Our first edition of Univar Solutions’ newsletter focusing on the coatings, adhesives, sealants, elastomers and rubber & plastic additives markets.
CASE 2Q 2023 Newsletter
to the first edition of Univar Solutions’ newsletter focusing on the coatings, adhesives, sealants, elastomers and rubber & plastic additives markets. We serve a lot of markets and have a lot to offer, so we hope you’ll appreciate and find the content below valuable! And if there’s ever a topic you feel would be worth providing our insight on, don’t hesitate to contact us with that feedback.
Chris’s Corner
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USA Market and Highlights Technical Trends by End Market
Acting Responsibly CASE Solution Centers
Table of Contents
Welcome to Univar Solution CASE’s first newsletter, bringing you the latest updates on chemicals, ingredients, and product innovations. As the global leader of our Coatings, Adhesives, Sealants, Elastomers (CASE) , Rubber, and Plastic Additives business, I am privileged to work with an outstanding group of professionals whose goal is to help you grow your business. I trust you’ll find this newsletter valuable and gain insights into how our team can help you find, deliver, or create the next best solution. As I write this first note, it dawns on me there is no question that as you look around the globe, there are struggles in our economies due to various uncertainties. Uncertainty of supply over the past couple of years and what tomorrow will bring. Uncertainties of demand due to rising inflation rates and end user orders. Uncertainties in economic policies due to war in neighboring nations. In uncertain times, what I am certain about is the fact that the chemical industry has a bright and sustainable future and that our suppliers and customers are the critical, key component in that future. Chris’s Corner
“Together we win.”
So, how is Univar Solutions also part of leading the future of distribution? When you think about all the products our customers in the CASE markets manufacture and how you can’t leave your house, or transport yourself to the store, without touching something they and our suppliers have played a part in, it really is incredible. Without paint, what protects your wood siding and without a floor coating, how do you protect and clean your wood floors? Without strong, lightweight plastic and engineered parts, how do you get better gas milage in your automobile while still giving it durability? Or without a sealant, how do you keep the water out and the road noise from being overwhelming? Without wall spray foam insulation or a white “cool roof” elastomeric coating, how do you improve the energy efficiency of your home or office building to lower your electrical demand? I feel deep passion and pride in knowing the CASE markets we serve are the driving force to meet the most fundamental needs of today, and we will be the ones to innovate and distribute the solutions for a brighter tomorrow. It is for these reasons that the world needs our suppliers and customers – and their essential ingredients, raw materils, and products. It is my hope that we can help you find the solutions you need today and contribute to your long-term success for the sustainable future. We’re here to help; just let us know how.
Our job is to ensure that our customers have what they need, when they need it, and at a fair price. I’m happy to point out that as of today, the construction, auto refinish, and adhesives markets are already back on the rise. I’m also extremely pleased to say that almost all the chemicals we distribute have been removed from order controls and that with proper planning, we can have it once again in our warehouse for when you need it. Keep on the lookout for the many “infinite innovations” and product solutions we are focusing on, including next-generation foams and polyurethanes and the push toward sustainable coatings . Thank you for trusting Univar Solutions CASE with your business, now and into the future. Together, we win.
Chris Fitzgerald Global Vice President of CASE for Univar Solutions
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Highlight & Insights USA Market
Housing Market
Construction Market
Durable Goods
Automotive
166.2k units monthly*
$282Bn Durable Goods orders to Manufacturers
HMI (SALES): 50%*
Commercial Construction is at a peak plateau right, both on spending and costs. The market shows signs of balance, within an inflated environment. $129MM - Commercial Construction Spending* 193 - Construction PPI**
Home Starts: 1.6MM**
HMI is at the exact midpoint of the range, representing a rebound from the 2 year low of 31 seen in Dec ‘22 and the high of 84 in Dec ‘21. Home starts are 5.7% above the year prior and these numbers reflect a 22% INCREASE to the previous estimates for the month.
The Domestic Auto Production index, measured in thousands of units produced monthly. Since 1994, this index has steadily trended downward from an early peak of 589 in March 1995. Removing impact from COVID, we are currently near the low which was seen January 2009 at 108.
Impacting manufacturers of appliances, adhesives for packaging and so much more: This reflects another peak for industry spending over the past 30 years. Impacted both by real spending, but also normal and abnormal inflation seen recently.
* May 2023 NAHB report: https://www. nahb.org/news-and-economics/hous- ing-economics/indices/housing-mar- ket-index
*FRED Economic Data: https://fred.stlouis- fed.org/series/TLCOMCONS
*FRED Economic Data: https://fred. stlouisfed.org/series/DAUPSA
*https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/ DGORDER
**https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/ PCU236211236211
**https://www.census.gov/construction/ nrc/current/index.html
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Technical Trends
The below are trends we’re seeing at a global level in technical developments where some are further ahead than other regions in terms of regulatory requirement and some are very innovative worldwide.
by End Market
APEO free surfactants: General interest in moving away from alkylphenol ethoxylates due to current or impending regulations by region. The main rationale is based on concerns from toxicity to aquatic organisms and being an endocrine-disruptor. Our surfactants portfolio has many offerings to answer these shifts in usage. Bio-based and greener product interest: • General bio-based raw materials • Products that aid lower energy costs in production or application (room temperature curing, easy to mix/ disperse, or less application time spent) • Greener profile throughout a lifespan for raw materials used or possibly introduction of cradle to cradle potential • Longer-term performance of final products, so less time and energy spent replacing or recoating Construction: Reflective asphalt is being employed in various municipalities to aid in reducing the heat island effect and avoiding the absorption then radiance of
heat. Specialty additives we offer are key components of this development. Coatings and graphic arts: • Low VOCs are the drumbeat through most customer interactions • Early water resistance - An issue when transitioning from solvent-based to waterborne • Novel dispersion solutions for organic pigments that deliver higher efficiency with color development and stability • Thin film direct-to-metal (DTMs) - Less than 1 mil DFT • Increasing demand for high-performance maintenance coatings Adhesives and sealants: Mostly low VOC for products like roof membranes. We have resins and polymers to answer these needs. Rubber and elastomers: High molecular weight, low viscosity elastomers for membranes and gaskets. We have polymers to answer these needs. Similarly, clarity is becoming a larger issue in films and tubes and we have polymers to answer these issues.
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Connect with CASE
Acting Responsibly
Sustainability is not a new concept, to the world or to Univar Solutions. Since 2008, we have been publishing annual ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) reports which showcase our investment in improving the world around us, our employee’s lives, and the health of our business. Our annual ESG goals further our commitment to leaving things better than we found them. Now it’s time to turn our lens outward and to help our customers with their own sustainability goals.
Univar Solutions’ recently launched a framework for Sustainable and Natural products which provides the structure and rationale for claiming raw materials as sustainable. In doing so, we’re getting specific to help aid our customers in their own desire to formulate sustainably as well as shine a light on gaps that may be present within specific industry raw materials. Details on the framework and products available are readily found on our Sustainable Solutions website .
We’ve also published the first edition of a Sustainable Line Card of offerings to help showcase Sustainable and Natural products pertinent to coatings, adhesives, sealants, and elastomers, as well as the raw materials necessary for sustainable formulations: those end products which may not be based on currently “green” materials but can deliver sustainable end results.
“[We] felt it was incumbent upon us...to be part of the solutions and start aiding our industries in defining what’s sustainable AND sensible.”
Without a global agreement around what sustainability is, Univar Solutions and our suppliers are at the forefront of bringing solutions forward to help industries identify what’s sustainable and sensible. We hope you’ll be a part of this journey with us!
Univar Solutions participating among customers and suppliers at recent Cleveland Coatings Society panel on Sustainability
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Check out CASE’S Sustainability Page HERE
05 Solution Centers CASE
At Univar Solutions, our CASE formulation labs and dedicated technical specialists are part of our global network of Solution Centers providing the technical skill, insight, and performance needed to bring an innovative edge to our customers and suppliers’ products. With deep expertise in a variety of applications and material performance to match, Univar Solutions can help take your formulation demands to the next level. Working as an extension of your team, our formulators and application development specialists partner with you to find technical solutions for your challenges—whether that’s solving production-related issues and enhancing existing formulations or conducting performance and application testing and discovering more sustainable alternatives. From customer concepts to finished, market- ready products, no matter where you are in your process our CASE Lab team can help you make your next project a success.
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