Ethyl's Gautreaux receives 1978 CMRA award Market research discoveries are as important as technical discoveries, says the winner of the Chemical Marketing Research Association's 1978 Memorial Award, Dr. M. F. (Bim) Gautreaux, senior vice president of Ethyl Corp. Gautreaux is as well known in the chemical industry for his business acumen as for his leadership in specialized technology. For nearly 10 years, Gautreaux has guided Ethyl's diversification into manufacture of a host of specialty chemicals. Ethyl's sales of these products have expanded manyfold during this decade, more than offsetting declines in domestic sales in antiknock compounds for gasoline. Because of a heart attack, Gautreaux was not able to accept the CMRA award in person last week at the association's annual review and forecast meeting. Floyd D. Gottwald Jr., Ethyl's board chairman and chief executive officer, accepted the award in his place. The commercial products now made by Ethyl that result from Gautreaux's efforts are sold for a diversity of markets. They include intermediates and ingredients for such products as detergents, plasticizers, pesticides, pharmaceuticals, catalysts, and flame retardants. Typical of Gautreaux's efforts in market research and development leading to new commercial products are those that led to detergent materials. When low biodegradability of the dirt-removing ingredient in old detergents, sulfonated alkylbenzene, was recognized as a problem, he led the development of long-chain alcohols and olefins with special emphasis on a narrow range of numbers of carbon atoms in the straight chain. These products are made in Ethyl units that are among the largest in the world. Later, when efforts began to minimize the phosphate contents of detergents, because these materials aid growth of algae in water, he directed Ethyl's research and development department toward a special kind of synthetic zeolite that provides the function of preventing redeposit of dirt on clothes for which various phosphate derivatives are used. Even more recently, he moved Ethyl into making various amine derivatives usable as softeners in liquid detergent formulations. Many of these products made for one industry have easy and strong connections to other products for other industries. The long-chain alcohols and olefins involve aluminum alkyls in their manufacture. But other uses for aluminum alkyls brought Ethyl into the catalyst field. Certain of these materials are the catalysts for making polyolefins by Ziegler technology. Work with organometallics led Gautreaux along other paths. His work has led to manufacture of various intermediates involving organophosphates used as insecticides. Organohalides work led to flame retardants such as vinyl bromides used in certain acrylic resin products. 10
C&ENMay 15, 1978
CHECKOFF MERGERS • Colorcon—Agrees in principle for takeover by Berwind Corp., private diversified Philadelphia company, for total purchase price of about $15 million. Agreement is subject to approval by boards of directors of both firms and approval of Colorcon shareholders. Colorcon produces color systems and lake pigments with 1977 sales of $7.7 million and net earnings of $850,000. • Crompton & Knowles—Agrees in principle to acquire for unspecified terms Lowell, N.C., dye products plant of Harshaw Chemical subsidiary of Gulf Oil. Agreement is subject to final approval by both companies. Transaction would reduce Crompton & Knowles' dependence on outside contracts for some dye products.
Gautreaux was born in Nashville, where he picked up the nickname "Bim" because, as he explains, "when you're christened Marcelian Francis, you've just got to be called something else." After finishing high school, he moved to Baton Rouge because there everyone can pronounce Gautreaux properly, he says. He obtained a bachelor's and master's degree in chemical engineering at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge in 1950 and 1951. After that, he joined Ethyl in its process design section in Baton Rouge. Between 1955 and 1958, he returned to LSU to teach and obtain his doctorate in chemical engineering. He did research and published with coworkers in such areas as activity and diffusion coefficients of solutions. This research work was cited as "outstanding" by the American Society of Engineering Education. In 1958 he rejoined Ethyl. Gautreaux held various positions of increasing responsibility, becoming a vice president in 1969, senior vice president in 1974, and a member of the board of directors in 1972. When Gautreaux became an Ethyl vice president in 1969, the company sales of specialty chemicals (other than antiknock and other petroleum-related chemicals) were about $10 million. Since then, sales of these products have grown more than 30% annually and now top $70 million. One position eluded Gautreaux, however. Although he says he plays "at golf," Gautreaux has had a high standing as an amateur golfer for many years, dating back to his high school days (he scores in the low seventies). When he came to LSU, he wanted to play on the university's golf team. But the team then included three players (of four) who went on to become very successful professional golfers. There was no place on the team for him in the early 1950's. Golfs loss was chemical market research's gain. D
• Dart Industries—Sells styrenic plastics operations to Mobil Chemical part of Mobil Oil for undisclosed terms. These operations, with 1977 sales of about $43 million, produce crystal and impact polystyrene, acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene, and oriented polystyrene sheet. Plants are in Joliet, 111., Holyoke, Mass., and Santa Ana, Calif. • W. R. Grace—Company's industrial chemicals group acquires about 200 acres of land in Deer Park, Tex. Although not giving immediate plans, Grace says acquired land is intended to meet future growth needs of chemical operations. • Great Lakes Chemical—Subsidiary E/M Lubricants purchases for unspecified cash Texas International Lubricants Co., Fort Worth, Tex. Texas International specializes in inorganic thickened petroleum oil and synthetic lubricants. • Mallinckrodt—Acquires Richardson & Holland Corp. of Seattle for unspecified terms. Richardson & Holland manufactures wide variety of specialty food ingredients at plants in Seattle and Gardena, Calif. • Uniroyal—Agrees in principle to sell former footwear and sponge manufacturing complex in Naugatuck, Conn., to Equities Holding Corp., private industrial development group in Stanford, Conn., for undisclosed price. Sale is subject to financing and definitive agreement. Uniroyal closed footwear operations in December but continued to make sponge rubber products. Equities Holding intends to continue sponge rubber operations.
