Venator, a leading supplier of specialty chemicals and ingredients, is donating £10,000 to two Teesside charities.
The donation is part of naming BOC, a Linde company, the winner of its first-ever Supplier of the Year Award.
The donation from Venator, which is headquartered at Wynyard Park, will see The Headlight Project and Tees River Rescue each receive a donation of £5000. Both charities were nominated by employees from BOC’s Teesside production site.
The Headlight Project provides counselling and therapeutic support to adults and children bereaved by suicide in the Tees Valley. Tees River Rescue provides search and rescue services up and down the River Tees, patrolling the waterway at peak times throughout the year, while also providing education, support and reassurance for river users.
The gift was announced at a special presentation held at Venator’s headquarters and attended by Armando Botello, Business President UK, Ireland and Northern Europe of BOC. BOC, also based in the Stockton area, is the UK and Ireland’s largest provider of industrial, medical and special gases, and is a key industrial supplier of oxygen and nitrogen to Venator’s Greatham, UK site.
To select the winner of its 2023 Supplier of the Year, Venator assessed a range of criteria including business scope, sustainability performance, plus day-to-day business indicators such as delivery timeliness, accreditations, and process and person safety performance.
Commenting, Simon Turner, President and CEO of Venator, said: “BOC has been a valued Venator supplier for many years. The team has consistently demonstrated exceptional service levels – delivering innovative solutions that help us achieve our business objectives. During 2023, the BOC team took this one step further. Steadfast in their support, the service provided by BOC was a cornerstone of our success during our complex recapitalization process. BOC offered us the flexibility we needed at a difficult time – for which we are truly grateful. We look forward to continuing this successful partnership and achieving new heights together – and are pleased to make two charitable donations in BOC’s honour.”
Speaking on behalf of BOC, Armando Botello, Business President UK, Ireland and Northern Europe, said: “We take great pride that BOC has been recognised as the inaugural Supplier of the Year by Venator, one of our long-standing and most valued customers on Teesside, a region which embodies BOC’s rich legacy of over a century in industrial gases. Teesside’s industrial heritage, skilled workforce, and strategic location makes it a vital part of our country’s manufacturing success. We are committed to investing in Teesside, fostering low carbon, sustainable developments, and driving forward the next generation of industrial advancements with companies like Venator. Thank you to Venator for making this generous donation to two incredible organisations working to improve the local community.”
The scope of BOC’s operations is vital to Venator’s TiO2 business and also contributes to the company’s environmental credentials. BOC’s Teesside-based Air Separation Unit site runs on renewable power sources – meaning its supply of oxygen and nitrogen has a significant positive impact on Venator’s TiO2 product carbon footprint.