Jersey City was home to the headquarters of the M. W. Kellogg Company, which specialized in chemical engineering projects. In 1942, the S-1 Committee tasked Kellogg with conducting research into the feasibility of the gaseous diffusion process for separating uranium isotopes. As the Manhattan Project began, Kellogg's vice president of engineering, Percival "Dobie" Keith, took charge of a newly created subsidiary of Kellogg, the Kellex Corporation. At the Jersey City plant, Kellex's scientists and staff conducted research essential to developing a successful gaseous diffusion barrier and building the K-25 Plant at Oak Ridge, Tennessee.