General Motors Names BASF Supplier of the Year 2010

SOUTHFIELD, Mich., March 16, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- BASF today announced it is the proud recipient of General Motors' Supplier of the Year Award for 2010. The Supplier of the Year Award recognizes BASF for consistently performing above expectations as a global supplier of Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) coatings to General Motors. The prestigious award has been given to BASF seven times in the last nine years, recognizing the coatings supplier for excellence in the areas of quality, service, technology and price.

In this International Year of Chemistry, BASF is especially honored to be named a top chemical supplier to General Motors for automotive coating applications. Chemistry is vital as a key technology, and considering there will be more than 1.5 billion cars on the roads by 2020, chemistry is absolutely essential in developing solutions to meet future mobility needs.

"This is a list of world class, best of the best, suppliers to the automotive market," said Bob Socia, Vice President, Global Purchasing and Supply Chain at General Motors. "The Supplier of the Year Award winners are part of an elite group, those who have demonstrated a sustained focus and dedication to GM's priorities and continued success. This is critically important given the complexity of today's automotive marketplace."

The significance of being named to the list, for the seventh time, is not lost on BASF. Beate Ehle, Executive Vice President, BASF Corporation, accepted the award on behalf of BASF during General Motors' 19th annual Supplier of the Year business meeting and recognition ceremony on March 10 at the Renaissance Center, and GM Headquarters, in Detroit, Michigan. "It is truly an honor to be recognized as a global supplier by General Motors," said Ehle. "Winning this award for the seventh time is a tremendous source of pride for BASF and demonstrates the long term and outstanding commitment and relationship of BASF and especially our colleagues from the General Motors team to our customer."

The Supplier of the Year program began in 1992, and each year a global team of purchasing, engineering, quality, manufacturing and logistics executives determine the winners of the Supplier of the Year Award.  

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Suggested caption:  BASF receives the General Motors’ Supplier of the Year Award for 2010 at the GM Renaissance Center in Detroit, Michigan.  Pictured from left to right are Jim Hentschel, Executive Director and Global Functional Leader, Body, Exterior, Dimensional Engineering, General Motors; Beate Ehle, Executive Vice President, BASF Corporation; and Randy Pappal, Executive Director and Group Global Purchasing Leader, Body/Exterior, Interior/Safety, HCAV and Mexico, General Motors.

BASF – The Chemical Company

BASF Corporation, headquartered in Florham Park, New Jersey, is the North American affiliate of BASF SE, Ludwigshafen, Germany. BASF has approximately 16,400 employees in North America, and had sales of $17.7 billion in 2010. For more information about BASF's North American operations, visit www.basf.us.

BASF is the world's leading chemical company: The Chemical Company. Its portfolio ranges from chemicals, plastics, performance products, and agricultural products to oil and gas. As a reliable partner BASF creates chemistry to help its customers in virtually all industries to be more successful. With its high-value products and intelligent solutions, BASF plays an important role in finding answers to global challenges such as climate protection, energy efficiency, nutrition and mobility. BASF posted sales of more than euro 63.9 billion in 2010 and had approximately 109,000 employees as of the end of the year. Further information on BASF is available on the Internet at www.basf.com or in the Social Media Newsroom at newsroom.basf.com.

SOURCE BASF Corporation