Looking back at 1990: Norton thwarts hostile takeover, sells to Saint-Gobain

Write a Comment

This year, the Worcester Business Journal marks its 25th anniversary. In each print edition, we will highlight a major event that took place within the Central Massachusetts business community between 1990 and 2014 and how that event impacts today’s business scene.

Later this year, on Oct. 13, we will publish a special 25th Anniversary commemorative edition in which we will look at the companies and business leaders who made a difference in the region, and we’ll look ahead to what the coming years could bring.

THE EVENT: Norton Co. of Worcester is acquired by Saint-Gobain.

RECAP: Norton, one of the region's largest manufacturers and a long-time symbol of Worcester's manufacturing prowess, is sold to the French conglomerate Compagnie de Saint-Gobain. The sale came not long after Norton fended off a hostile takeover bid from BTR of Great Britain, then got a reported $1.8 billion ($200 million more than what BTR had offered) by agreeing to the Saint-Gobain marriage. The deal came at a time when manufacturing employment across the United States was beginning to fall and multinationals were investing more outside their home countries.

FAST FORWARD: The Norton name is still on its products. But the better-heeled Saint-Gobain has expanded to other parts of Central Massachusetts, such as its ceramics and plastics operation in Northborough, and its most recent addition, a manufacturing facility in Devens that makes a component for light-emitting diodes (LEDs). Today, Saint-Gobain is the third-largest manufacturer in the region (behind EMC and Genzyme), employing nearly 2,000. n

Looking back to 2002: Building 19 buys Spag's

Looking Back to 2004: The Galleria Mall is sold