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
Messer Acquires Singapore-Based Industrial Gas Platform; Japan Corporate Advisory Institute Advises Sellers3.7.2026 12:11:00 EEST | Press release
Messer, the world’s largest privately held specialist for industrial, medical, electronic and specialty gases, has acquired WKS Group, a Singapore-based industrial gas platform with operations across Singapore and southern Malaysia. Transaction terms were not disclosed. Messer reported consolidated sales of approximately EUR 4.5 billion for its 2025 financial year. Founded in Singapore in 1977, WKS Group comprises six companies and employs approximately 195 people across Singapore and southern Malaysia. The acquisition expands Messer’s operating footprint in Southeast Asia and strengthens its access to key industrial clusters across the region. “We are pleased to have completed this transaction with Messer, whose strategic vision makes them an excellent partner for WKS Group,” said Mr. Wong Koh Hoi, shareholder of WKS Group. “We appreciate JCAI’s professionalism and dedication throughout the process, and their expertise was instrumental in achieving a successful outcome.” Japan Corpora
Access Advance Welcomes Meta Platforms, Inc. and Alibaba Group to the Video Distribution Patent Pool3.7.2026 02:00:00 EEST | Press release
Access Advance LLC today announced that Meta Platforms, Inc., one of the world's largest distributors of video content across its Facebook, Instagram, Threads, and WhatsApp services, has joined the Video Distribution Patent Pool (VDP Pool) as a Licensee. Meta also joined both the HEVC Advance and VVC Advance pools as a Licensee. Alibaba Group, whose video infrastructure spans a wide range of video-based services across e-commerce, entertainment, and digital media platforms, was also announced as a VDP Pool Licensee this week. Meta and Alibaba joining the VDP Pool further reinforces the program’s market leading position in resolving the licensing issues around the use of modern video codecs, including VP9, AV1, HEVC and VVC, across all the diverse business models of internet video streaming. "A significant U.S.-based company like Meta joining as a Licensee is a milestone moment for the content distribution business and the VDP Pool," said Peter Moller, CEO of Access Advance. "Meta reach
Kioxia Commences Sample Shipments of 10th-Generation BiCS FLASH™ Devices Delivering High Performance, High Capacity and Low Power Consumption3.7.2026 02:00:00 EEST | Press release
Kioxia Corporation, a world leader in memory solutions, today announced that it has commenced sample shipments of 1Tb (terabit) Triple-Level-Cell (TLC) memory devices utilizing its 10th-generation BiCS FLASH™ 3D flash memory technology.1 These will be primarily integrated into the company’s enterprise and data center SSDs, strengthening Kioxia’s lineup to meet the growing demand for AI storage, which requires higher performance, higher capacity, and lower power consumption. These new products will be manufactured using state-of-the-art equipment at Kioxia’s Kitakami Plant Fab2 facility in Iwate Prefecture, Japan. By leveraging innovative CMOS directly Bonded to Array (CBA) technology2 and On-Pitch Select Gate Drain (OPS) technology,3 both adopted since the 8th-generation BiCS FLASH™, the 10th-generation technology achieves a NAND interface speed of 4.8 Gb/s,4 a 33% improvement over the 8th generation. Bit density has increased by 59% by stacking 332 layers and improving lateral density
Bending Spoons S.p.A. announces closing of initial public offering2.7.2026 21:35:00 EEST | Press release
Bending Spoons S.p.A. (“Bending Spoons”), a leading technology company, today announces the closing of its initial public offering of an aggregate of 57,971,015 of its ordinary shares, at an initial public offering price of $29.00 per share. The offering consisted of 34,398,640 shares sold by Bending Spoons and 23,572,375 shares sold by certain selling shareholders (the “Selling Shareholders”). The gross proceeds from the offering to Bending Spoons, before deducting underwriting discounts and commissions and other offering expenses, was approximately $953,917,285.50. Bending Spoons did not receive any proceeds from the sale of shares by the Selling Shareholders. Bending Spoons’ ordinary shares began trading on the Nasdaq Global Select Market on July 1, 2026 under the ticker symbol “BSP”. Goldman Sachs International, J.P. Morgan, and Allen & Company LLC are acting as joint lead book-running managers for the offering. Wells Fargo Securities, BofA Securities, Jefferies, Evercore ISI, BNP
Strategic Partnership Between Record Asset Management and Admicasa2.7.2026 20:00:00 EEST | Press release
RAM Swiss Holding AG is a subsidiary of LSE-listed Record Financial Group (Record) and part of the Record Asset Management (RAM) group of companies. The partnership is a milestone in the growth of Admicasa and marks an important step in the continued expansion of Record’s private markets platform. Subject to regulatory approval, the agreement, signed on 1st July 2026, provides RAM Swiss Holding AG with a 50% participation in the Admicasa Fondsleitung AG, part of Admicasa, and establishes a long-term partnership to develop investment opportunities in the Swiss and Global real estate market with a plan to expand into other asset classes in the medium term. RAM is the European asset management arm of Record, the LSE-listed specialist investment group managing USD 115 billion of assets on behalf of institutional clients worldwide. Record's client base comprises pension funds, foundations, sovereign institutions and other asset managers, with whom it has built long-standing relationships th
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