Archroma, a leader in color and specialty chemicals, turned three years old on October 1. Though at a nascent stage, the company has accomplished a great deal, believes CEO Alexander Wessels. The company is already a leader in driving sustainability in the value chain, intends to build on that position, making use of innovations the company has developed and continues to develop for implementation use across our markets.

Basel, Switzerland-based Archroma started in 2013 when private investment firm SK Capital Partners acquired Clariant’s textile, paper and emulsions businesses. In the next year, the company acquired 49 per cent of M Dohmen, an international group specializing in the production of textile dyes and chemicals for the automotive, carpet and apparel sectors. And in July 2015, Archroma added the global textile chemicals business of BASF. Now, the company has 25 production facilities- 11 in Americas, eight in the EMEA region and six in Asia.

Archroma supplies textile supply chain with chemicals for pre-treatment, dyeing, printing and finishing of textiles. It serves the paper market with its expertise in the management of whiteness, coloration, special coatings and strength for all kind of papers. It also supplies emulsions products used in paints, adhesives, construction, as well as in the textile, leather and paper industries. A typical example of the company’s efforts to improve sustainability in the textiles industry is its work in dyeing systems for denim under the brand Advanced Denim. Patagonia, one of the most forward thinking of the major clothes brands, was the first to announce a new dyeing and manufacturing process developed using Archroma’s Advanced Denim technology last year.