Pierce Biotechnology
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| Public (: TMO) | |
| Headquarters | Waltham, Massachusetts, USA |
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Key people
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Marc N. Casper (President & CEO) |
| Website | www.thermofisher.com |
Rockford, IL-based Pierce Chemical Company was founded in 1948 when Dr. Alan Pierce assumed active management of a company known as Midwest Extraction, which focused on extracting chlorophyll from alfalfa. Chlorophyll, the material that lends a green color to plants, was discovered in the 1930s to have therapeutic uses including the treatment of infections and burns and was useful for performing amputations.
When Dr. Pierce assumed leadership of the company, his objective was to transition the firm from its humble origins manufacturing chlorophyll to a manufacturer of fine organic chemicals. His goal came to fruition when, in 1950, he changed the name of the company to Pierce Chemical Company and his newly renamed company was the first commercial producer of ninhydrin, a chemical used in amino acid analysis. For the first several years, the company focused on producing and selling ninhydrin, but it soon began to expand its horizons and look for other products and markets.
In 1965, Roy Oliver succeeded Dr. Pierce as company president; however, Dr. Pierce would stay on at Pierce until his retirement in 1994. During the next few decades, the company expanded its operations internationally when it joined forces with European distributors.
In the 1970s, a high-tech industry known as biotechnology began to emerge. The company's focus soon began to shift from concentrating on manufacturing bulk chemical products toward the development and production of high-purity reagents for biotechnology research.
In 1983, Perstorp AB, a Sweden-based company, purchased Pierce. Perstorp AB was a Swedish manufacturer of chemicals, resins, plastics, and laminates.
In 1985, researchers at Pierce Chemical Company, led by Paul K. Smith, published a method detailing the use of bicinchoninic acid (BCA) as a protein quantitation reagent. The BCA protein assay method maintains the high sensitivity and low variability among proteins associated with the Lowry protein assay, while providing increased tolerance to the presence of non-ionic detergents and buffer salts. The BCA assay has since become one of the most widely used methods of protein quantitation.
Pierce was recognized for its international marketing efforts in 1990 when it received the US President's "E" Award for success in exporting. Only 24 "E" awards were presented nationwide that year.
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