We’re proud to number Lubrizol among our suppliers, not only because of the superior products it brings to market, but because it’s one of the true leaders in the industry.  That was recognized by Chemical & Engineering News, which has spotlighted Lubrizol as its Company Of The Year for 2009.

As their article puts it,

The most impressive performance among chemical companies last year was Lubrizol’s. Looking at the firm’s results, one would hardly know a recession was going on. Its earnings for the first three quarters increased 67%, to $385 million, on sales of $3.4 billion. Executives expect earnings to increase 78% for the full year and hit a company record. James L. Hambrick, Lubrizol’s CEO, credits his employees. “It’s not an exaggeration for me to tell you that every single person in our company did more with less this year,” he told analysts in October.

What makes this even more impressive are the companies also in the running for the title; worthy and statured firms, all of them.  Lubrizol made the best of tough times in the industry, setting itself up for success as the economy rebounds.

Dr. Kligman, the dermatologist and educator who led Retin-A to market, among other achievements, passed away on February 9, 2010, at the age of 93.  He was a signature example of the commitment and sense of inquiry and innovation that’s led to so many breakthroughs over the years in both the sciences, and their  practical application in the realm of personal care products.   His endowments to the University of Pennsylvania, and the influence he’s had on generations of students, will ensure the progress and good works he initiated will continue well into the future.

Investment dollars are finding their way back into the natural personal care category, according to this recent story via CGI Magazine; recent acquisition deals show how companies and brand are recovering the interest of investors after an 18-month lull brought on by the financial crisis.

Names such as Aveda managed to maintain growth and solid results throughout the downturn, in part because of their independence and because consumers identified them as ‘ethical’ brands which offered the authenticity that’s important to more and more shoppers as time goes on.

This news also points up how investment follows innovation, as pathfinders in this category are now reaping the rewards of offering consumers alternatives that, in many cases, instigated new lifestyle behaviors and buying patterns, helping to create mass momentum behind a fresh new extension to the personal care category.

Our valued supplier AkzoNobel is investing heavily in innovation,  pointed up by this article about their significant outlay to enhance their research establishment at Felling, in the UK.  The benefits of this will undoubtedly be felt by customers, like ours, who depend on exactly this sort of heads-up investment to assure them of ingredients and formulations that will advance their own competitive edge.

We’re fortunate to have suppliers, such as AkzoNobel, that haven’t relented in their R&D spending during the recession because they recognize how critical it is to future success.  And their products will be foremost among those that prime the pump for a strong recovery.

The conservatively upbeat outlook for this year is tempered by the obvious slowness in other areas of the economy that affect the chemical industry, though the personal care products category has been a bright spot.  The overall business declined by 6.2% in 2009, its second drop following a 4.7% fall in 2008.

We’d like to think that made the personal care sector stand out isn’t just the power of consumer demand — though we obviously can’t begin to discount that.  Some of the credit, according to industry pundits and analysts, goes to the the very qualities we rely upon for our own success here at Coast Southwest (but which are certainly not exclusive to us): a high degree of customer engagement, leading to partnered innovation resulting in strong product offerings in these burgeoning segments. 

These product categories are intensively competitive, and demand constant development of new formulations, new ideas and new approaches.  That takes imagination, communication and collaboration, on an intense level.  Just because a given category is accelerating is no guarantee of success; indeed, that situation presents its own challenges and potential for missteps.  And just because the analytics and predictions indicate an upswing, where 2010 will really succeed or fail is “on the ground” — through the continual effort and focus of the people making the breakthroughs and connections necessary to drive that success.

Simplistic?  Maybe.  But it’s interesting how, time and again, success or failure comes back to these evergreen basics.

Since nearly everybody in the chemical industry is touched by enironmental and sustainability issues and concerns, we’ve made a habit of checking in on ICIS’s Green Chemicals blog,  one site that provides consistently-updated reportage on these topics, aggregating news on government and industry activity and the “development of green within the chemical industry.”    There are many good links to stories about companies, consortiums and researchers who are making daily progress in paving the way for a greener, yet still very profitable future.

We’re proud to be launching this new CSW INNOVATION BLOG, where we hope to put a focus on the innovation and inventiveness of the companies and individuals who have helped our industry grow and prosper over the decades, as well as on the trends that will affect us all tomorrow.  The creativity and integrity of these people – some our own here at Coast Southwest, many of them our suppliers, others our customers, and some even our competitors – deserves to be recognized.  And that’s true now more than ever before.

It’s no secret that, along with the rest of the U.S. economy, the chemicals industry experienced a “wild ride,” as one analyst put it, in 2009.  It’s our conviction that truly successful companies and outstanding individuals, when faced with the challenges and hurdles seen over this past year, find ways to maintain their headway even when the going gets tough. 

A huge component of that is that they typically redouble their quest for innovation – whether through improved ingredients, new formulations, or more efficient ways of producing, distributing or marketing the mainstays they’ve already got in hand.  That’s certainly been our approach over the years, to be a little self-serving: we’re proof that innovation can help a business flourish even in difficult times.

That kind of innovation is the key to continuous improvement, and to the health and growth of our category and businesses.  Innovation helps secure the welfare of employees, and the satisfaction and delight of consumers.  In short, innovation builds a future for every stakeholder in our industry, and it’s going on every day, in every corner of the chemicals business. 

So Coast Southwest will use this blog to shed a special light on innovation, not only where it impacts our customers and suppliers for surfactants, silicones and personal care specialties, but also wherever innovation is making a difference for the industry in general.