10/13/2009, Rocky Hill, Conn.
October 19, 2009 marks the 15th anniversary of the ribbon cutting for the Henkel headquarters located at One Henkel Way in Rocky Hill, Conn. The 190,000 square foot administration and research and development facility, situated on 57.35 scenic acres, has seen many changes in 15 years.
The building construction was originally commissioned by Loctite Corporation, a global adhesives and sealants company that was founded in Hartford, Conn. in 1953. The new construction provided a state-of-the-art, world-class facility for the consolidation of Loctite’s Industrial Adhesives business, then located in Newington, Conn., with its Automotive and Consumer Adhesives Group, headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio.
At the time of the ground breaking in 1993, Henkel, a German-based manufacturer of laundry and home care, personal care, and adhesive, sealant and surface treatment products, was a major Loctite shareholder and acquired the company, along with the Rocky Hill facility, in January 1997. This merger positioned Henkel as the new world leader in the adhesives industry. The Rocky Hill Loctite Corporation location became the headquarters for Henkel’s North American adhesives business and in December 2003 was renamed to the current Henkel Corporation.
The Rocky Hill location expanded in 2008 when Henkel decided to move its North American corporate headquarters to Rocky Hill from its former Gulph Mills, Penn. site. This change added more than 80 employees to site, bringing the employee count in Rocky Hill to 400.
Current operations in Rocky Hill include research and development, marketing, sales, and customer service for Henkel’s expansive line of adhesives and industrial solutions found in everything from cars and computers to aircraft, books, packaging and more. Corporate functions at the site include finance, legal, HR and communications.
Another noteworthy change to the Henkel facility is its address. The original address, 1001 Trout Brook Crossing, was changed to One Henkel Way in July of this year, indicating Henkel’s established commitment to the Rocky Hill community.