The Dow Chemical Co. and Zhejiang Omex Environmental Engineering Co., Ltd. (OEE) announced that Dow has agreed to acquire OEE. This acquisition establishes Dow as a leader in advanced component offerings for water purification. OEE will bring new critical components that, together with Dow’s existing technology offerings, will create the framework for a new Dow Water Solutions business.
The acquisition of OEE will allow Dow to expand into three critical, enabling component technologies for water treatment: Ultrafiltration (UF), Membrane Bio-Reactor (MBR) membranes and Electrodeionization (EDI). With these technologies, Dow can now provide an enhanced component offering for its global customer base.
“Dow is a leader in reverse osmosis membranes and ion exchange resins, and this further solidifies our position as a water solutions leader through additional, specialized components,” said Ian Barbour, general manager, Dow Water Solutions. “Adding the technologies from OEE, along with the current expansion in FILMTEC membrane production capabilities in Minneapolis, Minnesota, further demonstrates Dow’s larger commitment to the water purification industry, and our ability to continue to lead as a global component supplier and solutions provider.”
These new technologies also will accelerate Dow’s growth in the water business. Ultrafiltration, in particular, is one of the fastest growing of these component technologies. Dow can now offer its customers easier access to these additional components and provide a higher level of integration with Dow’s existing membrane technologies.
“We clearly provide the leading reverse osmosis (RO) membrane with FILMTEC elements,” Barbour added. “The strategy for Dow is to expand our enabling components offering to be an even more valued supplier to our original equipment manufacturer (OEM) customer base. OEE allows Dow to move towards its strategic goals as a comprehensive component supplier for water purification.”
The acquisition of OEE, which is situated in Huzhou, Zhejiang, China, enables Dow to further penetrate one of the fastest growing regions for water treatment components. OEE has provided design engineering and installation for high-purity water facilities throughout China since 1995. It is one of China’s premier water treatment and design companies, specializing in pure and ultra pure water applications. With a new custom-built 20,000 sq meter facility, OEE employs over 500 people, primarily in China, involved in manufacturing, design, engineering and fabrication. The mission of OEE has been to continuously improve people’s living standard with its experienced water solutions expertise.
Dow provides highly productive and effective separations solutions based on FILMTEC reverse osmosis (RO) and nanofiltration (NF) elements, DOWEX ion exchange resins and ADSORBSIA™ GTO titanium-based arsenic removal media.
Dow is the only global manufacturer of both membrane and ion exchange products. Both of these technologies separate dissolved minerals and organics from solutions, producing water that meets the most stringent water purity standards today and achieving the highest quality water with lower operating costs.
Water purification products from Dow are used for the full spectrum of water treatment applications, including industrial water treatment, municipal water treatment, production of ultra pure water, commercial and home drinking water purification, sweetener processing and other selected specialty applications. They are also used in the purification of foods, pharmaceuticals and other products.
Source: Dow Chemical Co.
