BYK-Chemie adds in Brazil

By David Reed, UT EditorWesel, Germany- BYK-Chemie GmbH, the Altana Chemie AG subsidiary supplying additives for paints and plastics including polyurethanes, has opened an application and testing facility in Brazil.The unit occupies 190 sq. metres on the premises of BYK-Chemie's distributor in Brazil, Bandeirante Quimica, and is fully equipped with application and testing equipment, according to a 15 Dec statement from the German firm. It will serve the company's activities throughout South America, the statement said, adding that the firm expected to add further laboratory units in India and northern China "in the near future."The opening ceremony was attended by over 100 guests who heard Carlos Abreu, marketing director of Bandeirante Quimica, present his firm's "new, even more customer-oriented business model," the statement indicated. Detlev Lindner, business manager paint additives of BYK-Chemie, claimed that his company's new slogan-'Substance for Success'-is clearly reflected in the new application laboratory and its facilities for assisting coatings and plastics formulators with their daily work. And, according to Wolfgang Kortmann, global lab manager of BYK-Chemie, the new laboratory represents another milestone in customer approach, bringing the company closer to its customers and their regional situation.BYK-Chemie, founded in 1962, claims to be one of the world's leading suppliers of additives used in the coatings, inks, and plastics industry. It employs over 881 people worldwide, with about a quarter working in research and development or technical laboratories. About 85 percent of its sales are generated by exports across Europe, and into the United States and the Far East, the statement concluded."