Hoping to cushion its parent companies' rides through a bumpy economy, Americas Styrenics combines the styrene operations of Dow Chemical and Chevron Phillips Chemical (CP Chem). The 50-50 joint venture makes styrene monomer and a number of polystyrene resins. Its products go into the obvious (packaging and foam peanuts) and the unlikely (envelope windows and lighting applications). Americas Styrenics operates eight manufacturing facilities throughout the US and in Brazil and Colombia. It is the #1 producer of polystyrene and the #2 maker of styrene in the Western Hemisphere.

Zep Inc. produces, markets, and services a range of cleaning and maintenance solutions for commercial, industrial, institutional, and consumer end-markets. Its product portfolio includes anti-bacterial and industrial hand care products, cleaners, degreasers, deodorizers, disinfectants, floor finishes, sanitizers, and pest and weed control products. The company markets its products under the brand names of Zep, Zep Commercial, Zep Professional, Enforcer, and Selig. It offers a line of products for institutional cleaning, sanitation and maintenance cleaning directly through industrial and institutional sales representatives under the Zep and Selig brands. Under the Zep Commercial and Enforcer brands, the company markets professional grade cleaning and maintenance products, as well as plumbing and weed and pest control products through convenient retail outlets. Under the Zep Professional brand, it offers a line of professional-strength cleaning and maintenance products to customers through industrial distributors. Zep Inc. sells its products to the transportation, food processing and service, manufacturing, government, hospitality, contractors, and small business owners primarily in the United States, Canada, and western Europe. The company is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia.

The good thing about being Mapei is that you've got a direct hand in preventing the rug from being pulled out from under you. The Italian specialty chemicals company manufactures adhesives and sealants for floor installations. Mapei operates globally and achieves more than half of its sales from outside of its home country. The Squinzi family founded the company in 1937 and still controls Mapei. The company's name is an acronym of a former name -- Materiali Ausilieri Per l'Edilizia e l'Industria (or Auxiliary Materials for Building and Industry).

PMC Global makes Bob the Builder's bubble bath "and" the pipe that drains the suds away. The diversified international company produces memory chips, connectors, film, packaging, plastics, plastic-molding equipment, and specialty chemicals, among other things. It operates through about a dozen specialized divisions such as ASC Group (electronics), Cosrich (children's bath, cosmetics, and toiletry products), PMC Specialties Group (specialty chemicals), and VCF Films (PVC and acrylic films). In 2008 it bought Chemtura's oleochemicals unit. CEO Philip Kamins (who owns the company) founded PMC (Plastic Management Corporation) in 1971 as an outgrowth of a small plastics scrap yard he founded in 1964.

Austin Chemical does just fine, even without the bionic capabilities of Steve or the accessibility to great barbecue of the capital of Texas. The company supplies excipients, intermediates, APIs (active pharmaceutical ingredients), and specialty chemicals to the pharmaceutical, nutritional, and agrochemical industries. It also provides development, packaging, marketing, and logistical services. The company supplies more than 8,000 products from some 115 manufacturers. In addition to its Chicago-area headquarters, Austin Chemical maintains operations in China and India.

Promoted by Grasim Industries Ltd, India and Local Thai entrepreneurs, Thai Rayon was incorporated in 1974. Thai Rayon is the pioneer as well as sole manufacturer of viscose staple fibre (VSF) in Thailand and is listed on the Thailand Stock Exchange since 1984. Thai Rayon commenced production in 1976 with a production capacity of 9,125 MT per annum and currently has capacity to produce 140,000 MT per annum of VSF. Thai Rayon has the capability to produce third generation cellulosic fibre - modal fibre, besides regular VSF.With its five flexible VSF production lines, Thai Rayon caters to the demands of both textile and non-woven applications, producing VSF varieties in the range of 0.8 to 5.0 denier, staple lengths in the range of 32 mm to 101 mm, luster of bright bleach, semi-dull or full-dull, and also chlorine –free and anti –bacterial applications. Almost two third of Thai Rayon's VSF production is directly exported to more than 20 countries worldwide. The VSF marketed under the brand 'Birla Cellulose' meets the stringent quality requirement of customers spanning six continents from Middle East to Europe and United States to Asia Pacific.

Jones-Blair makes coatings with a Southern accent. That is, y'all, it makes industrial and construction coatings and epoxies from its US locations in Louisiana, Texas, and Tennessee and its one Canadian service center in Alberta.The company's high-performance industrial coatings division makes acrylic-urethane, alkyd, and acrylic coatings for decorative and protective applications, including automotive manufacturing, oil-field service, imaging, signs, and woodworking. Jones-Blair's Neogard division produces elastomeric coatings (waterproofing and roof, floor, and wall coating systems) used in construction.

Titan Chemicals reigns supreme among Malaysian petrochemical manufacturers. Founded in 1989, the group produces olefins (ethylene and propylene) and polyolefins (various polyethylene and polypropylene products like LDPE, LLDPE, and HDPE). They're all key ingredients found in such products as carpet fibers, packaging film, automotive parts, and plastic pipes and bottles. Titan's primary industrial complex includes eight manufacturing plants; the company also operates another complex in Indonesia. High-growth markets like China and niche markets such as Vietnam, Bangladesh, and the Philippines sit firmly in Titan's export sights. Titan agreed in 2010 to be acquired by South Korea's Honam Petrochemical.

W. R. Grace & Co. engages in the production and sale of specialty chemicals and specialty materials worldwide. Its Grace Davison segment offers fluid catalytic cracking catalysts to produce transportation fuels, such as gasoline and diesel fuels, and other petroleum-based products; FCC additives; hydroprocessing catalysts used in process reactors; and silica-based and silica-alumina-based engineered materials used in various industrial and consumer applications, and coatings and print media applications, as well as sealants and coatings used in rigid food and beverage packaging. It also offers polyolefin catalysts and catalyst supports for use in the manufacture of polyethylene and polypropylene resins, and other chemical catalysts used in industrial, environmental, and consumer applications, as well as silica-based materials, chromatography columns, instruments, consumables, and accessories for life sciences applications.This segment serves oil refiners, plastics and chemical manufacturers, users of product packaging, consumer product manufacturers, and pharmaceutical companies. The company’s Grace Construction Products segment produces and sells specialty construction chemicals and materials, including concrete admixtures and fibers; additives used in cement processing; building materials used in commercial and residential construction and renovation to protect buildings from water, vapor, and air penetration; and fireproofing materials used to retard the spread of fire in buildings. The company was founded in 1854 and is based in Columbia, Maryland. On April 2, 2001, W. R. Grace & Co. filed a voluntary petition for reorganization under Chapter 11 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware.

In the world of specialty chemicals production, Prince Minerals wouldn't mind being king. The company turns natural minerals into additives and pigments used in animal feed, bricks, cement, ceramics, fertilizer, foundries, glass, steel, water treatment, and other industrial applications. Serving customers throughout the Americas, it operates six processing facilities that manufacture iron oxide, magnetite, olivine, silica, and zircon, among others. Prince Minerals is the North American subsidiary of Prince Mineral Holdings Corp., which is owned by private equity firm Palladium Equity Partners. UK-based sister subsidiary Prince Minerals Limited operates in Europe.

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