BYK is ALTANA Group's globally successful additives and instruments division. This includes the additives of BYK-Chemie GmbH and the instrument business of BYK-Gardner GmbH. Both subdivisions have top positions in their markets.
The first BYK additive was launched on the market in 1935 for coatings/paints. At that time, BYK had developed the ANTI-TERRA product. It ensured that pigments can be evenly distributed in coatings – an important quality step for the manufacture of coatings.
The history of BYK itself began well over 60 years earlier. In 1873, Dr. Heinrich Byk founded a chemical factory in Berlin under his name, in which he initially produced sleeping pills. In 1917, the company merged with paint and tanning plants to form Byk-Guldenwerke AG. Later, the Ernst Lomberg photochemical factory was added.
BYK founded the Wesel location in 1962, where it began producing paint and plastics additives. As a global specialty chemicals company, BYK now has production facilities in Wesel, Kempen, Schkopau, Moosburg and Geretsried (Germany), Deventer, Denekamp and Nijverdal (the Netherlands), Widnes (Great Britain), Wallingford, Chester, Columbia, Earth City, Gonzales, Louisville and Pittsford (USA), as well as Shanghai and Tongling (China). The BYK (BYK-Gardner) instrument division is located in Geretsried, Upper Bavaria. Today, the company employs more than 2,500 people worldwide and belongs to the ALTANA Group.
