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BASF optimizes organizational structure, opens Chinese innovation campus
FOCUS YTD net revenue was £1465 M, a 3% fall at actual exchange rates. However, excellent growth was noted from Vanish in a number of emerging market countries, combined with improving share trends in ENA. Original Source: Reckitt Benckiser plc, 103-105 Bath Road, Slough SL1 3UH, UK, tel: +44 1753 217800, fax: +44 1753 217899, website: http://www.rb.com (24 Oct 2012) © Reckitt Benckiser Group plc 2012
Clariant results for 3Q 2012 Clariant International had sales of SFR 1.923 bn in 3Q 2012, a rise of 3% on 3Q 2011, but a 3% fall in local currencies. The company’s CEO says the global economy has deteriorated further and growth in emerging markets can no longer compensate for the decline in Europe. The company is sticking to its mid-term forecast to 2015. Most divisions were affected by falls in sales but the Industrial & Consumer Specialties division (3Q 2012 sales of SFR 354 M; +5%) was among several that showed solid growth and are on course to meet their full-year targets. The company’s 3Q EBITDA before one-off effects was down from SFR 216 M to SFR 201 M. Net profits were down from SFR 81 M to SFR 49 M, mainly because of exchange rate effects. More recently, Clariant has put three businesses – Emulsions, Detergents and Intermediates; Paper Specialities; and Textile Chemicals – up for sale in a bid to focus on its core activities, including Industrial and Consumer Specialities. Original Source: Clariant International Ltd, Rothaustrasse 61, CH-4132 Muttenz 1, Switzerland, website: http://www.clariant.com (31 Oct 2012) © Clariant 2012. Original Source: ICIS Chemical Business, 10 Dec 2012, (Website: http://icischemicalbusiness.com) © Reed Business Information Limited 2012
COMPANY NEWS Unilever: Rotterdam becomes centre for marketing and innovation Unilever is to centralize its European marketing activities, further strengthening the position of
FEBRUARY 2013
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Rotterdam as a headquarters location, with a corporate HQ in London. The latter serves principally as Unilever’s financial and legal hub but Rotterdam will now be further developed as Unilever’s stronghold for marketing and innovation. Unilever also has one of its major international research laboratories in the area of Vlaardingen and this will be used to develop various new product introductions. 150 workers could be relocated to Rotterdam from other parts of Europe, commencing in 1H 2013. Original Source: Het Financieele Dagblad, 26 Nov 2012, 11 (Website: http://www.fd.nl/) (in Dutch) © Het Financieele Dagblad 2012
New factory in Brittany for Socomore French company Socomore has opened its €8.5 M factory in Elven. The factory produces solvents, waterbased detergents, paint cleaners, water-based lubricants, corrosioninhibiting agents and mould release agents. Socomore employs 89 people and will produce 300,000 litres/m of products at its new factory. It plans to double the proportion of its turnover coming from exports. Original Source: Chimie Pharma Hebdo, 29 Oct 2012, (610), 8 (Website: http://www.industrie.com/chimie/) (in French) © ETAI Information 2012
BASF optimizes organizational structure, opens Chinese innovation campus BASF SE is optimizing its organizational structure by cutting its number of segments from 6 to 5 and the number of divisions from 15 to 14, effective 1 Jan 2013. A new performance materials division has been created in the functional solutions segment, renamed Functional Materials & Solutions. The new division will bundle BASF’s downstream plastics from the performance polymers and polyurethanes divisions with the catalysts, construction chemicals and coatings divisions. There is also a newly created monomers division, while the petrochemicals division is being expanded to include propylene oxide. Elsewhere, BASF has inaugurated its first BASF Innovation Campus
Asia Pacific and its new Greater China HQ. The €55 M expansion at the company’s site in Pudong, Shanghai marks its most important innovation investment in the region to date. Ultimately employing 2500+ employees, the site will be one of BASF’s largest outside Germany. By 2020, BASF expects to have about 25% of its global R&D headcount in this region. Initially, around 450 R&D staff in technical teams from 17 regional business units will come together in the new Innovation Campus, forming a powerful innovation hub for BASF in Asia Pacific. Research will focus on advanced materials and sustainable solutions, including bio-based polymers for home and personal care applications. A strong analytics and material physics team will also support the R&D activities. China is BASF’s third-largest market worldwide. BASF has also invested €50 M in a 4300 sq m research building at its site in Ludwigshafen, Germany. This is due to open during 2H 2015, specializing in functional materials. Original Source: BASF SE, D-67056 Ludwigshafen, Germany, tel: +49 621 600, website: http://www.basf.com (5 & 6 Nov 2012) © BASF 2012. Original Source: Chimie Pharma Hebdo, 19 Nov 2012, (612), 9 (Website: http://www.industrie.com/chimie/) (in French) © ETAI Information 2012
Univar strengthens EMEA presence with first Austrian office Global chemical distributor Univar Inc has opened a new office in Vienna, Austria. Univar has been active in this market for 20 years, but this is the first time the company will have a local base, enabling it to work more closely with its Austrian customers and suppliers. Initially, Univar’s product offering will focus mainly on the coatings, construction, food, pharmaceutical, detergents and personal care industries. The distributor has also added Germany, Spain and Portugal to the scope of its long-standing agreement to distribute Dow’s speciality personal care ingredients in Europe, including EcoSense surfactants. Original Source: Univar, website: http://www.univarcorp.com (11 Oct & 21 Nov 2012) © Univar Inc 2012
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Clariant results for 3Q 2012 Clariant International had sales of SFR 1.923 bn in 3Q 2012, a rise of 3% on 3Q 2011, but a 3% fall in local currencies. The company’s CEO says the global economy has deteriorated further and growth in emerging markets can no longer compensate for the decline in Europe. The company is sticking to its mid-term forecast to 2015. Most divisions were affected by falls in sales but the Industrial & Consumer Specialties division (3Q 2012 sales of SFR 354 M; +5%) was among several that showed solid growth and are on course to meet their full-year targets. The company’s 3Q EBITDA before one-off effects was down from SFR 216 M to SFR 201 M. Net profits were down from SFR 81 M to SFR 49 M, mainly because of exchange rate effects. More recently, Clariant has put three businesses – Emulsions, Detergents and Intermediates; Paper Specialities; and Textile Chemicals – up for sale in a bid to focus on its core activities, including Industrial and Consumer Specialities. Original Source: Clariant International Ltd, Rothaustrasse 61, CH-4132 Muttenz 1, Switzerland, website: http://www.clariant.com (31 Oct 2012) © Clariant 2012. Original Source: ICIS Chemical Business, 10 Dec 2012, (Website: http://icischemicalbusiness.com) © Reed Business Information Limited 2012
COMPANY NEWS Unilever: Rotterdam becomes centre for marketing and innovation Unilever is to centralize its European marketing activities, further strengthening the position of
FEBRUARY 2013
ON
S U R FA C TA N T S
Rotterdam as a headquarters location, with a corporate HQ in London. The latter serves principally as Unilever’s financial and legal hub but Rotterdam will now be further developed as Unilever’s stronghold for marketing and innovation. Unilever also has one of its major international research laboratories in the area of Vlaardingen and this will be used to develop various new product introductions. 150 workers could be relocated to Rotterdam from other parts of Europe, commencing in 1H 2013. Original Source: Het Financieele Dagblad, 26 Nov 2012, 11 (Website: http://www.fd.nl/) (in Dutch) © Het Financieele Dagblad 2012
New factory in Brittany for Socomore French company Socomore has opened its €8.5 M factory in Elven. The factory produces solvents, waterbased detergents, paint cleaners, water-based lubricants, corrosioninhibiting agents and mould release agents. Socomore employs 89 people and will produce 300,000 litres/m of products at its new factory. It plans to double the proportion of its turnover coming from exports. Original Source: Chimie Pharma Hebdo, 29 Oct 2012, (610), 8 (Website: http://www.industrie.com/chimie/) (in French) © ETAI Information 2012
BASF optimizes organizational structure, opens Chinese innovation campus BASF SE is optimizing its organizational structure by cutting its number of segments from 6 to 5 and the number of divisions from 15 to 14, effective 1 Jan 2013. A new performance materials division has been created in the functional solutions segment, renamed Functional Materials & Solutions. The new division will bundle BASF’s downstream plastics from the performance polymers and polyurethanes divisions with the catalysts, construction chemicals and coatings divisions. There is also a newly created monomers division, while the petrochemicals division is being expanded to include propylene oxide. Elsewhere, BASF has inaugurated its first BASF Innovation Campus
Asia Pacific and its new Greater China HQ. The €55 M expansion at the company’s site in Pudong, Shanghai marks its most important innovation investment in the region to date. Ultimately employing 2500+ employees, the site will be one of BASF’s largest outside Germany. By 2020, BASF expects to have about 25% of its global R&D headcount in this region. Initially, around 450 R&D staff in technical teams from 17 regional business units will come together in the new Innovation Campus, forming a powerful innovation hub for BASF in Asia Pacific. Research will focus on advanced materials and sustainable solutions, including bio-based polymers for home and personal care applications. A strong analytics and material physics team will also support the R&D activities. China is BASF’s third-largest market worldwide. BASF has also invested €50 M in a 4300 sq m research building at its site in Ludwigshafen, Germany. This is due to open during 2H 2015, specializing in functional materials. Original Source: BASF SE, D-67056 Ludwigshafen, Germany, tel: +49 621 600, website: http://www.basf.com (5 & 6 Nov 2012) © BASF 2012. Original Source: Chimie Pharma Hebdo, 19 Nov 2012, (612), 9 (Website: http://www.industrie.com/chimie/) (in French) © ETAI Information 2012
Univar strengthens EMEA presence with first Austrian office Global chemical distributor Univar Inc has opened a new office in Vienna, Austria. Univar has been active in this market for 20 years, but this is the first time the company will have a local base, enabling it to work more closely with its Austrian customers and suppliers. Initially, Univar’s product offering will focus mainly on the coatings, construction, food, pharmaceutical, detergents and personal care industries. The distributor has also added Germany, Spain and Portugal to the scope of its long-standing agreement to distribute Dow’s speciality personal care ingredients in Europe, including EcoSense surfactants. Original Source: Univar, website: http://www.univarcorp.com (11 Oct & 21 Nov 2012) © Univar Inc 2012
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