Producer
Arxada (formerly Lonza Specialty Ingredients)
Created in October 2021 when Lonza Group sold its Specialty Ingredients division to private equity firms Bain Capital and Cinven for CHF 4.2 billion. Arxada is the world's largest biocide and quat (BAC/DDAC/ADBAC) manufacturer, with 24 production sites globally. Key US facility: Williamsport, Pennsylvania (3500 Trenton Avenue) — the primary ADBAC/DDAC production site in the US. Arxada absorbed Arch Chemicals' biocide business when Lonza acquired Arch in 2011 for $1.4 billion. Product lines: Lonzagard BKC, ADBAC, DDAC. A member of both the ADBAC Issues Steering Committee and the DDAC Issues Steering Committee at EPA.
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Microbial Control (Quats & Biocides)
55%Industrial Preservation
22%Personal Care Preservation
13%Agricultural & Environmental
10%
Intelligence
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Did you know2022
Arxada's DDAC (didecyl dimethyl ammonium chloride) is registered as an EPA disinfectant for hospital infection control and food processing facility sanitation. The exact same molecule is also a major wood preservative, replacing the CCA (copper chromium arsenate) treatments banned in residential lumber due to arsenic concerns — DDAC is now the primary preservative in pressure-treated lumber used for decks, fences, and playground equipment. The hospital disinfection supply chain and the residential construction wood supply chain both depend on Arxada's DDAC production from the same manufacturing site, a connection invisible to either healthcare procurement or building materials analysts.
US EPA ↗Incident2011
The Arxada quat business (formerly Lonza Specialty Ingredients) was created through a sequence of acquisitions: Lonza acquired Arch Chemicals in 2011 for $1.4 billion, described at the time as creating 'the world's leading microbial control business.' In 2021, Lonza sold the entire Specialty Ingredients division to private equity (Bain Capital and Cinven) for CHF 4.2 billion — the entity became Arxada. The US primary manufacturing site (Williamsport, PA) was the legacy Arch Chemicals biocide facility. The world's largest quat manufacturer passed from one Swiss pharmaceutical giant (Lonza Group) to a private equity-owned chemical company (Arxada) — invisible to the Reckitt and SC Johnson formulators who depend on its supply.
GlobeNewswire / Lonza Group ↗Origin2023
Arxada's biocide business traces through Lonza Group, which was founded in 1897 in the Swiss Alps (named after the Valle di Lonza) as an electrochemical company producing acetylene and carbide. Lonza built its biocide expertise through the 20th century as it diversified from basic chemicals into specialty chemistry. In 2021, Lonza Group sold the Specialty Ingredients division to Bain Capital and Cinven for CHF 4.2 billion to focus entirely on its pharmaceutical CDMO business — creating Arxada as the world's largest independent biocide company with 24 global manufacturing sites.
Arxada ↗