Research Triangle Park, North Carolina – January 2, 2002 – Dow Reichhold Specialty Latex LLC, a joint venture of The Dow Chemical Company (Dow) and Reichhold, Inc. (Reichhold) today announced its new leadership team. The company began operations today as a specialty latex business. The joint venture combines the specialty latex business of Dow Emulsion Polymers with Reichhold's Emulsions business. Jeff Welker has been named president of the joint venture. Welker previously served as senior director of corporate planning for Reichhold, where he was responsible for strategic planning, as well as merger and acquisition activities. Welker joined Reichhold in 1996 as director of marketing for protective products, and in 1999, he became vice president of bonded fibers, specialty paper and nonwovens. In that role, he integrated the specialty paper and nonwovens business into the emulsion polymers division. Welker holds a Bachelor's degree in chemistry and a Master's of business administration from West Virginia University. Malcolm Jones was named vice president of research and development. Previously, Jones served as global research and development director of Dow Emulsion Polymers and was responsible for designing and creating products that aligned with Dow's emulsion polymers business strategy. Jones joined Dow in 1974 as a pesticide residue analyst in Ag Chemicals (now DAS) in King's Lynn, UK. He has a Bachelor of Science, Master of Science and Ph.D. in chemistry from the University of Manchester, U.K. Tom Kraska was named vice president of supply chain for Dow Reichhold Specialty Latex. Kraska previously served as a member of the Business Strategy Team for Dow's Cal/Mag business where he was responsible for supply chain and six sigma. Kraska joined Dow in 1966 as a management science analyst in Information Systems. Over the years, he has held a variety of leadership positions in distribution, planning, economic evaluation, supply chain technology and information systems. Kraska has also had extensive international experience, both in Dow's Pacific area and in Dow's Latin America headquarters in Coral Gables, Fl. In addition to his Cal/Mag business experience, Kraska worked for several years in Dow's Ag Products business as Product Management Team Chair for Phenoxy Herbicides. Kraska received his Bachelor of Science degree in chemical engineering and an MBA in quantitative methods from the University of Michigan. Dave Gartshore is the commercial director for the Americas. Gartshore joined Dow in 1979 as inside sales for the Basic Chemicals business in Montreal, Quebec. In 1984, he was named product market manager (Sarnia, Ontario) for Basic Chemicals, where he worked with Industrial Gases and Brine products; and later became senior marketing manager, responsible for leading the Western Canadian Chlor-Alkali Business. Gartshore became the commercial manager for Emulsion Polymers' Coatings, and in 2000 was named commercial manager for North America Emulsion Polymers responsible for Specialty Latex and Coatings. Dave holds a BBA degree in marketing from Acadia University, Nova Scotia, Canada. Kent Him Heng has been named commercial director for Asia Pacific and is based in Penang, Malaysia. He previously spent two years with Reichhold's Emulsions business. Heng has worked with Safeskin Medical & Scientific Ltd, the largest glove manufacturer in Southern Thailand serving as materials and logistics manager. He also worked with Syarikat Rangkaiyan Setia Bhd, a public transportation group, where he served as general manager. Prior to that position, Heng worked with Konsortium Perkapalan Bhd, a Malaysian logistics company as operations manager. Heng has a Bachelor's degree in agriculture science from the University of Agriculture, Malaysia and a Master's degree in business administration from Asian International Open University in Macau. Thibault Laumonier is the commercial director of Europe. Prior to this position, Laumonier served as marketing manager for Specialty Latex of Dow Europe. Laumonier also held the position of marketing manager for Pressure Sensitive Adhesives Latex of Dow Europe and account manager of Paper Latex in Paris. He joined Dow in 1989 as a field salesperson in Dow's Performance Chemicals division in Paris. Laumonier holds a business degree with a financial option from Ecole Superieure de Commerce de Paris. Robert V. Povlock serves as vice president of finance for Dow Reichhold Specialty Latex. Previously, Povlock was the director of financial analysis for Reichhold Emulsions Polymers Systems, where he was responsible for financial reporting, analysis, budgeting and forecasting, as well as the development of value-based decision tools. Povlock joined Reichhold in 1974 as accounting manager for Eschem, Inc., a sub-holding of Esmark. He has held several positions, including vice president of finance and controller and financial special projects team leader. He assumed the role of director of financial analysis in 1999. Povlock holds a Bachelor of Art's degree in accounting from St. Joseph's College. Rick Emerson has been named vice president of manufacturing for Dow Reichhold Specialty Latex. Previously, Emerson served as latex plant production leader for Dow, where he was responsible for managing the modernization of the latex plant, the implementation of Implement Strategic Blueprint and ongoing operations. Emerson joined Dow in 1992 as superintendent of the ion exchange copolymer plant. He assumed the role of latex plant production leader in July of 1994. Emerson holds a Bachelor's of Science degree in chemical engineering from Michigan Technical University and a Master of Science degree from Purdue University. Barb Bowker is the new business development director. Bowker joined Reichhold in 2000 as North American market manager for Reichhold's Emulsions business. Prior to joining Reichhold, Bowker served as a consultant in market development, alliance and business development for Namaste Consulting in Kalamazoo, Michigan. She also held the position of alliance manager for Penford Products where she was responsible for the development of strategic alliances for Penford to expand business growth via technology, marketing and sales partnerships. Bowker also held marketing positions for Henkel Corporation. She holds B.S. in chemistry from St. Xavier College in Chicago, Illinois, and M.S. in organic chemistry from the University of Illinois in Urbana, Illinois. Annetta Johnson is the director of human resources. Prior to joining Reichhold, Johnson was vice president of human resources and strategic planning for SMART Papers (formerly Champion International) in Hamilton, Ohio. She focused on transitioning an operating facility to a market-driven, customer-focused business through employee involvement. She also set the strategic direction for improving customer service and coached and participated on an Innovation Team to identify new markets and products for growth. Johnson holds a Bachelor of Science degree in business from the University of Tennessee at Knoxville. "We have a strong leadership team, which will position us for growth in the specialty latex market," said Welker. "We have some of the best resources in the business, and we will use the knowledge and experience of our leadership team to provide added value to our customers." Dow Reichhold Specialty Latex LLC is a 50/50 joint venture of The Dow Chemical Company and Reichhold, Inc. a subsidiary of Dainippon Ink and Chemicals. It combines the Specialty Latex business of Dow with the Emulsions business of Reichhold to create the world's largest producer of specialty latex. Dow Reichhold Specialty Latex is headquartered in Research Triangle Park, N.C., and operates two manufacturing sites in Cheswold, Delaware, and Chickamauga, Georgia. Dow Reichhold Specialty Latex currently develops customized technologies and products for customers in North America, Europe and Asia. For Additional Information: Sue Ann Pentecost Reichhold (919) 990-7807 sueann.pentecost@reichhold.com back