spotlight on our R&D Team Microbial Protection 

Ashland has a brand-new R&D center for microbial protection in Hamburg, Germany that hosts 20 highly educated chemists, microbiologists, and technicians with many years of experience.  

“We are proud to add this state-of-the-art, highly equipped laboratory to the Ashland portfolio for holistic solutions in choosing the right antimicrobial to safely protect cosmetic products that support today and tomorrow’s consumer needs,” said Tuttu Nuutinen, R&D group leader, personal care, Ashland.  

With the new R&D competence center, Ashland will further provide the market with unparalleled 360° solutions.  

“Ashland offers the precise antimicrobial protection, globally harmonized lab services and groundbreaking hygiene audits that reach beyond today’s market standards,” said Fabian Achilles, business line director, personal care, Ashland.   

With research and product development teams on-site, the company will drive future innovations and cross-functional support is expected to bring new to market breakthroughs with efficiency.   

With a total of five global personal care labs, Ashland is able to service customers locally applying well-established and fully harmonized methods including CosPET. This focused service approach goes beyond antimicrobial efficacy testing and includes aiding formulation challenges in cosmetics, skin, hair, and oral care. Every new product Ashland launches undergoes substantial testing so that customers benefit from this work in their processes. 

Today antimicrobials are expected to not only be a “safety belt” but also add additional value. Ashland’s has a support database fed with profound insights derived from a wide range of testing capabilities including anti-oxidation, radical scavenging, hair strengthening testing and more- all to help customers’ products to live up to their claims.   

new teams: 

technical support team - at the forefront of ideation and innovation with expertise in preservatives and multifunctionals; this team supports global customers and their desires to stay ahead of consumer trends 

product development - considers global mega trends and consumer needs; they perform efficacy tests, stability, compatibility, and texture studies to help ensure that customers’ cosmetics perform better while effectively protecting them from microbial contamination  

microbiology team - performs different bioburden tests for customers; this research team of experts supports customers and all Ashland R&D teams, developing customized tests whenever their expertise is needed to make a difference    

researchers - focus on future antimicrobial solutions with AI-based screening and evaluation of new candidates and exploration of sustainable ways to produce interesting ingredients