Megatrends such as world population growth, burgeoning urbanization and increasing motorization are indicators of greater global changes. Large cities have a magical appeal for people. Even now, more than half of the world population lives in metropolitan centers. By 2030, two-thirds of the inhabitants of this planet will be city people. Large cities in Africa and Asia are growing especially fast.

All of this has an impact on our climate, energy generation, the development of technologies and, last but not least, on the way our everyday residential and living spaces are shaped. Sustainable concepts to address these trends increasingly demand effective product innovations in the chemicals industry in order to develop solutions that help lower energy consumption and enhance our quality of life.

By focusing on four mega-trends – mobility, urbanization, water and agriculture – LANXESS is in an excellent position to meet the challenges posed by these developments with innovative products and solutions that serve market demand. The stated goal of LANXESS is to effectively help shape the urban future – while simultaneously benefiting from these trends. No wonder the mega-trends play a key role in the growth strategy of the specialty chemicals group. “Our innovative products and solutions are in ever greater demand. China alone is planning to build dozens of new cities in order to keep up with increasing urbanization. This trend along with the growth of the middle class creates a lot of opportunities for us,” explains Axel C. Heitmann, Chairman of the Board of Management at LANXESS.

The fact that sustainability plays a special role in this process is a matter of course for LANXESS.

• Making mobility more efficient through lightweight construction: LANXESS supplies materials that allow weight reductions to be achieved in automobile construction as well as the aviation and railway sectors.
• Green tires” with LANXESS high-performance rubber products reduce rolling resistance and save fuel.
• LANXESS rubber products make tires more slip-resistant and therefore boost safety on wet roads.
  
  

• Shenyang Stadium in China and Soccer City Stadium in Johannesburg were colored with Bayferrox pigments - concrete colorants made by LANXESS.
• With modern insulating materials such as Buna EP, LANXESS ensures that neither the heat from the furnace nor the cool from the air conditioner can escape – and therefore creates a pleasant living atmosphere.
• Levapren and Levamelt open up entirely new design horizons. Among other things, they make architecture transparent – which can be admired in the roof covering of the Olympic Stadium in Munich.

• Water treatment solutions to meet the rising demand for water in urban centers: ion exchange resins remove arsenic and recycle the water.
• LANXESS products contribute to improved water quality in a variety of ways: membrane filtration technology is another trendsetting water treatment option. A type of selective partition allows certain substances to pass while others are held back.
• Last but not least: LANXESS rubber products help reduce water loss during transportation. They reliably seal water lines so that the valuable resource reaches more and more people.
  
  

• LANXESS manufacturers products to increase harvesting capacities. For example, Perbunan and Krynac improve the effectiveness of rice harvesting equipment.
• Saltidin has been confirmed by the WHO and EPA as an effective and reliable means to fight mosquitoes in order to prevent the spread of tropical diseases.
• Dimethyl phosphate is used as a chemical intermediate in the production of pesticides.