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Ecolab

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This article is about the consolidated history of the 1986 established Ecolab Inc.; including its foundation in 1923 as Economics Laboratory, and the acquisition of Nalco in 2011. For the history of acquired businesses of Nalco, see Nalco Holding Company.
Ecolab Inc.
FormerlyEconomics Laboratory
Company typePublic
IndustryChemicals, Service, Water Management, Food Safety, Infection Prevention
Founded1923; 101 years ago (1923)
FounderMerritt J. Osborn
Headquarters
Saint Paul, Minnesota
,
U.S.
Key people
Christophe Beck (CEO)
RevenueIncrease US$15.3 billion (2023)
Increase US$1.99 billion (2023)
Increase US$1.37 billion (2023)
Total assetsIncrease US$21.8 billion (2023)
Total equityIncrease US$8.04 billion (2023)
Number of employees
48,000 (2023)
Websiteecolab.com
Footnotes / references
[1]

Ecolab Inc. is an American corporation headquartered in Saint Paul, Minnesota. It develops and offers services, technology and systems that specialize in treatment, purification, cleaning and hygiene of water in a wide variety of applications.[2] Founded as Economics Laboratory in 1923 by Merritt J. Osborn, it was eventually renamed "Ecolab" in 1986.[3][4]

Ecolab product

History

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Early years: 1923–1950s

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Merritt J. "M.J." Osborn founded Economics Laboratory in 1923. The company's original product was Absorbit, a product designed to quickly clean carpets in hotel rooms. This was soon followed by Soilax, a dishwasher soap.

During the 1930s, the company expanded throughout the United States, with sales reaching US$5.4 million by the end of 1940s. It acquired the Magnus Company in the early 1950s, giving the company access to Magnus's industrial specialty businesses – including pulp and paper, metalworking, transportation, and petrochemical processing.[3]

Transition to a public corporation and expansion: 1950s–1986

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In the 1950s, international expansion of Economics Laboratory started with the establishment of its first overseas subsidiary in Sweden in 1956. It became a publicly traded corporation in 1957.[3] In 1979, it acquired Apollo Technologies, which would be shut down in 1983 as a subsidiary. In 1984, EcoLab acquired pest elimination company Lystads, Inc., of Grand Forks, North Dakota.[5]

Ecolab Inc.: 1986–2000

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In 1986, the company changed its name from Economics Laboratory to Ecolab Inc. and was listed on the New York Stock Exchange.

In 1987, the company formed a textile care division.

In 1987, Ecolab purchased the lawncare servicer provider ChemLawn for $376 million. It sold the acquisition in 1992 to ServiceMaster for $103 million as it couldn't turn ChemLawn into a profitable business.[3]

Ecolab and the German fast-moving consumer goods firm Henkel KGaA formed a 50:50 European joint venture called 'Henkel-Ecolab' in 1991 to expand into European and Russian markets.[6]

Ecolab Inc.: 2000–present

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In 2004, Douglas M. Baker, Jr. was named chief executive officer. In 2006, he also was named chairman of Ecolab's board of directors.[7]

In 2005, the company opened a new global research, development, and engineering center in Eagan, Minnesota.[6]

In 2006, Ecolab won the Black Pearl Award for Corporate Excellence in Food Safety and Quality, presented by the International Association of Food Protection (IAFP).[8][circular reference]

In 2007, Ecolab acquired Microtek Medical Holdings, Inc., expanding its infection prevention expertise and offerings to hospitals and other healthcare facilities.[9]

In 2008, Henkel sold all of the 73 million shares, nearly a 29.5% stake it held in Ecolab, ending the two-decade-long partnership.[10][11][12] The same year, Ecolab established Zürich as its Europe, the Middle East and Africa headquarters.[6]

In 2011, Ecolab announced a merger with Nalco Holding Company, Inc., an industrial water technology firm. In December 2011, Nalco, later renamed Nalco Water, became a wholly owned subsidiary of Ecolab after Ecolab completed the $5.4 billion acquisition.[13][14][15][16]

In 2012, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, through his investment vehicles Cascade Investment and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, increased his stake of 10.8% in Ecolab to 25%.[17][18][19]

In 2012, Ecolab entered an agreement to acquire Champion Technologies and its related company Corsicana Technologies, global specialty chemical companies.[20] The $2.2 billion transaction closed in April 2013.[21]

In 2014, Ecolab, working with TruCost, launched the Water Risk Monetizer.[22]

Ecolab's headquarters in Saint Paul, Minnesota[23]

In 2015, for $40.5 million, Ecolab acquired the U.S. operations of Swisher Hygiene, which provides hygiene and sanitizing solutions for the foodservice, hospitality, retail and healthcare markets.[24][25]

In 2016, Ecolab announced plans to acquire Laboratoires Anios, a leading European manufacturer and marketer of hygiene and disinfection products for the healthcare, food service, and food and beverage markets. Based in Lille, France, Anios served customers in 85 countries and had 2015 sales of approximately $245 million. The $800 million transaction closed on February 1, 2017.[26][27]

In 2016, Ecolab made a minority investment in Aquatech International, LLC of an undisclosed amount.[28][29]

In 2016, the company opened a Latin America regional headquarters in Miramar, Florida.[30] In the same year, Ecolab acquired the assets of UltraClenz, a developer of electronic hand hygiene compliance monitoring systems and dispensers.[31]

In 2018, Bill Gates purchased $230 million in additional shares of Ecolab via Cascade Investments.[32][33]

In 2019, Ecolab acquired an Australian company Gallay Medical & Scientific who is a leader in providing medical devices, equipment, chemistry and service to the medical, dental, scientific and pharmaceutical industries. [34]

In 2021, Ecolab acquired Purolite, a provider of ion-exchange resins for biopharmaceutical purification for approximately $3.7 billion.[35]

In 2022, Bill Gates purchased additional stock through Cascade, though his overall stake dropped to 11%.[32][33]

In 2023, Ecolab partnered with and invested in Miso Robotics, a company specializing in automated in-restaurant robotic arms and other equipment for food preparation and staff augmentation.[36]

Products and services

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Ecolab helps organizations treat their water in industries including food, healthcare, hospitality, and manufacturing. [37][38]

References

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  1. ^ "Ecolab Inc. 2023 Annual Report (Form 10-K)". SEC.gov. U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. 23 February 2024.
  2. ^ "Ecolab". Fortune. Archived from the original on 2018-11-24. Retrieved 2018-11-24.
  3. ^ a b c d "Fundinguniverse.com | Ecolab". Retrieved 25 July 2012.
  4. ^ "stake in Ecolab could get bigger". Reuters. 7 May 2012. Retrieved 25 July 2012.
  5. ^ "Ecolab Expands". PCT Magazine. Retrieved 2018-07-10.
  6. ^ a b c "Ecolab History". Zippia. 27 August 2020. Retrieved 20 July 2022.
  7. ^ "Douglas M. Baker, Jr". Junior Achievement North. Archived from the original on 20 October 2021. Retrieved 27 March 2023.
  8. ^ "Ecolab Company History Timeline". 27 August 2020.
  9. ^ "Ecolab completes acquisition of Microtek Medica l" (Press release). investor.ecolab.com. 7 February 2007. Retrieved 2022-08-10.
  10. ^ "Henkel Directors to Resign from Ecolab Board". Reuters. July 2008. Archived from the original on July 31, 2013. Retrieved 25 July 2012.
  11. ^ "Henkel Completes Ecolab Divestment". Retrieved 25 July 2012.[permanent dead link‍]
  12. ^ "Henkel announces successful public offering of its shares in Ecolab" (Press release). November 2008. Archived from the original on 24 May 2013. Retrieved 25 July 2012.
  13. ^ "Ecolab Agrees To Buy Nalco For $5.4 Billion To Add Water-Treatment Service". bloomberg.com. July 2011. Retrieved 21 July 2012.
  14. ^ "Ecolab Closes on Merger With Nalco". mobotecusa.com. 9 December 2003. Archived from the original on 29 January 2013. Retrieved 1 December 2011.
  15. ^ "Ecolab merger to build on Nalco's legacy". mobotecusa.com. December 2011. Retrieved 21 July 2012.
  16. ^ "SEC filing: NALCO Holding Company". mobotecusa.com. December 2011. Archived from the original on 4 December 2014. Retrieved 21 July 2012.
  17. ^ "Bill Gates Gets OK to Up Stake in Ecolab to 25%". 8 May 2012. Retrieved 25 July 2012.
  18. ^ "Bill Gates' stake in Ecolab could get bigger". 7 May 2012. Retrieved 25 July 2012.
  19. ^ "Reuters company profile - Ecolab". Retrieved 25 July 2012.
  20. ^ "Ecolab Agrees to Acquire Champion Technologies for $2.2 Billion".
  21. ^ "Ecolab Closes on Purchase of Champion". Yahoo! Finance. Archived from the original on 2013-07-19. Retrieved 2017-01-15.
  22. ^ "Water Risk Monetizer". about.smartwaternavigator.com.
  23. ^ Black, Sam. "Ecolab closes on $47M deal to move HQ to Travelers tower". www.bizjournals.com. Retrieved May 7, 2018.
  24. ^ "Ecolab Acquires Swisher Hygiene". Mergr. Archived from the original on 2015-12-08. Retrieved 2022-08-10.
  25. ^ "Swsh_10q.HTM".
  26. ^ foodnavigator.com (28 June 2016). "Ecolab tables bid for Laboratoires Anios". foodnavigator.com. Retrieved 2020-07-09.
  27. ^ "Ecolab Plans to Acquire France-Based Laboratoires Anios". Yahoo!Finance. 30 June 2016. Retrieved 2022-08-09.
  28. ^ "Ecolab Makes Equity Investment in Aquatech International". Archived from the original on 2016-08-25. Retrieved 2016-07-27.
  29. ^ "Ecolab makes Minority Stake in Aquatech International". TechSci Research. Archived from the original on 2016-07-28. Retrieved 2022-08-04.
  30. ^ "Ecolab opens Latin America Regional Headquarters in Miramar Florida". BioFlorida Advancing The Business of Life Science. Retrieved 2022-08-02.
  31. ^ "Ecolab Inc.: Ecolab Acquires Assets of Ultraclenz". The Wall Street Transcript. 2016-10-03. Retrieved 2020-07-09.
  32. ^ a b Lin, Ed. "Bill Gates Is Ecolab's Largest Shareholder. He Just Scooped Up More Shares". www.barrons.com. Retrieved 2022-09-28.
  33. ^ a b "Bill Gates Is Ecolab's Largest Shareholder. He Just Scooped Up More Shares. – The Hamden Journal". Retrieved 2022-09-28.
  34. ^ "Gallay Medical & Scientific has been acquired by Ecolab Inc".
  35. ^ Nelson, Millie (1 November 2021). "Ecolab to acquire Purolite in $3.7bn deal - BioProcess Insider". BioProcess International.
  36. ^ "Miso Robotics announces Ecolab partnership and investment". 17 May 2023.
  37. ^ "www.cafc.uscourts.gov/opinions/08-1228.pdf" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on June 16, 2009.
  38. ^ "EcoLab(ECL)". Forbes. Retrieved 20 July 2022.
[edit]
  • Official website
  • Business data for Ecolab:
  • Archival records of Ecolab at the Minnesota Historical Society
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