Interview with Frank Roerink, CFO Avantium Technologies
"2008 is truly a year of change for Avantium", commented Frank Roerink, Avantium's Chief Financial Officer on the October press release in which the company announced its successful completion of the EUR 18 million financing round. The shareholders of Avantium agreed to raise new capital to accelerate the exciting development programs. The turmoil in the financial markets did not simplify the fund raising. "It is a clear sign of the strength of the company to be able to attract these new funds. It proves that we are on the right track with our Furanics biofuels and bioplastics program and our pharmaceutical program. And of course we are proud to have Aescap, Capricorn, ING and Navitas as our new shareholders. They have all earned their credentials as high quality and committed investors. Having them on board will make us stronger in our growth path towards a world class company. The decision of the existing shareholders DFJ Esprit, AlpInvest, EDB Investments, Eastman Chemical and Pfizer, to continue to support the company, is highly valuable to ensure the continuity."The timing of completing the financing is well chosen. In April the company signed a building contract with the construction company BAM to double the capacity with the addition of 2,500 metres squared (27,000 feet squared) of laboratory and office space. The expansion of the R&D facilities in Amsterdam was necessary to accommodate the strong growth of the high-throughput R&D business. Within a period of less than six months the building next to the existing facility has been transformed into a world class R&D facility, able to deal with the high standards we have on our technology, safety and processes. The construction is scheduled to be completed early November.
Creating the laboratory and office space is very important for Avantium's ambitious growth plans. "Our number of employees has grown from circa 50 in 2005 to 130 by the end of October and our building has reached its maximum capacity" commented Frank. "Our customers have high expectation levels of our people, our technology and our success rate. Only with the best talent and optimal working conditions are we able to continue to deliver high quality output. Everybody has been very keen on the completion of the building as lab space was becoming a limiting factor. We are focused to develop new technologies and new instrumentation, as well as expanding our existing capabilities to meet our customer's demand. And as a sideline, the expansion also adds new meeting rooms to allow for better interaction with our customers.
"With the growth of the number of employees, the need for more focus on HR became apparent. On September 1, Nicolette van Biesen-Manusov joined Avantium as HR director. Nicolette brings a wealth of knowledge to Avantium, and she will drive the next levels of professionalism in our skills and competencies, centered around customers, creativity and results. As Frank put it: "Managing growth in a complex and technical environment is not always easy, but if you get it right, it is the best investment you can make.
"2008 is promising to become another year of double digit growth in our Services & Tools business. "Although we have completed the financing round, the business model for Services & Tools remains focused on sustainable and profitable growth, which has been working well since 2006. Of course we are evaluating what the current economic conditions mean for Avantium, but we believe that our offering is tailored to our customer's needs. Therefore we continue to stay in close contact with our customers to be able to adjust where necessary, without losing focus on the long term", says Avantium's CFO.
Avantium is running two proprietary product development programs, one in the area of Furanics biofuels and bioplastics, the other in developing novel forms of existing drugs. "The completion of the financing enables us to focus on the next steps of our development programs. In particular the scaling of the production of Furanics biofuels for extensive engine testing and the application development of Furanics bioplastics, are key milestones for 2009. We are excited about the progress that we have made and we are more convinced than ever about the potential of our technology" concludes Frank Roerink.