Wenzel retires from LANXESS

Dr Wolfgang Wenzel, currently head of product development and application in the Leather Business Unit at LANXESS Deutschland GmbH, will commence his pre-retirement leave on October 1, 2005. His designated successor is Dr Dietrich Tegtmeyer who began preparing himself for his new responsibilities effective August 1, 2005. On the same date, Frank Paus, regional manager Asia Pacific in the Leather Business Unit, will take over from Dr Tegtmeyer as head of sales and marketing, but will carry out his new duties from his current base in Hong Kong until further notice. Jürgen Hackenbroich, currently head of key account management and alliances, has moved to Hong Kong from Leverkusen to succeed Frank Paus, effective August 1. After graduating from the University of Cologne, Dr Wenzel started work as a chemist in the polyurethanes research department at Bayer's Dormagen site in 1973. Between 1982 and 1985 Dr Wenzel worked in the development and production of polyurethane dispersions at Bayer's New Martinsville facility in the United States. On returning to Leverkusen, he was placed in charge of the leather applications development department in the then Dyestuffs Business Group until the beginning of 1996, when he was appointed global product manager in the Leather Business Unit. From 2002 to the middle of 2004 he was head of research in the Leather Business Unit at Bayer Chemicals AG, and since July 2004 he has been head of product development and application in the Leather Business Unit. Dr Tegtmeyer joined Bayer AG in 1989 after obtaining a doctorate in chemistry. In the course of his career with the company he has been head of the pilot plant for membrane technology, an assistant to the management of the Dyestuffs Business Group, R&D director for organic pigments in the United States from 1996 to 1999, and R&D manager for the Paper, Textiles, InkJet and Leather Business Units from 1999 to 2002. Since 2002 he has been head of marketing/sales in LANXESS's Leather Business Unit. Paus joined Bayer in 1987 to embark on a three-year apprenticeship as a commercial assistant. From 1994 to 1998 he worked at Bayer's agency in India, latterly as vice-president, sales and marketing. Following his return to Leverkusen, Paus worked as product manager in the finishing department of the Leather Business Unit until 2000. Most recently he has been regional manager Asia Pacific, based in Singapore and Hong Kong, where he was responsible for the company's leather chemicals business. He held this post until August 1, 2005. Jürgen Hackenbroich started work as an office clerk at Bayer AG in 1983, then took a training course in business management, which he completed in 1987. He has held various positions with the company, including head of the textile auxiliaries business in France from 1989 to 1993, general manager at DyStar Pakistan, a joint venture of Bayer, BASF and Hoechst, from 1995 to 1999, and since 2003 head of key account management and alliances in the Leather Business Unit.