BASTECH: Taking A Specialty Chemical Maker To The Next Level of Success

The Courtney Group led the acquisition of Bastech, a maker of specialty chemicals for paper, industrial and mining industries, from its founder in August 2007. Since the acquisition Bastech’s revenues have grown from $13 million to $50 million. The growth has been driven by people, products, and processes.

People: Building a Great Team

"Since the acquisition
Bastech’s revenues have grown
from $13 million to $50 million."

The founder of Bastech was 83 years old when The Courtney Group acquired Bastech in a sale which was the founder’s exit plan. As in many entrepreneurial companies, the founder had multiple areas of responsibility: CEO, CFO, Product Development, Sales, Production, Purchasing, and Transportation. He was a former Navy Seal who flew his own plane to visit customers and was larger than life. But there was a limit to how large the company could be with so many areas reporting to one person. We sought to create a culture of teamwork and camaraderie and to build a high-performing team.

Tom Schafer leads Bastech today and as CEO. He has 25 years of experience from large, international companies such as Arizona Chemical, International Paper, and Masonite where his roles included plant manager, finance director and purchasing. We have recruited, promoted, and trained many other team members and today have a world-class management group.

Product Differentiation

One of the ways being world-class can be seen is in the products Bastech has developed. The company has a focus on products that are unique, proprietary, environmentally-friendly and help improve customers’ economics. Bastech has filed for or received 10 patents since we acquired the company.

Process Improvement

Bastech has developed a culture of continuous improvement. The company has evolved from purchasing raw materials on the spot market to having strategic relationships with key suppliers and from a simple in-house transportation department to a sophisticated third-party logistics system. Bastech has enhanced the operations, planning, sales marketing and financial management of the company. We believe Bastech has excellent long-term growth opportunities and we are very proud of the achievements of the team at the company since its acquisition.