Covestro: New corporate program for digitization: Digital developments for the PU industry

Digitization opens up many new business opportunities in the chemical and plastics industries. Covestro wants to take advantage of these opportunities and initiated a comprehensive strategic program last year to anchor digital technologies and processes in research & development, production, logistics and at all points of contact with customers.

All activities are bundled in the 'Digital@Covestro' program and comprise three main themes: In the 'Digital Operations' area, the cost efficiency of the company's own technical processes is being improved, primarily in production. 'Digital Customer Experience' opens up new digital channels for contact with customers. 'Digital Business Models' aims at new business models, for example online trading platforms for standard products.

Digital developments for the PU process chain
The program offers special opportunities for customers in the polyurethane industry because unlike thermoplastics the properties of these materials are characterized in a complex way by chemistry and process engineering. Covestro can also achieve significant improvements in its own process technology through digitization. At the UTECH Europe 2018 conference, Dr. Ulrich Liman, Head of Innovation in the Polyurethanes segment, will give a presentation on this topic under the title 'PU 4.0 - digital developments for improved polyurethane products'.

Covestro has been using digital technologies for years. Modern control rooms are steering its own production via a digital process control system with the aid of algorithms. Tool designs with filling simulations are common practice for customers in the automotive industry. In future, the entire value chain will be digitized in order to simulate all process steps - from the formulation and mixing of the PU systems to their processing and handling of the component with the aid of robots. This will significantly shorten development times and the implementation of integrated production processes.

Virtual PU synthesis
Using digital calculation methods, Covestro also operates a 'virtual chemical reactor'. The company has developed software that precisely calculates the changes in temperature and molecular composition, i.e. the progress of the chemical reaction.

Not only important primary products such as urethanes and ureas are considered, but also secondary reactions, the influence of catalysts or back reactions and the development of molecular networks. The sophisticated tool has already proven itself in various projects, for example in the optimization of Covestro's MDI prepolymer portfolio.

Online prediction tool for optimized PU processing
In the 'Digital Customer Experience' area, the company is supporting customers with new digital service elements. The Polyurethanes segment is currently offering its initial partners a digital service platform with a forecasting tool that determines the best PU formulations and processing conditions online for a specific production environment.

The tool has already been successfully tested at FoamPartner Fritz Nauer AG. In the project, the software determined the influence of the weather on the production of flexible foam and proposed countermeasures to compensate for quality fluctuations.

Another online platform called i4pt0™ is cloud-based and covers all segments of Covestro. The focus here is more on the development of polymer products such as foams, elastomers, coatings, adhesives, sealants and polycarbonate compounds. The software calculates raw material and formulation proposals for the customer according to the desired product properties. Tools for PU block foam production are already available on this platform.

Online platforms for efficient procurement
Another pillar of Covestro's digitalization strategy is a digital chemical trading platform. In future, customers will be able to buy standard products efficiently online at current market prices. The platform was designed together with customers and is currently being tested.

Since April 23, Covestro has also been offering its high-tech polymer products through a flagship store at 1688.com. This online platform of the internet giant Alibaba is currently China's largest marketplace for business customers.

About Covestro:
With 2017 sales of EUR 14.1 billion, Covestro is among the world's largest polymer companies. Business activities are focused on the manufacture of high-tech polymer materials and the development of innovative solutions for products used in many areas of daily life. The main segments served are the automotive, construction, wood processing and furniture, and electrical and electronics industries. Other sectors include sports and leisure, cosmetics, health and the chemical industry itself. Covestro has 30 production sites worldwide and employs approximately 16,200 people (calculated as full-time equivalents) at the end of 2017.

Find more information atwww.covestro.com.
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Forward-looking statements
This news release may contain forward-looking statements based on current assumptions and forecasts made by Covestro AG. Various known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors could lead to material differences between the actual future results, financial situation, development or performance of the company and the estimates given here. These factors include those discussed in Covestro's public reports which are available atwww.covestro.com. The company assumes no liability whatsoever to update these forward-looking statements or to conform them to future events or developments.