#Textile chemistry

2023-01-18

Ib Jensen takes over from Jan Secher as new CEO of Perstorp Group

Ib Jensen (right) takes over from Jan Secher (left) as new CEO of Perstorp Group. (Photo: Perstorp)

Effective March 1st, Ib Jensen takes over from Jan Secher as Chief Executive Officer of Perstorp Group, a leading specialty chemicals company headquartered in Malmö, Sweden and since 2022 part of PETRONAS Chemicals Group Berhad (PCG). Ib Jensen is a highly respected senior industry executive with a long career as CFO and extensive experience from M&A and integration of acquired companies, something that will be required in the next phase for Perstorp.

After more than 9 successful years as the CEO of Perstorp Group, Jan Secher has decided to step down. This decision is based on a personal direction set more than a year ago, prior to the acquisition by PCG, allowing for a full search process to be conducted for his replacement. Ib Jensen has been CFO of Perstorp for the past year and was considered the most qualified candidate based on his knowledge of the company, long term experience of the specialty chemicals industry and high level of appreciation in both Perstorp as well as in PCG. Previous experience include CFO and executive roles within Finance and IT at companies such as Arxada, Lonza, Syngenta, Danisco and LEGO.

“I have had the pleasure to lead Perstorp through an exciting transformation, which has formed the company to what we are today; a sustainability frontrunner with a growing share of specialty chemicals in the portfolio. This has been the crowning of my professional career and I have been surrounded with fantastic and inspiring people. I would like to take the opportunity to thank you all, externally as internally for a tremendous support. The company is entering a new chapter in its more than 140 year history and with PCG as our owner, a series of opportunities are opening well beyond what we have seen in the past. It serves as the perfect timing to hand over the reins to a most capable leader. I am proud of the company and the extraordinary team that Ib now takes over to lead. I wish him and the team all the success in the future”, Jan Secher comments.

“On behalf of PCG, I am delighted to welcome Ib, as the new CEO of Perstorp. He is an experienced executive leader, with a strong and deep understanding of the specialty chemicals industry on top of a solid track record in business optimization and financial management. He plays a key leadership role in the integration of Perstorp into the PCG family, while ensuring that Perstorp’s business is uninterrupted. His insights, knowledge and leadership will be invaluable as we work towards unlocking the synergies between Perstorp and PCG, in bringing the company through its next phase. We look forward to working with him.

I also would like to put on record my appreciation and gratitude to Jan for his contribution for the past nine years. As the CEO, he led the company through challenging times, which required innovative solutions and decisions and has been instrumental to Perstorp’s achievements and growth in the specialty business. More importantly, he helped to steer the company to play a pioneering role in sustainability particularly in the development of pro-environment solutions for its customers. I am confident that Perstorp will continue to benefit from the foundation that he has built,” says Mohd Yusri Mohamed Yusof, PCG Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer.

“It is an honor to take over as CEO from Jan Secher and I look forward to lead Perstorp in this new exciting phase. With PCG as the new owners, their commitment and the support from the strong Executive Leadership Team, I feel confident about a successful time ahead of us”, Ib Jensen comments.

Jan Secher remains in the CEO role until March 1st and will thereafter serve as an advisor to the new CEO and the Chairman, focusing on strategy and transferring external relationships. Monica Jönsson, currently deputy CFO, will take on the role as CFO when Ib Jensen assumes the position as CEO. PCG is fully committed to the Executive Leadership Team of Perstorp and expects the team to continue the successful integration work as well as dealing with the volatile global macro situation.

“Production is a product”

From technical textiles and AI-driven robotics to the limitations of textile circularity: Professor Dr Thomas Gries looks back on more than two decades of development at ITA Aachen. In the interview, he explains why production technology remains a decisive success factor, discusses international collaborations and innovation ecosystems, and shares his views on the transformation of production landscapes and the challenges facing an increasingly regulated industry.

“We need to move away from the price trap and return to a value-driven mindset.”

With its new Textile Innovation Center, KARL MAYER is sending a strong signal for innovation, collaboration, and the future of textile applications. In this interview, Karl Josef Mayer discusses new opportunities in warp knitting, the processing of staple fibres, recycling, the changing role of machinery manufacturers, and why the textile industry must once again focus more strongly on the value of textiles. by Oliver Schmidt

“Innovation, resilience and international experience remain the great strengths of the Swiss textile machinery industry”

Geopolitical uncertainty, growing competitive pressure from China, new free trade agreements and the shift towards a circular economy are currently reshaping the global textile industry. In this interview, Cornelia Buchwalder discusses the current mood within the Swiss textile machinery sector, the industry’s distinctive innovative strength, new market opportunities in India and Asia, and the technological trends that could shape the upcoming trade fair cycle leading up to ITMA 2027.

Archroma and Lameirinho partner in pioneering deployment of InOneGO single-step dyeing

Archroma, a global leader in specialty chemicals, and Lameirinho, a leading home textiles manufacturer based in Portugal, are collaborating to bring InOneGO by Archroma, a new single-step dyeing process, into commercial production. Lameirinho’s first InOneGo bedlinens collection is now available worldwide.

Archroma wins ICIS Innovation Award for sulfur dye breakthrough

Archroma, a global leader in specialty chemicals, has won a coveted 2026 ICIS Innovation Award for Best Product Innovation from a Large Company for FiberColors®. These high-performance sulfur dyes are synthesized from pre-consumer wool waste, reducing industry reliance on petroleum-based inputs while contributing to the circular economy by upcycling unwanted wool that farmers would otherwise pay to dispose of.

ZymoChem secures $4 million in renewed federal funding to advance U.S. biomanufacturing of critical materials and their supply chains

ZymoChem, the specialty chemicals company dedicated to bringing decarbonization, sustainability, and supply chain resiliency to the chemical industry through innovative biological manufacturing, today announced the resumption and expansion of its federal research portfolio. The company has been notified that previously paused work under a $5 million U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) program is officially back on, to be joined by continuing collaborations with three of the nation's premier national laboratories.

Coats Digital launches AI-powered GSD RealMotion for motion analysis

Coats Digital has launched GSD RealMotion, an AI-powered solution designed to provide apparel manufacturers with greater visibility into factory-floor operations. By analysing shop-floor video and applying Coats Digital’s GSD methodology, the solution turns video recordings into structured, motion-by-motion method studies.

Reducing development times for technical textiles by accelerated thermo-oxidative aging in a high-pressure autoclave

Synthetic polymers used in technical textiles can be effectively protected against degradation caused by heat, oxygen, and water through the use of stabilizer systems. This enables service lives of several decades, extending to more than 50 years. As the use of durable technical textiles continues to grow, so does the demand for reliable methods to predict their service life within economically feasible testing periods. For the first time the German Institutes of Textile and Fiber Research Denkendorf (DITF) developed methods for robust service life prediction for textiles in an IGF research project.

ITA has developed a washable digital smart jacket with real-time feedback and an AI-powered app for rehabilitation

As part of the PhysioTaix research project, the Institut für Textiltechnik (ITA) of RWTH Aachen University is developing a digital smart jacket with integrated sensors. The jacket is washable and reusable; it tracks movements during rehabilitation exercises in real time and transmits the data to an app.