Defining the role of Chemical Manufacturers

A chemical manufacturer can be best defined as a workplace where chemicals are produced for use or distribution. A chemical manufacturer has a legal commitment to evaluate the hazards of chemicals that they produce or distribute.

The chemical manufacturers are expected to analyze the accessible scientific literature in order to determine the dangers of the chemicals that they either manufacture or import. Manufacturers must mark containers that leave their workplace and acquire or develop a safety data sheet for every chemical.

The chemical manufacturer must have the following as part of his chemical information:

• The physical and chemical properties of the hazardous chemical

• The known health effects like acute and chronic

• Other related health information

• Precautionary measures and exposure

• Emergency and first-aid procedures

The key challenges faced by chemical manufacturers

In today’s active business scenario, a company’s deficit of agility will significantly impair their ability to be competitive. The chemical industry is very volatile, wants the players in this sector to evolve and accommodate themselves to the dynamic market conditions continually. To help them accomplish this, chemical manufacturers must have a solid IT infrastructure and ERP system that can interpret operational data, support important business functions, and ensure revised organizational transparency. With the growing competition on one side and mounting challenges on the other, the only alternative left with the chemical manufacturers to remain in the market is to covert these challenges into opportunities. It is better to have a look at the key challenges that are faced by chemical manufacturers:

• Unanticipated variations in commodity prices

• Increased number of recalls and quality audits

• Managing manufacturing and operational data

• Cutting down formula costs to conceive new efficiencies

Introduction to speciality chemicals

While ubiquitous, products in the speciality chemicals industry may not always present the most intuitive choices. Think about the last can of beer you had while watching a baseball game in the stands. No, you’re right—beer is not a speciality chemical (or maybe it just is for some). I’m referring to the can, and in essence, the beverage can coating industry. Investors here are generally not very concerned about which beverage is taking pole position—as long as the cans are selling.

If beverage cans are not the end market you want exposure to, however, you might consider the automotive industry. As the biggest newsmaker lately, electric cars are heavily reliant on lithium because this is the raw material needed for their batteries. In this sense, an indirect exposure to the electric car market through lithium manufacturers could be a great way to avoid competition among car makers while still profiting from the trend of “going electric.”

Ergo, specialty chemicals!

The speciality chemicals industry, therefore, provides to diverse sectors with innovative products which are necessarily tailored to the fixed requirements of these end markets. These products nevertheless act as intermediaries to other consumer industries.

The speciality chemicals industry is characterized by high product and end-market diversity. The dynamics on the demand side thus vary significantly across segments, according to the attributes of specific end markets. Therefore, the broader industry is based on the following end markets like construction and housing, automotive, and industrial markets.