Pictured in the photo at the top of the page: (L-R) Regional water chief Dave Muldoon; Ciba's global W&PT head Mark Garrett; mayor and vice mayor Bobby Ralph and Leroy Bennett; Ciba's regional water head Bill Leber; Curtis Milteer, Suffolk City Council; Patrick Hochstrasser and Isaac Baker, Suffolk Industrial Development Authority.
SUFFOLK, VA, March 17, 2005 -- Ciba Specialty Chemicals officials joined with city and community leaders here to officially open the only water and paper chemical headquarters operation based in the state of Virginia. The new company headquarters for Ciba's Water & Paper Treatment (W&PT) business, based in Suffolk, is a strategic location for the company's water and paper operations in the NAFTA region.
The opening of the new building marks Ciba Specialty Chemicals' ongoing commitment to expanding the company's growing W&PT business. The skilled workforce and relationships it has developed with customers and the community continues to be a significant contributor to Ciba's growth within the industry. With opening of the new headquarters, the company is now well along in implementing its strategic plans for growth. Bill Leber, Ciba Water & Paper Treatment Business Segment chief for the NAFTA Region, said, "Having our sales and marketing staff working closely with our production and technical service colleagues strengthens our position to provide support to our customers across the United States, Canada and Mexico."
"We are working towards our goal of meeting our customer's needs with a broad offering of functional and process chemicals," Leber stated. "Our complementary product range make Ciba Specialty Chemicals a top-tier supplier and, with our global coverage, network and culture, we are ideally positioned to supply developing, emerging and high growth markets."
The move to the new building allows Ciba to further develop synergies, with its sales and marketing employees now working in close proximity with scientists in the technical service laboratories to meet customer needs. The new headquarters building will now serve as a showcase for customer visits.
In his remarks, Leber thanked the community and the City of Suffolk for its generous support for the new headquarters building. Ciba considered sites in other states early in the project, but Suffolk officials worked cooperatively with the company in providing support to keep the facility in Virginia. "The support that Ciba received from the City of Suffolk was instrumental in our final decision to locate the facility here," said Leber.
After a formal ribbon cutting led by Bill Leber, David Muldoon, head of Ciba's Regional Water Treatment business and Patrick Hochstrasser, production manager for the Suffolk site, along with key city leaders, employees and guests, participated in tours of the new headquarters building. Guests saw first-hand how the company's innovative chemistry provides solutions for the water and paper industries.
Ciba Specialty Chemicals operates a water and paper treatments production facility along with a sales and marketing office in Suffolk, Va. The facility at 2301 Wilroy Road employs 400 hourly and professional staff. The 26,400-square-foot building houses office and meeting rooms for Ciba's operations in the company's North America region. It also includes over 6,000 square feet of technical service laboratories and an employee lunchroom.
A leading global company, Ciba Specialty Chemicals (www.cibasc.com) products and services add performance, protection, color and strength to textiles, plastics, paper, automobiles, buildings, home and personal care products. It's active in more than 120 countries around the world and is committed to be a leader in its chosen markets. In 2004, the company generated sales of $5.7 billion and invested $232 million in R&D.
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