REDMOND, WA – Univar Inc., a global chemical distributor, announced that J. Erik Fyrwald will join the company as President and Chief Executive Officer effective May 7. Fyrwald is currently President of Ecolab, a global provider of water, hygiene and energy technologies that merged with Nalco in December 2011. Fyrwald will also become a member of Univar’s Board of Directors.

As a result of the addition of Fyrwald to the executive team, Univar’s current President and Chief Executive Officer John J. Zillmer will assume the position of Executive Chairman of Univar and its Board of Directors, succeeding William S. Stavropoulos, who will move to the role of Lead Director. As Executive Chairman, Zillmer will continue to focus on leadership development, corporate strategy and the company’s global growth initiatives.