Richard E. Heckert

Richard E. Heckert, 85, who served as DuPont’s chief executive officer during the 1980s, died on Jan. 3.

Born in Oxford, Ohio, Heckert earned a B.A. in chemistry from Miami University, in Oxford, in 1944. He then served in the Army, working on the Manhattan Project at the Oak Ridge, Tenn., atomic energy facility. He received an M.A. in 1947 and a Ph.D. in organic chemistry in 1949, both from the University of Illinois.

Heckert joined DuPont as a research chemist at the Experimental Station laboratories of the company’s Central Research & Development Department in Wilmington, Del. He remained at DuPont for his entire career, becoming a director, senior vice president, and a member of the executive committee in 1973. In 1981, he became president and chief operating officer of the company. After the company’s merger with Conoco, Heckert was elected a vice chairman of DuPont. He was named chairman and CEO in 1986 and retired in 1989.

During his tenure at DuPont, Heckert was known for his commitment to research and safety. He engineered the company’s withdrawal from the Savannah River Plant, a nuclear facility DuPont managed for the government. When it was determined that chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) were detrimental to the ozone layer, he acted quickly to phase out CFCs from DuPont’s products by the end of the century.

Heckert received two alumni achievement awards from the University of Illinois and established the Richard E. Heckert Chair in Chemistry there.

He was chairman of both the National Association of Manufacturers and of the Society of Chemical Industry. He was also a member of the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards and an emeritus member of ACS, joining in 1948.

Heckert was involved in many civic, philanthropic, and professional organizations during his lifetime, including serving as the president of the United Way in Delaware and chairman of the board of trustees of the Carnegie Institution for Science. An avid outdoorsman, Heckert chaired the Nature Conservancy from 1989 to 1995.

Heckert is survived by his wife of nearly 14 years, Joanna. His wife of 50 years, Barbara, died in 1995. He is survived by children Alex and Andra Rudershausen; and six grandchildren.