GIBBSTOWN, N.J.–Deon Vos has been named President and Managing Director of EMD Chemicals Inc. He succeeds Meiken Krebs, who will assume the position of Senior Vice President of Strategy, Organization and Business Processes, Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany (EMD Chemicals is a North American affiliate of Merck KGaA). These appointments will take effect on January 1, 2010.

Vos will be based at the EMD Chemicals headquarters in Gibbstown, N.J., and report to Dr. Bernd Reckmann, Head of the Chemicals business sector and Member of the Executive Board, Merck KGaA. Krebs will be based at the Merck KGaA global headquarters in Darmstadt and report to Dr. Karl-Ludwig Kley, Chairman of the Merck Executive Board.

Vos, a native of South Africa, is currently the Managing Director of Merck (Pty) Ltd. in South Africa, responsible for leading the company’s overall activities in that country. Vos joined Merck’s South African affiliate in 1986 as Marketing Manager and then held the position of General Manager for the Chemicals business followed by being General Manager for the Pharma business. In 1998, he was appointed General Manager, Pharma International Asia and Asia Pacific, based in Darmstadt. In this role, Vos helped to bolster the presence of Merck KGaA in Asia by establishing the subsidiary in Hong Kong and laying the groundwork for setting up operations in China, Korea and Vietnam. He then returned to South Africa in a pharmaceutical role in 2000 and assumed his current position in 2002.

“Deon is an experienced leader with a profound knowledge of Merck KGaA’s business and products,” said Dr. Bernd Reckmann, Head of the Chemicals business sector and Member of the Executive Board, Merck KGaA. “We are confident that through his leadership, EMD Chemicals will thrive and grow in the markets it serves by consistently bringing innovative solutions to our customers.”

About EMD Chemicals Inc.

EMD Chemicals represents the North American chemical sector of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany. It is an international organization with nearly 1,000 employees and revenues of more than $US 300 million in 2008, providing specialty chemicals for pharmaceutical, biotech, cosmetic, automotive, plastics and other industrial applications. With headquarters in Gibbstown, N.J., EMD Chemicals is also engaged in the development, manufacture and distribution of a broad array of reagents used for life science research. Its sister company, EMD Crop BioScience located in Milwaukee, Wis., specializes in plant growth enhancement products for agricultural applications, including Optimize®. EMD Chemicals is known in the market by its product brands including Iriodin®, Xirallic®, Rona®, Calbiochem®, Novabiochem® and Novagen®, among others.

About Merck KGaA

Merck is a global pharmaceutical and chemical company with total revenues of € 7.6 billion in 2008, a history that began in 1668, and a future shaped by approximately 33,000 employees in 60 countries. Its success is characterized by innovations from entrepreneurial employees. Merck’s operating activities come under the umbrella of Merck KGaA, in which the Merck family holds an approximately 70% interest and free shareholders own the remaining approximately 30%. In 1917 the U.S. subsidiary Merck & Co. was expropriated and has been an independent company ever since.

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