Nabilah Safira
TechInArica – A new labs facility has been launched in Lagos on Wednesday (04/09), to fulfill consumers’ demands and to strengthen the industrial aspect of the country’s economic sector. The labs will be used for ingredients and products’ experiments and testing in beverages, sweets, as well as in cosmetics and fragrances. The facility’s expansion is part of EAME’s strategy for the company’s future.
The initiating company, Symrise, known as the global supplier of various cosmetic and fragrant ingredients to global flavors gave an inside tour during the launch, and while the initiative would bring greater benefits to the country, it may also rise Symrise’s statue as a leading supplier in West Africa.
There’s a reasonable amount of concerns as expressed by Symrise’s Managing Director, Rudy McLean, which leads to the need for new labs facility. Being affordable is an important trait of a product, and this is especially significant due to the uniqueness of the country’s market dynamic. Thus, with the launch of the respective labs, McLean wants to ease Nigerian manufacturers’ effort on producing these affordable products, as in cleaning products or the market foods. For the everyday use of the products, it would pick a lot of consumers’ burden when they can buy the cleaning detergents, instant cereals, beauty care, or hygiene package that didn’t sum much from their days to the weekly expense. Clients of suppliers have cited the lack of standardized labs for conducting tests and analysis of the ingredients as the main inhibitor of an ideal industrial process.
Thomas Dressler of EAME Fragrances and Oral Care’s President added to McLean point, in that due to Nigeria’s vast economy and the equally vast need of the people, products that are developed outside of the country would be deemed inefficient. “To serve Nigerians better, we need to be close enough to the Nigerian people and products to understand them and give better-suited products to the Nigerian consumer.” Dressler is very keen on building the labs in the country as he saw the direct need for that.
Alexander Lichter, the Vice President of EAME’s Flavour Sales told his view of the undercurrent market, that “Challenges are not exclusive to Nigeria. We see all the challenges in all other countries where we have a presence and we are used to it. However, the prevailing factor for us is that we recognize the opportunities in West Africa and Nigeria and we tap into it regardless.”
What’s next? It seems that a generous amount of job opportunities will surge to the surface by the company, but before that, Dressler wants to pinpoint education as the first step for the young people’s learning journey. Nigerians who are up for this special offer will get to learn the art behind perfumery by enrolling in Symrise’s perfumery school in Germany. But there are terms and conditions. “They need to have some basic knowledge and in the application Labs, young technicians will be exposed to the development of consumer products; one side cosmetic, the other side, food products,” He concluded.
Present in the launching event were the following notable guests:
Dr. Alexander Lichter – Vice President Flavour Sales EAME
Sofiane Berrahmoune Sub Regional Flavour Director Africa Middle East
Dr Eberhard Suessle – Vice President Creation & Application Category Culinary EAME
Rudy McLean – Managing Director Symrise Nigeria
Pieter Gildenhuys – Head of HR & Finance Symrise South Africa
Thelumusa Mkhonza – Technical Manager Sub Saharan Africa
Amit Mudholkar – Sales Director Sub Saharan Africa Fragrances
Dr. Rene Hemeier – Vice President AMET Fragrances
Thomas Dressler – President EAME Fragrances & Oral Care
Daniel Ibarra – Vice President EAME Cosmetic Ingredients
Source: Vanguardngr.com
