22 Dialog with our Stakeholders
Mr. Krishnan, how important is ALTANA’s innovative
potential for you as a customer?
Suraj Krishnan: ALTANA’s potential to innovate is very important.
Innovation, with an eye to sustainability, is of the utmost im-
portance for the long-term success of our two companies. High-
quality products and impeccable service are no longer unique
selling points today. But what distinguishes us from others is the
combination of our products’ quality, technology, and sustain-
ability. ALTANA and Axalta entered into a promising collaborative
venture, and we at Axalta are particularly benefiting from
ALTANA’s innovative strength.
What is your appraisal of the pressure to innovate in the
industry in general? Have you noticed any changes in the
last 10 to 15 years?
Suraj Krishnan: In my view, the pressure to innovate has ramped
up over the last five to ten years. Just look at China and India;
it used to be enough to sell products originally developed in the
West into Asia. Today, consumers and customers in emerging
countries are no longer satisfied with this and are calling for innovative
solutions that are tailored to their needs, but that also
consider environmental and sustainability aspects. In this context,
innovation does not mean having the newest and most expensive
product on the market, but the product that best fulfills customers’
requirements.
Detlev Lindner: I agree completely. The market has changed
considerably in recent years. Today, sustainability and pricing
aspects play a much bigger role than they used to. Regulatory
requirements for protecting the environment have become
more stringent. In the end, though, these requirements help us
remain successful because they compel us to be innovative
in this area. For instance, when the authorities in China decide
from one day to another to switch from solvent-based to
water-based systems. In such situations innovation is extremely
important.
You addressed the topic of sustainability. What role do
environmental aspects play in the choice of suppliers? Are
there criteria or a standardized process for this?
Suraj Krishnan: We at Axalta want to ensure that environmental
and sustainability standards are assured across the entire supply
chain. We are committed to this aim and expect the same from
our suppliers. We have written down our requirements trans-
parently in our code of conduct and in our corporate values. Also,
we developed a catalog of requirements for existing and poten-
tial suppliers, the Axalta Supplier Code of Conduct. In it, alongside
sustainability aspects, we explicitly address human rights issues,
compliance rules, and safety standards. In this context, sustainability
means more than environmental compatibility for us. We are
also concerned with social and governance aspects.
When we talk about sustainability aspects, they go hand
in hand with regulatory requirements, either ones we
have set ourselves or ones initiated from the outside. What
concrete effects do these requirements have on devel-
opment and manufacturing? Can you give us an example?
Detlev Lindner: Take paints for the automotive industry, for
example. The paint shop consumes about a third of the energy in
an assembly plant. At the request of customers, we are work-
ing on solutions that help reduce the layers of paint and eliminate
energy demanding curing steps needed to paint a car. Another
example is the reduction of transport distances. For this reason,
we are manufacturing locally in our most important core markets
to an ever-greater extent, for example at BYK.
Let’s stick with the automotive industry: We talked about
sustainability in manufacturing. But how can you en-
sure that your paints will contribute to the sustainability
of automobiles in the long run?
Suraj Krishnan studied chemical engineering and has been Global
Procurement Director, Direct Materials & Packaging at Axalta since 2014.
In this capacity, he is responsible for all materials needed for coatings
and their packaging.
Detlev Lindner is head of Key Account Management at ALTANA, an
area he has helped build himself since 2009. He has been with ALTANA
since 2002. In the first eight years, he headed the Coating Additives
business line at BYK.