As filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on June 5, 1996 Registration No. 33-_____ SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION Washington, D.C. 20549 ____________________________ FORM S-8 REGISTRATION STATEMENT UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933 ____________________________ IONICS, INCORPORATED (Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter) Massachusetts 04-2068530 (State or other jurisdic- (I.R.S. Employer tion of incorporation Identification No.) or organization) 65 Grove Street Watertown, Massachusetts 02172 (Address of Principal Executive Offices) (Zip Code) _____________________________ IONICS, INCORPORATED 1979 STOCK OPTION PLAN (Full title of the plan) _____________________________ Stephen Korn Vice President and General Counsel Ionics, Incorporated 65 Grove Street Watertown, Massachusetts 02172 (617) 926-2500 (Name, address and telephone number, including area code, of agent for service) Total of Sequentially Numbered Pages: 13 Exhibit Index on Sequentially Numbered: 9 /1 CALCULATION OF REGISTRATION FEE ___________________________________________________________________ Proposed Proposed Title of maximum maximum securities Amount offering aggregate Amount of to be to be price offering registration registered registered(1) per share(2) price(2) fee(3) ___________________________________________________________________ Common Stock, 700,000 shs. $49.31 $34,517,000 $11,902.41 $1.00 par value ___________________________________________________________________ (1) This Registration Statement also covers such indeterminable number of additional shares of Common Stock as may become deliverable as a result of future adjustments in accordance with the terms of the Ionics, Incorporated 1979 Stock Option Plan. (2) Estimated solely for the purpose of determining the registration fee pursuant to Rule 457(c) and (h) and based upon the average of the high and low prices of the Common Stock of Ionics, Incorporated (the "Company) on June 3, 1996, on the New York Stock Exchange. (3) Pursuant to Section 6(b). In addition, pursuant to Rule 416(c) under the Securities Act of 1933, this Registration Statement also covers an indeterminate amount of interests to be offered or sold pursuant to the employee benefit plan described herein. This Registration Statement will become effective automatically upon the date of filing, pursuant to the provisions of Section 8 of the Securities Act of 1933 and Rule 462 enacted thereunder, or such other day as the Commission acting pursuant to said Section 8 may determine. __________________________________________________________________ The approximate date of proposed sale to the public and cross reference sheet called for by Items 501(a) and (b) of Regulation S-K are not applicable and have been omitted. -2- /2 This Registration Statement registers additional securities of the same class as other securities for which registration statements filed on this form relating to the Ionics, Incorporated 1979 Stock Option Plan are effective (Registration Nos. 33-54293, 33-14194, 33-5814, 33-2092, 33-1178, 2-64255, 2-72936 and 2-82780). Pursuant to General Instruction E of Form S-8, the registrant incorporates by reference the following information from the registrant's prior registration statement on Form S-8 filed in connection with said Plan (Registration No. 33-54293). Information to be Incorporated by Reference 1. Item 3, "Incorporation of Documents by Reference" (p. 3 of Registration No. 33-54293). 2. Item 4, "Description of Securities" - Not Applicable. 3. Item 6, "Indemnification of Directors and Officers" (p. 4 of Registration No. 33-54293). Information Required in this Registration Statement Item 4. Interests of Named Experts and Counsel. Certain legal matters in connection with the offering of the shares of Common Stock of the Company are being passed upon for the Company by Stephen Korn, Vice President, General Counsel and Clerk of the Company. Mr. Korn is the beneficial owner of 41,800 shares of Common Stock in the form of presently exercisable stock options, 243 shares held in the Company's Section 401(k) Stock Savings Plan (based on December 31, 1995 401(k) plan data), and 1,223 shares of Common Stock granted under the Ionics 1994 Restricted Stock Plan. Item 5. Exemption for Registration Claimed. Not applicable. -3- /3 Item 6. Exhibits. Exhibit No. Description 4.0 Instruments defining the rights of security holders, including indentures *4.1 Rights Agreement, dated as of December 22, 1987, as amended and restated as of August 22, 1989, between the Company and The First National Bank of Boston (filed as Exhibit 1 to the Company's Current Report on Form 8-K dated August 30, 1989). *4.2 Indenture, dated as of December 22, 1987, between the company and The First National Bank of Boston, relating to Rights Agreement (filed as Exhibit 2 to the Company's Current Report on Form 8-K dated December 22, 1987). *4.3 Form of Common Stock Certificate (filed as Exhibit 4.10 to the Company's registration statement on Form S-2, No. 33-38290, filed on December 18, 1990). *4.4 Ionics, Incorporated 1979 Stock Option Plan, as amended through February 22, 1996 (filed as Exhibit 10.1 to the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 1995). 5.0 Opinion re legality 5.1 Opinion of Stephen Korn, General Counsel 23.0 Consents of experts and counsel 23.1 Consent of Coopers & Lybrand L.L.P. 23.2 Consent of Stephen Korn, General Counsel (contained in Exhibit 5 hereto) 24.0 Power of attorney __________________ *Incorporated herein by reference -4- /4 Item 7. Undertakings. (a) The undersigned registrant hereby undertakes: (1) To file, during any period in which offers or sales are being made, a post-effective amendment to this registration statement: (i) To include any prospectus required by Section 10(a)(3) of the Securities Act of 1933; (ii) To reflect in the prospectus any facts or events arising after the effective date of the registration statement (or the most recent post-effective amendment thereof) which, individually or in the aggregate, represents a fundamental change in the information set forth in the registration statement; (iii) To include any material information with respect to the plan of distribution not previously disclosed in the registration statement or any material change to such information in the registration statement; Provided, however, that paragraphs (a)(1)(i) and (a)(1)(ii) do not apply if the registration statement is on Form S-3 or Form S-8 and the information required to be included in a post-effective amendment by those paragraphs is contained in periodic reports filed by the registrant pursuant to section 13 or section 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 that are incorporated by reference in the registration statement. (2) That, for the purpose of determining any liability under the Securities Act of 1933, each such post-effective amendment shall be deemed to be a new registration statement relating to the securities offered therein, and the offering of such securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering thereof. (3) To remove from registration by means of a post- effective amendment any of the securities being registered which remain unsold at the termination of the offering. -5- /5 (b) The undersigned registrant hereby undertakes that, for purposes of determining any liability under the Securities Act of 1933, each filing of the registrant's annual report pursuant to Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (and, where applicable, each filing of an employee benefit plan's annual report pursuant to section 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934) that is incorporated by reference in the registration statement shall be deemed to be a new registration statement relating to the securities offered therein, and the offering of such securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering thereof. (c) Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the Securities Act of 1933 may be permitted to directors, officers, and controlling persons of the registrant pursuant to the foregoing provisions, or otherwise, the registrant has been advised that in the opinion of the Securities and Exchange Commission such indemnification is against public policy as expressed in the Act and is, therefore, unenforceable. In the event that a claim for indemnification against such liabilities (other than the payment by the registrant of expenses incurred or paid by a director, officer, or controlling person of the registrant in the successful defense of any action, suit, or proceeding) is asserted by such director, officer, or controlling person connected with the securities being registered, the registrant will, unless in the opinion of its counsel the matter has been settled by controlling precedent, submit to a court of appropriate jurisdiction the question whether such indemnification by it is against public policy as expressed in the Act and will be governed by the final adjudication of such issue. SIGNATURES Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, the Registrant certifies that it has reasonable grounds to believe that it meets all of the requirements for filing on Form S-8 and has duly caused this Registration Statement to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized in the Town of Watertown and Commonwealth of Massachusetts on the 4th day of June, 1996. IONICS, INCORPORATED By: /s/Arthur L. Goldstein Arthur L. Goldstein, Chairman of the Board, President and Chief Executive Officer -6- /6 Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, this Registration Statement has been signed by the following persons in the capacities and on the dates indicated. Signature Title Date /s/Arthur L. Goldstein Chairman of the Board, June 4, 1996 Arthur L. Goldstein President and Chief Executive Officer (Principal Executive Officer) /s/Robert J. Halliday Vice President, June 4, 1996 Robert J. Halliday Finance and Accounting and Chief Financial Officer (Principal Financial and Accounting Officer) -7- /7 Signature Title Date /s/Arthur L. Goldstein Director, Chairman of June 4, 1996 Arthur L. Goldstein the Board of Directors Director Douglas R. Brown /s/William L. Brown Director June 4, 1996 William L. Brown /s/Arnaud de Vitry d'Avaucourt Director June 4, 1996 Arnaud de Vitry d'Avaucourt /s/Samuel A. Goldblith Director June 4, 1996 Samuel A. Goldblith /s/Kachig Kachadurian Director June 4, 1996 Kachig Kachadurian /s/William E. Katz Director June 4, 1996 William E. Katz /s/Robert B. Luick Director June 4, 1996 Robert B. Luick /s/John J. Shields Director June 4, 1996 John J. Shields /s/Carl S. Sloane Director June 4, 1996 Carl S. Sloane /s/Mark S. Wrighton Director June 4, 1996 Mark S. Wrighton /s/Allen S. Wyett Director June 4, 1996 Allen S. Wyett By Attorney-In-Fact -8- /8 FORM S-8 IONICS, INCORPORATED 1979 STOCK OPTION PLAN EXHIBIT INDEX Exhibit No. Description 4.0 Instruments defining the rights of security holders, including indentures. *4.1 Rights, Agreement, dated as of December 22, 1987, as amended and restated as of August 22, 1989, between the Company and The First National Bank of Boston (filed as Exhibit 1 to the Company's Current Report on Form 8-K dated August 30, 1989). *4.2 Indenture, dated as of December 22, 1987, between the Company and The First National Bank of Boston, relating to Rights Agreement (filed as Exhibit 2 to the Company's Current Report on Form 8-K dated December 22, 1987). *4.3 Form of Common Stock Certificate (filed as Exhibit 4.10 to the Company's registration statement on Form S-2, No. 33-38290, filed on December 18, 1990). *4.4 Ionics, Incorporated 1979 Stock Option Plan, as amended through February 22, 1996 (filed as Exhibit 10.1 to the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 1995). 5.0 Opinion re legality 5.1 Opinion of Stephen Korn, Esquire 23.0 Consents of experts and counsel 23.1 Consent of Coopers & Lybrand L.L.P. 23.2 Consent of Stephen Korn, General Counsel (contained in Exhibit 5 hereto) 24.0 Power of attorney __________________ *Incorporated herein by reference -9- /9