Tag Archives: Plastics news

Bayer Material Science Now Covestro

As a distributor of Engineering Plastics AIN Plastics has had a long and great relationship with Bayer Material Science. Now, we here at AIN are pleased to be carrying on this same great relationship with Covestro. The company formerly known as Bayer Material Science is now a legally independent company that is still a full subsidiary of Bayer AG.

As a distributor we are looking forward to working with the same great materials and people and we are eager to see what the future brings now that Covestro stands on its own. Although some things remain the same, the change to Covestro is more than a pretty new logo. It is an opportunity that has been embraced by the Bayer team to reflect on it’s goals and it’s purpose and with that has come a new vision that Covestro released along with their new logo:

Covestro Logo Blk Txt CMYK“Making the World a Brighter Place”

In a recent press release Covestro’s CEO Patrick Thomas stated “We fulfill this vision by inspiring innovation and driving growth through profitable technologies and products that benefit society and reduce environmental impacts.”

As has been the case in the years leading up to the change, Covestro and AIN Plastics have worked with customers throughout just about every industry from high tech aerospace, defense and automotive to the demanding applications of medical device, food processing, orthotics and prosthetics and on into fine art preservation and architecture. It’s a broad range and Covestro has the high quality materials needed to supply them all. In addition, one of the things that has made the AIN Plastics / Bayer partnership so successful is our shared focus on continuous growth of industry knowledge that we bring to our customer service. As a company Covestro employs approximately 14,000 workers around the globe and according to news reports that number may be increasing soon. The US headquarters will remain in Pennsylvania where they are already sporting the bright new logo on signs around the property.

AIN Plastics is looking forward to our continued partnership with Covestro. As a top manufacturer of polycarbonate resins, sheets and shapes AIN Plastics is happy to continue stocking and selling their materials. Our team will be on the front line of learning about new Covestro materials and applications in the months and years to come, and as always, everyone at AIN Plastics will be eager to assist customers in finding that just right engineering plastic for their application.

 

 

 

For more information and articles about Bayer Material Science’s transition to Covestro see these links:

Bayer US Website

Pittshurgh-Post Gazzette

Wall Street Journal

 

See you in the blogosphere again soon!

Lisa Anderson

Marketing Manager
ThyssenKrupp Materials, NA
AIN Plastics Division


lisa_anderson_001CroppedAbout Lisa Anderson

Ms. Anderson has been ThyssenKrupp Materials AIN Plastics Division for over 3 years. She brings 20+ years of advertising, award winning graphic design, social media and marketing. She has worked in book publishing, advertising agencies, printing, manufacturing, and the apartment industry. Ms. Anderson has a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Studio Arts from Calvin College, Grand Rapids, MI.

Why Should our Business buy Material Through Distributors?

Aren’t I better off Cutting the Middle man out and Going Direct?
In our pop-culture world today we are barraged with phrases like “buy factory direct” or “manufacturer direct cost savings to you”.  Are these cost saving statements even true, or just snazzy marketing terms meant to get ones attention?  Furthermore, is it relevant to your business decisions?  I think its worth a laugh to imagine people traveling miles to stand in line for a gallon of milk outside of a dairy farm.  We don’t really think about distributors on a day to day basis, but companies like Costco and Wal-mart helped make the term “just in time” (JIT) part of our common vocabulary and those organizations, by definition, are distributors. They build relationships with the dairy farmer, the bread baker, the shoe maker. They then buy in bulk and move product you need to places where it’s easy to buy them all in one place. (The one-stop shop.)

Let’s Apply Distribution to the Industrial Market
Let me illustrate these same principles of the use of distribution into the industrial marketplace.  As an example lets consider a sector of the healthcare market. Medical

Medical Plastic Rod Colors

grade plastic shapes are used in the manufacture of surgical instruments and devices, healthcare equipment and the like.  The raw material for medical grade plastics come in a variety of colors, sometimes its for ease of identification purposes between various sizes, sometimes colors may be valued for the aesthetics of an individual brand.  The real problem could begin when a desired color isn’t a common/standard color.  For example we can get a ‘flamingo pink’ produced but it will likely require both a lengthy lead time for the resin and a minimum quantity to extrude the shape.  The volume needed for such customization is usually out of most individual customers reach especially while their end product is still in the proto-type stage.  Now imagine this special color, along with other common ones, used by a large volume OEM and they perceive their best price is to buy direct from the mill.  Let’s also keep in mind the price of material may not really be the same as the cost.  So why might this company consider buying via a distributor instead of direct?

The ‘What-Ifs’ of What Could and Sometimes Does go Wrong

  • There is a resin shortage in the market – it happens! Aside from the pain of the long lead time there’s now no room for error; in quality or inspection, quantity changes to accommodate an increase in demand.
  • Outside forces affecting production or shipping and delivery – power outages, hurricanes or blizzards, fire or flood, etc.
  • The mill accepted the order for the flamingo pink previously, but then there’s a capacity or another manufacturing issue.  Now it’s a triage situation.  Consider what then may happen with the common colors that this same customer needs or for that matter the whole industry is wanting to purchase.

The Benefits of Buying Through a Distributor

  • Manufacturers produce material and they are experts at it!
  • Our manufacturing partners are, and should be, the innovators of new and better plastic materials to the market.
  • Most often manufacturers are single location facilities and many have a limited

    Customers can benefit from the large steady inventory distributors keep. It can mean low minimum orders and shorter lead time to receive your order.

    logistical reach.

  • Tying up space in their facility in order to stock huge amounts of material for customers limits areas they could use to expand operations.
  • The same great application and technical resources are still available to customers through an approved distributor. In fact, sales staff at distributors can also be a great resource for technical advice as they have relationships with multiple customers using the same product.
What Exactly Does a Distributor Do?
  • A distributor ‘supplies’ material so managing and inventing inventory solutions and moving product to customers is what we do – its who we are.
    • Multiple Locations Close to you. ThyssenKrupp AIN Plastics Division has multiple facilities and more people in a local area that can assist customers, and still helps them in meeting vendor reduction goals.

      Distributors often have many locations stocked with product while manufacturers often have a single location. Multiple locations can mean shorter lead time, and product you need in stock.

    • Large Inventory all the Time. We already buy in bulk from all the world’s best manufactures of plastics shapes thus providing the same quality of material.
    • Enjoy the Benefits of low Minimums and JIT. Combining volumes of special material may alleviate large minimums to any one customer.  Keeping material in our warehouse and not the customer’s allows for product to be received only when its needed.  This not only frees up space but inventory dollars that could be used for other business purposes.
    • Less Lead Time, Fewer Headaches. A good stocking distributors who focuses on your particular industry helps ensure a smooth flow of product thus becoming a buffer between the end-user and the bumps in the market such as issues of lead-time, volatile pricing etc.

It Is Called a ‘Supply Chain’ –Let us Be Your Strongest Link!

Lin Poulin
Telemarketing Manager
ThyssenKrupp Materials NA
AIN Plastics Division

Citations

IAPD (international association of plastics distribution) “The Distribution Channel Value”, content provided from NAW (National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors) http://www.iapd.org/distribution value

Know This, marketing tutorial  “Benefits Offered by Channel Members” http://www.knowthis.com/distribution

TexasA&MUniversity, Department of Engineering Technology and Industrial Distribution program, http://etidweb.tamu.edu