Key Products, Services and Business Processes

GRI 102-2, GRI 102-6, GRI 102-7, GRI 102-15, GRI 103-1, GRI 103-2, GRI 103-3
Wacker Chemie AG - Sustainability Report 2015/16

Our divisions’ overall range of products and services remained unchanged during the reporting period. In several application areas, though, we expanded our product portfolio. Our WACKER division provides customers with our broadest offering of over 2,800 products. The division manufactures specialties tailored to customers’ specific needs, and standard products primarily used as starting materials in silicone production.

WACKER makes state-of-the-art binders and polymeric additives (such as and dispersions). These are used in diverse industrial applications or as base chemicals. Customer sectors include the paint, coating, paper and adhesive industries. The main customer for polymeric binders is the construction industry.

WACKER BIOSOLUTIONS, our smallest division, supplies customized biotech and catalog products for fine chemicals. Products include pharmaceutical proteins, , , polyvinyl acetate solid resins (for gumbase), organic intermediates and acetylacetone. The division focuses on customer-specific solutions for growth areas, such as food additives, pharmaceutical actives and agrochemicals.

WACKER produces hyperpure polysilicon for the , electronics and – above all – solar sectors. Most of this polysilicon is sent to external customers.

Siltronic, the leading semiconductor manufacturer, produces . They are the essential raw material for virtually all semiconductor products – whether for discrete semiconductor components (transistors or rectifiers) or for microchips (microprocessors, memory chips).

Divisional Shares in External Sales

Divisional Shares in External Sales (graphic)

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External Sales by Customer Headquarters

 

  

 

  

 

€ million

  

2016

  

2015

  

2014

 

  

 

  

 

  

 

 

  

 

  

 

Europe

  

1,894.0

  

1,887.6

  

1,794.2

The Americas

  

950.9

  

945.1

  

810.7

Asia

  

2,340.5

  

2,253.1

  

2,039.7

Other regions

  

218.8

  

210.4

  

181.8

Group

  

5,404.2

  

5,296.2

  

4,826.4

 

  

 

  

 
Silicones
General term used to describe compounds of organic molecules and silicon. According to their areas of application, silicones can be classified as fluids, resins or rubber grades. Silicones are characterized by a myriad of outstanding properties. Typical areas of application include construction, the electrical and electronics industries, shipping and transportation, textiles and paper coatings.
Polymer
A polymer is a large molecule made up of smaller molecular units (monomers). It contains between 10,000 and 100,000 monomers. Polymers can be long or ball-shaped.
Dispersible Polymer Powders
Created by drying dispersions in spray or disc dryers. VINNAPAS® polymer powders from WACKER are recommended as binders in the construction industry, e.g. for tile adhesives, self-leveling compounds and repair mortars. The powders improve adhesion, cohesion, flexibility and flexural strength, as well as water-retention and processing properties.
Cyclodextrins
Cyclodextrins belong to the family of cyclic oligosaccharides (i.e. ring-shaped sugar molecules). They are able to encapsulate foreign substances such as fragrances and to release active ingredients at a controlled rate. Cyclodextrins are produced and marketed by WACKER BIOSOLUTIONS.
Cysteine
Cysteine is a sulfur-containing amino acid. It belongs to the non-essential amino acids, as it can be formed in the body. It is used, for example, as an additive in foods and cough mixtures. Cysteine and its derivatives are a business field at WACKER BIOSOLUTIONS.
Polysilicon
Hyperpure polycrystalline silicon from WACKER POLYSILICON is used for manufacturing wafers for the electronics and solar industries. To produce it, metallurgical-grade silicon is converted into liquid trichlorosilane, highly distilled and deposited in hyperpure form at 1,000 °C.
Semiconductor
A substance whose electrical conductivity is much lower than that of metals, but increases dramatically as the temperature rises. Semiconductors can be modified for a particular purpose by doping them with foreign atoms.
Silicon Wafer
A silicon wafer is a disc with a thickness of between approximately 200 and 800 µm, and is used by the semiconductor industry for the manufacture of semiconductor devices, i.e. integrated circuits and discrete components.