Cognis
Encyclopedia
Cognis is a worldwide supplier of specialty chemicals and nutritional ingredients, headquartered in Monheim am Rhein
, Germany. The company employs about 5,600 people and operates production or service centers in almost 30 countries.
Cognis is a deliverer of natural source raw materials and ingredients for food, nutrition and healthcare markets, and the cosmetics, detergents and cleaners industries. Another one of their markets is in products for a number of other industries, such as coatings and inks, lubricants as well as agriculture and mining.
Cognis was an integrated part of Henkel
, a German consumer products company, until 1999, when it became an operationally independent business unit. In November 2001, Cognis was bought by private equity funds Permira
, GS Capital Partners and SV Life Sciences. In 2008, Cognis recorded sales of about 3 billion euros and an Adjusted EBITDA (operating result) of 351 million euros.
BASF
reached an agreement with Cognis Holding Luxembourg S.à r.l.—which is controlled by Permira Funds, GS Capital Partners and SV Life Sciences—to acquire the specialty chemicals company Cognis for an equity purchase price of €700 million. Including net financial debt and pension obligations, the enterprise value
of the transaction is €3.1 billion. The acquisition is subject to clearance by the competent merger control authorities. Closing of the transaction occurred in December 2010.
Monheim am Rhein
Monheim am Rhein is a town on the right bank of the river Rhine in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Monheim belongs to the district of Mettmann - with the southern suburbs of Düsseldorf to the north, and the Bergisches Land to the south...
, Germany. The company employs about 5,600 people and operates production or service centers in almost 30 countries.
Cognis is a deliverer of natural source raw materials and ingredients for food, nutrition and healthcare markets, and the cosmetics, detergents and cleaners industries. Another one of their markets is in products for a number of other industries, such as coatings and inks, lubricants as well as agriculture and mining.
Cognis was an integrated part of Henkel
Henkel
Henkel AG & Co. KGaA is an multinational company headquartered in Düsseldorf, Germany.The company operates in three business areas: Home Care , Personal Care ,...
, a German consumer products company, until 1999, when it became an operationally independent business unit. In November 2001, Cognis was bought by private equity funds Permira
Permira
Permira is a United Kingdom-based private equity firm with global reach. The firm advises funds with a total committed capital of approximately €20 billion....
, GS Capital Partners and SV Life Sciences. In 2008, Cognis recorded sales of about 3 billion euros and an Adjusted EBITDA (operating result) of 351 million euros.
BASF
BASF
BASF SE is the largest chemical company in the world and is headquartered in Germany. BASF originally stood for Badische Anilin- und Soda-Fabrik . Today, the four letters are a registered trademark and the company is listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange, London Stock Exchange, and Zurich Stock...
reached an agreement with Cognis Holding Luxembourg S.à r.l.—which is controlled by Permira Funds, GS Capital Partners and SV Life Sciences—to acquire the specialty chemicals company Cognis for an equity purchase price of €700 million. Including net financial debt and pension obligations, the enterprise value
Enterprise value
Enterprise value , Total enterprise value , or Firm value is an economic measure reflecting the market value of a whole business. It is a sum of claims of all the security-holders: debtholders, preferred shareholders, minority shareholders, common equity holders, and others...
of the transaction is €3.1 billion. The acquisition is subject to clearance by the competent merger control authorities. Closing of the transaction occurred in December 2010.
Product portfolio and markets
Cognis is divided into three strategic business units.- Care Chemicals is a global producer of specialty chemicals and surfactants for manufacturers of hair, skin and body care products, as well as makers of household and industrial detergents and cleaners:
- Hair/Body/Oral Care: hair cleansing, hair treatment, facial and body cleansing, oral care
- Skin Care: facial, body and baby care, sun care, deodorants and antiperspirants, color cosmetics, personal care wipes
- Home Care: hard surface care, fabric care
- Industrial & Institutional Cleaning: hard surface cleaners, textile hygiene
- Skintex: natural ingredients for cosmetotextiles
- SilicateSilicateA silicate is a compound containing a silicon bearing anion. The great majority of silicates are oxides, but hexafluorosilicate and other anions are also included. This article focuses mainly on the Si-O anions. Silicates comprise the majority of the earth's crust, as well as the other...
s.
- Nutrition & Health develops and produces natural-source ingredients for the food and healthcare industries:
- Food Technology: food emulsifiers, specialty compounds and functional ingredients from baked goods to ingredients for ready-to-eat desserts
- Functional Food: functional lipids, phytosterolPhytosterolPhytosterols, which encompass plant sterols and stanols, are steroid compounds similar to cholesterol which occur in plants and vary only in carbon side chains and/or presence or absence of a double bond. Stanols are saturated sterols, having no double bonds in the sterol ring structure. More than...
s, botanical specialties, conjugated linoleic acidConjugated linoleic acidConjugated linoleic acids are a family of at least 28 isomers of linoleic acid found mainly in the meat and dairy products derived from ruminants. As the name implies, the double bonds of CLAs are conjugated, with only one single bond between them....
(CLA) and functional products such as antioxidantAntioxidantAn antioxidant is a molecule capable of inhibiting the oxidation of other molecules. Oxidation is a chemical reaction that transfers electrons or hydrogen from a substance to an oxidizing agent. Oxidation reactions can produce free radicals. In turn, these radicals can start chain reactions. When...
s, omega-3 fatty acidOmega-3 fatty acidN−3 fatty acids are essential unsaturated fatty acids with a double bond starting after the third carbon atom from the end of the carbon chain....
s, natural-source vitamin EVitamin EVitamin E is used to refer to a group of fat-soluble compounds that include both tocopherols and tocotrienols. There are many different forms of vitamin E, of which γ-tocopherol is the most common in the North American diet. γ-Tocopherol can be found in corn oil, soybean oil, margarine and dressings...
and natural-source carotenoidCarotenoidCarotenoids are tetraterpenoid organic pigments that are naturally occurring in the chloroplasts and chromoplasts of plants and some other photosynthetic organisms like algae, some bacteria, and some types of fungus. Carotenoids can be synthesized fats and other basic organic metabolic building...
s - Dietary Supplements: natural-source nutrients including vitamin E, mixed tocopherolTocopherolTocopherols are a class of chemical compounds of which many have vitamin E activity. It is a series of organic compounds consisting of various methylated phenols...
s, mixed carotenoids, botanical specialties, luteinLuteinLutein is a xanthophyll and one of 600 known naturally occurring carotenoids. Lutein is synthesized only by plants and like other xanthophylls is found in high quantities in green leafy vegetables such as spinach and kale...
esters, alpha-lipoic acid, phytosterols, and omega-3 fatty acids - Pharmaceuticals & Healthcare: excipients for the pharmaceutical industry, such as high purity oleochemicalOleochemicalOleochemicals are chemicals derived from plant and animal fats. They are analogous to petrochemicals derived from petroleum.The formation of basic oleochemical substances like fatty acids, fatty acid methyl esters , fatty alcohols, fatty amines and glycerols are by various chemical and enzymatic...
s and derivatives, drug delivery agents, active ingredientActive ingredientAn active ingredient is the substance of a pharmaceutical drug or a pharmaceutical ingredient and bulk active in medicine; in pesticide formulations active substance may be used. Some medications and pesticide products may contain more than one active ingredient...
s, building blocks, botanical ingredients, antioxidants.
- Functional Products develops integrated solutions which purpose is to enhance the performance and cost efficiency of manufacturing processes for a variety of industrial markets:
- Polymers, Coatings & Inks: additives, binders and hardeners for many kinds of coatings, printing inks, adhesives and polymerization products
- Synlubes Technology: products to formulate hydraulicHydraulic fluidHydraulic fluids, also called hydraulic liquids, are the medium by which power is transferred in hydraulic machinery. Common hydraulic fluids are based on mineral oil or water...
and transmission fluids, automotive, aircraft and refrigerant lubricantLubricantA lubricant is a substance introduced to reduce friction between moving surfaces. It may also have the function of transporting foreign particles and of distributing heat...
s, as well as additives for fuels and metalworking fluids - AgroSolutions: additives and adjuvants for plant protection formulations as well as nutrientNutrientA nutrient is a chemical that an organism needs to live and grow or a substance used in an organism's metabolism which must be taken in from its environment. They are used to build and repair tissues, regulate body processes and are converted to and used as energy...
s, emulsifiers and defoamerDefoamerA defoamer or an anti-foaming agent is a chemical additive that reduces and hinders the formation of foam in industrial process liquids. The terms anti-foam agent and defoamer are often used interchangeably....
s - Mining & Ion-Transfer Technology: products for environmentally sound metal extraction, metal recovery and recycling, and for the elimination of heavy metals from wastes.
Strategy and core competencies
- About 50 percent of the resources processed by Cognis are renewable. As base materials, Cognis uses natural oils and fatsVegetable fats and oilsVegetable fats and oils are lipid materials derived from plants. Physically, oils are liquid at room temperature, and fats are solid. Chemically, both fats and oils are composed of triglycerides, as contrasted with waxes which lack glycerin in their structure...
, or plant extractPlant extractPlant extract may refer to:* Herbalism and traditional medicine* Biopesticides...
s - Cognis has claimed to make efforts which would strengthen its presence in high-growth regions, especially the Asia-Pacific market. In 2008, the Asia-Pacific region accounted for 14% of Cognis’ sales, North America was representing 20%, Central and South America 6%, and Europe 60%.