Evonik spends big on R&D

The German specialty chemical firm Evonik Industries says it spent a record $470 million on R&D in 2015, equivalent to 3.2% of sales, and that it will continue to maintain R&D spending at the same sales-to-investment ratio. The firm’s planned acquisition of Air Products’ additives business will further add to its R&D capability, Chairman Klaus Engel told journalists at a meeting in Essen, Germany. Engel said Evonik is intensifying its research in the high-growth fields of nutrition, food ingredients, health care, membranes, cosmetics, and smart materials. This research will translate into additional sales of more than $1 billion by 2025, he predicted. In health care, Evonik’s research projects include synthetic bone materials and media for growing artificial human organs. The “competitive impact” of Evonik’s patents is superior to that of peers such as BASF, Clariant, DSM, DuPont, Lanxess, and Solvay, according to an April study by the patent analysis firm PatentSight.