National Silicates is gone after decades in the community.
Another large company is gone from the community as National Silicates shut its doors last month after 92-years in business.
About 100 employees at the 429 Kipling, at Horner Avenue, plant will be out of jobs with the closure. In its heyday, it had i68 manufacturing facilities in 19 countries and five continents.
The company goes back to 1815, with Joseph Crosfield and Sons in Warrington, England; and 1831, with Joseph Elkinton and Sons in Philadelphia, started with the manufacture of candles and soaps, beginning a two-century story of innovation.
The firm grew to more than 1,500 employees and generated over $800 million in revenue.
The company has 92-years of history and has been serving the community for decades.
National Silicates has been serving customers in Canada since 1931, and was the first non-U.S. subsidiary of The PQ Corporation.
Lynda Ryder, president of the Rotary Club Etobicoke, worked at the company for 47 years and said it is sad to see another large company leave the community.
“I describe the people that I worked with as friends and confidantes,” said Ryder, a former board member with the firm. “It’s been very sad for everyone.”
She cited companies like Canadian General Tower, Goodyear Rubber, Campbell’s Soup, Gilbey’s Distilleries and many others which have left the community, or shut down, over the years.
“Most of those presidents were also Rotarians who gave back to our community,” she said. “Strong personal ties have remained at the core of National Silicate’s culture and this close-knit team has made it a great place to work.”
At one time National Silicates had 168 manufacturing facilities in 19 countries.
Ryder said the company, which won awards for business excellence, encouraged employees to volunteer in their communities, and was a supporter of the Santa Claus Parade, Tree Planting in Marie Curtis Park, LAMP, Dorothy Ley Hospice, Women’s Habitat and the Jean Tweed Centre.
“As we close our doors for the last time, we leave behind an amazing community,” she said. “We are friends and most of us are, in reality family.”
National Silicates was headquartered in Toronto and had production and distribution facilities in Valleyfield, Quebec; Toronto, Fort Frances, Whitecourt, Alberta; Surrey and Parksville, B.C.
The company’s Global Centre for Pulp and Paper Excellence was in Etobicoke and staffed by highly trained scientists who conducted research and development, as well as technical service.
Its principal product is sodium silicate used in the bleaching of wood pulp for paper manufacture and water treatment, among its many uses.
The PQ Corporation and its affiliates was the world’s largest producer of sodium and potassium silicates, according to the company’s website.