Consulting Resources Corporation
Quality Service Since 1981

Consulting Resources Corporation (the top U.S. chloralkali consulting firm) and Chemical Week (the top industry magazine) jointly hosted our ever popular, one-day conference “Chloralkali Update and Forecast: 2000/01,” on February 15, 2001 at the Marriott West Loop hotel in Houston, TX.

Among the many critical questions that were addressed at the conference:  What does the future hold for chlorine, caustic soda, soda ash, salt, sodium bicarbonate, sodium chlorate, hydrogen peroxide and other related products (including ethylene dichloride (EDC), polyvinyl chloride (PVC), hydrochloric acid (HCl) and selected potassium chemicals)?  What can a major new ash/bicarb player offer to potential customers?  How will industry consolidation versus expansion play out?  What is the outlook for the shifting chloralkali chemical balance?  What will be the impact of ongoing regulatory developments?  How will E-commerce impact the chloralkali industry?  What about power rates, supply, demand, prices and new technology?

Conference Coverage
This conference included discussions of the outlook for nine critical materials: 
 
Chlorine, 
Sodium chlorate, 
EDC/PVC, 
Caustic soda,
Hydrogen peroxide,
Salt, and
Soda ash,
Sodium bicarbonate,
HCl
 
Conference participants shared in the knowledge offered by our industry leaders as they discussed markets, technologies, regulations, strategies, substitutes, success factors and more. 

Speakers  
World-renowned chloralkali industry experts sharing their wisdom and experience at the conference included:

Roger Shamel, President of Consulting Resources Corporation, and an astute industry analyst with more than twenty-five years of experience pertaining to chlorine, caustic soda, soda ash, sodium chlorate, salt, PVC and other chloralkali chemicals. 

Ken Blackburn, Business Manager, Chloralkali and Oxygenated Products, ATOFINA Chemicals, and a distinguished manager of both sodium chlorate and hydrogen peroxide. 

Ted Fastert, Vice President, Soda Ash Sales and Customer Services, Solvay Minerals, Inc., and an acknowledged expert on the global soda ash business. 

S.K. "Kim" Fletcher, e-Product Manager, Industrial Chemical, ChemConnect, and an e-commerce pioneer with hands-on chloralkali experience. 

C.T. “Kip” Howlett, Jr., Executive Director of the American Chemistry Council’s Chlorine Chemistry Council, and a lucid U.S. authority on chlorine regulatory issues. 

Dennis Kostick, Commodity Specialist at the U.S. Geological Survey, and a seasoned veteran on issues relating to salt, soda ash, and its raw material, trona. 

Helmut Metzler, General Manager-Caustic Soda, Occidental Chemical Corporation, and a keen-sighted strategist on both chlorine and caustic soda. 

Kurt Nielsen, General Manager, American Soda LLP, and a determined trailblazer in developing a bold new approach to soda ash and bicarbonate production.