HOBUM News June 2022
Dear friends and partners,
uncertainties on global vegetable oil markets increased.
Chip crisis, supply chain problems, rising commodity prices: all of this preoccupied us last year. Since the end of February, the Ukraine war has added a tragedy that no one would have thought to come true and which represents a turning point, geopolitically and economically.
As a sales market, Ukraine and Russia play a relatively minor role for HOBUM. In addition to the ever-present energy issue, it is often overlooked that both countries are among the world’s largest agricultural exporters. Ukraine alone accounts for 50 % of the global sunflower market and provides 90 % of Europe with the coveted seeds and healthy food. Accordingly, the price of vegetable oil has risen sharply since February and there is hardly a functioning market for sunflower oil.
At present, Europe is still supplied with seeds and oil from the last harvest. A great deal of praise goes to our long-standing suppliers who despite supply bottlenecks, largely fulfil their contracts and do not act opportunistically. This enables us to ensure the supply of sunflower oil at HOBUM by the end of the year! In the food sector, sunflower oil can also be replaced, for example, by rapeseed or soya oil, which explains the price correlation between all oils.
The big question now is what happens next year. It will be crucial whether Ukraine succeeds in bringing in a harvest this year and making it available logistically. Estimates currently suggest that about 50 % of this could be achieved.
Nevertheless, uncertainty will remain in the global vegetable oil markets as long as this terrible war continues. In order to continue to be a reliable supplier for our customers in the future, we have already filled the first positions in sunflower oil from secure European origin for 2023.
Please contact us if you have any questions.
Sincerely,
Arnold G. Mergell
Managing Director
Hydrogen – Energy Sources of the Future?
Since at least January 1st, 2021 when CO2 pricing was introduced the issue of climate change has arrived in the balance sheets of German industry. The issue of “heat” was put on the agenda far too late, while the debate on “electricity” has been going on for years.
But process heat – often generated from natural gas – is the dominant form of energy in the chemical industry. At HOBUM, around 90% of the energy needed is steam, which makes it far more important than electricity. Therefore, it is only a matter of time before rising CO2 taxes create an impact. Alternative energy sources will not only be economically viable, but also expected by the market and thus strengthen our strategic orientation.
Can hydrogen be the solution here? We believe: YES! Hydrogen is the most common element in the universe, has 3.3 times the amount of energy per kg compared to fossil fuels and is completely CO2-neutral when produced with green electricity.
We firmly believe that hydrogen will play a decisive role in the transformation of industry and mobility – including at HOBUM. It will be crucial whether hydrogen can be produced cost-effectively in the future and when enough quantities and the corresponding infrastructure will be available.
Already this spring we joined the Hamburg initiative HH WIN (Hamburg Hydrogen Industry Network) with a Letter of Intent. This network will be continuously expanded until 2030. In addition, the first electrolyzer is to be put into operation at the former Moorburg power plant by 2025.
HOBUM is already testing all investments for their “hydrogen suitability”. We are planning a switch the energy supply when the infrastructure needed is available.
We are therefore happy to keep you up to date on the topic of “Hydrogen at HOBUM”!
Author: Arnold G. Mergell
From “HOBUM.Innovation.Exchange.“ to the “HOBUM.Web.Seminar.“
We were very pleased about the great interest in our „HOBUM.Innovation.Exchange.“, where we welcomed around 180 participants online and had interesting 1:1 conversations afterwards.
You did not take part in our event or would like to hear the lecture “Are Bio-based Materials the Right Choice to Establish Alternative Resources for CO2 Neutrality?” again?
We recorded the live lecture by our Technical Marketing Manager Elisabeth Meints and now offer it as a “HOBUM.Web.Seminar. ”
To receive the link to the video, please register here for free:
HOBUM.Web.Seminar | bio-based raw materials – HOBUM Oleochemicals GmbH
News from our Team
We warmly welcome our new employees Denny Becker, Sascha Bartkowski, Jan-Domenic Urbas and Sven Kretzler!
At the same time, we wish our esteemed Technical Marketing Manager Elisabeth Meints much joy as a mother-to-be and only the best for this exciting time. She is currently on parental leave and is expected to be active for us again next year.
Mr. Urbas joins our Sales & Marketing team and as “Technical Product Manager”. He is your contact for product inquiries, technical documents and association work.
“I am particularly looking forward to helping shape sustainability in the company and actively advancing the company’s success through the collaboration between Sales & Marketing, Application Technology and Research & Development.
The dual course of study M. Eng. Chemical engineering with a focus on coating technology and the experience at Henkel, Mankiewicz and abroad help me to understand the technical connections and communicate the potential of our products to our customers. “, said Jan Urbas.
Feel free to contact him directly at:
Email: jurbas@hobum.de
Tel. : +49 173 377 6841
We are very pleased about the energetic support in our storehouse by Mr. Becker and in our production by Mr. Bartkowski and Mr. Kretzler!
In addition, we would like to congratulate our employee Janis Blumenstein on his new title “State certified industrial master chemistry with a specialization in technology” and on his new position as shift master.
We are looking forward to the positive development of our team and to the cooperation!
Are you looking for high-quality, bio-based hardeners?
We have bio-based solutions for you!
Epoxy (EP) mortars, commonly known as synthetic resin mortars, are valued for the following outstanding characteristics:
• High mechanical strength
• chemical resistance
• variable curing time
In the construction industry, it is common to distinguish between EP mortars, with the composition of fillers < 4 mm, and EP concretes with fillers in the coarse grain > 4 mm.
For this purpose, reactive polyamide resins, polyamines and their formulations are used as curing agents.
The decisive factor for the choice of EP resin and hardener is the object to be protected. What is the stress and what are environmental conditions?
We are happy to support you in finding the best product for you.
We at HOBUM offer a variety of EP hardeners with a bio-based carbon content of up to 75 % for these applications.
Here you can find an overview of our products:
• A combination of reactively diluted EP resin and Merginamide A 280 is recommended as a concrete primer (unfilled binder). The modified polyaminoamide hardener has excellent adhesive tensile strength (> 3. 8 MPa, 100 % concrete breakage) – even on wet concrete. The primer is applied immediately before the coating work, so that the synthetic resin mortar is then applied wet onto wet.
• Merginamide L 500, Merginamide L 450 and Merginamide L 390 are polyaminoamide/ imidazoline hardeners based on monomeric fatty acid, medium to low viscosity with different reactivity but the same mechanical and chemical properties. These products are well suited as base hardeners for EP mortar and concrete.
• Merginamide L 445 and Merginamide L 410 are polyamino-imidazoline hardeners based on dimerized fatty acid, with higher viscosity than monomeric fatty acid hardeners and higher thermal resistance (TG) and chemical resistance. These products are mainly used for filler compounds and construction adhesives.
We attach great importance to getting an optimal result with the two-component system. A flawless recipe is essential for this. Adherence to the exact mixing ratios of epoxy resin and hardener is fundamental.
Do you want to raise your formulations to a new level?
Get more information and make an appointment with Dieter Grabowski. You can reach us at dgrabowski@hobum.de or by phone at +49 40 766 255-30.
Author: Dieter Grabowski
Worlée-Chemie GmbH is our new strategic distributor
Worlée immediately takes over the exclusive distribution of our entire product range in France, the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, Nordic and Poland.
Dr. Thorsten Adebahr, Head of Chemicals Trade, Worlée-Chemie GmbH: “We are very pleased about the strategic collaboration with HOBUM. The transformation towards a more sustainable world will be increasingly demanding for the paints, varnishes, adhesives and plastics industries in the coming years. We are all the more pleased to have a new competent partner at our side, with whom we can further expand the proportion of bio-based products in our distribution portfolio. ”
Dr. René Manski, Head of Sales & Marketing at HOBUM Oleochemicals GmbH, said: “The strategic partnership between Worlée and HOBUM will help us to attract new customers. Together, we will be able to offer further innovative, bio-based solutions for existing and new industrial applications. We look forward to working together to further increase the proportion of products with a growing proportion. ”
Here is an overview of our distribution partners:
Code of Conduct and Rules of Conduct
At the end of last year, before the hectic Christmas preparations and the restrictive Corona rules began, we used the time for self-reflection. We revised our Code of Conduct and policies.
The central questions are:
• What do we stand for?
• What is our belief?
What demands do we place on ourselves and on our valued partners?
Very quickly there was agreement that for us, at HOBUM, the following central basic principles apply:
• Sustainability,
• Security,
• Integrity and
• Compliance.
What do we mean by these keywords?
We have summarized the definition and elaboration of these individual terms in our updated Code of Conduct and the guidelines derived from it for labor and human rights, environmental protection and sustainable procurement.
Compliance
At HOBUM we comply with all laws and regulations relevant to us and expect the same from all our business partners. In addition, we expect our partners to follow all the principles set out here and to create their own compliance regulations.
Failure to comply with the regulations set out here can lead to termination of the business relationship.
Security
The safety of our employees in the workplace must be ensured at all times. This also applies to activities that do not take place at the company’s headquarters, e.g. mobile working or business trips.
We constantly check the safety of our manufacturing processes and other work processes with the help of risk assessments and carry out technical improvements with the involvement of employees and the works council.
The safety of our products must be guaranteed at all times. We ensure compliance with the legal framework, that our safety data sheets are up to date and that our products are labeled accordingly.
We expect the same security precautions from our business partners.
Sustainability
As HOBUM Oleochemicals GmbH, we stand by the 17 sustainability goals of the UN (SDGs) and are a member of the UN Global Compact Network.
With the processing of renewable raw materials, HOBUM has placed the concept of recycling and thus climate protection and sustainable management at the center of our strategic orientation for over 60 years.
The observance of human rights and the commitment to the Hamburg oil mill collective agreement (IGBCE) underline the social orientation of our company and are strengthened by the maintenance of a foundation for subsidized housing for active and former employees.
Integrity
We are convinced that long-term business success can only be achieved if we act in partnership with all market participants.
We stand for compliance with fair competition based on all national and international market rules. There is no alternative to respecting and complying with personal and property rights. Any kind of bribery or corruption is strictly rejected. All business processes are transparently and verifiably documented and are available for checks at any time.
This “code of conduct” applies to all shareholders, employees and business partners of HOBUM. It is supplemented and specified by various guidelines.
Do you have any questions about our products?
Book an online appointment with us under this link.
We look forward to the exchange with you!
Newsletter Coordination
Eliane Aspiazu de la Vega
Marketing Assistent
Email: easpiazu@hobum.de
Would you like to find the next newsletter directly in your email inbox? Register here.