06 September 2006

Brunner Mond is sponsoring an innovative exhibition at the Salt Museum, which is close to its industrial heart.

The ‘Made in Cheshire’ exhibition is a celebration of manufacturing in mid Cheshire over the centuries. It features a diverse range of materials that have been invented or produced in the area.

Pride of place are the first samples of polythene, loaned by the Science Museum in London, which originate from the former ICI laboratories in Winnington. Polythene was invented there in 1933. Now used to make everything from household utensils to carrier bags, it had a vital role in WWII when it was used as an insulator to allow the RAF to slip under German radar.

In recognition of polythene’s illustrious history, the Northwich and District Heritage Society erected a blue heritage plaque at the Winnington labs last month.

Martin Keighley, Brunner Mond’s MD (Europe), said: “Cheshire boasts one of the best performing economies in the North West and is a centre for innovative industry. As a major manufacturer in the region – and one that has close links with the invention of polythene - we were keen to show our support of this interesting exhibition by sponsoring it.”

The exhibition opens on Thursday September 14 and runs until Sunday January 14 2007.

For further information contact Mark Chitty at Brunner Mond on 01606 724000 or Alison Hardy/Linda Isted at Staniforth on 0161 919 8495.

Brunner Mond is one of the world’s leading manufacturers and suppliers of soda ash and associated alkaline products. The company has manufacturing plants in Northwich, Cheshire, where it has its headquarters; in Delfzijl, The Netherlands; and at Lake Magadi in Kenya The Company also operates a transportation terminal at Durban, South Africa.

Brunner Mond’s principal product is soda ash, of which it is Europe’s second largest producer and the UK’s sole manufacturer. The Company is one of the largest producers of refined sodium bicarbonate and Europe’s second largest producer of calcium chloride liquor.

The Magadi Soda Company is at Lake Magadi, a major alkaline evaporate deposit in Africa’s Great Rift Valley about 120km south west of Nairobi. The Company has been producing soda ash at Magadi since the early part of the last century and its main markets are in Africa, the Middle East and South East Asia.

In February 2006 Tata Chemicals Limited acquired 100 per cent ownership of the Brunner Mond Group through its wholly owned subsidiary Homefield PvT UK Limited. Tata Chemicals Limited is part of the Tata Group, one of India’s largest business conglomerates.