A CHEMICALS company that has its roots in Bolton and now employs 35 people in Bury says the key to its success is a common everyday chemical and its homegrown answer to 'the hottest commodity on the planet'.

Titanium dioxide is the number-one selling pigment of the Rakem Group.

The price of lithium, nicknamed "white petroleum” for its use in lithium batteries for electric cars, was impacting its dry mortar products so hard that Rakem's Cemkem company came up with an alternative, which it labelled Lithkem.

Marketing boss Caitlin Rafferty said: "Here at Rakem we love titanium dioxide, our number one selling pigment, where it is used in the manufacturing of all paints, plastics and inks made here in the UK."

Rakem has a wide range of products that complement the use of titanium dioxide in formulations.

"We have used titanium dioxide to grow all our current businesses," said Caitlin.

"Can you imagine a world without pigment? Day to day, we use objects and have no idea how they have been made, or what they are made of. Many people do not realise how common the chemical titanium dioxide is in everyday items. From sun cream to paracetamol to paints and plastics – if it is white or opaque, there is a very high chance it contains titanium dioxide."

The Rakem Group is made up of five companies and titanium dioxide is a common theme, from the paints produced in Maker to the by-product being sold on to the construction industry by Cemkem.

The company has recently featured in The Parliamentary Review for fine-example businesses that demonstrate best practice.

The firm was set up by Francis Rafferty in 1996 and is now run by his three sons, Kieran, Kevin and Eugene.

Francis and all his family went to St Osmund's Primary School, Breightmet.

He had worked for Sachtleben Chemicals for over 20 years when he branched out on his own to found Rakem, a chemical distribution company.

Its reputation grew rapidly within the industry as a reliable, knowledgeable and enthusiastic new firm.

Building on their father’s experience, the three brothers were able to aid the construction, coatings and plastics industries with novel new products, mainly titanium dioxide.

By 1999, the company had outgrown its Bolton offices and moved to a new 8,000 sq ft warehouse in Bury.

From there the company quickly turned into the Rakem Group.

Maker Industrial was the first sister company to be formed. It began by making pigment slurries for the paper industry, followed by water-based paints and construction materials.

Then Cemkem was formed, specialising in the manufacturing and distribution of additives for the dry bagged mortar and cementitious industries.

Cemkem prides itself on being the home of the novel lithium carbonate, Lithkem.

Caitlin said: "We are proud of our reputation as a group of innovative companies. We strive to always represent companies offering novel products to help our customers achieve the best quality results, while also reducing costs and improving efficiency."

Maker has rapidly expanded in two years, now operating across two sites, with over 40,000 square feet of production space and two state-of-the-art labs, constantly researching ways to improve their products, which are manufactured on behalf of famous everyday brands.

"Using the raw materials we sell, Maker has an advantage in the market, as it can work closely with the supplier, ensuring it maintains confidence with the customer through all stages of the manufacturing and development of products," said Caitlin.

In 2017, Cemkem introduced their novel alternative to lithium carbonate – Lithkem.

Caitlyn said: "Demand for lithium is poised to continue on its upward trajectory, becoming the world’s new gasoline and earning the nickname "white petroleum” due to its use in lithium batteries for electric cars."

High demand and restricted supply mean lithium carbonate prices increased sharply and hit dry mortar producers.

So Cemkem worked on developing a lithium carbonate replacement as a commercially viable alternative which isn’t so directly linked to market availability and pricing on lithium. Based on blends of organometallic and metal salts, Lithkem and Lithkem+ react to accelerate the hydration process of both fast-set cements and Portland cement.

Damian Baxendale, director of Cemkem Limited, said: “Lithium carbonate is a chemical admixture that can be used to adjust and accelerate the setting time of fast-setting cementitious binder systems such as high-alumina cements (HAC) and calcium sulfoaluminate (CSA) and alumina or CSA-Portland cement blends.

“Common applications for fast-setting cements include tile adhesives, self-levelling floor compounds, concrete repair compounds and refractory castables."

In December 2017, Cemkem moved into purpose-built offices, with state-of-the-art research and development labs and a 25,000 square foot warehouse. Remaining on the same industrial estate in Bury, we are now planning our third and fourth buildings, which will allow Maker and Cemkem to expand their manufacturing facilities.

The group will soon include two more companies: Hydropak and Envirokem.

Alongside manufacturing expansion, the company took on more than 15 new employees in 2017 and a first group of apprentices.

There are now apprentices in admin, sales, technology and manufacturing. These apprentices will shadow managers, while studying at nearby Bury College over the next two years.

Chairman Steve Bunker, said: “The board strongly believe in the value of training and development and its investment in apprentices across most disciplines in the business reflects this. Government support and drive in this area is welcomed and gives us confidence that our recruitment strategies are in line with central policies for UK PLCs.

“The Rakem Group has continued to expand its workforce with the addition of two new development chemists and a sales director joining the team in Q1.”

The company also works at giving back to Bury.

In 2017 it joined in the Bury Hospice Corporate Challenge; turning £50 into over £30,000.

Steve said: "Bury is a thriving town with a big community spirit, and we were honoured to sponsor the Pride of Bury Awards and look forward to continuing our support. We are also avid football fans, and have chosen to support three local teams including Ramsbottom FC and Walshaw Junior club, assisting with the purchase of new kit and development of improved training facilities. Alongside manufacturing expansion the company has gained over 15 new employees in 2017."