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May 24, 2004
On May 24, 2004 Wilbur-Ellis Company purchased Transchem Australia (WA) Pty Ltd, a chemical distribution business headquartered in Perth, Australia.
“The Transchem operations are very complimentary to our existing chemical distribution businesses in Australia and New Zealand, which were started in 1998, and to the entire Connell Bros. network on the Pacific Rim,” said Wilbur-Ellis Company President and Chief Executive Officer Herbert B. Tully in announcing the acquisition. “Transchem serves its customers in Western Australia, South Australia, and Tasmania with a broad range of specialty chemicals for a variety of industrial uses.
In the joint announcement, David Raw, Managing Director of Transchem, confirmed the importance of aligning his organization with Wilbur-Ellis Company. “Having Transchem and Wilbur-Ellis Company working together provides us with the critical mass that we need to grow our business. This association will provide us access to additional products, suppliers and customers and enable us to focus on providing services to our customers in the Australian markets. We are very pleased to be a member of the Wilbur-Ellis family of companies.”
Transchem will continue to be managed by its founder, David Raw. David will report to Gary Wolff, Managing Director of Barnett Chemicals and Director of Wilbur-Ellis Australia. Transchem will be an operating unit of the Connell Bros. division of Wilbur-Ellis Company. Connell Bros. is headquartered in San Francisco, California.
Commenting on the acquisition, Ted Eliot, President of Connell Bros., noted that, “Transchem is an excellent fit for Wilbur-Ellis Australia and provides us a direct presence in the areas Transchem service. Transchem adds to our strong and growing position in specialty chemicals distribution in Australia and New Zealand and significantly enhances our ability to expand our business”.
Founded in 1921 and with total sales exceeding $1.3 billion, Wilbur-Ellis Company specializes in the marketing, distribution and formulation of crop protection products, fertilizers and animal feedstuffs. Through its Connell Bros. and Animal Feed divisions, Wilbur-Ellis exports industrial chemicals, minerals and fibers and certain animal feedstuffs throughout the Pacific Rim.
For more information, please visit www.wilburellis.com