DIVERSEY is a global brand specialising in professional cleaning, hygiene, infection prevention, and facility management solutions. It is widely recognised for supplying commercial and institutional customers with cleaning chemicals, dispensing systems, floor-care machines, hygiene technologies, and related services. Since July 2023, DIVERSEY has operated as part of Solenis following the latter’s acquisition of Diversey Holdings for approximately US$4.6 billion.[1]

The employee and customer figures presented above reflect DIVERSEY’s standalone business immediately prior to its acquisition. They do not represent the current headcount or customer base of the combined Solenis organisation.[1]

The history of DIVERSEY spans more than a century and is intrinsically linked to the evolution of professional cleaning and hygiene technology. The modern organisation emerged through a series of mergers, acquisitions, and corporate restructurings involving entities such as Diversey Corporation, DiverseyLever, Johnson Wax Professional, JohnsonDiversey, Sealed Air, and Bain Capital.

Early history

The DIVERSEY name originated in the professional cleaning industry in the United States. Over subsequent decades, the business evolved from a supplier of chemical cleaning agents into a comprehensive provider of integrated cleaning systems that combine chemicals with machinery, equipment, dispensing technology, and services.

This evolution distinguishes the DIVERSEY business model from that of consumer household cleaning product manufacturers. Rather than targeting individual consumers, DIVERSEY has focused on professional and institutional environments where cleaning performance, hygiene standards, safety, labour productivity, and cost control are paramount.

JohnsonDiversey

A pivotal stage in the company’s development was the formation of JohnsonDiversey, which merged the DIVERSEY professional cleaning business with Johnson Wax Professional. This era significantly expanded the company’s international footprint and established DIVERSEY as a major global supplier of institutional cleaning and hygiene solutions.

Sealed Air

In 2011, Sealed Air acquired Diversey Holdings, enabling it to expand beyond packaging and become a leading supplier of cleaning and hygiene products to institutional customers worldwide. During this period, the business operated primarily under the name Diversey Care. Its portfolio increasingly integrated professional cleaning chemicals, floor-care equipment, cleaning machines, food hygiene solutions, water and energy management, cleaning tools, and technology-enabled services.

Bain Capital

In 2017, Sealed Air divested its Diversey Care division and food hygiene and cleaning business to Bain Capital for approximately US$3.2 billion.[2] The resulting independent entity was referred to as New Diversey. This transaction created a more focused, standalone DIVERSEY business.

Public company period

Bain Capital subsequently took DIVERSEY public in 2021. Operating as Diversey Holdings, Ltd., the company’s shares were traded on the Nasdaq under the ticker symbol DSEY. During this period, DIVERSEY positioned itself as a provider of hygiene, infection prevention, and cleaning solutions, offering an integrated portfolio covering chemicals, dispensing equipment, cleaning machines, services, and digital analytics.

Acquisition by Solenis

On 8 March 2023, Solenis announced an agreement to acquire DIVERSEY for approximately US$4.6 billion. The transaction was completed on 5 July 2023, making DIVERSEY a private business within Solenis.[1] This acquisition combined DIVERSEY’s expertise in cleaning and hygiene with Solenis’s specialty chemical and water management capabilities. Solenis stated that the combination would enable it to offer customers a broader suite of solutions encompassing water management, cleaning, sanitation, and hygiene.[1]

At its core, DIVERSEY assists organisations in cleaning, disinfecting, sanitising, maintaining, and managing their facilities and operations. Its approach typically involves integrating multiple components rather than simply supplying cleaning chemicals. A typical DIVERSEY solution may comprise chemicals, equipment, dispensing systems, procedures, training, monitoring, and service. This integrated model is particularly relevant in environments such as hospitals, hotels, restaurants, supermarkets, schools, factories, and large commercial buildings.

Professional Cleaning Chemicals

DIVERSEY manufactures and supplies professional-grade chemical products for various cleaning applications. These include general-purpose cleaners, degreasers, disinfectants, sanitisers, bathroom cleaners, glass cleaners, floor cleaners, carpet and upholstery products, kitchen cleaners, food-service hygiene chemicals, laundry chemicals, and dishwashing chemicals. These products are designed for professional environments where cleaning efficacy and controlled chemical usage are essential.

Infection Prevention

Infection prevention is a critical area for DIVERSEY, particularly within healthcare and other high-hygiene environments. Solutions address surface disinfection, healthcare cleaning, hand hygiene, environmental hygiene, high-touch surface management, spill management, and cleaning protocols. The Oxivir product family, for example, is marketed for professional disinfection applications. The company positions infection prevention as a holistic discipline involving appropriate procedures, equipment, training, and consistent cleaning practices alongside chemical disinfection.

Floor Care

DIVERSEY is well known for its professional floor-care solutions. Its portfolio includes both chemicals and machines for scrubbing, vacuuming, polishing, burnishing, carpet cleaning, floor maintenance, and hard-floor cleaning. TASKI is one of the company’s most prominent equipment brands, comprising professional scrubber-dryers, vacuums, single-disc machines, robotic cleaning equipment, and other floor-care technologies.

Food-Service Hygiene

DIVERSEY provides cleaning and sanitation systems for restaurants, commercial kitchens, cafeterias, hotels, and food-service operations. Typical applications include dishwashing, kitchen cleaning, surface sanitation, degreasing, food-contact area cleaning, beverage equipment cleaning, and kitchen floor cleaning. The Suma product family is a prominent brand associated with professional kitchen and food-service cleaning.

Laundry

DIVERSEY supplies professional laundry solutions intended for large-scale operations in hotels, hospitals, healthcare facilities, commercial laundries, and hospitality venues. Solutions include detergents, bleaching systems, fabric-care products, dosing equipment, and programmes designed to optimise chemical and water consumption.

Commercial Dishwashing

For restaurants, hotels, hospitals, and institutional kitchens, DIVERSEY supplies systems designed for automatic dishwashing. These systems combine detergents, rinse aids, automatic dosing, dishwashing equipment, water-management technology, and monitoring and control systems. The objective is to achieve consistent hygiene while controlling water, energy, chemical usage, labour, and rewash rates. For instance, materials from 2026 highlight IntelliDish Control, which monitors mechanical dishwashing processes to manage hygiene, resource consumption, and rewash rates.[3]

DIVERSEY has historically operated a portfolio of specialised brands rather than selling all products under a single name.

TASKI

TASKI is the professional cleaning equipment brand of DIVERSEY. It encompasses floor scrubbers, vacuum cleaners, single-disc machines, robotic cleaning machines, cleaning accessories, and professional floor-care technology. The brand is widely used in hotels, commercial buildings, healthcare facilities, retail outlets, and other large facilities.

Suma

Suma is primarily associated with professional kitchen and food-service cleaning. Products cover dishwashing, kitchen surfaces, degreasing, food-contact areas, and beverage equipment.

Oxivir

Oxivir is a family of professional disinfectant and cleaning products, particularly associated with healthcare and institutional hygiene.

SURE

SURE is a range of professional cleaning products based on plant-based or renewable resources.

J-Fill

J-Fill is a controlled chemical dispensing system that allows professional users to dispense precise dilutions rather than manually measuring concentrated chemicals.

DIVERSEY operates as an integrated professional hygiene solutions provider rather than merely a cleaning chemical manufacturer. For example, in a large hotel setting, DIVERSEY might provide bathroom cleaning chemicals, kitchen chemicals, laundry chemicals, floor-care machines, disinfectants, chemical dosing equipment, cleaning tools, staff training, cleaning procedures, digital monitoring, and technical support. This integrated approach positions DIVERSEY as a long-term operational partner rather than a simple product supplier.

Prior to its acquisition by Solenis, DIVERSEY served more than 85,000 organisations across over 80 countries.[1] Major customer sectors include:

• Hotels and hospitality
• Healthcare and hospitals
• Restaurants and food service
• Retail and supermarkets
• Schools and universities
• Commercial buildings
• Industrial facilities
• Institutional kitchens
• Commercial laundries
• Transportation and travel facilities
• Large public facilities

The company continues to market solutions to major food-service and hospitality customers. For example, 2026 materials showcase cleaning equipment, dispensing systems, disinfection products, and hygiene technologies for McDonald’s restaurants.[3]

Before its acquisition, DIVERSEY described itself as serving customers in more than 80 countries, supported by a global workforce of approximately 8,600–9,000 people.[1] Following the acquisition, DIVERSEY’s operations became part of the larger Solenis organisation. Solenis reported that the combined business operated in more than 130 countries, with 71 manufacturing facilities and over 15,000 employees immediately after the transaction.[1] It is therefore important to distinguish between DIVERSEY’s historical standalone statistics and the current scale of the combined Solenis organisation.

Sustainability is an integral component of DIVERSEY’s product strategy. The company focuses on reducing the environmental impact of cleaning through lower chemical consumption, concentrated formulations, controlled dosing, reduced water and energy consumption, more efficient cleaning machines, recyclable packaging, reduced packaging materials, digital monitoring, longer equipment life, and more efficient cleaning processes. Current materials highlight SafePack pouches, described as recyclable packaging, alongside technologies designed to reduce water and energy consumption.[3] The underlying premise is that sustainability extends beyond “green” chemistry; a cleaning system can reduce environmental impact through the combined efficiency of chemistry, dosage, water, energy, labour, and equipment.

DIVERSEY is no longer an independent publicly traded company. In July 2023, Solenis completed its acquisition of DIVERSEY for approximately US$4.6 billion.[1] The strategic rationale combined DIVERSEY’s capabilities in cleaning, hygiene, sanitation, and infection prevention with Solenis’s expertise in specialty chemicals, water treatment, and industrial water management. Together, the companies address a wider portion of customers’ operational needs. Solenis described the combination as creating a more diversified company with greater scale and the ability to provide a broader suite of water management, cleaning, and hygiene solutions.[1]

Professional cleaning is a technically demanding industry distinct from household cleaning. For large institutions such as hospitals or hotels, cleaning involves complex considerations regarding chemical selection, concentration, contact time, surface compatibility, water and labour requirements, cleaning frequency, waste reduction, quality measurement, infection risk control, and equipment productivity. DIVERSEY’s business is designed to solve these operational problems at scale. Consequently, the company describes its offering as a combination of chemicals, dosing and dispensing equipment, cleaning machines, services, and digital analysis, rather than merely a collection of cleaning products.[1]

1. Solenis Completes Acquisition of Diversey for $4.6 Billion
2. SEALED AIR ANNOUNCES SALE OF NEW DIVERSEY TO BAIN CAPITAL PRIVATE EQUITY
3. McDonald’s Worldwide Convention 2026