Grace Opens New European Centre near Barcelona, Spain

W. R. Grace & Co. (NYSE:GRA) has opened a new Customer Centre of Excellence near Barcelona, Spain.

Employees at this location support customers across Europe for Grace Construction Products. The centre brings employees from several locations together to provide a high level of support. The Barcelona site enables Grace to standardize customer service protocols and cross train among product groups, allowing for increased productivity and efficiencies.

Thirty employees currently work at the new Viladecans (Barcelona) location with the site having the capacity to house up to 80 employees. In conjunction with this opening, Grace is relocating an additional 30 office employees from a nearby manufacturing location in Sant Boi, Spain.

Barcelona was chosen as the location for the Centre of Excellence due to the area’s highly educated, multilingual workforce and its location in the Central European Time Zone, which allows for extended hours of coverage to customers.

“This centre utilizes best practices learned from sites in other parts of the world,” remarked Greg Freeman, Vice President and General Manager for Grace Construction Products – Europe. “We have always maintained a high level of customer support but are vigilant for ways that we can continually improve.”

Grace has operated in Spain for nearly 50 years. Grace, S.A., the company’s legal entity in the country, was founded on August 8, 1961. In addition to the Barcelona sites, Grace has a manufacturing location in Hernani, Spain that supplies coatings for aluminum containers.

The new address is: Grace S.A., Edificio Australia, Second Floor, Viladecans Business Park, Antonio Machado 78-80, 08840 Viladecans, Barcelona, Spain. The telephone number will be + 34 936351000 and the fax number will be + 34 936351111, effective September 1, 2009.

Grace Construction Products produces specialty construction chemicals and materials, including concrete admixtures and fibers used to improve the durability and working properties of concrete; additives used in cement processing to improve energy efficiency, enhance the characteristics of finished cement and improve ease of use; building materials used in commercial and residential construction and renovation to protect buildings from water, vapor and air penetration; and fireproofing materials used to protect buildings in the event of fire.

Grace is a leading global supplier of catalysts and other products to petroleum refiners; catalysts for the manufacture of plastics; silica-based engineered and specialty materials for a wide range of industrial applications; sealants and coatings for food and beverage packaging, and specialty chemicals, additives and building materials for commercial and residential construction. Founded in 1854, Grace has operations in over 40 countries. For more information, visit Grace's web site at www.grace.com.