Some of these problems can be unusual and highly challenging. Dr. Pflücker says, "Let's say a manufacturer has developed a very promising transparent shampoo. He's really pleased with how it works and has also added a colorant so that the consumer is now very familiar with the look and feel of the product. However, it turns out that during the summer Spanish retailers are displaying the product in outside displays that stand in the sun. So our customer wants to be sure that the shampoo won't change color. Thanks to the kind of expertise we have here, we can help him out since we have a product in our portfolio, Oxynex® ST Liquid, that makes the shampoo completely lightfast."

Once again, following a chat with the CTC specialists, the satisfied customer can check the right box on his list of specifications. "Other customers come with questions about special active ingredients for soothing the skin or for anti-wrinkle creams. And here we're able to offer made-to-measure solutions with a natural origin. A team at the CTC has demonstrated that Ronacare® Tiliroside, which occurs naturally as a bioflavonoid in strawberries and raspberries, for example, has excellent anti-inflammatory properties, and that Ronacare® Luremin, a constituent of  Indian rhubarb, makes the skin smooth."

In addition to being available for questions and suggestions, the new CTC is also proactively involved, staging workshops to which people working in the cosmetics industry are invited. "I recently took part in one, and it was a really great experience," says Manuela Loch, a lab technician working in the area of active ingredients at CTC. "A lot of things become much easier to understand when you can show people the actual process instead of just explaining it to them." At events like these, the CTC is virtually transformed into a "cosmetics kitchen", which turns out to be an unforgettable hands-on experience for many participants.

At the same time, the CTC is closely integrated within Merck's international network. The company's applied technology labs, which are always ready to provide customer support, are located in France, Brazil, China, Taiwan, and the U.S., where there are two. "We're very well networked," Petsitis says. "Thanks to shared databases and close contacts, we're able to expand our pool of knowledge." The end consumer who goes shopping for cosmetics may not realize how much work is done behind the scenes by the people at the CTC. Nevertheless, their expertise is embodied in many a product and its properties, thus ensuring that simple-to-use products simply work.