For the third time since 2005, Chemtura is shuffling executives and responsibilities in its Petroleum Additives segment. The appointments are said to sharpen the focus on three key lubricant markets: automotive, industrial and refrigeration.
The Middlebury, Conn.-headquartered chemical company, which had 2007 revenues of $3.7 billion, this week said that Sean O’Connor has been named vice president, Petroleum Additives, filling a vacancy left by the promotion of Robert Wedinger. Wedinger had led Petroleum Additives only since last April, but was recently tapped to became chief business officer under Chemtura’s chairman.
O’Connor’s prior position, as head of the automotive lubricants area for Petroleum Additives, has been filled by Gerard Mulqueen, who also continues as head of business development. Mulqueen came to the company in 2005, when the former Crompton Corp. merged with Great Lakes Chemicals, which also set off a reorganization.
A subsequent round of changes was prompted last March by a companywide realignment into four operating segments, as well as by the need to absorb the specialty lubricants businesses of Kaufman Holdings, acquired for $160 million in January 2007. Kaufman included New Jersey-based Hatco, a leading supplier of polyol esters for aviation jet turbines and refrigeration compressors, and Anderol, which makes synthetic industrial lubricants.
The company this week also named John Dennerlein to head its industrial lubricants and additives segment, which includes Anderol’s products plus Chemtura’s greases, fire-resistant hydraulic fluids, sulfonates, corrosion inhibitors, PAO and other products. Dennerlein was global business director for Petroleum Additives, and last year had moved to become marketing director for Chemtura’s urethanes business. Anderol’s John Pannucci, who was appointed last year to head Chemtura’s industrial lubricants segment, left the company last month.
Also, Avron Magram has been named to head the company’s refrigeration lubricants business, which is earmarked for high growth in coming years and was cited as a key motivation for the Kaufman Holdings acquisition. Magram was a senior manager of Hatco Corp.