Press release

Heerlen, NL, 06 Sep 2018 14:45 CEST

Royal DSM, a global science-based company active in Nutrition, Health and Sustainable Living, held its inaugural Supplier Partnership Day in the Netherlands, which was attended by 75 of its key strategic suppliers. This successful event enabled DSM to strengthen key partnerships, make these partners aware of the company’s strategy Growth & Value - Purpose-led, Performance driven, and to drive further progress in sustainability, reducing our environmental footprint while making a positive social impact.

During the event, Christiana Figueres, former Executive Secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), delivered a keynote speech on the importance of partnership and collaboration, to drive economic progress while reducing the environmental footprint.

DSM values its strategic supplier partnerships in delivering tangible benefits in the areas of performance, innovation and sustainability. As part of the event, DSM showcased the specific contributions of excellent suppliers in different areas through an awards ceremony.

DSM recognized the contribution of Jushi, a Chinese company specializing in the supply of fiberglass materials, who received the DSM Supplier of the Year Award. Jushi received the award thanks to their strategic alignment with DSM, their clear growth commitment, and the excellent technical support offered to DSM Engineering Plastics in particular.

In addition, three other key suppliers were presented with awards for their excellent contributions:

• The German chemicals company BASF received an award for “Most Innovative Contribution”, thanks in part to their contribution to DSM Resins and Functional Materials’ radical innovation programs Niaga® and Uralac® Ultra.
• The Dutch mechanical maintenance company ERIKS received an award for “Best Digital Solution”, for their innovative “ERIKS Brain” solution, an augmented reality application that enables a real-time connection between an on-site DSM engineer and an off-site ERIKS expert.
• The Japanese food and chemicals company Ajinomoto received an award for “Best Contribution to Sustainability” for their comprehensive sustainability program, which has resulted in a significant reduction of land-use and waste.

Dimitri de Vreeze, Member of DSM's Managing Board, commented: “DSM is a purpose-led, performance-driven company. But there is a third ‘p’ – that of ‘partnership’. Our suppliers play a key role in delivering our strategy, and it’s key that we form strong partnerships with our supplier base that deliver tangible benefits linked to our performance, innovation and sustainability. Delivering on DSM’s goal of growing our business while reducing the environmental footprint and making a positive social impact is not something we can do alone. Our Supplier Partnership Day proved extremely successful in driving awareness and alignment, recognizing excellent contributions, as well as strengthening key relationships. I’m confident that, hand in hand with our suppliers, we can create brighter lives for all.”