Friday, September 26, 2008

BASF buys Ciba...

BASF is taking in Ciba for a big chunk of change ($5.5 billion). This could work out well, as BASF, a resin manufacturer. To paraphrase BASF's tagline from the recent past, Ciba's doesn't make the things you buy from BASF, they make them better. So having internal access to antioxidants, UV absorbers, ... certainly can work out well, plus there are certainly advantages in seeing what additives their competitors are buying as well.

I've always loved Ciba's products and especially the technical knowledge that they have so readily supplied with them. I can't think of any other company that compares. But all that free knowledge might be beginning to bite them. Lower cost suppliers of equivalent products - even using the same product numbers - are present and growing, although the quality is not there.

To the extent that Ciba has more goodies in development, the sale will likely work out well.