care benefits in terms of overallappearance, texture and tone.Meadowlactone is an amphotericcompound whose isomeric structurescan change between oil and watersolubility as a function of pH.

SPC, Soap Perfumery and Cosmetics, Dec 2004, 77(12), 37

APPLICATIONSHousehold cleaning

Household detergents

Imparting surface-modifyingcharacteristics is one of the ways thathome and fabric care companies aretrying to retain their competitiveadvantage. Controlled delivery offragrance and active ingredients isanother flourishing research area,especially for heavy-duty laundrydetergents. And while companiesseek ways to improve top productssold in developed countries, they arealso adapting cleaning chemistries tocheaper products sold in thedeveloping world. The process thatProcter & Gamble’s global fabric andhome care business uses to developproducts depends increasingly oncooperation with outside partners. AtClorox, the idea for a surface-protecting product resulted fromClorox’s ability to understandconsumer needs. At Henkel the focuson surface modification is mostevident in the automatic dishwasherdetergent (ADW) sector. BASF is alsodeveloping hydrophobically modifiedpolyacrylates for ADW that providesurface modification. The USdetergents market had a volume of$3.3 bn in the year ending 28 Nov2004. Two Procter & Gamble brands(Tide and Gain) accounted for 50% ofthe market. Speciality chemicalscompanies are scanning their productranges for products that can helpdetergent manufacturers succeed indeveloping countries.

Chemical and Engineering News, 24 Jan 2005, 83 (4),15-20 (Website: http://www.cen-online.org)

New products in the toilet

With cleaning products in N Americaand Europe showing slow growth,suppliers are turning to product

innovation to generate sales growth.Both Clorox and S C Johnson haverecently launched disposable germ-killing brushes. These products meanconsumers no longer have to pour acleaner into the toilet, and producerssay they are more sanitary. Clorox’sToiletWand posted sales of $1.5 M inDec 2004 alone.

Chemical Week, 26 Jan 2005, 167 (3) (Website:http://www.chemicalweek.com)

Personal careproducts

Uniqema targets personal care

Uniqema is to focus on specialities in2005. Its growth strategy will targetmarkets that offer prospects forabove-average growth. These includepersonal care products and syntheticlubricants. The firm is expectinggrowth at double GDP rates forpersonal care products, particularlyskin care ingredients used in anti-ageing products. Basic oleochemicalshave encountered challenging marketconditions. Basic fatty acids andglycerine account for 25% ofUniqema’s gross margin. Glycerineprices have fallen due to increasedproduction of biodiesel, which hasglycerine as a by-product. Uniqemahad sales of £465 M for Jan-Sep 2004.

Chemical Market Reporter, 3 Jan 2005 (Website:http://www.chemicalmarketreporter.com)

Cussons to switch soap jobs to Thailand

PZ Cussons, the maker of ImperialLeather, is to close its Nottingham,UK, factory with the loss of 160 jobsas customers shun old-fashionedbars of soap in favour of liquidvarieties. The factory, which has beenmaking soap since 1955, will shut in2007 and production will be switchedto Thailand. Soap bars produced inNottingham now account for only 17%of the group’s UK sales, down frommore than half of sales in 1995. Barsof soap are becoming less popular inthe UK and it is more cost effectivefor Cussons to move to Thailand,where it is investing in a new state-of-the-art factory. Demand for soap barsin Asia is rising. The Far East nowaccounts for two-thirds of the worldmarket for soap bars, and PZCussons already has productioncentres in Thailand and Indonesia.

The news of the closure came as PZCussons, which began trading inSierra Leone in 1879, announced itwas withdrawing from Russia andChina. The group has been hit by theweakening of the rouble, which hasmade the investment needed topromote its brands expensive, and anew distribution network has failed toimprove sales. It has also failed tosucceed in China, blaming competitivepressures. A £3 M loss in Russia andlosses in China caused the company toreport a 4% drop in pre-tax profits forthe six months to the end of Nov 2004.It has also been hit by the weak USdollar, as more than half of its businessis in currencies linked to the dollar.Rising oil costs have also affected thecompany.

The Independent, 9 Feb 2005 (Website:http://www.independent.co.uk)

PATENTSP&G creates method for enhancingsuds volume

Procter & Gamble has earned PatentNo US 6,825,157 B2 for a processimproving suds volume and sudsduration. The process uses a liquiddetergent composition that haspolymeric suds enhancers.

HAPPI, Household & Personal Products Industry, Jan2005, 42 (1), 32

Detergent composition patented byDaikin Industries

Daikin Industries Ltd of Osaka, Japanhas obtained Patent No US 6,831,048B21 for a cleaning composition havingat least one of fluoride salts andhydrogen difluoride salts, an organicsolvent with a hetero atom or atoms,water and optionally one or moresurfactants or corrosion inhibitors.

HAPPI, Household & Personal Products Industry, Jan2005, 42 (1), 32

Fabric softener method patented byCiba

Ciba Specialty Chemicals has beengranted Patent No US 6,831,055 B1for a method of using a softenercomposition that provideshydrophilicity to textile fibre materials.

HAPPI, Household & Personal Products Industry, Jan2005, 42 (1), 32

4 MARCH 2005

F O C U S O N S U R F A C T A N T S