2004 Review ▪ History ▪ Major Markets by Products ▪ Manufacturing Locations ▪ PPG Industries
See It's PPG - from the colors of cars and airplanes to the changing tint of eyeglasses, from the hues of energy-saving windows to the clearness of pure water,..
..PPG is there with a full spectrum of technology, talent and leadership to produce materials that improve the quality of life.
Download Adobe PDF version here.
History
PPG Industries was founded in 1883 as the Pittsburgh Plate Glass Co. The company's first plant, at Creighton, Pa., near Pittsburgh, was the first commercially successful plate glass factory in the United States. PPG expanded flat glass production operations rapidly during the next decade and a half through new facilities and acquisitions.
Diversification began with construction of a plant in Ohio in 1899 to ensure a reliable supply of alkali for glassmaking – the first of PPG's chemicals businesses – and the 1900 acquisition of a paint company that was the foundation of its coatings businesses. In 1902, PPG became one of the first American manufacturing firms to establish European operations. Glass and paint provided continued prosperity to the company in the 1920s, as the automotive industry and construction of skyscrapers transformed and modernized the American scene.
During this period, PPG also increased its commitment to development of technology for improved production efficiency and high product quality and versatility. One early achievement in 1924 was the first straight-line conveyor method of glass manufacture, which advanced the glass production process much as the assembly line transformed the automotive industry. In the decades since, PPG has continued to develop new glass and paint products to meet more demanding market needs, and to expand its array of chemical products.
In 1952, recognizing the potential of another type of glass product, the company established its fiber glass business. One of the "miracle" fibers created by laboratory researchers, fiber glass continues to achieve expanding use in a variety of products, and PPG has been at the forefront of product and process development.
As a result of its diversification, growth and rapidly developing global presence, as well as the passing of the old plate process for making glass, the company changed its name to PPG Industries in 1968. In the ensuing decades, as many of its basic commodity product markets matured in North America and Europe, the company gave new emphasis to development of specialty, value-added products, process efficiency and accelerated global expansion.
Today PPG is a leader in its markets, streamlined and efficient, and on the leading edge of new technologies to provide a growth-focused future worldwide.
Back to Top Major Markets by Products
COATINGS
Transportation original equipment and aftermarket, commercial and residential construction and remodeling, and maintenance, appliance, packaging and industrial markets.
GLASS
Motor vehicle original equipment and aftermarket, commercial and residential construction, industrial markets and insurance claims management. Includes fiber glass used for transportation, construction, electronics, recreational and various industrial markets.
CHEMICALS
Chemical and pharmaceutical manufacturing, optical monomers, Transitions photochromic ophthalmic plastic eyewear, soaps and detergents, pulp and paper, water treatment and industrial markets.
Back to Top Manufacturing Locations
Includes subsidiaries, joint ventures and minority affiliates. PPG's percentage of equity in those not wholly owned is shown in parentheses.
UNITED STATES
Coatings
Adrian, Mich.
Arvada, Colo.
Batavia, Ill.
Baton Rouge, La.
Circleville, Ohio
Cleveland, Ohio
Delaware, Ohio
Dover, Del.
East Point, Ga.
Euclid, Ohio
Glendale, Calif.
Gloucester City, N.J.
Greensboro, N.C.
Houston, Texas
Huntsville, Ala.
Kenosha, Wis.
Louisville, Ky.
Mojave, Calif.
Oak Creek, Wis.
Springdale, Pa.
Strongsville, Ohio
Waller, Texas
Watertown, Conn.
Glass
Berea, Ky.
Burlington, Iowa
Carlisle, Pa.
Creighton, Pa.
Crestline, Ohio
Evansville, Ind.
Evart, Mich.
Fresno, Calif.
Meadville, Pa.
Mount Zion, Ill.
Newark, Del.
O’Fallon, Mo.
Salem, Ore.
Talladega, Ala.
Tipton, Pa.
Wichita Falls, Texas
Belletech Corp. (40%)
Bellefontaine, Ohio
LYNX Services, LLC.
Ft. Myers, Fla.
Paducah, Ky.
Trevose, Pa.
Fiber Glass
Chester, S.C.
Lexington, N.C.
Shelby, N.C.
AZDEL, Inc. (50%)
Forest, Va.
Shelby, N.C.
Chemicals
Barberton, Ohio
Lake Charles, La.
La Porte, Texas
Natrium, W.Va.
RS Cogen (50%)
Lake Charles, La.
PHH Monomers (50%)
Lake Charles, La.
Transitions Optical (51%)
Pinellas Park, Fla.
ARGENTINA
Coatings
PPG Automotive Products
Pilar
AUSTRALIA
Coatings
PPG Industries Australia
Clayton, Vic.
Chemicals
Transitions Optical (51%)
Lonsdale, Vic.
BRAZIL
Coatings
PPG Industrial do Brasil
Cajamar
Sumaré
Chemicals
Transitions Optical (51%)
Sumaré
CANADA
Coatings
PPG Canada, Inc.
Mississauga, Ont.
Winnipeg, Man.
Chemfil Canada (50%)
Windsor, Ont.
Chemicals
PPG Canada, Inc.
Beauharnois, Que.
Glass
PPG Canada, Inc.
Alliston, Ont.
Cambridge, Ont.
Hawkesbury, Ont.
Kitchener, Ont.
Oshawa, Ont.
Owen Sound, Ont.
CHINA
Coatings
PPG Coatings (Tianjin) Co. (70%)
Tianjin
PPG Packaging Coatings (Suzhou) (90%)
Suzhou
Fiber Glass
PFG Co. (50%)
Kunshan
ENGLAND
Coatings
PPG Industries (UK)
Shildon
Stowmarket
Fiber Glass
PPG Industries (UK)
Wigan
FRANCE
Coatings
PPG Industries France
Saultain
Gonfreville Coatings/PRC-DeSoto
Gonfreville
Chemicals
PPG Sipsy
Avrillé
Plelan le Grand
GERMANY
Coatings
PPG Industries Lacke
Wuppertal
PPG Industries Lackfabrik
Weingarten
HOBA Lacke und Farben
Bodelshausen
INDIA
Coatings
Asian PPG (50%)
Mumbai
IRELAND
Chemicals
Transitions Optical (51%)
Tuam
ITALY
Coatings
Ampaspace (80%)
Casaletto Vaprio
PPG Industries Italia
Caivano
Milan
Quattordio
Bellaria
Felizzano
MALAYSIA
Coatings
PPG Coatings Malaysia
Selangor Darul Ehsan
MEXICO
Coatings
PPG Industries de Mexico
San Juan del Rio
Chemicals
PPG Industries de Mexico
Altamira
Glass
Saltillo
Cristal Laminado o Templado (50%)
Tepeji del Rio
NETHERLANDS
Coatings
PPG Coatings
Tiel
Chemicals
PPG Industries Chemicals
Delfzijl
Fiber Glass
PPG Industries Fiber Glass
Hoogezand
AZDEL (50%)
Bergen op Zoom
PHILIPPINES
Chemicals
Transitions Optical (51%)
Laguna
SOUTH KOREA
Coatings
DongJu Industrial Co. (50%)
Chon Ahn
Busan
PPG Daihan Packaging Coatings (50%)
Anyang City
SPAIN
Coatings
PPG Iberica
Rubi
Valencia
Valladolid
TAIWAN
Chemicals
Taiwan Chlorine Industries (60%)
Kaohsiung
Fiber Glass
PFG Fiber Glass (50%)
Chia Yi
THAILAND
Coatings
PPG Coatings Thailand
Bangsaothong
TURKEY
Coatings
PPG Industries Kimya
Sanayi ve Ticaret
Bursa
VENEZUELA
Fiber Glass
VFG-Sudamtex (49%)
Barcelona
PRINCIPAL RESEARCH &
DEVELOPMENT FACILITIES
Allison Park, Pa., Coatings
Harmar Twp., Pa., Glass
Hoogezand, Netherlands, Fiber Glass
Lexington, N.C., Fiber Glass
Monroeville, Pa., Chemicals
Shelby, N.C., Fiber Glass
Springdale, Pa., Coatings
Back to Top
PPG Industries
PPG Industries is a global supplier of coatings, glass, fiber glass and chemicals. The company has about 50 production facilities in the United States and about 108 worldwide, including subsidiaries, joint ventures and equity affiliates. The company employs about 31,800 people worldwide. As a group, employees and retirees are the company’s largest shareholder, owning about 11 percent of PPG’s outstanding shares.
PPG is the world’s largest producer of transportation coatings and a leading maker of industrial and packaging coatings, aircraft transparencies, flat and fabricated glass, continuous strand fiber glass, chlor-alkali and specialty chemicals, and architectural coatings.
PPG’s coatings businesses manufacture automotive and aerospace coatings; automotive refinishes; adhesives and sealants; factory-applied coatings for appliances, building components and a broad range of industrial applications; packaging coatings; and decorative, maintenance and other architectural coatings.
The company’s glass businesses supply automotive and other transportation original equipment and replacement windshields and windows; glass for commercial and residential construction and remodeling; and products for industrial, mirror and furniture applications. Fiber glass operations produce continuous strand fibers for reinforced plastics, stampable reinforced thermoplastic sheet, electronic circuit boards and many other applications.
PPG’s chemicals businesses manufacture a variety of industrial and specialty products, including chlorine, caustic soda, chlorinated solvents, vinyl chloride monomer, amorphous precipitated silicas, optical monomers and lenses, pharmaceutical intermediates, fine chemicals and calcium hypochlorite.
The company has long been a technological leader. PPG has introduced many product and process innovations, including automotive safety glass, insurance claims management, energy-saving processes for producing chlorine and caustic soda, automotive and industrial electrodeposition systems and coatings, glass fiber reinforcements for high strength plastics, energy-conserving architectural glasses, self-cleaning glass, flexible automotive finishes and automotive powder clear coats.
Other innovations include lightweight, impact-resistant optical plastics and Transitions light-activated variable-tint plastic lenses for eyewear, improvements in the float process for flat glass manufacture, coatings that cure instantly with ultraviolet light or electron beams, and environmentally friendly water-based high-solids and powder coatings for vehicle, industrial and other applications.
PPG aims to lead each of its major markets while generating superior, consistent financial performance. The company’s continuing emphasis on development of breakthrough products and processes, investment in highly productive manufacturing facilities and profitable global expansion combine to provide customers with the best services and products of highest quality.
PPG’s Blueprint also asserts a continuous commitment to making its operations – from manufacturing to administration to marketing – cost-efficiency leaders, and to moving in new but related directions through internally developed technology, as well as acquisitions and partnerships. A commitment to stewardship and continual improvement of safety, the environment and waste prevention are PPG principles.
The company embraces the Quality Process to fully meet customer requirements and do things right the first time, every time.
PPG is dedicated to continued leadership in its businesses and to fulfillment of its obligations to customers, shareholders, employees and the communities, states and nations in which it operates.
Back to Top