DuBois History

DuBois has been a sustainable cleaning solutions provider for nearly 90 years. Here are some highlights of our history:

1920 – The DuBois Soap Company is founded by T.V. DuBois in Cincinnati, Ohio. Established in a small four story structure adjacent to the Ohio River, the fledgling operation manufactures soap chips and powders for the city’s growing restaurant trade with a goal of "Sell – Service – Satisfy."

1940 – DuBois survives the Great Depression in good financial condition and begins to expand its restaurant soap line to encompass industrial, maintenance and transportation cleaning products.

1964 – DuBois product lines continue to grow with the key additions of water treatment and polymer lubricant products.

1968 – DuBois expands its future capabilities, building a state of the art research and manufacturing facility in Sharonville, Ohio.

1972 – As the environmental movement takes shape, chrome chemistry becomes a major concern. DuBois takes the lead, reformulating applicable products to remove chrome based chemistry wherever possible
and evaluating existing product lines for newer environmentally friendly
materials that will also meet performance requirements.

1986 – DuBois forms a separate sales division to focus on the pulp and paper industry based on the success of DuBois products in that industry.

1986 – DuBois aggressively pursues product development that will lower customers cost through the reduction of energy, water and labor use. Leadership knows this approach will have a two-fold effect, as these reductions will also have positive environmental impacts. This period becomes known by many as the “DuBois Renaissance of Innovation” as DuBois introduces a variety of products including:

• 1988 – GCO Family of Water Treatment Products. Designed to reduce labor and water cost through an “all-in-one” approach for cooling tower treatment.
• 1989 – Confidence Family of Water Treatment Products. The second line of labor saving “all-in-one” products designed to reduce boiler water use through lower sludge and blow down requirements.
• 1989 – Sure Safe Family of Paper Products. Formulated with reduced caustic alkali and butyl solvents, they are designed to be clean air solvents, addressing growing needs of the paper industry for safe products that are environmentally friendly.

1990 – DuBois grows to become one of the largest distributors of cleaning chemicals in the United States with sales in excess of $275 million.

1992 – DuBois continues to evaluate and reformulate products to improve environmental profiles and remove or reduce such environmentally harmful products as Formaldehyde, Methylene Chloride and Alkyl Phenol Ethoxylates (APE’s).

1999 – DuBois introduces a product line that becomes a benchmark in their efforts to create products that reduce environmental impact and
cost. The patented Powder-in-a-Bag-in-a-Box (or PBB) Family of Products for cooling and boiler water treatment not only provide the same labor
and water savings of their other “all-in-one” products, but also eliminate the use of metal drums to improve environmental profiles while lowering cost through the elimination of drum storage and disposal requirements.

2001 – DuBois begins a second “Renaissance of Innovation” pushing the research and development of products and applications that will further reduce environmental impact while providing cost savings to customers. The results include:

• 2001 – LINK-Science Family of Products. Metal finishing sealers that contain no phosphate, no carbon and enhances paint adhesion and salt spray performance, reducing labor and energy.
• 2002 – Secure Tec Family of Products. Metal finishing products designed to reduce energy use by lowering bath temperatures up to 30 degrees.
• 2004 – DuJel Family of Products. Patented thixotropic gel that clings to surfaces to improve cleaning action while reducing chemical spend and labor cost. DuJel also reduces rinse
  requirements, production and equipment downtime, and improves cleaning turnaround time.
• 2006 – Modular Solutions for Water Treatment. A green systems approach designed to improve environmental profi les while providing cost savings. The program includes our PBB family of products and our trademarked Modu-Light ultraviolet light technology that reduces or eliminates the use of biocides.
• 2007 - DuraTec Family of Products. As the changing economy impacts the prices of raw materials, DuBois introduces a family of
  environmentally friendly, non-phosphate, metal pretreatment
  products that also reduce energy and labor cost though lower bath
  temperatures and reduced sludge.

2008 – DuBois pursues a major initiative of being their customers’ partner in sustainability by offering innovative cleaning solutions that strive to be lean, green and clean.