Industries
Chemical industries hold an extremely important place on the global technico-economic chessboard.
If you exclude the pharmaceutical industry, France holds the 5th place behind the USA, China and Japan (which speaks of the reign of Asia), and Germany.
Four French Companies are represented among the 50 first ones in the world (Total, Air Liquide, Arkema, Rhodia).
At European level, French chemistry is therefore ranked in the second place with 188000 employees (among which 20% of engineers and executives). 75% of them work in companies with less than 500 employees, which shows the significant place held by SMEs.
The global turnover of the French chemistry (excluding the pharmaceutical industry) amounts to 81 billion Euros, among which 55% come from exports which shows the activity openness to the global market. Outlets for chemical products concern many activity sectors: automobile, building, polymer linings, transformation industries, para-pharmacy and base molecules for pharmacy, and even clothing with acrylics and polyamides… This shows that chemical industry is indispensable to all of the economical sectors.
The most recent socio-economic context has brought chemistry to reorientate towards Sustainable Development.
Global warming and the decrease in fossil raw materials have forced them to consider other approaches such as renewable resources.
Moreover, societal demands, through the setting up of new regulations (REACH), require that they take into account the notions of eco-compatibility and full analysis of the products’ life cycle.
All this opens up new horizons in terms of processes and products and gives a new value to the Chemistry PhD, an adapted complementary training every day more and more necessary to companies, namely of course in the R&D field.
Go to Page: "Chemical Industries" - "Economic Data"
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