“We are rooted in companies commonly acknowledged as authorities in industrial fluids and valued experts in customer processes,” said Michael F. Barry, the new company’s chairman, chief executive and president.

“Our similar cultures and values, combined with the talent and resources we bring to Quaker Houghton, create exciting opportunities to deliver innovative solutions that will help our customers’ operations run even more efficiently and effectively.”

The new company is called Quaker Houghton and is trading under the ticker symbol KWR.

The merger has been two years in the making, and to satisfy anti-trust concerns, the company divested product lines, including its steel cold rolling oil and tinplate rolling oil businesses. The lines were sold to Total Lubrifiants for US$37 million.

Philippe Charleux, senior vice president of Total’s lubricants and specialties unit, said the acquisition will strengthen its position in the industrial lubricants market.

“Geographically we are strengthening our strong presence in Europe and expanding our activities and market penetration in North America, especially the USA,” he said. 

Quaker Houghton, meanwhile, said its customers will benefit as those who bought products from one of the two will have access to the other’s menu of fluids.

As an example, legacy Houghton customers will benefit from Quaker’s expertise in specialty greases, and high-pressure die casting, surface treatment and bio-based lubricants, while legacy Quaker customers will have access to Houghton’s heat treatment quenchants, metal finishing products and a broader array of metal-removal fluids. 

“Our foundation will be the same customer-intimate operating model that has been key to the success of our customers,” Barry said. “Moving forward together, we will draw upon our rich history and shared expertise to enhance our product and service offerings and continue to deliver value-added service expertise to our customers.”