Ecolab Inc.
FormerlyEconomics Laboratory
TypePublic company
IndustryChemicals, Service, Water Management, Food Safety, Infection Prevention
Founded1923 (1923)
FounderMerritt J. Osborn
Headquarters,
U.S.
Key people
Christophe Beck (CEO)
RevenueIncrease US$14.187 billion (2022)
Decrease US$1.562 billion (2022)
Decrease US$1.091 billion (2022)
Total assetsIncrease US$21.464 billion (2022)
Total equityIncrease US$7.258 billion (2022)
Number of employees
47,000 (December 31, 2021)
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. It helps organizations, both in private as well as public markets, treat their water for drinking use and for use in food, healthcare, hospitality-related safety and industry.[2] Founded as Economics Laboratory in 1923 by Merritt J. Osborn, it was eventually renamed "Ecolab" in 1986.[3][4]

Ecolab product

History

Early years: 1923–1950s

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

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

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 continued to acquire companies in the 1990s, including Kay Chemical (1993), Australia-based Gibson Chemical Industries Ltd (1997), and GCS Service Inc (1998).

Ecolab Inc.: 2000–present

In the mid-2000s, strategic acquisitions continued, and Ecolab diversified its portfolio of customer offerings by venturing into the food safety management business as well as a healthcare business unit.

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]

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 Zurich as its Europe, the Middle East and Africa headquarters.[6]

In July 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 May 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 August 2012, Ecolab opened its Taicang, China, manufacturing plant. The facility, one of the company's largest, helped expand Ecolab's presence in Greater China and was the company's first plant to recycle 100% of its wastewater.

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

In November 2014, Ecolab, working with TruCost, launched the Water Risk Monetizer.[22] It provides an online, no-cost financial modeling tool to assess and monetize the risk of water scarcity.

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

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

In August 2016, the company opened a Latin America regional headquarters in Miramar, Florida.[30]

In October 2016, Ecolab acquired the assets of UltraClenz, a developer of electronic hand hygiene compliance monitoring systems and dispensers.[31]

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

In Oct 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 October 2020, Christophe Beck was named the next CEO of Ecolab, effective January 1, 2021.[35]

In October 2021, Ecolab acquired Purolite, a provider of ion-exchange resins for biopharmaceutical purification for approximately $3.7 billion.[36]

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

In May 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.[37]

Operations

Ecolab employs approximately 47,000 people and operates in more than 170 countries. It is organized in the following geographical divisions:

  • North America (based in Saint Paul, Minnesota)
  • Europe (based in Zurich, Switzerland)
  • Middle East and Africa, including South Africa (based in Dubai, UAE)
  • Asia Pacific (based in Singapore)
  • Greater China (based in Shanghai)
  • Latin America (based in Miramar, Florida)

Products and services

Ecolab helps organizations treat their water in industries including food, healthcare, hospitality, and manufacturing. [38][39]

See also

References

  1. "Ecolab Inc. 2022 Annual Report (Form 10-K)". SEC.gov. U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Retrieved 15 October 2023.
  2. "Ecolab". Fortune. Retrieved 2018-11-24.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "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. 1 2 3 "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.
  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. 1 2 Lin, Ed. "Bill Gates Is Ecolab's Largest Shareholder. He Just Scooped Up More Shares". www.barrons.com. Retrieved 2022-09-28.
  33. 1 2 "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. "Christophe Beck succeeds Doug Baker as Ecolab CEO". Cleanroom Technology. Retrieved 26 July 2022.
  36. Nelson, Millie (1 November 2021). "Ecolab to acquire Purolite in $3.7bn deal - BioProcess Insider". BioProcess International.
  37. https://misorobotics.com/newsroom/miso-robotics-announces-ecolab-partnership-and-investment/
  38. "www.cafc.uscourts.gov/opinions/08-1228.pdf" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on June 16, 2009.
  39. "EcoLab(ECL)". Forbes. Retrieved 20 July 2022.
  • Official website
  • Business data for Ecolab:
  • Archival records of Ecolab at the Minnesota Historical Society
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