S&D leading in innovative and sustainable solutions

S&D Chemicals Chairman/Managing Director Dayantha De Silva receiving the award for Best Exporter in Product Diversification

By Nishel Fernando

One of Sri Lanka’s most diversified sustainable chemical solutions providers, S&D Chemicals Ltd., has moved in to fill in the demand of new worldwide challenges for its end users. 

Originated in 1998, S&D commenced its operations with an initial focus on manufacturing industrial chemicals, sanitation and cleaning products. Since then, the company has seen an exponential growth while diversifying into a variety of new product segments catering to different industries as a manufacturing and technical sales provider to the textile, wet processing in apparel segment, surface coatings, final and intermediate products in personal and home care, rubber, portable and waste water treatment segments. 

The company has a deep-rooted core belief in invention and innovation which has allowed it to become the beacon from Sri Lanka to the world, providing the next level of sustainable green chemistry while empowering its end users to achieve optimised reductions of their carbon footprint by minimising energy, water and time resources in line with the current sustainable trends and norms. 

S&D’s state-of-the-art high-tech laboratory located in Sri Lanka plays a key role in advancing the company’s R&D efforts. Consisting of a highly qualified and competent R&D team and high-tech equipment such as GCMSMS with Head Space, HPLC, ICP-OES, LCMSMS, TGA and FTIR, gives S&D the competitive edge.

S&D complies with ISO 9001 for Quality, ISO 14001 for Environmental Management, ISO 45001 for Occupational Health and Safety and ISO17025 for laboratory testing.

The company’s eco-friendly manufacturing capabilities are further strengthened with key sustainable compliance certifications such as ZDHC, bluesign, GOTS, TOX Services, Scivera. 

S&D Chemicals Ltd. Managing Director Dayantha de Silva recently outlined the company’s latest R&D efforts into innovative and sustainable products and solutions.

“We are into developing certain polymers with nano particle emulsions to enhance optimum results in coating and finishing industries. We have diversified into industrial chemicals to natural plant extracts. Currently we are also producing tea and coconut extracts in powder forms with our modern spray drying facilities,” he said.

“Our current goal has been focusing on the natural extract segment, targeting world flavour houses and the pharmaceutical industry. With regard to natural extracts, we are now heading for plant alkaloids, polyphenols and secondary metabolics of plants which are ingredients for value-added products of flavour houses and the pharmaceutical industry.

“We are in the process of successful extraction, isolation and purification of plant-based products in their molecular form which are supposed to be ideal for human consumption and nutraceutical. In this process, technologies such as molecular extraction, short path distillation, super critical extraction with CO2 are being utilised,” he elaborated.

“As a company, our focus is to make a platform for research and development to generate technical solutions for different industries. We already have platforms in different countries with technical capabilities with Sri Lanka as a centre point,” De Silva added.

Over the period of time, S&D has spread its wings to different corners of the world and it has its own offices in 10 countries including Bangladesh, Vietnam, Ethiopia, Maldives, Indonesia, India and Pakistan. This has made S&D Chemicals Ltd. become a frequent winner of the annual Presidential Export Awards organised by the Export Development Board. 

At the most recent award ceremony, it secured the prestigious award for the highest foreign income earner in chemical/paint category for the fourth consecutive year. In addition, it has also been recognised for its vast range of innovative products with the best product diversification award.