Who we are
We are a world-leading supplier of high-performance, highly specialised polymers and ingredients that play vital roles in key sectors such as coatings, construction, adhesives, and health and protection – growing markets that serve billions of end users worldwide. Headquartered in London, UK, we employ over 4,000 people around the world.
Our strategy
Since 2022, we have been delivering on our transformational strategy to become a more focused, stronger speciality chemicals business and fulfil our purpose: creating innovative and sustainable solutions for the benefit of customers and society.
Innovation and sustainability are integral enablers for our strategy, important differentiators for our customers, and key to value creation in the long term. Our customers’ sustainability ambitions demand innovative products with demonstrable sustainability benefits – an area of growing strength for us.
Customer-centric innovation gives us clear competitive advantage, and this year we sustained our consistent record of ensuring that new and protected products (NPP) make up at least 20% of our sales volume over the long term.
What we do
Our roots stretch back to 1863 and we have never stopped evolving. From our five innovation centres of excellence in the UK, Germany, Malaysia, China and Ohio, USA and 31 manufacturing sites across Europe, Americas and Asia, we collaborate closely with over 6,000 customers worldwide to develop new products and enhance existing ones tailored to their needs, with an increasing range of sustainability benefits.
Through our focus on making our business more efficient, more global and even more specialised, we are positioned to lead the way as a speciality business whose products enhance people’s homes and cities, lifestyles, transportation and healthcare.
Our purpose and core values
Our values help us achieve our purpose: creating innovative and sustainable solutions for the benefit of customers and society.
We are focused on innovation – welcoming change and new ideas. We value teamwork because we are stronger as one team. We act with integrity and show respect. And we believe in accountability, delivering on our promises. Most important is safety, health and environment. We always have time to work safely.
Our financial performance
In 2024, we generated £2 billion of revenue and £147 million of EBITDA. In the last five years, we have generated more than £10 billion of revenue and £1.3 billion of EBITDA.
Our strategy
In 2022 we set out our refreshed strategy to become more focused, more specialised and more global, which will help us to fulfill our purpose: creating innovative and sustainable solutions for the benefit of customers and society.
Find out moreOur business model
We are a business-to-business speciality chemicals producer, aiming to create value for our stakeholders by providing high-performance water-based polymers and ingredients to a wide range of blue-chip customers in multiple attractive end markets.
Find out moreOur divisions
Our business is built around three divisions, serving customers in key sectors such as coatings, construction, adhesives, and health and protection – attractive markets that serve billions of end users worldwide.
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