Annual Report 2000 - Clariant

Restructuring in Germany
Customer focus was the key criteria when Clariant was organized
into divisions in Germany. Since July 1, 2000 the Pigments &
Additives, Functional Chemicals, Life Science & Electronic
Chemicals, and Cellulose Ether & Polymerisates divisions have
been operating their businesses as stand-alone units. Each is
therefore responsible for its own financial performance and
human resources utilization. The various production sites were
each assigned to the locally dominant division. The purpose was
to create flexible, easily manageable structures with clear lines of
responsibility, while avoiding costly redundant functions whenever
possible. In addition to strengthening customer focus, this
approach also increases productivity and paves the way for further
growth. As in the past, the Textile, Leather & Paper Chemicals
division will be overseen by Clariant (Deutschland) GmbH,
while the Masterbatches division will be run by Clariant Masterbatch
GmbH & Co. KG.
The services for the divisons are offered separately: Corporate
tasks (such as environment, safety and health, or legal matters)
will mainly be concentrated in the Clariant management company;
functions pertaining to the German business (such as
human resources, communications, or finance and accounting)
will be located in Clariant Service GmbH.
A total of around 10 000 employees work at 13 sites in Germany.
36 Exactly your chemistry.
Clariant Group companies
Exploiting growth
in local markets
Companies belonging to the
Clariant group throughout the
world not only focused their
activities on continually improving
productivity and efficiency;
they also worked hard to systematically
seize the opportunities
for growth in their local
markets. These efforts benefited
from stable trends in Europe and
North America, the rapid economic
recovery in Asia, and the
upswing in Latin America.
Thanks to stable economic conditions,
most Clariant companies
operating in Europe posted good
growth. In the Benelux countries,
our high market share was sustained
by dyes and chemicals for
carpet textiles. Strong sales were
reported in Belgium with
Sanitized ® products used in the finishing
of mattresses. At refineries
operated in the Netherlands by
the oil majors, there was strong
demand for Dodiflow ® flow
improvers. On the other hand, masterbatches
for spinning fibers came
under pressure from the growing
shift in production to the Middle
East.
Divisionalization was a major
factor affecting operations in
Germany (see inset). The new
structure should allow us to be
more responsive to market trends
and make us more competitive. In
October 2000 Clariant GmbH transferred
its logistics activities to
InfraServ Logistics GmbH. This company
will have a broad range of
responsibilities: Logistics relating to
all types of materials needed for
production, as well as order picking,
packaging and processing of shipments,
including the management
of hazardous materials. Capital
spending was increased, in particular
to eliminate capacity bottlenecks
in pigments and life science molecules
at the Höchst works.
In Great Britain, Textile Chemicals
and Pigments improved their
already strong positions. As part of
the consolidation drive, the Stainland
Functional Chemicals plant
was sold to the McIntyre Group. T.R.
Oil Services Ltd., Clariant's own oil
services company, benefited from
the acquisition of a small Californiabased
firm, Technical Services Company
Inc. A series of organizational
changes helped to improve the
management of operating resources
and to improve cost transparency.
In Scandinavia, our legal structures
were streamlined through a
reduction in the number of companies
from 9 to 4, and – except for
Finland – warehousing was centralized
in Sweden. Intensified marketing
efforts in the Baltic countries
improved business in all divisions.
At the Cuise-Lamotte plant in
France, a modern centralized warehouse
came on stream, resulting in
faster and more efficient delivery of
shipments and on-time handling of
chemical products. In order to boost
productivity, the manufacture of fine
chemicals will be shifted by midyear
from Lillebonne to Cuise-
Lamotte, where research laboratories
are already in operation. Even
though our business in Italy performed
well, additional measures to
increase productivity were necessary.
The production plant in Turin
was closed and moved to Palazzolo,
where the main administrative
offices are now also located. The
concentration of distribution facilities
is currently underway, as are
various outsourcing projects. In
Spain, the consolidation of various
companies was completed. Our subsidiary,
Disper SA, which is active in
the masterbatches business, made