Harold Sorgenti

Harold Sorgenti
Harold Sorgenti, 2004
Born	(1934-05-28)May 28, 1934 New York City, New York
Died	July 11, 2018(2018-07-11) (aged 84) Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Nationality	American
Scientific career
Fields	Chemistry

Harold Sorgenti was an American engineer, businessman and investor, the former president and chief executive officer of ARCO Chemical and a key member of Ennovance Capital. He has served as chairman of the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts and the Philadelphia Orchestra.

Education

Sorgenti received a B.S. in Chemical Engineering from City College of New York and an M.S. in Chemical Engineering from Ohio State University. ^[1]

Career

Sorgenti started his career as a scientist for ARCO Chemical company, a subsidiary of Atlantic Richfield, where he developed several U.S. patents that led to the formation of new chemical industrial processes. ^[2] He served as President and Chief Executive Officer of ARCO Chemical between 1979 ^[3] and 1991, ^[4] where he headed the transformation of ARCO Chemical that led to splitting the company into two entities: Lyondell Petrochemical (now LyondellBasell) and ARCO Chemical Company. ^[5]

After serving for ARCO Chemical, he co-founded with Fred Rullo the Freedom Chemical Company, ^[6] a company that made several lower middle-market acquisitions of specialty chemical companies, which sold to BFGoodrich for $375 million in 1998. ^[7]

In 2003 Sorgenti received the Petrochemical Heritage Award from the Chemical Heritage Foundation. ^{[8] [9]}

In 2010, Sorgenti joined Ennovance Capital, a Philadelphia-based private equity firm, as an operating partner. ^[10]

Sorgenti died on July 11, 2018. ^[11]

Cultural activities

In 1980 Sorgenti joined the board of the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts and was chairman from 1986 ^[1] to 1993. ^[12] From 2005 to 2009 he served as chairman of the Philadelphia Orchestra. ^[13]

References

1. "Sorgenti elected chairman of Academy of the Fine Arts" (fee required). The Philadelphia Inquirer . December 30, 1986. Retrieved August 4, 2010.
2. "Patent Searching Database". freepatentsonline.com. Retrieved August 4, 2010.
3. "Harold Sorgenti, a civic hard-charger is honored" (fee required). The Philadelphia Inquirer . April 22, 1985. Retrieved August 4, 2010.
4. "ARCO Chemical chief Sorgenti plans to retire". The Oil Daily. January 23, 1991. Archived from the original on November 4, 2012. Retrieved August 4, 2010.
5. Spitz, Peter H. (2003). The chemical industry at the millennium: maturity, restructuring, and globalization. Chemical Heritage Foundation. p. 34. ISBN   978-0-941901-34-5.
6. "New venture for retired ARCO CEO". The Philadelphia Inquirer . May 7, 1992. Retrieved August 4, 2010.
7. Brickley, Peg (July 10, 1998). "Heavy hitters launch new trust firm". Philadelphia Business Journal . Retrieved August 4, 2010.
8. "Sorgenti wins Heritage award". ICIS Chemical Business. Reed Business Information. March 24, 2003. Retrieved August 4, 2010.
9. "Petrochemical Heritage Award". Science History Institute. Retrieved 24 March 2018.
10. "Ennovance Capital - Harold (Hal) A. Sorgenti". www.ennovance.com. Archived from the original on 2010-08-20.
11. Cook, Bonnie L. "Harold A. Sorgenti, 84, Philly business and civic leader". philly.com.
12. "Service Rendered to the Great Cause of Art" (PDF). Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 22, 2011. Retrieved August 4, 2010.
13. "Philadelphia Orchestra's chairman steps down early". The Philadelphia Inquirer . January 27, 2009. Retrieved August 4, 2010.