COVESTRO
integrated as possible : “ Our task as industrial operations is to manage the whole supply chain from raw materials to production and our commercial operations pick it up at the factory gate and sell it to customers ,” Schäfer says . “ Everything that is necessary , from buying the raw materials through to production on-site , building plants , managing safety health and environmental aspects and project engineering ; these are tasks that we as an industrial operation have in this company .”
“ Currenta is the chemical park operator for our production plants in North-Rhine Westphalia ,” Schäfer adds . “ They are providing the complete infrastructure within the parks , and for that we are buying services from site security , fire brigade , rail connections , and then the biggest part in there is the energy supply .”
“ I always say it ’ s basically a partner you ’ re married to by definition ,” says De With , “ because you ’ re dependent on each other in these chemical parks . It really requires a strong relationship .”
“ Managing things like costs , reliability , and sustainability jointly also ensures that innovation is implemented in all activities ,” Schäfer explains .
Covestro ’ s unique and multifaceted business model has ensured that it is now a world leader in material solutions , and De With thanks the company ’ s community of people and skills for that : “ We strive for the right kind of diversity in the company to get different views , approaches , and angles to problems , and to really become much better . I think that sets us aside and will do even more in the future .” 46 April 2016