Did you know? The pneumatic tyre was first patented 1846 in France by Scottsman Robert William Thomson. However, a pneumatic tyre was also independently invented and later commericalised in 1888 by…

Im Jahr 2018 fielen in Deutschland 593.000 Tonnen an Altreifen an (Quelle: Wirtschaftsverband der deutschen Kautschukindustrie e.V.). Die Heatmap in der Grafik zeigt das Aufkommen von Altreifen in Deutschen…

The inaugural Recovered Carbon Black Congress 2019 was a great success with 172 participants attending, including 40 recovered Carbon Black manufacturers, 10+ equipment companies and quite a few rCB…

It is the first of December 2018. I am writing from Shanghai 🇨🇳 & I am still in full throttle of consulting work!

I am not surprised as this is a new and "co-located" concept of the Automechanika fair with a license from the Reifen Messe in Essen. The company behind Automechanika and Reifen Frankfurt, Messe Frankfurt,…

The US carbon black market is of particular interest because it is not only forecasted to grow in volume (thanks to new greenfield tyre production), but also in value thanks to carbon black price increases…

Much has been blogged about what the best tyre recycling method is. Many of my consultant friends and many technology providers have worked on the topic. I think there is not one "shoe-size" for everybody.…

For 14 years, I have worked in one of the base chemicals' most cyclic markets, titanium dioxide ("TiO2"). The cycle between recessions and recovery was about 4 years. And this rollercoaster would oftentimes…

Carbon black is a value adding high volume raw material which is mainly consumed in tyre production (~70%). In consequence, many efforts of the carbon black industry throughout economic cycles have been on…

The pyrolysis and recovered carbon black forum of the recent conference of the European Tyre Recycling Association ("ETRA") was bursting, not only with audience, but also with speakers. Well done Jean-Paul…

From Tuesday 16th of February until Thursday 18th of February, European and international companies in the tyre value chain met in Hannover for the TireTech Expo and Conference. In total, there were over…

The tyre pyrolysis and recovered carbon black industry always seems to be just before its commercial break-through. It has been like this for some 30 years. Many people have invested a lot of passion, but…

Trade fairs and conferences are high potential business environments where it really pays off having a structured approach to sales. Some events are veritable marathons of 5 days and longer, which can make…

I really enjoy the many discussions I am having with the tyre pyrolysis industry. In 2015 and 2016, there will be quite a few commercial plants starting their operation. Now is the time to prepare for…

If you work in a typical chemical company, chances are that you might not have a formal sales process identified. Often discovered after manufacturing excellence and supply-chain excellence, commercial…

Goldman Sachs analysts today issued a "New Oil Order" report in which they predict oil prices to stay at lower levels for the next five years (Bloomberg, Reuters).  They also see an increased M&A activity…

The distribution channel is an often overlooked secret weapon for principals in the chemical and materials industries. It is often overlooked because many chemical companies are still busy optimising their…

This year might be a key year for the rCB (tyre pyrolysis recycled carbon black) industry, despite challenging market conditions for carbon black due to low oil feedstock costs. By now, key players of the…

In 2010, I wrote a first blog post about my view on the titanium dioxide business. After a brief escape into a colourful world of custom colour masterbatch, my last 2 years were in carbon black business,…