ONLY THROUGH innovation - the successful commercialization of research and development - can companies protect their margins, defend existing business and develop new offerings for the market.
So it's good to see that this year's ICIS Innovation Awards, sponsored for the fourth year running by Dow Corning, have brought in a crop of innovations from across the chemical industry and from around the globe. And, as in previous years, we have had entries from the largest chemical companies and the smallest of operations.
It's also good to see companies from Malaysia, the Philippines, China and Iran joining in the awards, as well as those from the US and Canada, Japan, and a range of European countries. It certainly illustrates there are no bounds to where innovation takes place in our truly global industry.
The common theme is the sector's drive to innovate - to bring new processes and products to market and offer customers benefits in terms of costs, problem solving and more environmentally friendly products. Since the entry deadline of July 2, the panel of well qualified judges (see sidebar) has been assessing the entries and scoring them on a range of criteria, including commercial impact - meaning actual or potential impact on sales, profit or intellectual property assets the novelty of the discovery the potential to generate value or benefit for customers or society the use of sound scientific or technical methods and how difficult the problem was to solve and the degree of collaboration involved.
Those entries selected for the final round, each outlined here, will be considered at a meeting of the judges early in September, and the winners announced on October 15 in a special supplement to ICIS Chemical Business.
As in previous years, there are four categories: best product innovation best process innovation best innovation by a small or medium-sized enterprise and innovation with the best environmental impact.
As we noticed last year, interest in this last category is fading, with companies preferring to enter the product or process categories. But this does not imply that the innovations are less green than in previous years .
I hope these awards continue to prompt fresh thinking in the industry and help stimulate new ideas and innovations.
The main goal is to celebrate achievements and stress the importance of innovation to the chemical industry and its sustainable future. I hope you agree we succeed in this. Please let me have any comments on the awards or innovation at john.baker@icis.com.
BE PROUD OF INNOVATION
Has your company demonstrated supply chain and logistics superiority? Do you continuously upgrade your product quality and manufacturing efficiency or use customer satisfaction and the numbers of new ideas as ways to measure your success? Is the company managed in a way that enables employees to challenge traditional thinking and stretch their abilities?
If your answer is "yes" to all of these questions, you can feel proud of your dedication to being an innovative company. While many businesses still narrowly define innovation in terms of creativity or research and development spending, true innovators maintain a broader, more holistic view.
Key to this approach is an open, collaborative, and supportive culture, starting at the top of an organization. By creating a climate that gives people the flexibility to experiment and take risks, to create and reinvent, to learn and share, truly innovative companies align employees' efforts with business strategy and goals, equipping them with the skills and tools they need.
Innovative companies focus on how they can enhance their customers' experience. They listen to customers, partners, industry analysts, and even competitors to develop a steady flow of new ideas, redefine market opportunities, and expand into new geographies.
This outside-in approach helps companies identify emerging trends and compete at a global level, yet remain sensitive and adaptable to the needs and opportunities in local markets around the world. This ensures that every level of the company is empowered to innovate in its own way - whether that is to think about a product or service in a different way or to design a new process or market approach.
At Dow Corning, we are broadening our approach to innovation continuously looking at how we can reinvent ourselves - even when we are successful.
I'm delighted to see this happening elsewhere in the chemical industry and that many of you are also embracing innovation -thinking differently about our business challenges and how our knowledge of technological, societal, and environmental trends can benefit our customers.
Today, in partnership with ICIS Chemical Business, we want to recognize and celebrate the ingenuity of companies that are driving forward with new and innovative approaches that can keep our industry thriving.
Dr. Stephanie Burns, chairman, president and CEO, Dow Corning
Categories and entries:
1. BEST PROCESS INNOVATION
Asahi Kasei/Asahi Kasei Chemicals, Shinsuke Fukuoka, Kyosuke Komiya and Shigenori Konno
A novel nonphosgene polycarbonate (PC) production process using by-product carbon dioxide (CO2) as starting material
Bayer Material Science, Klaus Biskup, Christian Six, Peter Fuhrmann, Wolfgang Taube, Wilfried Pinke, Rainer Bruns
TDI gas-phase phosgenation technology
Hercules, Paper Technologies and Ventures/Carbury Herne/University of Kent, UK, Richard Riehle et al (Hercules), David Hardman (Carbury Herne), Alan Bull and Paul Sallis (University of Kent)
Biodehalogenation for the manufacture of Kymene G3 X-Cel wet-strength resin
2. BEST PRODUCT INNOVATION
BASF, Uwe Fidorra, Juan Antonio Gonzalez-Gomez, Michaela Muller-Halanke, Hansulrich Reisacher and Karin Wagner
Xfast - stir-in pigments for decorative coatings
Hercules, Paper Technologies and Ventures, Qu-Ming Gu, William Kochanik, Kevin Brennan, Jeffrey Cortese and Zu-Feng Xu
Effective control of organic contaminants in pulp and papermaking applications employing protein
TFL Ledertechnik/IPS Innovations, Juergen Christner (TFL) and Gerd Hugo (IPS)
Solar reflective (cool) leather
3. BEST INNOVATION BY A SMALL OR MEDIUM-SIZED ENTERPRISE
Carotech, Weng-Hoong Leong
Integrated process for extraction and con-centration of phytonutrients and production of biodiesel from virgin crude palm oil
Oxford Catalysts, Chika Chukwuogo and Sharon Burns
Instant steam generation
HallStar, Craig Bonda, Anna Pavlovic, Steve Semlow and Jean Zhang
Polycrylene - A new polymeric for broad spectrum sunscreens
4. INNOVATION WITH BEST ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT
Degussa Specialty Acrylics, RohMax Oil Additives unit, Christian Neveu, Doug Placek, Steven Herzog, Klaus Hedrich, Michael Alibert
Maximum efficiency hydraulic fluid
Rhodia, A. Greiner, G. Forat, L. Gilbert, L. Saint-Jalmes, V. Pevere, M. Casado, P. Leroy, S. Ferlut, A. Millet, B. Besson, J. Desrayaud and F. Metz
Fipronil made by a CFC-free process
THE JUDGES
ICIS has assembled a panel of eminent judges for this year's awards
Dr. Gregg Zank is vice president, chief technology officer and executive director of science and technology at awards sponsor Dow Corning
Professor Dr. Michael Droescher is senior vice president, corporate innovation, at Degussa
Mark Humphriesis a partner in the engineering physics group and a member of PA Technology's management group
Dr. Dirk Carrezis director of public policy at EuropaBio and head of its industrial biotechnology council
Professor Paul O'Brien is professor of inorganic materials chemistry at the University of Manchester