Member type: Full Member (through Cefic) + RCLG
Chemical industry
In the U.S., the business of chemistry is a $664 billion enterprise and a key element of the nation's economy - more than 96 percent of all manufactured goods are touched by the business of chemistry. In 2007, America's chemical industry directly employed more than 862,000 people and supported another 4.8 million jobs in other industries, a total of 5.7 million jobs (roughly 4 percent of the U.S. workforce).
The chemical industry in the US is segmented (with revenues) as follows:
Basic Chemicals: $250 billion
Agricultural Chemicals: $30.7 billion
Specialty Chemicals: $126 billion
Pharmaceuticals: $186 billion
Consumer Products: $71.5 billion
US companies engaged in the business of chemistry are internationally competitive, regularly creating new products and processes to solve performance, safety, environmental and efficiency problems in a number of industries and arenas. It is one of the nation’s largest exporters, accounting for ten cents out of every dollar in U.S. merchandise exports. The US industry is the world's largest national chemical industry, accounting for more than 21% of the $3.1 trillion in world chemical sales.
The U.S. chemical industry invests $27 billion dollars annually in research and development (R&D), more than any other business sector. Safety and security have always been primary concerns of ACC members, and they have intensified their efforts, working closely with government agencies to improve security and to defend against any threat to the nation’s critical infrastructure. Moreover, ACC member companies have a record five times safer that the rest of the manufacturing sector. The U.S. industry has reduced fuel and energy consumption per unit of output by nearly 50 percent since 1974, and absolute greenhouse gas emissions fell 13.2 percent between 1990 and 2007.
National association
The American Chemistry Council's (ACC) mission is to deliver business value to its members through exceptional advocacy based on enhanced member performance, high quality scientific research, communications, effective participation in the political process, and a commitment to sustainable development through member contributions to economic, environmental and societal progress.
ACC represents the leading companies engaged in the business of chemistry. Its members apply the science of chemistry to make innovative products and services that make people's lives better, healthier and safer. ACC is committed to improved environmental, health and safety performance through Responsible Care®, common sense advocacy designed to address major public policy issues, and health and environmental research and product testing.