Word: nylons
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Dates: during 1960-1969
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Wherever a Dutchman turns these days, his gaze is apt to fall on a product of a vigorous giant known as A.K.U. (pronounced Ah-coo). For A.K.U. (short for Algemene Kunstzijde Unie, which means Amalgamated Rayon Union) produces half the nylon stockings sold in The Netherlands, as well as fibers used in half the nation's tires and seven out of ten pairs of men's slacks. Even the dikes that help keep The Netherlands above water are built with A.K.U. nylon sandbags...
...Recruited for A.K.U. in 1946 by fellow Cabinet minister (and A.K.U. director) Theodorus van Schaik, Meynen from the start preached what he called "the two-leg theory," insisted that A.K.U. must find another major product in addition to rayon. As he pushed the company pellmell into the manufacture of nylon, cellophane, viscose sponges, cable and insulation, Meynen's two-leg theory evolved into a "many legs" theory. To broaden its technical knowledge, A.K.U. set up joint ventures with Pittsburgh Plate Glass (fiber glass), B. F. Goodrich (synthetic rubber) and Amoco Chemicals (raw material for polyester fibers). Special "flying squads...
...Kick at the Traces. With other European fiber makers increasingly invading the Dutch market, A.K.U. is fighting harder than ever to expand abroad. The company recently set up a new subsidiary to manufacture nylon in Northern Ireland and is eagerly eying the prospects for growth within the Common Market. Long a contented party to cartel arrangements in Europe, A.K.U. insists that some of its traditional market-splitting agreements with other Continental textile manufacturers are still necessary. But with growing competitive confidence, the company shows signs of being ready to kick over at least some of the cartel traces. Recently A.K.U...
...FONT'S second-quarter sales of $631 million were the highest in its history, and its earnings rose to $2.52 per share, v. $2.15 last year. Du Pont is starting a $50 million program to expand its nylon plants...
...Cyclades owe their new verdant look to a fleet of water-carrying Dracones -huge, sausage-shaped bags of rubber-covered nylon, which are towed over to the islands daily from the Greek mainland. The Dracone-which gets its name from the Greek word for serpent-was conceived during the 1956 Suez crisis by British Engineer William Rede Hawthorne, 49. Seeking a quick way to build up Western Europe's oil-hauling capacity, Hawthorne began experimenting in a wave tank with sausage skins filled with alcohol. But soon there was a glut of oil tankers-and European refineries...