SOCMA: Society of Chemical Manufacturers and Affiliates

New York – At the Synthetic Organic Chemical Manufacturers Association’s (SOCMA) Annual Meeting, Charles Hinnant was elected the new Chairman of the Board of Governors.  The meeting was held in New York City, on December 10, 2007.

Mr. Hinnant is the Chairman and CEO of Optima Chemical Group, LLC, a SOCMA member, and also holds the position of CEO and President of Charkit Chemical Corporation, a SOCMA associate member.  He has been involved with SOCMA for a number of years, holding a variety of positions within the association.  Mr. Hinnant is the past Vice-Chairman, a past Treasurer, and a past Chair of the Informex Committee.  During his time on the Board of Governors and the Informex Committee, the Informex trade show saw tremendous growth and was ultimately sold, putting the SOCMA on a solid financial footing for years to come. 

Mr. Hinnant is a graduate of Davidson College and holds an MBA from the University of North Carolina, Kenan-Flagler Business School.  He is a Trustee of the Chemical Education Foundation and in 2000, was presented the Eugene B. Humphrey Award for Small Chemical Business Entrepreneur of the Year by the American Chemical Society. 

“SOCMA has always been a member-driven association, and I am proud to be associated with it,” said Charles Hinnant.  He continued, “I look forward to working with the staff, the members and the Board of Governors to expand the association’s efforts and further enhance the benefits to members.”

Also at the Annual Meeting, SOCMA elected a slate of officers to the Board of Governors for one-year terms.

These are:

• Vice Chairman - Larry Brotherton, Ortec, Inc.
• Vice Chairman – Nick Shackley, Cambrex Pharma & BioPharmaceuticals
• Treasurer – Bob Quinn, Penn Specialty Chemicals, Inc.
• Secretary – Frank Lueckgen, LANXESS Corporation

Also elected were members of the Board of Governors that will serve three-year terms.

These are:

• Doug Cochran, FMC Lithium
• Bob Wedinger, Chemtura Corporation
• Charles Hinton, Ethox Chemicals, LLC
• Charles Gavin IV, MFG Chemical, Inc.
• David Fischer, Baker Petrolite Corporation
• Jack Boss, Honeywell International

SOCMA is the leading trade association, serving the specialty-batch and custom chemical industry since 1921. SOCMA's nearly 300 members employ more than 100,000 workers across the country and produce 50,000 products valued at $60 billion annually.  Please visit www.socma.com for more information. 

ChemStewards® is SOCMA's flagship environmental, health, safety and security (EHS&S) continuous performance improvement program.  ChemStewards was created from industry's commitment to reducing the environmental footprint left by member's facilities.  Industry created ChemStewards to meet the unique needs of the batch, custom, and specialty chemical industry. As a mandatory requirement for SOCMA members engaged in the manufacturing or handling of synthetic and organic chemicals, ChemStewards is helping participants reach for superior EHS&S performance.  To learn more visit www.chemstewards.org.    

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