Format:
1 online resource (650 pages)
Edition:
1st ed.
ISBN:
9781107024809
,
9781107306639
Content:
Philanthropist Ernest Solvay, on discovering a profitable way of making soda ash in 1861, went on to lay the foundations for the Solvay company, which successfully branched out to other chemicals, plastics and pharmaceuticals. In the first scholarly book on the history of the company, the authors analyze the company's 150-year history (1863-2013) from economic, political and social perspectives
Note:
Intro -- Contents -- Tables -- Charts -- Figures and Maps -- Abbreviations -- Introduction -- Part 1 The Pioneering Years (1863-1914) -- 1 First Steps -- 1.1 Inspiration and Implementation -- Initial Human Capital -- The Alkali Industry in the Mid-Nineteenth Century -- Ernest Solvay as Individual Inventor -- An Entrepreneur Surrounded -- 1.2 A Difficult Start for the Couillet Plant -- Workshop Culture and Empirical Method -- The Light at the End of the Column -- 2 A Multinational Pioneer -- 2.1 Experimenting with Three Strategies of Internationalization (1870s) -- Dombasle, the Model Plant -- Ludwig Mond, Industrial Friend -- Delayed Presence in Germany -- 2.2 Emergence of a Transatlantic Group of Solvay Companies (1880s) -- Change of Scale in England -- Founding of Deutsche Solvay Werke A.G. -- A Step into the Steppe: Lubimoff andamp -- Cie -- Crossing the Atlantic: The Solvay Process Company -- Partnering with Aussiger Verein in Austria-Hungary -- Comparison of Contributions from the Associated Companies -- 2.3 A Company of Engineers -- The Quest for Technical Supremacy -- Industrial Research in Its Infancy -- Securing Supply of Ammonia -- Toward a Broader Range of Products -- Slow Growth in Caustic Soda -- The Unfulfilled Challenge of Chlorine Recovery -- Attempts at Phosphates -- 3 Reaching a Dominant Position -- 3.1 War and Peace in Soda Ash International Trade -- Market Organization and Solvays Commercial Strategy -- From Competitive Battles to Industrial Ententes in the National Markets -- France, Primary Market and Group Apprentice -- Triangular Competition in Germany -- Slow Penetration into Austria-Hungary -- Russia Locked Out -- Great Britain, or the Battle on Enemy Territory -- Open Competition in the Anticartel and Protectionist United States -- Taking Command of the International Soda Ash Trade
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11.4 Electrolysis and Politics: The Rise of Authoritarian Regimes in Italy and Spain -- Coming to Terms with Italian Fascism -- Into Hostile Camps: The Outbreak of the Spanish Civil War -- 12 Facing War Again -- 12.1 Social Policy and the New Order -- The Maison Ernest Solvay -- Comparing the Italian and German Social Experiments -- 12.2 The National-Socialist Takeover -- The Germanization of DSWs Higher Management -- The "Aryanization" of Solvay in Central Eastern Europe -- 12.3 Solvay at War: Within Occupied Territories -- The Politics of Continuity under the System of Verwaltung -- Outline of a Hands-Off Agreement -- Labor and Production Trends in German-Dominated Europe -- The Threat of Nationalization in Italy -- 12.4 Solvay at War: In Great Britain and the Americas -- Gérant-in-Exile: René Boël in London and Washington -- Mission to Rio: Solvays Foot in Brazil -- 13 Solvays Second Postwar Period -- 13.1 A Difficult Transition -- The View from the Gérance -- Germany, Anno 1945 -- 13.2 Farewell to Bernburg -- Postwar Reorganization, Western Style -- Postwar Reorganization, Eastern Style -- 13.3 The Liquidation of IG Farben and Its Consequences -- Exchanging IG Farben for Kali-Chemie -- The Solvay Trials -- 13.4 Nationalizations in Eastern Europe: Long-Fought Battles, Modest Results -- 14 Conclusion of Part 2 -- 14.1 Business and Politics in the Age of Instability -- 14.2 Recasting International Industrial Relations -- 14.3 Diversification Interrupted -- PART 3 The Era of Diversification and Globalization (1950-2012) -- 15 Growth through Diversification -- 15.1 Solvays International Comeback -- 15.2 Research and Diversification -- 15.3 The Workhorse of the Plastics Industry: PVC -- Learning from ICI -- Playing on Several Chessboards at the Same Time -- Two Great Problems: Royalty Payments and Product Quality -- The Birth of Solvic
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18 The Long and Winding Road to Deer Park
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3.2 Evolution of Management Structures -- Shaping of Financial and Management Principles (1866-1882) -- Change in Internal Dynamics and Debates on the Groups Structure (1882-1905) -- 4 Labor Organization, Social Policy, and Societal Vision -- 4.1 Elaboration of an Industrial Relations Strategy -- 4.2 The Multiple Facets of Solvays Social Relations -- An Industrial Empire, Diverse Work Conditions -- A Paternalistic Relationship -- Hierarchy and Recruiting -- Discipline, Schedules, and Wages -- Town Planning and Industrial Architecture Dedicated to Productivism -- Hygiene, Education, Leisure, and Morality -- An Internal Social Security System -- Public Relations and Philanthropy -- Aiming at Social Peace -- 5 The Consolidation of Power -- 5.1 Opportunistic Diversifications: Potash and Coke Oven By-Products -- German Investments in Potash -- Coke Ovens and Their By-Products -- 5.2 Being a Part of the Electrochemical Revolution -- 5.3 A New Round of Geographical Expansion -- Introducing Heavy-Chemical Industry to Spain -- Italian Investigations -- Staying Ahead in Germany -- 5.4 Ensuring Continuity: The Rise of the Second Generation -- 5.5 The Nonindustrial Life of Ernest Solvay: Scientia Vincere Tenebras -- 6 Conclusion of Part 1 -- 6.1 Capitalizing on a Technological Breakthrough -- 6.2 A Hybrid Multinational Organization -- 6.3 An Unshakable Leadership -- 6.4 The Life of a Family Business -- Part 2 The Years of Crisis (1914-1950) -- 7 The Multiple Fronts of World War I -- 7.1 Facing the Occupation, Organizing the Relief Effort -- 7.2 The Conduct of Business in Occupied Territory -- Slow Production at Couillet, Standstill at Jemeppe -- Postwar Views on Wartime Attitudes -- 7.3 Europe at War: The Western Side -- Coping with the Industrial Mobilization in France -- The Mediterranean Connection -- Innovation and Profits at Brunner, Mond
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7.4 Europe at War: The Eastern Side -- DSW in a Changing Environment -- Challenges in Austria-Hungary -- The Loss of Lubimoff, Solvay andamp -- Cie -- 7.5 The Declaration of Independence of Solvay Process Company -- Growing Apart -- The Revolt against European Shareholders -- 8 From the Ashes, 1918-1922 -- 8.1 The Reordering of Europe -- Germany, from Defeat to Confusion -- Solvay-Werke after Austria-Hungary -- Strengthening Leading Position in France -- Potash Supply: The Acquisition of Suria -- 8.2 Facing Social Upheaval -- 8.3 Death of the Founding Father -- 9 The Making of International Alliances -- 9.1 IG and Allied: Coping with Giants -- Securing the Haber-Bosch Process -- The Allied Way -- Providentia: Reaching a Deal with IG -- 9.2 The Twists and Turns of Industrial Diplomacy -- The Tripartite Agreement: A Fragile Precedent -- Becoming Designated Intermediaries -- ICI and the Creation of Solvay American Investment Corporation -- Libbey-Owens and the Reordering of the French Alkali Industry -- 9.3 Exploring Alternatives in America -- Allied: Strengthening Control, Lacking Information -- Ousting Weber -- 10 Family and Finance through the Crisis -- 10.1 Managerial Legacies -- Recasting Leadership -- The Formalization of Organizational Structures -- Research and Technology: Independence versus Coordination -- 10.2 The Collapse and Rebirth of the Mutuelle -- From Finambel to Finabel -- Through the Slump: the Creation of the Société Belge de Banque -- 11 The Electrolytic Industry -- 11.1 Missing the Electrolytic Momentum -- 11.2 The Transnational Cartelization of the Chlorine Industry -- France and the Entente Chlore -- The Chlor-Konvention in Germany -- 11.3 From Caustic Soda to Chlorine Derivatives -- Strategy, Plants, Products: Restarting the Electrolytic Engine -- Scaling Up the Know-How Exchange with ICI and DuPont
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Solvics International Expansion -- Improving Product Quality and Marketing -- Growing to the First Rank -- 15.4 Broadening in Plastics: The Production of Polyethylene -- ICIs Polyethylene and the Belgian Syndicate -- Phillipss High-Density Polyethylene -- The Start of PE Production at Rosignano and Elclor -- Research and Innovation -- 15.5 Becoming a Key Player in Peroxides -- 15.6 Change and Continuity -- 16 Enlarging Scale and Scope -- 16.1 Solvays Increased Dependence on Oil -- The Unhappy Story of the Rosignano Cracker -- The New VCM Plant at Tavaux -- Spreading the New VCM Concept -- Large-Scale Production of Polyolefins -- 16.2 Clean Autoclaves but an Injured Image -- Cleaning Autoclaves -- The Press, the Public, and Politics: Anxiety about VCM -- Solvays Response -- The Injured Image -- 16.3 Forward Integration into Making Plastic Products -- International Expansion in All Domains of Plastic Processing -- The Development of the PVC Bottle -- Management and Rationalization of the Plastics-Processing Sector -- 16.4 Growth in Plastics and Its Consequences -- 17 Solvay Goes Public -- 17.1 Diversification and Its Financial Consequences -- The New Insights of Henri Delwart and Paul Washer -- Finding Funds for Accelerated Growth -- 17.2 The Transformation into a Joint-Stock Company (1967) -- Earlier Views within Solvay on Becoming a Joint-Stock Company -- Changing Belgian Company Law -- Preserving Control by "the Families" -- The Crucial Date: 12 June 1967 -- The Board of Directors and the Supervisory Board -- Introducing the Solvay Share at the Stock Exchange -- The Creation of Solvac (1983) -- 17.3 Modernizing Management and Accounting -- The Evolution of the Solvay Organization -- Duplication and Other Problems -- Dick Pagets Proposals -- Changing the Organization -- The Difficult Change in Management and Accounting Practices
Additional Edition:
Print version Bertrams, Kenneth Solvay New York : Cambridge University Press,c2013 ISBN 9781107024809
Language:
English
Keywords:
Electronic books
URL:
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