New management at HA
Hüttenes-Albertus Chemische Werke GmbH (HA Group) is reorganizing its global management in 2025 with Dr. Stefan Pfaffenbach and Siamak Djafarian. With this change, we are looking to the future and focusing on continuity and fresh impetus. Following the end of their term of office and their exceptional contribution over the past decade, Franz Butz and Christoph Koch will leave the HA Management Board in the course of the year.
Dr. Stefan Pfaffenbach will take over the Finance, Sourcing, HR & Legal, IT and the respective regional responsibilities from Christoph Koch with effect from June 1, 2025.
After studying economics, Mr. Pfaffenbach began his career in management consulting in 2008 and continued it at Evonik in 2012, where he developed a group-wide purchasing strategy and managed post-merger integration projects. He later took over the CFO position for all of Asia, based in Singapore. Since 2022, he has headed the global Coating and Adhesives Resins business unit and is responsible for five production sites and central business units.
Siamak Djafarian will take over the Sales, Research & Development and Production divisions as well as the respective regional responsibilities from Franz Butz with effect from September 1, 2025.
Mr. Djafarian has extensive international experience in the chemical and plastics industry, particularly in marketing, sales, R&D and corporate management. After holding positions at RohMax, Degussa and Evonik, he assumed global responsibility for Molding Compounds and PLEXIGLAS® in 2014. Since the spin-off of Röhm in 2019, he has headed a main business unit and is responsible for markets such as automotive, lighting, electronics and medical technology. He is also a member of the Executive Committee.
Our gratitude
We would like to thank Christoph Koch and Franz Butz for their successful management of HA over the past ten years. They have played a decisive role in the strategic direction and success of our company. The successful acquisitions in the USA, India, Italy and Mexico and the establishment of global structures and processes deserve special mention. With important innovation and sustainability initiatives, they have created a solid foundation for the future of our company.
During their time as Global Managing Directors, they have made the company more resilient in times of economic and geopolitical uncertainty. Since 2020, the HA Group, with more than 1,850 employees, has now been recognized as the global market leader in foundry chemistry for the sixth time in a row - a great recognition of their work.
The entire HA Group would like to express our appreciation and deep respect to Franz Butz and Christoph Koch for their passion and personal commitment and wish them all the best and every success for their professional and personal future.
