Air Products was founded by the late Leonard P. Pool in 1940 in Detroit, Michigan, on the strength of a simple, but then revolutionary, idea: the "on-site" concept of producing and selling industrial gases, primarily oxygen.  At the time, most oxygen was sold as a highly compressed gas in cylinders that weighed five times more than the gas product. Air Products proposed building oxygen gas generating facilities adjacent to large-volume gas users, thereby reducing distribution costs.  The concept of piping the gas directly from the generator to the point of use proved sound and technically solvable.

In the intervening years, the company has expanded its business through internal development and acquisitions. Today, Air Products, with operations in over 30 countries and annual sales of $5.7 billion, provides industrial gases and related equipment and services, and selected chemicals to a very diverse base of customers in the manufacturing, process and service industries.  The company distinguishes itself through its 18,000 employees around the world, who build lasting relationships with their customers based on understanding, integrity and passion. Air Products ranks 324th in sales and 279th in total assets among FORTUNE magazine's April 2001 list of the 500 largest corporations in the U.S. Corporate headquarters are at the company's 600-acre campus in eastern Pennsylvania's Lehigh Valley, near Allentown; European headquarters are at Hersham, near London; and Asian headquarters are in Singapore, with offices in Tokyo and Hong Kong. It has a major presence in the UK, Holland, Belgium, France, Spain, Czech Republic, Poland Germany, Portugal, Italy and Ireland.

At the European Technology Group (ETG) based in Basingstoke UK, approximately 45 people are employed in developing gas applications One of the major applications areas is Cryogenics to the Foods and other Industries, this is led globally from ETG. Over 70% of the ETG staff have degrees or PhDs.  The group, having over 50 patents in relevant application fields, serves a segment of Air products Business that has grown to over $200,000,000 globally, approximately 1/3rd of that total in Europe.

Approximately 45 people are employed in developing gas applications at the European Technology Group (ETG) based in Basingstoke UK.  One of the major applications areas is Cryogenics to the Foods and other Industries.  This is lead globally from ETG.

Key Personnel:

Jeremy P Miller (MinstR) leads the European Technology Group. He has 25 years in Cryogenic application development, heat transfer, temperature monitoring and control systems; and has 22 patents in the field of heat transfer and cryogenic applications.