The chemicals business area of Evonik Industries (Essen / Germany; www.evonik.com) will be reorganised at the beginning of 2008 and consolidated into six units. The existing reporting segments of Technology Specialities, Consumer Solutions and Specialty Materials will remain unaffected by the move. The group said the move is designed to assure that all the businesses “have the necessary critical mass in each of their worldwide markets.”

Most of Evonik’s polymers activities are part of the Specialty Materials segment, which includes the new business units High Performance Polymers and Methacrylates headed by Gregor Hetzke and the new Coatings & Additives business unit taking in the speciality acrylics business. This unit is now headed by Hans-Peter Schaufler, who is due to be succeeded by Ulrich Küsthardt. Superabsorbers are now part of the new business unit Consumer Specialities (Consumer Solutions segment). Advanced fillers and pigments have been grouped into the new Inorganic Materials business unit (Technology Specialties).

Manfred Spindler, who formerly served on the Degussa managing board, will have no management function in the new structure. From 31 January 2008, he will move to a supervisory board position within the chemicals business area. In a statement, Evonik praised Spindler for his role in developing the Specialty Polymers segment and in particular the “internationalisation of the methacrylates business.”