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BASF starts up new plant for super absorbents in Thailand
BASF started up a new plant for the production of super-absorbents in the Eastern Seaboard Industrial Estate, Rayong. The plant will have an annual
capacity of 20,000 metric tons. The official inauguration ceremony was held on Friday January 12, in the presence of Dr. Stefan Marcinowski, member of the board of BASF
Aktiengesellschaft, H.E. Hermann Erath, the German Ambassador to Thailand, Staporn Kavitanon, Board of Investment secretary general and Prapan Cholweerawong, Rayong governor.
 (l-r) Prapan Cholweerawong, Rayong governor, Staporn
Kavitanon, Board of Investment secretary general, H.E. Hermann Erath, the German Ambassador to Thailand, Dr. Stefan Marcinowski, member of the board of BASF Ak and Chew Eng
Soo, managing director of BASF (Thailand) Ltd., pull the handle to officially open the plant.
The market for super absorbents is one of the fastest growing in the chemical industry. The Rayong plant, which was initiated by Chemdal before its
acquisition by BASF, is a perfect fit in BASF’s strategy of being present in the important emerging markets of Asia. The plant, which employs the latest technology, will
supply markets in Thailand and other countries in Asia and already runs at high capacity. Commenting on the Rayong project, Dr. Helmut Nickels, head of BASF’s global super
absorbents business said, “In line with our strategy, we will systematically expand our market position in Southeast Asia during the next few years. This will also lead to
an expansion of our Asian capacities in due course. In doing so, we will greatly benefit from our acrylic acid complex at our Verbund site in Kuantan, Malaysia, which started
production in mid-2000. The super absorbent plant in Rayong will be supplied with acrylic acid from Kuantan.”
Rayong, with its proximity to Kuantan, is strategically located in the heart of Asia. This will enable fast and reliable delivery to customers in the
region.
In addition to Thailand, BASF produces super absorbents in Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States. A new plant is currently being constructed in
Belgium. The planned acrylics complex in Brazil also comprises a super absorbent plant, which is targeted to start-up by the end of 2003. BASF is the world leader in super
absorbents and its main component acrylic acid. The company is the only one in the world with production facilities in the Americas, Europe and Asia for both products.
Super absorbents are partially cross-linked sodium polyacrylates. These substances, which are able to absorb up to 25 times their own weight of water, have
been used since the mid-1980s in hygiene products such as baby diapers. Other uses are found in agriculture and cable wrappings, including submarine cables.
BASF is a return-focused global company generating long-term growth and profitability from its activities in chemicals, health and nutrition, and oil and
gas. The company’s product range includes high-value chemical, plastics, dyestuffs and pigments, dispersions, automobile and industrial coatings, crop protection products,
fine chemicals, crude oil and natural gas. BASF’s approach to integration, known in German as ‘Verbund’, is one of the company’s particular strengths and provides a
unique competitive advantage. With sales in 1999 of Euro 29.5 billion (approx US$29.5 billion) and a workforce of 105,000 employees, BASF is one if the word’s top chemical
companies.
IDC forecasts Sun Microsystems number one for worldwide UNIX disk storage in 2000
Sun Microsystems, Inc. (Nasdaq: SUNW) announced that, in a soon to be released report, IDC forecasts that Sun Network Storage will be the worldwide leader
in terabytes (TBs) of UNIX disk storage systems shipped, with a 25.5 percent market share in 2000. IDC forecasts that Sun, which was also ranked number one in 1998 and 1999,
will significantly extend its leadership over the number two supplier. The report also reinforces that Sun’s storage business is continuing to grow revenue faster than the
overall disk storage systems market.
In the report, titled “Storage Systems, 2000 Disk Storage Systems Forecast and Analysis, 1999-2004”, IDC also forecasts Sun will be the leader in
worldwide storage systems shipments, as well as in worldwide JBOD (Just a Bunch of Disks) Revenue in 2000.
“Customers continue to choose Sun StorEdge(tm) solutions because of our commitment to delivering open storage network,” said Janpieter Scheeder,
executive vice president of Sun Network Storage. “Sun recognized early on that the Net economy required storage solutions that were massively scalable, easily manageable,
continuously available, and interoperable through freely accessible standards,” continued Sanpat. “While our competitors focus on a mainframe, monolithic storage
strategy, Sun has transformed traditional storage boxes into open, scalable, network-based solutions that explosive data storage demands.”
In addition to forecasting marked improvement for Sun in terabytes of worldwide UNIX disk storage shipped, IDC forecasted marked improvement in the
worldwide open systems category for both disk storage systems revenue and terabytes shipped. This category includes storage that is attached to servers running UNIX, Linux,
Windows 2000 or other network operating systems, such as Novell.
“Sun has increased its ranking in several critical areas,” said John McArthur, vice president of Storage Research at IDC. “One of the most
significant is in the area of open systems. Over the past year, Sun increased its arsenal of open systems storage products and aimed them directly at the competition.”
Sun recently announced the acquisition of High Ground Systems, Inc. This acquisition will make Sun a stronger force in the storage market by adding a suite
of storage resource management products that fit perfectly with Sun’s open software and open storage networks strategies. The acquisition of High Ground Systems will enable
Sun to enter and take a lead in the emerging storage resource management market.
About Sun Network Storage: Sun Network Storage was formed by Sun Microsystems in July 1998 and is a recognized multi-billion dollar industry leader in the
UNIX and open systems storage market. Sun is changing the rules in network storage by delivering software and hardware written to an open network architecture. Sun’s
commitment to standards enables timely availability of new technology, investment protection for existing technology, and a thriving partner community. The comprehensive Sun
StorEdge family of products enables customers to match storage to the application while providing scalable capacity and performance in a “pay-as-you-grow” architecture.
About Sun Microsystems, Inc.: Since its inception in 1982, a singular vision - The Network Is The Computer(TM) - has propelled Sun Microsystems, Inc.
(Nasdaq: SUNW), to its position as a leading provider of industrial-strength hardware, software and services that power the Internet and allow companies worldwide to dot-com
their businesses. With U$17.6 billion in annual revenues, Sun can be found in more than 170 countries and on the World Wide Web at http://sun.com
or the Asia South website at http://sun.com.sg
BCCT Eastern Seaboard Seminar
The BCCT Eastern Seaboard, in close cooperation with First Training, extends an open invitation to employees of any businesses on the Eastern Seaboard to
attend the BCCT Eastern Seaboard seminar on Presentation Skills at the Orchid Room, Amari Orchid Resort, Pattaya on Thursday 18th January 2001 (9:00 a.m. registration - 4:30
p.m.).
The seminar is limited to a maximum of 20 participants and will be conducted in English. It is aimed at middle and junior Thai managers with little or no
experience of presenting but all levels of staff are welcome.
The seminar will cover the following aspects of Presentation Skills: introductions, presenting yourself, themes, overview, conclusions, connecting
words/linking devices/expressions, delivery, body language, visual aids, dealing with questions, presenting company information, do’s and don’ts, and sales presentations.
The cost per participant is Baht 2,850 exclusive of VAT, course materials, certificate, lunch and coffee breaks. Please fax the name/s of participants to
the BCCT office (fax: 02 651-5354 or email: [email protected]). Payment can be made in advance or on the day (receipts will be issued) but all cheques must be made payable
to “First Training”. Bookings will be taken on a first come, first served basis.
“DHL Delivers More” Campaign focuses on added value to customers
DHL Worldwide Express has launched a new multi-million advertising campaign based on the promise that “DHL Delivers More” throughout Asia.
Developed by DHL’s advertising agency DDB in Singapore, the campaign employs a highly stylised execution of black-and-white photography and TV treatment.
It centres on people, the personal experiences and the added value DHL delivers to them, beyond just the physical packages.
Charles Longley, chief executive officer for DHL Asia-Pacific / Middle East, elaborated that the concept originated from intensive market research which
shows that speed and reliability, although important, are considered by customers as a “given” and are equally delivered by many express delivery companies. More
significant attributes have been identified to be the extent of a company’s responsiveness and accessibility to customers.
“We took these findings and developed a campaign that supports the needs of our customers,” Longley said. “The creative rests on what’s inside the
box, it highlights not the contents shipped but the experiences of our customers resulting from DHL’s responsive and accessible services - more efficiency, profitability,
advancement and leisure time.”
“The essence of our strategy is that DHL provides better solutions for our customers, hence enables them to perform better, personally and
professionally. Therefore, the promise is ‘DHL Delivers More’,” added Longley.
Simple, warm images of people in a black-and-white treatment are used as background to bring out the red DHL box which encapsulates the positive
experiences.
The campaign covers print advertisements, billboards and TV commercials, and targets at major business and trade publications.
ACCT to hold Seaboard Sundowners
The Australian Chamber of Commerce will host its next Eastern Seaboard networking party poolside at the Garden Beach Resort, Pattaya Naklua Road, North
Pattaya on Friday February 2 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.
This Seaboard Sundowners will coincide with the opening of Garden Beach Resort’s new restaurant overlooking the beach and sea at North Pattaya.
Following the acquisition of the hotel in February last year by the Orchid Fund a considerable investment has been made in upgrading the hotel and its
facilities, particularly the restaurants and poolside/beachside areas. This Australian Chamber of Commerce event will be the re-launch of the hotel with its new appearance
and amenities.
Entry will only be by business card - the function is free. All business people, friends and family based on the Eastern Seaboard are welcome.
On Saturday morning, interested members are encouraged to visit Ban Khao Huai Mahad School, Ban Chang, Rayong. Following the school visit, a friendly game
of golf will be arranged for those interested.
Date: Friday February 2 and Saturday February 3. Time: Sundowners, Garden Beach Resort, North Pattaya - 6 p.m. Friday night. Ban Khao Huai Mahad School
visit, Ban Chang, Rayong - 10 a.m. Saturday.
For bookings please reply to fax 675 6696 or e-mail [email protected]
Copyright 2001 Pattaya Mail Publishing Co.Ltd.
370/7-8 Pattaya Second Road, Pattaya City, Chonburi 20260, Thailand
Tel.66-38 411 240-1, 413 240-1, Fax:66-38 427 596; e-mail: [email protected]
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