“On the environment front, I’m pleased to say we are very
active.” Gulferaz points to a recently launched product,
Naia™, a cellulosic yarn sustainably made from wood pulp.
Sustainably produced products provide environmental, social
and economic benefits while protecting public health and
the environment over their whole life cycle. “We’ve made
sustainability a core part of our strategy,” he says and, in 2017,
Eastman’s sustainability efforts in China were rewarded with
the Association of International Chemical
Manufacturers’ Responsible Care®
Chairman’s Award.
Gulferaz adopts a simple leadership
philosophy, one that involves “making sure that
you help create a vision but, more importantly,
that you help translate that vision into a reality”.
He admits that he is “on a steep learning curve”
in terms of knowing all there is to know about
the chemical industry. In the meantime, “I
surround myself with good people who have the
ability and the knowledge, and I make sure I can
help them with the passion.” Equally important
to his philosophy is diversity. “Diversity gives rise
to different ways of thinking,” he says, “and
different ways of seeing and doing things.” This
is something Gulferaz undoubtedly has an abundance of
firsthand experience in, given his commitment to learning
everything he can from often unexpected sources.Our business engagement with Eastman is highly professional and efficient. Their
processes are simple and seamless, allowing us to perform our best optimisation
to meet their needs and services to achieve ‘Packaging Success Together’. –
Greif Eastern PackagingInterview | INSPIRE