Rohm and Haas, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA

This case study outlines The Natural Step's collaboration with Rohm and Haas prior to its acquisition by the Dow Chemical company in March 2009. More about The Natural Step's collaboration with Dow is included in the Press Release: The Natural Step and Dow Chemical Announce Strategic Alignment

Rohm and Haas is an international organisation, producing innovative technologies and solutions for the specialty materials industry. Based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the company’s technologies are found in a wide range of markets including building and construction, electronics, food and personal care. In 2008, Rohm and Haas had revenues of approximately $9.6 billion USD.

Rohm and Haas was introduced to The Natural Step in 2005 through one of its customers, polyvinyl chloride (PVC)-manufacturer Hydro Polymers (now INEOS). As part of Hydro Polymers’ commitment to sustainability, the company challenged its top suppliers in Europe to collaborate across the value chain to develop sustainable PVC solutions using The Natural Step Framework.

The Rohm and Haas Packaging and Building Materials business began working with The Natural Step in 2007, prototyping a Sustainability Life Cycle Assessment (SLCA) tool on heat stabilizers for PVC. The tool provides a strategic overview of the social and ecological sustainability of products throughout their life cycles. The SLCA begins with initial resource extraction and extends all the way to the products’ end of life, including production, transportation and use.

In August 2007, Rohm and Haas received the 2007 Hydro Sustainability Award for its SLCA project on heat stabilizers for PVC. The award was presented at a conference organized by Hydro Polymers for its top ten global suppliers, and Rohm and Haas was elected as the best performing company by Hydro and The Natural Step at the conclusion of the conference.

Based on the SLCA work, Rohm and Haas introduced Advapak™ NEO products, a new range of high performing, organic-based and heavy metal-free technology stabilizers in March 2009. The Advapak products are helping the PVC industry transition towards more renewable raw materials and reduce energy consumption and emissions by simplifying the manufacturing process and enabling easier recycling.

Another outcome of the PVC industry collaboration is the development of a distance learning course on sustainability for the chemical industry sponsored by Rohm and Haas and Hydro Polymers. The course, called “Leading Change for a Sustainable Chemical Industry” was developed by the Blekinge Institute of Technology (BTH) and The Natural Step, and aimed to build participants’ capacity to strategically address the business opportunities of sustainability and help develop role models for sustainable development in the chemical industry.

These early wins helped lay the foundation for support from Rohm and Haas top management in Philadelphia, and in January 2008 the company officially announced a core funding partnership with The Natural Step International.

Throughout 2008, Rohm and Haas worked closely with advisors from The Natural Step to develop a new vision and goals that provide a tangible, long-term direction for the company’s sustainability journey and describe its vision of success.

In early September 2008, Rohm and Haas announced its new vision statement for sustainability and six commitments for the future, which are based on an extensive participatory process that included 200 of the company’s top managers from around the world. These are available online in the company’s 2007 Sustainable Development Report and are pictured here.

“With these new commitments to sustainability, Rohm and Haas will be at the forefront of the industry, having a systematic, science-based approach to sustainable development and aggressive, forward thinking goals to achieve sustainability across all levels of the value chain,” explained Pierre Brondeau, president and CEO of Rohm and Haas.

Rohm and Haas continues to work with The Natural Step to ensure sustainable development is integrated into their business operations, strategies and daily work.

According to Catherine T. “Katie” Hunt, Corporate Sustainability Director at Rohm and Haas, “Rohm and Haas products affect every level of the value chain, the company’s employees are some of the industry’s foremost innovators and Rohm and Haas leadership is wholly devoted to becoming the sustainable development standard by which others are judged.”

The company has formed a Sustainable Development Leadership Team, which will champion the integration of the new vision and six commitments into strategic plans and daily operations. In addition, a Sustainable Development Champion Network is helping to catalyze sustainability at all levels and throughout all businesses and functions of Rohm and Haas. Through a series of interactive webinars, the Champion Network is participating in ongoing training in The Natural Step Framework and sustainability principles, the Rohm and Haas vision and commitments, and best practices on integrating sustainability into business practices.

Employee engagement has been a major cornerstone of Rohm and Haas’ sustainability work. The Sustainable Development Leadership Team, workshop participants and Champion Network members have taken The Natural Step’s eLearning course, Sustainability 101, and the company has developed an internal sustainability website which serves as a resource for all employees to learn about sustainability, the Rohm and Haas vision and commitments, and share their dedication to sustainability at the workplace and at home.

Rohm and Haas won the “Best in Show” award for their booth at Eurocoat 2008, where they highlighted some of their new technologies that represent strategic steps towards sustainability. Among the new products showcased by Rohm and Haas were technologies that help create decorative coatings that emit fewer Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs), water-based emulsion for industrial metal coatings and road markings, and VOC-free biocides. The Natural Step participated in the 2008 Eurocoat booth, and will do so again in Eurocoat 2009.

As of 2009, the company is piloting several sustainability projects, including ongoing use and refinement of the SLCA tool and a carbon footprint of some of their facilities. The Sustainable Development Champions Network is driving several strategic projects in specific business areas and regions, and a robust set of Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) is currently under development to measure the company’s ongoing progress towards its six commitments.

Additional Resources:

You can read more about Rohm and Haas' sustainability commitments in the company's October 2008 employee newsletter, Formula.

Watch a Rohm and Haas' video outlining the company's commitment to sustainability here.

Download a video of Catherine "Katie" T. Hunt, Corporate Sustainability Director at Rohm and Haas, encouraging employees to remain actively involved in sustainability here.

Watch a video summary of Rohm and Haas' December 2008 Sustainability Report here.