Jump to content

Peak (automotive products)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Old World Industries, LLC.
FormerlyOld World Trading Company
Company typePrivate
IndustryAutomotive, chemical
FoundedNovember 1, 1973; 50 years ago (1973-11-01)
FoundersJ. Thomas Hurvis
Riaz H. Waraich
Headquarters3100 Sanders Rd., ,
BrandsPEAK, BlueDEF
Revenue8,106,279 Euro (2021) Edit this on Wikidata
Number of employees
245 (2021) Edit this on Wikidata
Websitewww.oldworldind.com
www.peakauto.com

Old World Industries (OWI) is an American automotive and chemical company best known for their PEAK brand of motor oil, antifreeze and other automotive products. The company markets itself as an "independent, family-owned business". It sells products in over 60 countries.[2][3][4][5]

History

[edit]

The company was founded in 1973 as a chemical trading company by ad agency owner Tom Hurvis and his friend, Pakistan-born cotton exporter Riaz Waraich during a Petrochemical shortage related to the 1973 oil crisis. The company began exporting cotton to Asia and Europe in 1984. In 1986, Old World purchased the Peak brand from Enron Chemical, becoming the second-best-selling brand of antifreeze in the U.S. by 1994. The company introduced a line of spark plugs called SplitFire in 1990.[4][5][6]

In 1999, OWI purchased chemical company Celanese AG (spun off from parent company Celanese), which focused on Ethylene oxide and Ethylene glycol production based in Clear Lake, Texas. In 2012, Old World sold the chemical division to Thailand-based Indorama Ventures for $795 million.[1][5][7]

Brands

[edit]
  • PEAK
  • BlueDEF – Diesel exhaust fluid marketed under the PEAK brand
  • Sierra – marketed as a safer alternative antifreeze[1][2]
  • Fleet Charge – engine coolant[1]
  • Final Charge – heavy duty engine coolant
  • Blue Mountain Professional – windshield wiper blades
  • SmartBLADE – wiper blades

Endorsements

[edit]
Kyle Petty in 1989.
Paul Menard's Menards/PEAK Antifreeze Chevy in 2008.

PEAK is known for its sponsorship of motorsports teams and events, primarily in the IndyCar Series, NASCAR, and the NHRA. OWI sponsored the fall Sprint Cup Series event at Dover International Speedway from 1989 to 1992 as the PEAK Antifreeze 500 and from 1993 to 1994 as the SplitFire Spark Plug 500. It began sponsoring NASCAR's online iRacing.com series in 2009, becoming the title sponsor in 2014 for what is now the NASCAR Peak Antifreeze Series.[8][9] The iRacing Sponsorship ended in 2020. The brand announced it would sponsor the NASCAR Mexico Series, beginning in 2017, on October 18, 2016. As a result, the series was officially renamed to the NASCAR PEAK Mexico Series. The Mexico Series sponsorship ended in 2022.

Drivers and teams endorsed by PEAK

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c d e "Old World Industries Sells Chemical Business to Indorama Ventures PCL". prnewswire.com. Northbrook, Illinois: Old World Industries, PR Newswire. February 7, 2012. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |url= (help)
  2. ^ a b c "Old World Industries, LLC Company Profile". hoovers.com. Hoovers. Retrieved 21 April 2015.
  3. ^ "ABOUT PEAK: No big oil execs, no board of directors, and zero hype". peakauto.com. PEAK. 2015. Retrieved 21 April 2015.
  4. ^ a b "AMERICAN INGENUITY AT WORK: OWI drives technology and innovation". oldworldind.com. Old World Industries. Retrieved 21 April 2015.
  5. ^ a b c "Client Profile: Tom Hurvis". williamblair.com. William Blair & Company. 2013. Retrieved 21 April 2015.
  6. ^ Gruber, William (April 17, 1995). "Old World Sparks A Surefire Success In Own Private Way". chicagotribune.com. Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 21 April 2015.
  7. ^ Whiteman, Lou (February 7, 2012). "Indorama to acquire Old World unit". thedeal.com. The Deal Pipeline. Archived from the original on 22 April 2015. Retrieved 21 April 2015.
  8. ^ "NASCAR, iRacing.com Announce Six Year Licensing Extension". racer.com. Racer Media & Marketing, Inc. February 13, 2015. Retrieved 21 April 2015.
  9. ^ "iRacing.com and PEAK® Antifreeze/Coolant Ink Multi-Year Commitment". prnewswire.com. Bedford, Massachusetts: PR Newswire. February 21, 2014. Retrieved 21 April 2015.
  10. ^ a b c "Team PEAK". peakauto.com. PEAK. Retrieved 21 April 2015.
  11. ^ a b "Old World Industries and Joe Gibbs Racing Announce Multi-Year Partnership".
  12. ^ "PEAK® Coolant & Antifreeze, BlueDEF® Diesel Exhaust Fluid Partner with Haas F1 Team | Haas F1 Team".