Campine was established in 1912 as a producer of lead and antimony. Through the years, the company has grown into a dynamic group with a variety of business interests. A conscious effort was made to acquire the necessary chemical know-how in order to build up the skills base now present in Campine relating to fire retardants and compounding. At the beginning of the 1990s, the lead division was converted into a modern recycling unit for lead batteries. The new strategy, as well as the redirecting of the company's portfolio and the setting up of four fully-fledged Business Units will take Campine into the 21st century as an international specialist in fire-retardancy, battery recycling, PET catalysts and specialty compounding.