E.I. DuPont of Canada Company (DuPont Canada)

E.I. DuPont of Canada, commonly known as DuPont Canada, is a wholly owned subsidiary of E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Company, which is headquartered in the US and known worldwide as the maker of Teflon, nylon, and cellophane, among other products. DuPont Canada is headquartered in Mississauga, Ont, and the largest subsidiary of DuPont in the Americas with some $894 million in sales in 2003.

History

DuPont Canada started as the explosives company Hamilton Powder in 1862, whose products were used to clear the way for the railroad lines that were being built across the fledgling country. Its early success attracted the attention of Lammot du Pont, a partner in his family's company, who purchased shares in the company and joined its board of directors.

Freshly recapitalized, the company continued to expand, and in 1910 it merged its operations with other explosives manufacturers to form Canadian Explosives Limited. The new company was a major provider of explosives to Canadian and allied forces during World War I. After the war it acquired three subsidiaries of E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Company, which were active in emerging industries. To reflect its broader orientation, Canadian Explosives changed its name to Canadian Industries Limited (CIL) in 1927.

As CIL, the new concern produced various types of synthetic materials such as cellophane film. CIL was also the first Canadian producer of nylon, and its nylon plant built in 1942 in Kingston, Ont, was only the second such plant worldwide.

Following the war, the company became the subject of an antitrust suit filed in the US against its two major shareholders, E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Imperial Chemical Industries (ICI), which had jointly supported CIL for some five decades and benefited from the research it conducted. The judgment resulted in the company being broken up with ICI continuing certain operations under the CIL name, while the other operations remained with E.I du Pont de Nemours, which regrouped them under DuPont of Canada Limited, holding a 75 percent stake in the new company with the balance being publicly traded.

The new company had two main product lines: films, including cellophane cellulose films and polyethylene sheeting, and textile fibres, representing the company's line of nylon products. DuPont Canada also acted as a Canadian distribution and marketing hub for products from its parent company in the US.

Over the following decades, the company pursued a plan of systematic expansion and diversification, shedding businesses whose products had run their course and investing in opportunities that would help keep it at the forefront of materials science and technology. In this regard, it was aided by the output of its own Research and Development facilities located in Kingston, Ont. Advancements included the construction of a pilot nylon recycling facility in Maitland, Ont, and the development of engineered-stone flooring systems resulting from the acquisition of Québec-based Granirex Inc in 1998.

At the beginning of the 21st century, Du Pont Canada was engaged in the manufacturing and distribution of a wide variety of chemically engineered products, including Lycra® spandex yarn and Kevlar®, used in bullet-proof vests.

On 29 July 2003, E.I. du Pont de Nemours decided to purchase the shares of DuPont Canada Inc. (so renamed in 1993) that it didn't already own in a transaction valued at $1.5 billion, thus fully integrating the Canadian operations into its global operations.

In 2004, the company, as part of a larger restructuring effort, sold off its textiles and interiors production lines, but maintains a distributor relationship with the new owner.

Operations
In 2003, the last year for which separate results are available, the Canadian division contributed $894 million in sales to DuPont's global results. The division's results rank it in the midfield (between Japan and Brazil) of all of the countries for which DuPont tracks results. Some 3300 Canadian DuPont employees form part of the global 81 000-strong workforce.

The company's production operations are concentrated in the eastern part of Canada with a western outpost in Lethbridge, Alta, which produces agricultural seeds (through DuPont Global's subsidiary Pioneer Hi-Bred International Inc). The majority of its production is focused on surfaces, coatings, finishes, and liquids. Its products have come to replace metals in a lot of applications and are used for anything from ski bindings to gears to various automotive parts. Its LiquiBox business supplies packaging solutions to producers of beverages and dairy products.

Community Work
True to its extensive roots in Canadian industry, DuPont Canada gives back to the community in a variety of ways. To this end, it has set up an Advisory Council and Community Advisory Panels that help the company identify opportunities for involvement or points of concern as it works towards its "2010 Sustainable Growth Goals." These goals, established in 2001 and grouped under Economic Sustainability, Societal Value, and Environmental Footprint, serve as the company's focal points for its charitable and socially responsible efforts.

The active promotion of volunteerism is part of the company's efforts and in 2003, five employees received $1000 each for the agencies with which they volunteered. The DuPont Challenge promotes science and technology excellence through its essay competition and rewards winners with cash prizes or a trip to the Space Center in Houston, Texas.

Author SASHA YUSUFALI

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