Covestro as a company: let’s materialize circularity

Our high-performance polymer materials are part of the solution to global challenges. We rely on technologies that reduce energy consumption and emissions in our production processes. The products and solutions we develop replace conventional materials such as glass or metal, which are produced less sustainably or have a less sustainable lifecycle. They also enable entirely new, sustainable applications. We are convinced that our long-term vision on the circular economy brings us closer to our purpose of making the world a better place.

Putting the customer at the center of everything we do, we work closely with partners across the entire value chain to develop tailored, sustainable solutions and drive the circular transformation of our industry. Our ambition is to be a competitive partner for our customers, to shape our portfolio around customer needs and to create lasting value together.

Curiosity is part of our DNA. Click here if you are curious too.

We offer a broad range of products and services for different markets, requirements, and industries. For this reason, we have structured our portfolio according to business specifics and customer needs.

The two overarching segments are "Performance Materials" and "Solutions & Specialties", consisting of a total of seven business units. Each business unit is organized with a view to its key success factors and integrates all business-critical activities along the value chain.

We are convinced that a company is defined not only by its products, but equally by its holistic framework for action.

Our "Sustainable Future" strategy defines how we combine the economic and ecological aspects of sustainability – being a profitable business and a reliable and innovative partner for our customers while shaping the path toward a more sustainable world with our sustainable and circular solutions.

It comprises three chapters: "Optimize", "Grow", and "Transform". We "optimize" in the short term, "grow" in the medium term, and "transform" permanently. The customer's perspective is always at the center. We implement our strategy through the power of innovation, accelerated digital transformation, the implementation of artificial intelligence, and by expanding our "We Are 1" culture.

Unlocking one's own potential is the foundation for continuous and profitable business success. We focus on three key topics:

Through targeted maintenance projects, we make our operations more reliable and efficient, thereby improving plant availability and increasing our reliability for our customers.

We optimize our cost position by implementing our global "STRONG" program, in which we optimize structures and processes in production and administration to achieve annual savings of €400 million by the end of 2028.

At the same time, we are selectively expanding high-margin business areas and opening up new markets. We are targeting new application fields with strong growth dynamics – across individual product lines and beyond the traditional boundaries of our business units. One of the first application fields within this initiative is robotics.

We want to grow our business in the mid-term in long-term attractive markets and we are eager to invest. Through proactive lifecycle management, we sharpen our product portfolio and strengthen our competitive differentiation.

We also promote growth in the Solutions & Specialties segment by increasing plant utilization through targeted changes to our product mix. On this basis, we create growth and contribute to better coverage of our fixed costs.

All activities that promote organic growth are targeted and aligned with profitability and sustainability. This secures and further strengthens our market position. In addition, we rely on selective inorganic growth (mergers & acquisitions, M&A) to specifically expand our materials portfolio, broaden our geographical reach, and strengthen our technology offering.

Innovation is the foundation of our future viability. We believe that 'Bold ideas become innovative materials for a sustainable future’. Guided by this promise, our mission is to create high-performance material and technology innovations with added values for our customers. We focus on three areas: securing our current business through regulatory compliance and quality assurance, growing in adjacent markets and products, and disruptive innovations for our transformation. Crucial is the commercialization of products, technology, and application innovations, also with the help of digital research and development activities in conjunction with artificial intelligence and the use of quantum computing.

We consistently advance digital transformation and artificial intelligence (AI) as a fundamental enabler of our strategy. We leverage the potential of AI and digital technologies along the entire value chain and across all corporate functions. Through AI collaboration tools, partnerships with technology companies, algorithms, and machine learning, we unlock additional value creation potential and support our sustainability goals.

Culture and strategic workforce management are further key drivers of our success. Our "We Are 1" corporate culture is based on the values of curiosity, courage, and diversity. It creates an open and inclusive working environment that encourages employees to challenge the status quo and develop new business approaches. Through strategic workforce management, we ensure that our workforce always has the skills required for the tasks of the future.