Marbon Chemicals

Chemicals were not completely new to Borg-Warner in the 1950s. In 1934 BWC had purchased a very small operation named the Marsene Corporation. Borg-Warner executives saw Marsene’s small Gary, Indiana, plant as an experimental foray into the chemical business. The scientist in charge, Robert Shattuck, had developed cyclo rubber which, when properly treated, was an excellent insulator for electrical wiring. During World War II Marsene’s wire insulation enjoyed a sudden burst of popularity. Unbeknownst to Shattuck and his employees, cyclo-rubber-coated cables were being used for a new device which proved crucial in the Battle of Britain: the radio detecting and ranging device, or radar.

The Marbon Chemical Division, the name given to Marsene in 1954, developed acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS) resins, marketed under the name Cycolac. In 1958 the Western Electric Company contracted Marbon to supply Cycolac for its telephones, and other buyers soon followed. A plant was constructed near Parkersburg, West Virginia, to handle the sudden demand. Between 1961 and 1967 Cycolac sales jumped 350%, cornering half the market in ABS resins. By 1967 chemicals accounted for about $100 million of BWC’s sales.

Subject ID: 93780

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Chemicals were not completely new to Borg-Warner in the 1950s. In 1934 BWC had purchased a very small operation named the Marsene Corporation. Borg-Warner executives saw Marsene’s small Gary, Indiana, plant as an experimental foray into the chemical business. The scientist in charge, Robert Shattuck, had developed cyclo rubber which, when properly treated, was an excellent insulator for electrical wiring. During World War II Marsene’s wire insulation enjoyed a sudden burst of popularity. Unbeknownst to Shattuck and his employees, cyclo-rubber-coated cables were being used for a new device which proved crucial in the Battle of Britain: the radio detecting and ranging device, or radar.

The Marbon Chemical Division, the name given to Marsene in 1954, developed acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS) resins, marketed under the name Cycolac. In 1958 the Western Electric Company contracted Marbon to supply Cycolac for its telephones, and other buyers soon followed. A plant was constructed near Parkersburg, West Virginia, to handle the sudden demand. Between 1961 and 1967 Cycolac sales jumped 350%, cornering half the market in ABS resins. By 1967 chemicals accounted for about $100 million of BWC’s sales.

Subject ID: 93780

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