Know-how from

Ac to Zr

13,500 customers
950 suppliers
1 goal

As one of the leading

distribution companies for
chemicals and plastics
we operate on a rapidly
changing market:
impending raw materials

Our goal has remained

shortages in many fields,

unchanged over the last

rising demand from newly

hundred years:

industrialising countries, new

regulations such as REACh ...

We aim to achieve success,

along with our suppliers and

In view of this increasing

our customers.

complexity, know-how is
becoming a crucial key to

Which is why, despite all the

success. That is why today

challenges, we see the future

we rely more than ever on

primarily as a source of

the outstanding qualifica-

opportunities.

tions of our employees and

our expertise based on many

We look forward to seizing

years experience.

them with you.

Only those who are equally

familiar with the situation of
manufacturers and with the
needs of the processing
industry can be a good partner for both sides.

Twenty years ago, who

would have thought of hundreds
of uses for our products ?

Rapid technological
advances are opening up
more and more new
fields of application for
chemicals and plastics.
Whereas in 1975 more than

share of solvent-free paints

20 % of the weight of a car

and varnishes in the surface

consisted of plastics and

coatings sector.

elastomers, the figure today

is over 30 %.

The legal environment is

also changing: The new

And more than 50 % of the

European Chemicals

new Airbus A350-900 XWB

Regulation REACh imposes

will be made of composite

extensive registration and

materials.

approval obligations on
companies.

New greener technologies

often result in fundamental

We at Biesterfeld are pre-

changes in entire branches

pared for such rapid and

of industry:

often far-reaching changes

enabling us to help our part-

In the early 1990s, for exam-

ners to emerge from them in

ple, CFCs in foam plastics

a stronger position than

had to be replaced by alter-

before.

native foaming agents. And

for many years now there
has been a steady rise in the

Exponential experts
Biesterfeld focuses on three
core business fields which
operate as independent
subsidiaries within the
framework of Biesterfeld AG:
Biesterfeld Plastic

Biesterfeld International

with its centralized product

is a worldwide player in the

management distributes

fields of agrochemicals,

engineering polymers,

industrial chemicals, phar-

standard polymers,

maceutical raw materials

elastomers and additives via

and active ingredients, salt

technically skilled local sales

and sugar.

organisations in 26 countries
throughout Europe.

This specialisation means we

can ensure that our service

Biesterfeld Spezialchemie
not only has highly skilled
specialists throughout Europe,
but also offers an extensive
product portfolio in the
fields of LifeScience,
Food Ingredients, CASE
(Coatings Adhesives Sealants
Elastomers) and
Performance Products.

and advice are carefully

tailored to the needs of
the individual sectors and
industries so we are even
closer to our customers.

In 1906 we had
one product
Today 8011, 8012, 8013 ...

Since Wilhelm Ernst Hinrich

Biesterfeld started trading in
salt in 1906,
we have continued enlarging

enabling them to buy all they

our product portfolio step by

need from a single source

step.

and at the same time to be

sure that we will keep all

Today Biesterfeld deals in

necessary chemicals and

more than 8 000 products in

plastics available.

a wide variety of specifications some of them selling

For this reason the size of

only a few kilograms, others

our range is not an end in

over 100 000 tons a year.

itself neither is the size and

inter national presence of our

This means that in many

Group.

market segments we are fullrange providers:

It just helps us to provide our

customers with better service

For many fields of application we supply the entire

product portfolio that our
customers need for their
production.
Thus we offer customers the
benefit of one-stop shopping,

on better terms.

1150 years at university

+ 5100 years
training on the job

The quality of any advice

depends on the quality of
those who provide it.
Which is why we attach the

independently operating

utmost importance to our

service companies.

employees qualifications.
Biesterfeld ChemLogS allows
This means that your direct

businesses to profit from our

contact at Biesterfeld will in

experience in chemicals

most cases have had an

management helping them

education in the chemical

to fill, pack and store even

engineering field.

sensitive substances.

The majority of our advisors

We make our IT competence

are chemistry or chemical

available to customers

engineering graduates and

through BIT-SERV our full-

have also gained practical

service provider for data pro-

experience in the processing

cessing, SAP, CRM, Internet,

industries so they have a

E-commerce and systems

first-hand knowledge of their

technology.

customers needs.
In addition to our three core
business fields, we also make
our know-how available via

365 / 7 / 24
Reliable supply is an issue
of crucial importance to our
customers.
They have to keep their

And we cooperate just as

production going and that

closely with our customers:

often means 7 days a week,

Our knowledge of their

365 days a year.

applied technologies allows

us to obtain the necessary

Thats why Biesterfeld has

materials for new processes

always focused on close

and hence to open up new

cooperation with manufactur-

business fields for both

ers:

sides.

Sales partnerships with market

We can offer our customers a

leaders in the industry and

range of options in the field

long-term supply agreements

of finance as well always

enable us to guarantee quality

with the aim of ensuring

and continuity. Here we reap

greater flexibility improving

the benefit of our detailed

the planning capabilities.

knowledge of global markets,

helping us to foresee problems
and schedule quantities for
our customers on a long-term
basis.

51 local bases at home all

over the world

There can hardly be a more

global market than ours.
These days many chemicals

local public authorities,

and plastics are only pro-

ensures that we are always in

duced in a small number of

a position to deliver reliably,

factories around the world

safely and just-in-time.

today many of our products

originate from Asia or

We also have local storage

America.

depots in most of the countries we serve. This is

And because our customers

because only locally avail-

production operations are

able supplies enable us to

just as worldwide, these

group shipments efficiently,

goods often have to be deliv-

thereby generating cost

ered to very remote regions.

advantages for our

customers.

Which is why Biesterfeld

today is an international

This network of depots helps

enterprise with branches in

us to be on hand wherever

more than 30 countries.

you need us.

This presence, combined

with our experience of dealing with local conditions and

(E) / October 2008

Biesterfeld AG
Ferdinandstrae 41
D - 20095 Hamburg
Tel.: + 49. 40. 3 20 08 - 0
Fax: + 49. 40. 3 20 08 - 340
www.biesterfeld.com