Standard Industries Announces Bob Patel to Join as CEO of W. R. Grace
31.8.2021 15:00:00 EEST | Business Wire | Press release
Standard Industries Holdings (“Standard”), a privately-held global industrial company, today announced, in anticipation of the closing of its acquisition of W. R. Grace (“Grace”), that Bhavesh V. (Bob) Patel will join the company as CEO of Grace, effective January 2022.
“We’re thrilled to welcome Bob to the Standard family as CEO of W. R. Grace,” said David Winter and David Millstone, Co-CEOs of Standard Industries. “Bob has for decades been a visionary leader in the industry, with a record of transforming businesses to achieve robust, sustainable growth. He has proven himself to be the right person to lead Grace’s exceptional team and help architect Standard’s investment in the advanced materials space. He will be instrumental in taking Grace into its next chapter as we ensure a seamless transition post-close and embark on an ambitious growth strategy.”
Patel will join Standard from LyondellBasell, where he has served as Chief Executive Officer since 2015 and led a period of extraordinary growth for the company. From 2010 to 2014, Patel led significant restructuring efforts in both the U.S. and Europe to optimize the company’s cost structure and geographic footprint. Throughout his time at LyondellBasell, he significantly increased earnings power through a number of strategic investments—including acquiring A. Schulman and building world-scale manufacturing facilities—and greatly expanded the company’s sustainability initiatives. During his tenure, LyondellBasell was named to Fortune Magazine’s “World’s Most Admired Companies” list for four years in a row. Prior to joining LyondellBasell in 2010, Patel spent 20 years at Chevron Phillips Chemical Co., where he held positions in manufacturing and led several businesses in the U.S. and Asia.
“It’s a privilege to join Standard Industries and to be asked to lead W. R. Grace through its next chapter,” Patel said. “Grace is an iconic company and a fundamentally strong business driven by its exceptionally talented employees. I look forward to working with the leadership team at Grace to take the company to new heights.”
Patel will succeed Hudson La Force, who has served as CEO of Grace since 2018. Under La Force’s leadership, Grace has made significant investments to deliver higher growth in its catalysts and materials businesses. La Force will continue as CEO until the end of the year and will join Standard’s advisory board in January 2022.
“Hudson is an exemplary leader who has been instrumental in building Grace into the leading global chemicals business it is today. We appreciate his continued service as CEO through the end of the year and are excited to welcome him to Standard’s advisory board,” said Winter and Millstone.
About Standard Industries:
Standard Industries is a privately-held global industrial company operating in over 80 countries with over 15,000 employees. The Standard ecosystem spans a broad array of holdings, technologies and investments—including both public and private companies from early to late-stage—as well as world-class building materials assets and next-generation solar solutions. Throughout its 140-year history, Standard has leveraged its deep industry expertise and vision to create outsize value across its businesses, which today include operating companies GAF, BMI, Siplast, GAF Energy, Schiedel and SGI, as well as related businesses 40 North, a multi-billion-dollar investment platform, 40 North Ventures and Winter Properties.
To view this piece of content from cts.businesswire.com, please give your consent at the top of this page.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210831005554/en/
Contact information
Media Contacts:
Patrick Ryan
Edelman
610-306-7536
Patrick.Ryan@edelman.com
Josh Hochberg
Edelman
Josh.Hochberg@edelman.com
Beth Kseniak
Standard Industries
917-509-7031
beth.kseniak@standardindustries.com
About Business Wire
For more than 50 years, Business Wire has been the global leader in press release distribution and regulatory disclosure.
Subscribe to releases from Business Wire
Subscribe to all the latest releases from Business Wire by registering your e-mail address below. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Latest releases from Business Wire
TOURISE and Oxford Economics Release New Global Report on Tourism Resilience in an Era of Permanent Disruption17.8.2026 17:33:00 EEST | Press release
TOURISE, in collaboration with Oxford Economics, today released a new report, “Resilience in a World that Doesn’t Reset: Redesigning Tourism for an Era of Permanent Disruption.” The analysis of 85 major crises over two decades shows a clear pattern: in a world defined by continuous shocks, destinations that act before disruption hits recover up to 1.5 times faster than those that wait. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260817880835/en/ “In a world that does not reset between crises, disruption is a constant feature of the global tourism landscape,” said His Excellency Ahmed Al-Khateeb, Minister of Tourism of Saudi Arabia and Chairman of TOURISE. “The real test for destinations measures how they prepare for volatility, protect traveler confidence, and maintain continuity ahead of such events.” Using the current Middle East crisis as a lens, where Gulf hubs carry roughly 14 percent of global transit traffic, the r
The Expensify Visa® Commercial Card Brings New Proactive Spend Controls to 14 Countries17.8.2026 16:00:00 EEST | Press release
Expensify, Inc. (Nasdaq: EXFY), the easiest way to manage expenses, travel, and corporate cards, today expanded the reach of Expensify Card spend rules, the market-leading way for businesses to control corporate card spend before it happens. Available to businesses in 14 countries, spend rules let admins decide exactly how, where, and when each Expensify Card can be used, so only compliant transactions go through. Unlike traditional corporate cards that rely on after-the-fact expense review, the Expensify Card enforces policy at the point of purchase. Admins set the rules once, and the card handles the rest. With Expensify Card spend rules, admins can: Lock a card to a subscription. Give each recurring SaaS tool its own virtual card, so a vendor can only ever charge what it should. If the card owner changes teams or leaves, the subscription keeps running, with no swapping cards and no missed payments. Cover a one-time purchase. Issue a virtual card for a single transaction like event r
Riskified Analysis Finds Travel Fraudsters Are Adapting Faster Than Traditional Signals Can Keep Up, With May Flight Risk Up 32%17.8.2026 15:30:00 EEST | Press release
Riskified (NYSE: RSKD), a global leader in ecommerce fraud and risk intelligence, today released new findings from its Travel Industry Insights report, revealing how sophisticated fraud rings and AI-enabled fraudsters are evolving their tactics across airlines, hotels, and online travel platforms. Riskified’s analysis shows that fraudsters are increasingly adapting their behavior to resemble legitimate travelers, making traditional fraud indicators less reliable and creating new challenges for travel merchants. Riskified’s analysis of hundreds of millions of travel transactions across flights, hotels, and land transportation found that flight fraud risk increased through the first five months of 2026, with May 2026 marking the sharpest year-over-year increase at 32% compared to May 2025. The findings show that sophisticated fraud activity is not limited to predictable travel peaks, with organized fraud rings continuously adjusting their methods throughout the year. Riskified's travel n
PIF Delivers Strong Revenue and Profit Growth in 202517.8.2026 14:54:00 EEST | Press release
PIF today published its 2025 Annual Report demonstrating strong financial performance and continued progress against its long-term objectives. As a long-term investor with a unique mandate to drive the economic transformation of Saudi Arabia and deliver sustainable financial returns, PIF maintained a diversified portfolio in 2025, balancing returns with national impact and long-term resilience. Maintaining Financial Discipline In 2025, revenue rose 9% year on year to $120 billion, while net profit more than doubled to $17 billion, supported by stronger contributions from maturing portfolio companies. PIF retained over $900 billion in assets under management and achieved an annualized total shareholder return of 5.8% since 2017. Total shareholder return in 2025 was positively driven by increased dividends from portfolio companies and returns from financial investments. It was also impacted by downward movements in the valuations of some assets, as a result of wider market conditions, an
Foundever Successfully Closes a Holistic Recapitalization, Reducing its Debt by Nearly $900 Million and Strengthening its Financial Position for Long-Term Growth17.8.2026 14:30:00 EEST | Press release
Foundever Group S.A.® (“Foundever” or the “Company”) – a global leader in integrated customer experience, digital operations and analytics services, today announced that it has successfully closed a holistic recapitalization (the “Transaction”) in coordination with 95.4% of the lenders under its term loan facility (“Term Loan Lenders”), 100% of its revolving credit facility lenders (“RCF Lenders”), and the Company’s existing majority shareholders. The Transaction meaningfully strengthens Foundever’s financial foundation and positions the Company to invest in its growth strategy. Key terms of the Transaction include: Company's existing majority shareholders invest $225 million into common equity. Term loan facility exchange reduces the Company's total debt by nearly $900 million. Revolving credit facility maturity date is extended by more than four years to December 2030, and term loan maturity date is extended by more than 2.5 years to March 2031. Certain of the Company's RCF Lenders p
In our pressroom you can read all our latest releases, find our press contacts, images, documents and other relevant information about us.
Visit our pressroom