Fecc: The single voice of the industry

John Baker

01-May-2015

Europe’s chemical distribution association is as busy as ever arguing on behalf of its members’ interests with the EU institutions, speaking as the voice of the industry

A new year, a new president and a renewed strategy for Fecc. But still the work goes on, making sure the voice of the chemical distribution sector in Europe is heard to best effect by policy- and decision-makers in the EU institutions.

The new president is Neville Prior, who assumed the role in 2014, stepping into the capacious shoes of Edgar E Nordmann, who served the Fecc twice as president before his retirement. Prior, CEO and chairman of UK-based distributor Cornelius Group, is keen to expand membership of the association. He will urge companies to focus on sustainability, of which Responsible Care is an integral part, during his tenure (see interview on page 6).

The revised strategy will guide the association’s actions over the next four years, between 2015 and 2018, explains Fecc director general Uta Jensen-Korte. The results of the regular strategy review were approved in November 2014 and are already being put into effect.

Jensen-Korte explains that the new approach builds on the previous four-year strategy but widens the association’s approach to what it does. “The 2011-2014 strategy was a little more inward-focused, as we needed to develop the concept of acting with one voice in our messaging.”

 

 Copyright: Alamy

NEW VALUE PROPOSITION
The new strategy, under the banner slogan “We are THE voice of our industry,” presents objectives and a new value proposition that supports the vision for what Fecc wants to deliver in terms of the benefits of Fecc membership. It is a recognition that the one voice aim has largely been achieved and that the association now fully represents industry views.

Says Jensen-Korte: “We bring four basic values to the table: our expertise, advocacy, networking and communication. Our aim is to be the natural partner for our members, European institutions and stakeholders in the promotion of the chemical distribution industry.”

The key objectives, she explains, will be to promote the chemical distribution industry and represent Fecc members’ interests at a European and international level; ensure a sustainable business environment for distributors; develop chemical distribution as an added-value partnership, and foster co-operation with relevant sectors in the chemical supply chain.

There are also objectives to drive Responsible Care and to contribute to sustainability in the sector, and to support the national associations that make up the European body.

The execution of the strategy, adds Jensen-Korte, lies mainly with the now well-established working committees within Fecc, notably International Trade, Safety, Health and Environment, Responsible Care, Product Stewardship, GTDP (Good trade and distribution practices), Precursors, Logistics and ESAD Steering, in addition to the Fecc secretariat itself. It was not felt necessary, she says, to adjust the committee structure at this stage, which she believes will serve the new strategy and its value well.

There is certainly no lack of opportunity or need for Fecc to represent its members’ interests through advocacy, either on its own or with other trade bodies, such as Cefic, the chemical producers’ trade body. The European Commission continues to bring forward new developments with both new and existing legislation and regulations – amendment and addition of the EU’s Reach chemicals policy to cover nanomaterials and endocrine disruptors is just one example cited by Jensen-Korte where Fecc is active on its members’ behalf.

At this stage, says Jensen-Korte, Fecc is monitoring developments but is not deeply involved as some of the discussions are at an early, scientific stage.

On nanomaterials, the commission has delayed the process of the Annex revision to Reach as it is still working on the impact assessment that needs to accompany a legislative change. A draft proposal will be discussed with member state experts and stakeholders in the CASG Nano Group, where Fecc is represented by one of its members, before a final proposal is expected some time this year.

Regarding endocrine disrupters, the commission’s DG Health expects to issue a legislative proposal on criteria after an impact assessment is concluded in 2016. “We participated in the public consultation that was launched to feed into the impact assessment and which closed in January,” notes Jensen-Korte.

FINAL REACH DEADLINE

 

 The Fecc Annual Congress meets in Athens this year – the view over to Mt Lycabettus

Copyright: Rex Features

On Reach in general, Fecc continues to raise awareness among its membership as the final phase-in of the regulation approaches. From June 2018, all materials manufactured or imported into the EU in quantities of 1 tonne and above will have to be registered. This will inevitably bring smaller companies under the scope of Reach and products used in niche applications.

“We know that more substances in smaller volumes will have to be registered. This may imply that companies, even small ones, might have to take the lead in the registration process,” says Jensen-Korte.

“We have heard that some of our members have started an internal analysis to decide which substance they will register in 2018. However, we haven’t heard from all companies and we hope that they are well aware [of the deadline]. Good communication, cooperation and transparency will be essential, especially as the supply chain is complex for some of these niche products.”

Data generation and data access costs will be a major issue, as well as fair and transparent cost sharing, she adds. “The commission is currently preparing an Implementing Act on Data-Sharing in Reach, based on guidance that was developed by the Directors Contact Group of which Fecc is a member.” What is really needed are ways to make the process simpler and more cost-efficient – through use of simple IT tools for instance, she adds.

On the international scale, the ongoing trade talks between the EU and US – the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) – is one area that Fecc is watching with interest. It has the potential, says Jensen-Korte, to bring efficiencies and cost savings and reduce regulatory complexity, which will help chemical producers and distributors.

TTIP IMPACT WILL BE POSITIVE
Total EU-US chemicals trade was close to €49bn ($52bn) in 2013, of which more than one-third involved intra-company trade. The proposed elimination of chemical trade duties – albeit already relatively low – will have an impact on the sector on both sides of the Atlantic.

Says Jensen-Korte: “TTIP aims to facilitate trade by pursuing a flexible set of customs procedures and bringing about increased regulatory cooperation in the chemicals area, which Fecc feels can only help its members. We want to continue to get more co-operation but without necessarily changing the legal landscape and regulatory situation.”

This, she says, is an historic opportunity and one with which Fecc has very few reservations. It is working with Cefic and directly to communicate its viewpoints and feels there is enough transparency in what is going on and being discussed for it to be satisfied with progress.

Membership development remains a priority for the group, says Jensen-Korte, “to strengthen our position as the European voice of the chemical distribution industry”. Direct (distributors) and associate (producers and service providers) membership stands at 38 and 10 companies, respectively.

Positive progress has been made in recent months with the addition of a handful of new company members. In 2014, CG Chemikalien (Germany), 2M Holdings (UK) and Millchem (South Africa) joined the association and this year Safic Alcan (France) and Interallis (Cyprus) joined as direct members, while PolymerTorg (Belarus) and Synergy (Greece) signed up as associate members. It is the first time a company from Belarus has joined the association, she adds.

Currently (based on latest 2013 figures in Fecc’s Business Plan for 2015), Fecc’s 15 national member associations represent around 840 chemical distributors (down from 880 in 2010) with around 29,400 employees at over 1,300 sites. They handle some 31m tonnes of products. Industry turnover is estimated at close to €27bn. The number employed in the industry has dipped since the peak of over 32,200 in 2012, due in large part to losses of members in the Italian national association due to the difficult economic climate, reports Fecc.

Consolidation in the European chemical distribution sector is also having an impact on jobs and the number of companies active in the area. The consolidation will continue on a broad front, says Jensen-Korte, especially as the market has recovered in most parts of Europe.

“There is a trend for manufacturers to look for distributors which can provide access to a pan-European or even global market as well as added value services. Nevertheless, I presume there will still be the possibility for smaller distributors to consolidate or to supply in specific regional areas and be specialised in niche applications,” says Jensen-Korte.

She describes the overall market for distributors as “reasonably healthy” at the moment, even if the European market is not growing as quickly as the global market at present. “Nevertheless, there is growth for distributors, especially for those that can extend the services they provide, notably in the specialty sectors.”

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