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Fifty Years of Growth and Achievement

Since its founding in 1950 as the Kawecki Chemical Company, the name KB Alloys has been synonymous with consistently dependable aluminum master alloys. KB Alloys, LLC. has a long history and a tradition of leadership in the field of aluminum master alloys – one filled with industry-changing innovations, and major milestones for KB Alloys and its divisions.

The timeline below details our history of growth and achievement in the aluminum master alloys business. (We have omitted events that pertain to tantalum, niobium, beryllium alloys and specialty chemicals because, while important, they do not have specific meaning to aluminum master alloys.)


Kawecki Chemical Company - January 1950 - October 1968
1950 The Kawecki Chemical Company was founded on January 25, 1950 by Henry C. Kawecki, Joseph C Abeles and Philip Valeriano. The Company purchased a small property in Boyertown, Pennsylvania and began the manufacture of potassium zirconium fluoride and potassium titanium fluoride, chemical compounds used by the aluminum industry at that time.

Net sales were $283,925 with net income of $14,274. The company had twenty employees.
1955 Several of the company's customers suggested that a metallurgical grain refiner to replace the chemical compounds would be an important improvement. The company developed TITAL® and TIBOR® and began production following the installation of electric furnace melting facilities.
1958 The master alloy division operated at capacity and achieved a 90% sales increase over 1957. During November, 1958 a 30% addition to plant capacity was completed with more being planned.
1959 The master alloy division continued its rapid growth and enjoyed an 80% increase in sales during 1959. Developing new technology has been the hallmark of this growth as the company has introduced high concentration hardener alloys.
1961 The company announced a joint venture with N.V. Billiton, the Dutch metals company.
1962 The joint venture company, N.V. Kawecki-Billiton Metaalindustrie, announced plans to construct an aluminum master alloy plant in Arnhem, Holland. Operations began in 1963.
1966 Construction began on the Wenatchee, Washington plant.
1967 The Wenatchee plant began production, supplying grain refiners and alloying agents to the aluminum industry in the Pacific Northwest.
In addition, the joint venture company, Kawecki-Billiton (U.K.), brought a facility on stream at Darley Dale, England.
   

Kawecki Berylco Industries, Inc. - October 1968 - May 1978 
1968 Kawecki Chemical Company and The Beryllium Corporation merged on October 15, 1968 to form Kawecki Berylco Industries, Inc. (KBI).
1969 KBI developed the rod form of grain refiners TIBOR® and TITAL®. This form made possible the continuous inoculation of aluminum heats external to the furnace.
1970 Ground was broken for a third master alloy plant in Europe. In addition to Arnhem and Darley Dale, the joint venture company, Kawecki-Billiton, announced a plant in Delfzijl, Holland. This plant was destined to be the first plant of its kind in Europe to produce master alloys from molten aluminum delivered by truck from an adjacent smelter.
1971 The company completed a DC casting station for the production of grain refiner billet which was rolled to the rod form for continuous inoculation.
1972 The company announced a joint venture in Japan - Showa-KBI Company Ltd. - in partnership with Showa-Denko K.K. In addition to manufacturing other metallurgical products, Showa-KBI served as sales agent for KBI aluminum master alloys.
1973 Aluminum-strontium-silicon master alloy was developed and patented to meet industry needs for a modifier for hypo-eutectic silicon foundry alloys.
1974 The company developed and introduced a 60% manganese aluminum splatter product.
1975 KBI completed a fully integrated aluminum master alloy rod production plant at Wenatchee, the largest of its type in the world. The automated plant represented a significant technological breakthrough because it enabled KBI to produce master alloy rod using a continuous process.
1977 A major expansion program was undertaken at the Delfzijl plant of N.V. Kawecki-Billiton Metaalindustrie (KBM) in the Netherlands. This expansion was designed to increase capacity, improve quality and introduce the rod process first installed at Wenatchee. KBM was jointly owned with the Billiton subsidiary of Royal Dutch/Shell Group.
   

KBI Division of Cabot Corporation - May 1978 - December 1986
1978 Cabot Corporation acquired KBI on May 31, 1978 and the Company became a wholly-owned subsidiary, headquartered in Reading, Pennsylvania.
1979 Ground was broken for a new facility in Henderson County, Kentucky, devoted to the production of aluminum master alloys to serve the concentration of the aluminum industry in the Ohio and Mississippi Valleys.
1981 The Henderson County plant was dedicated.
1983 Introduced aluminum 15% zirconium alloy.
1984 In response to customer needs, KBI developed and introduced 5% Boral® in the AIB2 structure for reduced furnace sludging.
1985 Cabot Corporation announced it would divest all of its metals businesses.
   

KB Alloys, Inc. - December 1986- 2008
1986 The aluminum master alloys business, excluding KBM, was sold to Harbour Group, St. Louis, Missouri, and named KB Alloys, Inc.
1987 Introduced Boral® in rod form.
1988 The company built a Technology Center at the Henderson County location to provide new product/new process development plus technical support to the market. The Technology Center is equipped with the latest equipment, including a scanning electron microscope and image analysis equipment.
1989 The company announced the development and patent of a new class of aluminum grain refiners based on the titanium carbon system. TICAR® grain refiners are intended to meet increasingly stringent customer requirements.
1993 Harbour Group Ltd. announced the sale of KB Alloys, Inc. to Code, Hennessy & Simmons, a financial limited partnership headquartered in Chicago. Code, Hennessy & Simmons owns thirteen businesses with aggregate sales of $824 million employing 4600 people.
1995 The Company announced the acquisition of Anglo-Blackwells Ltd., an aluminum master alloy producer located in U.K., and the acquisition of Calstron Inc., a strontium producer located in Memphis, TN. These are important strategic additions for KB Alloys, Inc. in accomplishing the mission of effectively serving the global aluminum industry.
1998 The company completed the acquisition of Reading Alloys, Inc., a producer of master alloys and metal powders for the aerospace, petrochemical, electronic and medical equipment industries, located in Robesonia, PA. RAI significantly expanded the company's product lines and market coverage.
2007 October 22, 2007 - KB Alloys announces the insolvency of its Anglo-Blackwells facility in Widnes UK and expands its Henderson KY facility to produce Strontium rod products.
2008 April 14, 2008 - KB Alloys announces the sales of its Reading Alloys business unit to AMETEK.