Gaylord Chemical, Only U.S. Maker of Dimethyl Sulfoxide, Relocates to Tuscaloosa, Alabama

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Gaylord Chemical (Slidell, Louisiana) has moved its chemical production facility in Bogalusa, Louisiana, to the Hunt Refining Company's refining site in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. In December 2010, Gaylord Chemical closed their manufacturing plant in Bogalusa and began operations in Tuscaloosa. This brought a new industry to Tuscaloosa and is said to have made it the western hemisphere's center for production of dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO), an odorless, colorless liquid chemical that is nonflammable and is considered nonhazardous by federal regulators. Gaylord Chemical is the only maker of DMSO in the U.S. and is expecting the Tuscaloosa plant to be the world's leading producer of the chemical within three years.

In order to make DMSO, producers must have a good supply of the chemical dimethyl sulfide (DMS). Tuscaloosa-based Hunt Refining Company had the potential to supply plenty, making this the ideal site for the plant relocation and giving the company a 70% increase in production capacity. Gaylord Chemical sells DMSO in more than 40 countries and has approximately 30 employees, 22 of whom work at the Tuscaloosa site.

The overall project investment reached an estimated $39 million. This consisted of closing the Bogalusa plant and relocating to Tuscaloosa, also building a warehouse for research and laboratory testing and building an aboveground pipeline to carry the liquid DMS from Hunt's facilities to Gaylord's relocated DMSO refining operation.

Gaylord is expecting the demand for DMSO to increase because it is a more environmental friendly chemical, allowing the company to have a brighter future ahead.

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