Industry Member Spotlight: BASF

This article appeared in the October 2026 issue of MiMfg Magazine. Read the full issue and find past issues online.

For more than 160 years, BASF has been evolving the role that chemistry plays in the world around us. Today, that legacy continues through materials and technologies that touch thousands of products people use every day — often without ever seeing the BASF name.

As a global chemical company, BASF works largely behind the scenes. Its products can be found in everything from mattresses, footwear and charging cables to shampoo, sunscreen, laundry detergent and even agricultural technologies. The company’s materials also support industries ranging from automotive and packaging to coatings and consumer products.

“I always tell people that BASF touches and is probably a part of their everyday life, even if they’ve never heard of us,” says Michele Barney, Site Director at BASF’s Wyandotte facility.

Barney, who has been with BASF for over 20 years and leading the Wyandotte facility since 2024, has continued to help the company thrive by focusing on the core processes, products and chemistry that have a universal impact on consumers across the globe. She’s also played a role in continuing the proud tradition of the Wyandotte site, which has been part of BASF since 1969. Since then, Michigan operations have grown, eventually leading to a second site in Livonia. BASF now employs over 1,200 people between the two facilities and invests roughly $175 million annually through payroll, purchases, taxes and charitable contributions.

Our Culture

The best part of BASF is our people. Guided by our values of being creative, open, responsible and entrepreneurial, we foster collaboration, continuous learning and operational excellence to serve our customers and communities.

How We Measure Success

Success at BASF is measured by serving customers, delivering innovation, operating safely and responsibly, supporting our green transformation, and creating value through the contributions of our people and our core values.

The Michigan sites produce materials such as Cellasto®, BASF’s microcellular polyurethane elastomer, which is used in automotive suspension applications including jounce bumpers, top mounts and other solutions to reduce noise, vibration and harshness (NVH) and enhance driving comfort. Cellasto® is produced at the Wyandotte plant and is a global leader in automotive NVH and suspension solutions. Today, 85 percent of all automakers use Cellasto® components, says Barney.

“Cellasto® is a good example of one of our products that is physical, that you can put your hands on and is produced right here in Michigan,” says Barney. “When we talk about creating chemistry that improves people’s lives, it’s not just part of our slogan. We are focused on making products that are safer, more comfortable, more durable, and more sustainable that benefit the things we use every day.”

Sustainability Initiatives

Sustainability is a core value and has been a key component of the company’s evolution — not just in Michigan but across the company’s global footprint. It is a value that’s built into how BASF operates every day, and the company’s long-term growth plan, explains Barney.

Our Impact

At Wyandotte, we’re helping create chemistry that improves everyday life through innovative materials and technologies that support transportation, consumer goods and countless products people use every day.

That commitment includes earning an Operation Clean Sweep® Blue certification for practices designed to prevent plastic resin loss. This is an important standard for reducing plastic pellets, or “resin,” used in the manufacturing process from escaping into the environment.

“The certification is a rigorous process, and we’re very proud to be the second facility in Michigan to earn this recognition,” says Barney.

With these initiatives and so many others, BASF has shown over the past 160 years that innovation and adaptability are embedded in the company’s DNA. Despite changing technologies and a quickly evolving marketplace, the underlying goals have remained consistent: applying chemistry, innovation and human expertise to solve problems and improve the products people depend on every day.

BASF is an MMA Industry Member and has been an MMA member company since August 2023. Visit online: basf.us/michigan.