This year, Bjørn Thorsen had to tackle many challenges, many of which due to our ambition to do our utmost best to satisfy the customers in a post-pandemic world, with a complex geopolitical crisis in Europe, while others generated on company’s own journey towards long-term prosperity and sustainable growth.

General outlook over 2022 and 2023 projections

We’ve experienced a very busy and tumultuous first half of 2022, with improvement in polymer availability and eased supply chain congestions. That coupled with the historically highest demands that the European markets have experienced, generated one of the busiest periods in the history of Bjørn Thorsen. However, during the 3rd and 4th quarters of the year, we had to brace for increased instability and slower demand. We can see that the Nordic polymer industry is following the general European market slow-down, given the current inflation, energy crisis and European geopolitical situation.

In general, for 2023 we hope the slow-down will flatten out and we will start seeing increased overall demand for raw materials. For Bjørn Thorsen, the aim is to generate interest at our customers with our newest product portfolio additions and technologies, and trust that this will help us create a foundation for future growth.

Product additions and sustainable solutions

In order to bring a more diversified product offering to our customers, while still focusing on expertise in soft and flexible polymers, we have added several new products in our Advanced Polymer Solutions business unit.

Bjørn Thorsen is now distributing styrenic modifiers from INEOS Styrolutions, a new product line dedicated to polymer modification, delivering properties such as: enhanced stiffness, superior long-term heat resistance, better color fastness and retention, UV resistance, dimensional stability, impact resistance, and more.

We will also widen our portfolio of pigments, offering effect pigments, inorganic pigments, organic pigments, specialty dyes, and pigment preparations for electronic displays, cosmetics, coatings, inks, plastics, and specialty applications from Sun Chemical Colors & Effects GmbH as of January 2023.

This year, we’ve been getting more questions about bio-based and recycled products or biomass balance approach. A joint webinar with Lubrizol Engineered Polymers was held in September 2022 to present customers “A new generation of sustainable TPU solutions”, where we discussed the latest sustainable developments from Lubrizol, like ESTANE® RNW TPU, ESTANE® PIR TPU or the Bio-Based Mass Balance (BBMB) approach. The addition of styrenic modifiers from INEOS Styrolutions is also meant to support the customer’s interest in BBMB approach.

Our affiliates have also been able to help fulfill customer needs for more sustainable solutions. Bjørn Thorsen’s affiliate Customized Compound Solutions A/S (CCS) now provides own recycled Opti-Pren™ TPV, low-CO2 emissions Opti-Soft™ TPE, or 100% recyclable in the PP stream Opti-Flex™ TPO.  The sister company of CCS, Nordic Grafting Company A/S (NGC), has launched a new grade - Acti-Tech compatibilizer 16MA11F, which is compliant with EU food regulation 10/2011. It is approved for food contact applications in packaging and recycling industries, and it was well received in tie layer construction.

New resources and restructuring in the organization

To support the product portfolio growth, our plastics team has welcomed a new Sale Manager, Emil Ström, who perfectly complements the Advanced Polymer Solutions team with a strong background in pigments and additives for plastics.

Besides adding new resources in various departments, the company has also undergone internal restructuring to ensure better customer service and dedicated contacts for each supplier and customer, bringing expertise and new solutions for the betterment of the company.

ISO certifications, Sustainability report and Codes of Conduct

In the beginning of 2022, Bjørn Thorsen and all its affiliates have been successfully certified with ISO 9001:2015 and ISO 14001:2015. This is an important milestone, which we’re proud to achieve, endorsing our commitment to quality, continuous improvement, and environmental responsibility.

In Spring 2022, we launched our Supplier Code of Conduct, stating the requirements for suppliers related to their responsible business conduct, and their duties towards the communities where they operate. The Code covers areas such as business ethics, health & safety, working conditions & labor practices, environment, and quality.

We also launched our Employee Code of Conduct, setting the standards for our behavior and governing how each employee within BTG engages with suppliers, customers, colleagues, authorities, and other stakeholders.

Together with our Annual Report, we published our first Sustainability Report for the financial year 2021/22. The document presents the company’s key figures reflecting Bjørn Thorsen Group performance related to environmental impact, social impact, and governance.

All in all…

All the developments and new additions in 2022 were done keeping the need of the customer in mind. We strongly believe that a restructured, ISO certified organization, and a stronger product portfolio, with a diverse offering of sustainable solutions, will keep our customers satisfied and interested in cooperating with us. Everything we do is to support a better quality of our work and service improvement.