When designing products today, designers must not only consider the current fashion trends, but also take into account many factors such as CMF (C-color, M-material, F-surface treatment), functionality, and sustainability.
This change enables materials suppliers to change their development thinking in addition to meeting the needs for production and supply of materials: Become an innovation partner for customers, provide comprehensive solutions, covering from early research and design, to subsequent testing and manufacturing, etc. every session.
As a large company with a deep history of innovation in the fields of advanced polymers and high-performance plastics, Covestro understands this importance.
"In order to go beyond the limits, we have been continuously exploring a new business model, and we want to provide customers with a full range of CMF design solutions from aesthetic concept development, design to manufacturing consulting." Covestro polycarbonate business unit Zhang Qi, director of business model innovation, said.
It is reported that Covestro will exhibit its CMF-related technologies, solutions and successful product application cases at the "2018 Second International New Materials, New Processes and Colors (CMF) Exhibition" to be held from September 19th to 21st. In addition, TPU, coatings and other products will also be displayed.
Recently, Dr. Christopher Stillings, Head of Global Color Effects and Design Center of Covestro Polycarbonate Business Unit, accepted an exclusive interview with New Materials Online®, which systematically analyzed the importance of innovation, user thinking and CMF, and revealed the future Business layout in polycarbonate.
Dr. Christopher Stillings
Practice words and innovation is one of the two pillars of development
Innovation is an eternal topic for enterprise development. This word goes with Covestro.
Stillings said that as one of the two pillars of Covestro's development, innovation does not just stay in the R & D department, it has a deeper connotation.
Covestro product samples
In addition to pursuing innovation in specific products, Covestro also values innovation in business models. As an innovative partner, Covestro can participate deeply from the early stages of product development and design, all the way to the final production stage. This year, digital transformation has begun. Through digital production, operation and design tools, the structure can be made leaner and more responsive, thereby improving the overall customer experience.
"Covestro is always seeking open innovation and hopes to develop with partners from all walks of life, whether it is a large-scale enterprise or a startup company, whether it is a design team or an individual designer. We are willing to share knowledge with them , Co-developing and testing to develop new solutions. "
In recent years, in addition to cooperating with large-scale enterprises including Haier and Bull, etc., Covestro has also established good cooperative relations with technology start-up companies such as Stone Technology and Second Measurement. "We want to help them find the best industrial-grade solution for processes and production."
Stillings also pointed out that more and more Chinese companies are now making global arrangements, and it is important for customers to have a global and regional innovation network. Covestro has its own innovations and advantages.
"We have our own R & D facilities at both the global and local levels. This helps us better listen to our customers' needs, and through innovation, we tailor-made high-quality, highly consistent solutions for our customers. In other words, any of our operations in China The results of research and development can be applied and learned globally, and vice versa. "
Stick to the user mind
For product design and CMF, the specific challenges faced by different companies and industries are different.
Large companies may need external consulting services to better understand the latest trends in color, materials and finishes. However, small and medium-sized enterprises may not be able to undertake CMF design independently and need to obtain some prototype modeling services.
According to Stillings, these challenges can be summarized by three Ws: Who, Where, What, who is the customer who uses the products and services, where they use them, and what they will do with them. "This information is critical to understanding the end user. Only by understanding these three Ws can we design products that meet their needs."
To this end, Covestro always adheres to the thinking from the end user. Covestro can work with the customer's engineer or manufacturer to analyze the three W problems mentioned earlier, and provide better suggestions for product design. Stillings said that this is the solution that Covestro found in the face of the pain points and difficulties of the industry, and it is also a way to provide customers with innovative and sustainable solutions.
Covestro is launching digital transformation solutions to improve production efficiency, optimize customer experience, and take the company's business to the next level. Stillings revealed that Covestro will enter the e-commerce platform 1688, making it easy for small customers to easily purchase high-quality products at reasonable prices, which is also an important step in achieving digital customer experience and service innovation through global digital transformation.
For some designers' confusion, Covestro has also considered it.
"Futuristic concept cars will respond to your emotions. Many new smart medical devices allow you to inject drugs at home. For example, smart cleaning robots help you clean your room … These products are all Tell the designer that in the future design will increasingly consider multiple factors such as aesthetics, texture, technology, quality, sustainability, economics, etc. "Stillings explained as an example.
The individualization of design will be the overall future development trend of various industries, and the degree of integration between design, technology and functionality will become higher and higher. Because of this, design has become more and more complex, with more emphasis on cross-domain convergence.
"Covestro can be a customer's innovation partner, helping designers adapt to this trend, from deep R & D, design, to later testing and manufacturing, and in-depth participation to create tailor-made solutions for customers. Many of our previous cases are Proves Covestro's expertise in this area. "
CMF design solutions and sustainable development
Covestro attaches great importance to CMF.
To a certain extent, the birth of CMF is to better meet product design, in other words, to meet more needs of customers.
To this end, Coves set up the Shanghai Polymer R & D Center, and set up two color effect and design centers in Shanghai and Guangzhou, respectively, to cooperate with European and American R & D networks. The R & D system is equipped with the latest facilities, and has a team of professional CMF experts with global knowledge and technical resources, which can provide creative solutions in the fields of color, materials, surface treatment and functionality according to the changing needs of customers.
In recent years, the connection between environmental protection and CMF has become increasingly tight. Covestro has a first-mover advantage in this regard, and its other major pillar of development is "sustainable development".
"We have always been focusing on the research and development of sustainable and environmentally friendly materials. By using cutting-edge technologies, we strive to reduce carbon dioxide emissions and reduce energy waste. In terms of new energy, our products have been applied in automobiles, batteries, LEDs, etc. . Through the use of innovative processes and state-of-the-art technology, Covestro is committed to sustainable operations, integrating environmental responsibility into its products and production processes, while reducing energy consumption and operating costs, while effectively controlling and reducing emissions. "Christopher said.
It is reported that Covestro will adhere to the two pillars of sustainable development and innovation, and continue to focus on the three major areas of automotive, medical and EEA (electronics, electrical and home appliances). Its sustainable development goal is that by 2025, 80% Of research and development expenditures are invested in promoting sustainable solutions, and each project will take into account the 17 Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations and halve greenhouse gas emissions by 2025.
In response to the recent planning, Stillings revealed that the company will once again significantly expand the polycarbonate production capacity of the Shanghai integrated production base and increase the production capacity to 600,000 tons / year through the bottleneck removal project to meet the strong demand of customers in the Asia Pacific region. The new capacity will be put into operation in 2019.