www.paintshow.com.br
Maio 2009
PAINT & PINTURA
16
from 1983 to 1985, 1987 to 1991, and 1993 to 2009.
Marcelo Lacerda, president of Lanxess in Brazil, was
elected vice president for the same 2009-2011 period.
With a degree in law and civil law from the PUC-SP
(Pontifical Catholic University of São Paulo), he com-
pleted a course in International Law and Negotiation
at South Western Legal Foundation, in Texas.
New business ensure growth at Columbia
As a cutting-edge provider of logistic services and
the leading occupier of bonded areas in Brazil, the
Columbia Group invested in new operations and res-
tructuring in 2008, and is now reaping the rewards
of that strategy, having grown by more than 73 per-
cent over the previous year. According to the group’s
president Nivaldo Tuba, the result is mainly due to
the development of its operations in Santa Catarina,
the restructuring of the Santos unit, strong trading
activities, and the expansion of its market share in
the South and Northeast regions.
The group’s terminal in the state of Santa Catarina,
located in Itajaí, started up in October. Consisting
of a bonded area and a port area and strategically
located near the Itajaí port, not only has Interporti
Logística gained new customers for Columbia Tra-
ding, it has completed the company’s logistic network
in the South region, with increased revenues month
after month ever since. At the Santos unit, the res-
tructuring process focused on adjustments and the
repositioning of its customers’ profile.
With this focus on new business, the Columbia Group
has secured gross revenues of R$ 760 million, R$ 430
million of which from trading services, and R$ 330
million from logistic services, representing an incre-
ase of more than 73 percent compared to 2007, when
gross revenues hit R$ 438 million.
New vice president at BASF
In April, Michel Mertens took over as vice president
of BASF’s Performance Products and Construction
Chemicals Division for South America. Mertens, 56,
was born in Brussels, Belgium. He has a master’s de-
gree in business administration, and post-graduation
degrees in finance, from Brussels University, and
international taxes, from ISC St. Louis, Brussels.
Distribution - PRODIR consolidates
Society as a whole considers safety, health, quality
and environment to be very important factors when
it comes to chemical and petrochemical distribution.
For this reason, the members of the Brazilian Asso-
ciation of Chemical and Petrochemical Distributors,
known for short as Associquim, have been implemen-
ting and keeping the Responsible Distribution Process
(PRODIR) going at their companies.
According to head auditor Angelica Biral Avila Gar-
cia, of BSI Brazil (an organization accredited by
Associquim to certify companies for their responsible
distribution processes), the program is based on the
US National Association of Chemical Distributors’
(NACD) Responsible Distribution Process (RDP). “Once
they adhere to the PRODIR, companies start working
in a whole new line of planning. Organizations realize
that in order to grow and stay in business in the che-
mical and petrochemical market, they essentially need
to assimilate social responsibility and sustainability
rules. In doing so, they assure quality for themselves,
confidence for customers, and safety for the commu-
nity. They also make health, safety and environmental
concerns a priority for all activities, products, proces-
ses, facilities and the community,” she points out.
Interview – José Magalhães Fernandes
Dow Coating Materials to bring the future to
the paint market
It’s been almost nine months since the announce-
ment, last July 9th, of The Dow Chemical Company’s
acquisition of Rohm and Haas. On April 1st, the
acquisition was concluded and resulted in a new
company, Dow Coating Materials, which is born a
high caliber player: its product portfolio altogether
turns around US$ 14 billion; first class in the DNA,
with specialty chemicals (mostly a legacy of Rohm
and Haas) and management skills (i.e. Dow) that pro-
mise to refine the organization, which, according to
the company’s executives, will be the world’s largest
supplier of raw materials to the paint industry.
Firsthand in Paint & Pintura, Jose Fernandes, who
was president of Rohm and Haas until early April,
when he started to lead the new division’s marketing
and sales efforts, ensures that the transition process
is taking place as transparently as possible at the two
companies. In the full version of this interview, avai-
lable in Portuguese only, Mr. Fernandes talks about
the challenges lying ahead, saying that the primary
goal of the new organization is implementing its mis-