Chemicals

Industry challenges

With challenging market conditions driven by industry consolidation, changing macroeconomic forces, and product commoditization, we support our clients in finding tailored growth strategies:

  • As customers curb production and right-size their inventories, industry sales decline
  • Chemical companies are exposed to the difficult challenge of achieving profitable, long-term growth in this mature and extremely competitive market environment
  • Product lifecycles are constantly shortening despite substantial investment costs


In addition, chemical companies worldwide are exposed to:

  • Strong industry consolidation through mergers & acquisitions characterize the chemicals industry
  • Structural macroeconomic pressures, such as the strong dollar and the low oil price have battered profit margins and industry growth
  • Product commoditization translates into growth no longer being driven by volume but rather by value and the ability to digitize business models
tailored growth strategies für the chemicals industry

With challenging market conditions driven by industry consolidation, changing macroeconomic forces, and product commoditization, we support our clients in finding tailored growth strategies

Our Expertise

We excel at defining new strategic approaches for our chemical clients, which make best use of their capabilities and allow for successful operations despite difficult market conditions.

  • To improve our clients cost position we co-design tailored process optimization and cost management strategies in close collaboration with our international clients
  • We excel at implementing growth strategies, both organic and through acquisitions, and have devised various successful PMI strategies for our clients
  • We have embraced innovative solutions leveraging customer analytics and segmentation to support our chemical clients in differentiating their offerings – and value-based pricing strategies to maximize client value
  • Our teams also support chemical clients in mastering the sustainability challenge increasingly faced by players in the chemicals industry and developed extensive expertise in these markets

Project References

Industry expertise - Chemicals

SDI Capabilities Strategy design and implementation

Strategy Design & Implementation, Digital Strategies

Winning business opportunities in the international CO2 market

Market segment strategy definition and implementation for a global chemical company

Winning Gas-to-liquids strategy for major E&P company

SDI Capabilities cost reduction and process strategy

Cost Reduction, Process & IT Systems Optimization

Specialty chemical cost-to-serve model development

Operational baselining and cost standards development for a specialty chemicals firm

Sourcing cost reduction for a chemical firm

SDI Capabilities M&A and Post-merger Integration

M&A Screening, M&A Execution and Post-Merger Integration

Successful post-merger integration in the chemicals sector

Complex and time-sensitive chemical PMI carve-out study

M&A screening for a pipeline services company

SDI Capabilities Consumer Analytics, Marketing and Sales Excellence

Customer Analytics, Marketing & Sales Excellence

Global assessment of CRM tools for a chemical company

Customer Centricity through data analytics for a global chemical leader

Refining & chemical customer segmentation for leading chemical firm


Selected Publications

Industry expertise - Chemicals

December 2017


Chemicals Trend Report

SDI conducts annual trend studies that shape the 'Chemicals' industry. Please request your copy via link below.

December 2016


SDI Carve-out Case Study

SDI helped ensure a highly successful carve-out enabling FTC approval and the merger of two multinational chemical firms