1962 to 1971
• Ben Branch – from 1971 to 1976
• Zoltan Merszei – from 1977 to 1978
• Paul F. Oreffice – from 1979 to 1987
• Frank Popoff – from 1987 to 1995
• William S. Stavropoulos – from 1995 to 2000
• Mike Parker – from 2000 to 2002
• William S. Stavropoulos – from 2002 to 2004
• Andrew N. Liveris – from 2004 to 2018
• Jim Fitterling – from 2018 to the present

Major sponsorships

In July 2010, Dow became a partner of the Olympic Games. This partnership lasted until 2020.

In September 2004, Dow got the right to name the Saginaw County Event Center in Saginaw, Michigan. The center is now called the Dow Event Center. The Saginaw Spirit, a team in the Ontario Hockey League, plays there. The center also holds events like professional wrestling, live theater, and concerts.

In October 2006, Dow purchased the right to name the stadium used by the Great Lakes Loons, a Single-A minor league baseball team from Midland, Michigan. The stadium is now called Dow Diamond. The Dow Foundation helped bring the Loons to Midland.

In 2010, Dow signed a $100 million (£63 million) 10-year agreement with the International Olympic Committee. This deal included supporting the £7 million Olympic Stadium project.

Since 2014, Dow has sponsored Austin Dillon’s #3 Chevrolet car for Richard Childress Racing in the NASCAR Cup Series.

Major collaborations

On May 20, 2013, Dow created the Dow Lab Safety Academy, a website with many videos and materials that explain how to practice laboratory safety. The purpose of the website is to increase knowledge about safety in university research labs and help future workers in the chemical industry learn to think about safety. The website is mainly for college students, but it is also available to people who already work in the chemical industry. The Dow Lab Safety Academy is also connected to the Safety and Chemical Engineering Education program, which is part of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE), and to The Campbell Institute, an organization that focuses on safety, health, and environmental practices.

The Dow Lab Safety Academy is part of a larger safety program that Dow started in early 2012. This program was created after a report from the U.S. Chemical Safety Board warned about dangers in university chemical labs. To share safety practices with universities, Dow worked with several U.S. research schools to improve safety in chemistry, chemical engineering, and materials departments. Through pilot programs at the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB), the University of Minnesota, and Pennsylvania State University, Dow helped graduate students and professors find ways to improve safety and build a safer lab culture.

In January 2011, The Nature Conservancy and The Dow Chemical Company announced a partnership to help businesses consider the value of nature in their decisions. Scientists, engineers, and economists from both groups are working together at three test locations (North America, Latin America, and TBD) to create and test models that help companies make decisions about natural resources like water, land, air, oceans, and plants and animals. These locations will act as “living laboratories” to test and improve methods that support more sustainable business choices at Dow and possibly influence other companies.

Part-owned companies

Companies that are partially owned by Dow include:

• EQUATE Petrochemical Co. K.S.C.C.
• The Kuwait Olefins Company K.S.C.C.
• The Kuwait Styrene Company K.S.C.C.
• Map Ta Phut Olefins Company Limited
• SCG-DOW Group
• Sadara Chemical Company
• Dow Toray Co., Ltd. (joint venture with Toray Industries)

Notable employees

• George Becker, former vice president of the AFL–CIO and president of the United Steelworkers; worked at Dow's aluminum rolling mill in Madison, Illinois, where he served as a union representative.
• Buddy Burris, professional football player for the Green Bay Packers; worked for Dow after his football career.
• Norman F. Carnahan, chemical engineer; worked at Dow's Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana division from 1965 to 1968.
• Sven Trygve Falck, Norwegian engineer, businessperson, and politician; worked as a Dow engineer in Texas from 1967 to 1970.
• Larry Garner, Louisiana blues musician; worked at Dow's Baton Rouge, Louisiana facility.
• Bettye Washington Greene, first African-American female chemist employed at Dow; began working in 1965 at the E.C. Britton Lab.
• Alexandre Hohagen, vice president for Latin America and US Hispanics at Facebook; former public relations manager for Dow Chemical Brazil.
• Zdravko Ježić, Olympic silver medalist; worked for Dow in Texas to develop urethane and oxide polymers.
• Claude-André Lachance, youngest person elected to the House of Commons of Canada (prior to 2011); director of public affairs for Dow Canada.
• Ray McIntire, inventor of Styrofoam; began working for Dow in 1940 and became a research director.
• Fred McLafferty, chemist who pioneered the technique of gas chromatography-mass spectrometry; began working at Dow's organic chemistry research laboratory in Midland, Michigan, in the 1950s.
• John Moolenaar, member of the Michigan Senate and Michigan House of Representatives; worked as a chemist for Dow.
• George Andrew Olah, recipient of the 1994 Nobel Prize in Chemistry; employed at Dow's Sarnia, Canada, plant in the late 1950s.
• Joseph Overton, political scientist who developed the Overton window concept; worked for Dow as an electrical engineer, quality specialist, and project manager.
• Forrest Parry, inventor of the magnetic stripe card; worked for Dow in the 1950s.
• Roy A. Periana, American organometallic chemist; worked for Dow at Midland, Michigan.
• Abu Ammaar Yasir Qadhi, conservative American Islamic cleric; worked for Dow after earning a chemical engineering degree from the University of Houston.
• Abraham Quintanilla Jr., singer-songwriter; former shipping clerk at Dow's Freeport, Texas facility.
• Sheldon Roberts, semiconductor pioneer who helped found Silicon Valley; former technical researcher at Dow.
• Alexander Shulgin, chemist and pharmacologist credited with introducing the drug MDMA ("ecstasy") to psychologists in the late 1970s; worked for Dow in the 1960s, where he invented Zectran, the first biodegradable insecticide.
• Mary P. Sinclair, environmental activist; former technical researcher at Dow.
• Huimin Zhao, Centennial Endowed Chair of Chemical and Bio-Molecular Engineering at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign; project leader at Dow's Industrial Biotechnology Laboratory.