Chew Eng Soo, 55, is often called BASF's top polyurethane man in the Asia-Pacific region as he oversees such vast markets as China, India, Asean and Australia.

The Hong Kong-based group vice president was in Bangkok last week to open one of what the German chemical giant calls its "polyurethane system houses".

Its newest system house, situated in Samut Prakan's Bangpoo Industrial Estate, is a state-of-the-art chemical plant that allows the firm to tailor its polyurethane products to the specifications of clients here.

Developed in the 1930s, the petrochemical-derived chemical compound is usually delivered to customers in liquid form for injection into moulds and is the raw material for products like automotive seats and refrigerator insulation. Last year, Thailand produced a total of 1.2 million autos, about half of which were exported; and another 5 million refrigerators, of which 80 per cent were exported.

Currently, BASF's annual sale of polyurethane in Thailand totals about Bt1 billion, whereas its overall annual sales turnover here is about Bt11 billion.

One of the world's largest chemical firms, BASF's overall annual sales turnover is about ¤53 billion (Bt2.34 trillion), of which ¤4.8 billion, or about 9 per cent, is generated by its polyurethane business.

Chew, formerly managing director of BASF Thailand, says demand for polyurethane in Thailand is growing at an annual rate of 7 per cent.

At present, the larger Chinese market enjoys the highest growth rate, followed by Asean markets, including Thailand, and then India.

Chew, who graduated from the University of Malaya with an accounting degree, has spent the past two decades working in the chemical sector in the Asia-Pacific region.

"I started out with ICI Paint in Australia around 1988 (when I was finance director). Later, I worked for the dyestuff business and then the polyurethane unit. In 1999, I joined BASF Thailand.

"I'm also a certified public accountant. In my opinion, not being a chemist in this industry has both advantages and disadvantages. If you're a chemist, you'd naturally be too involved with the science of chemicals. You might not be involved sufficiently with marketing and sales," Chew says.

Polyurethane is commonplace in our daily life. Besides car seats and refrigerator insulation, it's in the mattresses we sleep on at night, in the insulation of the microwaves we use to heat our food, in the steering wheels of our cars and in many kinds of office furniture.

"Our innovative polyurethane products are also used as the materials for coastal protection walls," Chew says.

"Previously, we found that solid walls crack easily after a while [due to the huge impact caused by the force of sea water]. As a result, we turned to building a new kind of protection wall by binding the stones with polyurethane. The material is more flexible, helping energy [from waves] to disperse and resulting in longer-lasting walls.

"Another innovative product is SPS [Sandwich Plate System], for use in the ship-building industry," he says.

"As a chemical company, we also help conserve the environment by producing innovative materials that help save energy and reduce waste," says Chew.

"For instance, our eco-flex plastic products for packaging are biodegradable so they do not harm the planet."

Nophakhun Limsamarnphun

nop1122@yahoo.com