Global sanitation products company,
Ecolab Inc.
(
ECL
) recently opened a new manufacturing and distribution center in
China. The facility is located in Taicang and will manufacture the
products which will be marketed in China.
Ecolab entered the Chinese market in 1987 with innovative
solutions in support of China's food-related businesses and has
invested $150 million in the country since 2008. The Taicang
facility is the company's sixth plant in China and is poised to be
the leading driver of Ecolab's sustained growth in the country.
The 546,000 square-feet property is Ecolab's largest in the
Asia-Pacific region and the third largest globally. The center will
initially employ 55 employees and eventually increase the number to
more than 350 by 2017.
The plant is eco-friendly as it has been specially built to
minimize waste production, energy and water utilization. In
addition, the industrial wastewater will be converted by the
center's wastewater treatment plant into re-usable distilled
water.
The facility has the capacity to manufacture 150,000 tons of
products annually. The plant will produce a full range of
sanitation, food safety, cleaning, and infection prevention
products inclusive of food retail, food and beverage production,
healthcare, hospitality and dairy, meat and poultry processing.
The company's decision to build another plant in China is in
line with the Chinese government's Five-Year Plan to focus on
improving food quality and safety in the nation. In June 2012, the
company had partnered with China's State Food and Drug
Administration Institute for Executive Development (SFDAIED) to
carry out training on food safety for the food service
industry.
Although its competitors like
Clorox
(
CLX
) and
Church & Dwight
(
CHD
) have significant presence in the Chinese market, Ecolab's social
commitment in China remains unique. The company's efforts have also
been recognized by the Chinese authorities, as reflected by the
various awards it has received in recent times.
We currently have a Neutral recommendation on the stock, which
carries a short-term Zacks #3 Rank (Hold).
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