Coatings World Breaking News

Five win Presidential Green Chemistry Awards

Tim Wright — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 22:00:00 -0500

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the 2009 Presidential Green Chemistry Challenge Awards winners on June 22, recognizing research that can make significant contributions to pollution prevention. Judging is by an independent panel of technical experts convened by the American Chemical Society and its ACS Green Chemistry Institute. The awards are given in five categories. Two of the 2009 winners —the Academic Award and Designing Greener Chemicals award—are related to paints and coatings. Here is the complete list of winners along with a description of the research involved.

• Academic Award—Professor Krzysztof Matyjaszewski, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA. Hazardous chemicals are often required in the manufacture of important polymers such as lubricants, adhesives and coatings. Matyjaszewski developed an alternative process called "Atom Transfer Radical Polymerization" for manufacturing polymers. The process uses chemicals that are environmentally friendly, such as ascorbic acid (vitamin C) as a reducing agent, and requires less catalyst. The process has been licensed to manufacturers throughout the world.

• Small Business Award—Virent Energy Systems, Inc., Madison, WI. BioForming Process: Catalytic Conversion of Plant Sugars into Liquid Hydrocarbon Fuel. Virent's process is a water-based, catalytic method to make gasoline, diesel or jet fuel from the sugar, starch or cellulose of plants that requires little external energy other than the plant biomass. The process is flexible and can be modified to generate different fuels based on current market conditions. It can compete economically with current prices for conventionally produced petroleum-based fuel.

• Greener Synthetic Pathways—Eastman Chemical Company, Kingsport, TN. A Solvent-Free Biocatalytic Process for Cosmetic and Personal Care Ingredients. Esters are an important class of ingredients in cosmetics and personal care products. Usually, they are manufactured by harsh chemical methods that use strong acids and potentially hazardous solvents; these methods also require a great deal of energy. Eastman's new method uses immobilized enzymes to make esters, saving energy and avoiding both strong acids and organic solvents. This method is so gentle that Eastman can use delicate, natural raw materials to make esters never before available.

• Greener Reaction Conditions—CEM Corporation, Matthews, NC. Innovative Analyzer Tags Proteins for Fast, Accurate Results without Hazardous Chemicals or High Temperatures. Each year, laboratories test millions of samples of food for the presence of protein. Such tests generally use a large amount of hazardous substances and energy. CEM has developed a fast, automated process that uses less toxic reagents and less energy. The new system can eliminate 5.5 million pounds of hazardous waste generated by traditional testing in the U.S. each year. What's more, it differentiates between protein and other chemicals used to adulterate food, such as melamine.

• Designing Greener Chemicals—Procter & Gamble Company, Cincinnati, OH, jointly with Cook Composites and Polymers Company, North Kansas City, MO. Chempol MPS Resins and Sefose Sucrose Esters Enable High-Performance Low-VOC Alkyd Paints and Coatings. Conventional oil-based "alkyd" paints provide durable, high-gloss coatings but use hazardous solvents. Procter & Gamble and Cook Composites and Polymers are developing innovative Chempol MPS paint formulations using bio-based Sefose oils to replace petroleum-based solvents. Sefose oils, made from sugar and vegetable oil, enable new high-performance alkyd paints with less than half the solvent.

Powder coatings demand in U.S. to reach 445 million pounds in 2013

Tim Wright — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 09:24:00 -0500

U.S. powder coatings demand is projected to expand 3.5% annually to 445 million pounds in 2013, with a market value of $1.2 billion. Volume growth is expected to outpace the gains of the 2003-2008 period as durable goods shipments are forecast to rebound from a weak 2008 base. Powder coatings will continue to achieve gains above the overall paint and coatings market average, taking share from competing products. However, advances in powder coatings market value will continue to be restrained by downward pricing pressure, as overcapacity in the industry persists and the manufacture of durable goods shifts to developing regions, particularly Asia. These and other trends, including market share and product segmentation, are presented in "Powder Coatings," a new study from The Freedonia Group, Inc.

Thermoset powder coatings (e.g., epoxy, epoxy/polyester hybrid, polyurethane, polyester, acrylic and silicone) represent the vast majority of the overall powder coatings market, accounting for 91% of demand in 2008. Epoxy is the single largest product type in the thermoset segment, favored for its excellent corrosion and chemical resistance in interior applications.

Thermoplastic powder coatings (e.g., polyvinyl chloride, nylon, fluoropolymer, polyolefin and ethylene acrylic acid copolymer) account for the remainder of demand. Polyvinyl chloride is the largest product type in the thermoplastic segment, benefitting from its position as the lowest-cost powder coating on the market. Nylon powder coatings exhibit excellent resistance to chemicals, solvents, scratches and corrosion.

Powder coatings are primarily used in durable goods markets such as motor vehicles, appliances and housewares, furniture, industrial machinery, and lawn and garden equipment. The motor vehicle market will provide the strongest gains through 2013 based largely on an expected rebound in motor vehicle output following the significant declines of the 2003-2008 period. Product developments which will allow for greater use of powder coatings in exterior applications will also offer opportunities for growth in this market.

International Paint expands Berea production facility

Tim Wright — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 08:33:00 -0500

International Paint Protective Coatings has expanded its Berea, OH manufacturing facility, bringing production of the company’s Ceilcote and Enviroline brands together under one roof. Ceilcote’s high-performance corrosion-resistant linings and coatings have been manufactured in Berea since the early 1950s, with a newer production facility built at the site in 2005. Expanding that facility to include production of Enviroline’s ultra-low VOC corrosion protection coatings, allows International Paint to leverage brand synergies and better control the escalating costs of overhead, raw materials and other supply costs. These factors, and the facility’s efficient made-to-order capabilities, are expected to double product production and help minimize price increases to customers.

New equipment was purchased to accommodate the increased production including a mixer, boiler, hot box and hot water jackets to maintain resin viscosity during colder months. The warehouse was also re-designed, and additional racks brought in, to improve efficiency and create 30 percent more space for inventoried product.International Paint Protective Coatings, an AkzoNobel company, acquired Ceilcote in 2007 and Enviroline in 2008 to both complement and extend its global portfolio of linings and protective coatings products.

AkzoNobel opens powder coatings technology center in China

Tim Wright — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 08:24:00 -0500

AkzoNobel inaugurated its Powder Coatings Technology Centre in Ningbo, Zhejiang province. This R&D center has a state-of-the-art laboratory and will have an initial team of 20 scientists and technicians organized in centers of expertise for the strategic market sectors. The new facility is located at the existing AkzoNobel powder coatings manufacturing site in Ningbo. All the centers of expertise—automotive, architectural, furniture, domestic appliance, IT and general industrial—and their corresponding marketing teams will be located at the center. AkzoNobel, owner of the brands Interpon and Resicoat, is the world’s largest manufacturer of powder coatings.

AkzoNobel reinvents Glidden brand

Tim Wright — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 09:25:00 -0500

AkzoNobel recently relaunched its Glidden brand under a series of initiatives, which include improving the overall quality of Glidden paint; simplifying the Glidden color palette to 282 colors; guiding color choices with the introduction of Glidden's Top 10 Colors; making premixed, ready-to-use testers available in every color; increasing the size of Glidden color chips and suggesting coordinating colors on the card; and redesigning packaging and color centers. Glidden's price will not change with the brand's reinvention.

The company celebrated the launch of the new Glidden paint with a free one quart giveaway in any of its new palette of 282 colors. Glidden paint debuted its new products and tools in New York City on June 11, where dozens of Broadway dancers, with paint cans and paint brushes in hand, coverged on the steps of Manhattan's Union Square Park for a performance.

Available at The Home Depot stores, the new Glidden paint is designed to help restore consumer confidence and simplify the color selection process, two factors often cited for preventing homeowners from starting or completing their painting projects.

China's paint and coatings market poised for gradual revival

Tim Wright — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 08:53:00 -0500

The global economic turmoil has affected the Chinese economy, slowing its pace of development. However, the first half of 2009 has witnessed a gradual warming-up of China's economy with the housing market reviving, infrastructure constructions booming and increasing demand in the automotive market. All these driving forces indicate that China's paint and coatings market will be revived in the second half of 2009 and beyond.

Frost & Sullivan research shows that industry integration is the anticipated trend for the Chinese paint and coatings market. Leading multinational companies are expected to strengthen their competition by M&A, to improve distribution channels and to increase production capability in the short term. M&A activities between local companies are also forecasted to boom, as a way to improve competitiveness. The economic downturn accelerates the elimination of small companies and the expansion of leading companies.

Increasing regulations, especially those regarding environmental concerns, are expected to upgrade the industry in terms of technology, management, and marketing. EU's REACH and Behavior Rules of Chinese Coatings Industry are the two key high-impact regulations for the Chinese coatings industry. Compliance to these regulations directly adds to production costs and lowers profit margins. However, it also has positive effects on the sustainable development of the market. Green products, which are healthy, environmental friendly, and energy saving are stressed.

End-user industries, including building, automotive, marine, oil, natural gas, chemical, furniture, and coil, will have different growth scenarios in the second half of 2009, According to Rodger Yang, cnalyst of chemicals, materials and food practice, Frost & Sullivan. For instance, the oil and natural gas industry will see a normal growth rate while building and automotive industries are estimated to grow quickly in the coming months due to Governmental stimuli. As a result, architecture coating and automotive coating markets are expected to have high growth rates in the second half of 2009.

Meanwhile, as export markets have shrunk badly during the economic downturn, some segmental coating markets have slowed down. For instance, the production of powder coating and wood coatings decreased in the first half of 2009 as a considerable percentage of the industry targets the export market directly or indirectly. The recession of foreign markets are forecasted to last, even till 2010. Thus, the powder coating and wood coating markets are expected to recover much slower compared to other segmental coating markets.

Frost & Sullivan forecasts the end application industries of the paint and coatings market to revive gradually in the second half of 2009. In 2009, the total paint and coatings market is expected to have a medium annual growth rate of approximately percent, in terms of production shipment.

BASF Coatings named General Motors Supplier of the Year

Tim Wright — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 08:44:00 -0500

BASF Coatings has recieved a General Motors' Supplier of the Year Award for 2008. The Supplier of the Year Award recognizes BASF for outstanding performance as a global supplier of OEM coatings. It is the fifth time in seven years that BASF has received this award. Kurt Bock, chairman and CEO of BASF Corporation, accepted the award on behalf of BASF during GM's 17th annual "Best of the Best" recognition ceremony on June 5 at the GM Heritage Center in Sterling Heights, MI.

DuPont launches new products to serve auto industry

Tim Wright — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 08:36:00 -0500

DuPont's Coatings & Color Technologies (C&CT) business unit serves one of today's most dynamic and volatile industries—the automotive segment. In the last year, auto companies have seen dynamic changes with revenue and earnings shortfalls for even the strongest global automakers.

According to DuPont, automakers are looking for new innovations, including lighter-weight materials, alternative energy options and colors that are made using the best environmental standards available today. The same is true for the automotive aftermarket, where DuPont is the world's leading supplier of coatings for the collision repair industry.

"In this platform, every innovation is market-back," said Lewis Manring, C&CT technology director. "Our customers, including the automotive industry, continue to change and evolve, and we continue to evolve our technologies to best serve them."

Included in their portfolio of new products, the C&CT platform launched two new product lines recently—DuPont Alesta AP Anodic line and a new group of products that meet the California Suggested Control Measure (SCM) standard that requires coatings to comply with new standards of environmental performance. Both lines have lower volatile organic compounds (VOC).

BASF Refinish launches Foose-related web content

Tim Wright — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 08:19:00 -0500

BASF Automotive Refinish Coatings North America has enhanced its web site, www.basfrefinish.com, with a new section devoted to Chip Foose and the signature line of “Foose Colors” he developed with BASF. The new section is titled, “Color by Foose—Paint by BASF,” and highlights the partnership between the top customizer and BASF.

"Green" roofing systems come to Chicago

Tim Wright — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 08:17:00 -0500

Hydro-Stop Premium Coat roof system has expanded into the Chicago market partnering with Capital Maintenance Group, Inc. (CPMGI) to deliver their waterproof, energy saving roofing system to businesses and facility managers around Chicago and throughout the upper Midwest region of the U.S. The Hydro-Stop Premium Coat system works on metal roofs, all types of asphalt/modified roofs, parapet walls, exterior walls, flashing, concrete, plywood, and low slope or flat roofs.

PPG earns recognition from John Deere

Tim Wright — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 08:16:00 -0500

PPG Industries’ industrial coatings business has earned recognition as a “Partner-level” supplier for 2009 in the John Deere Achieving Excellence Program. The Partner-level status is Deere & Company’s highest supplier rating. PPG was selected for the honor in recognition of its dedication to providing products and service of outstanding quality as well as its commitment to continuous improvement.PPG supplies electrocoat, liquid and powder coatings, as well as pretreatment chemicals to John Deere’s operations in the U.S., Mexico, South America, Europe, India and China. Suppliers that participate in the Achieving Excellence program are evaluated annually in several key performance categories, including quality, cost management, delivery, technical support and wavelength, which is a measure of responsiveness. John Deere supply management created the program in 1991 to provide a supplier evaluation and feedback process that promotes continuous improvement.

PPG Aerospace signs global sales and distribution agreement with Far�cla

Tim Wright — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 09:43:00 -0500

PPG's aerospace coatings business has signed an agreement with Farécla Inc., Chagrin Falls, OH, for global sales and distribution of Farécla’s polishes, abrasives and waxes for use on aircraft coatings. Farécla Inc. is the U.S. unit of Farécla Products Ltd., Hertford, U.K. PPG Aerospace technical field service personnel have worked with Farécla product experts to validate processes and create guidelines for use of Farécla products with PPG aircraft coatings. In addition, Farécla is developing new products for the aerospace field that will be exclusive to PPG. Farécla products are available through PPG’s global application support center network.

Conductive coatings market poised for growth

Tim Wright — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 09:19:00 -0500

A new report from NanoMarkets, an industry analyst firm, predicts that new opportunities are emerging in the conductive coatings market as the result of new applications and novel materials. Once a highly mature sector centered on coating or plating metals for equally slow-growing applications, the conductive coatings market will see a growth spurt brought on by demanding new requirements for electrodes, EMI/RFI shielding, and antistatic protection from next-generation electronics and energy devices. At the same time, new materials ranging from carbon nanotubes to conductive polymers to advanced composites, will provide significant competition to traditional metal coatings on cost, environmental and performance grounds. NanoMarkets' projections place the conductive coatings markets at $12.2 billion in 2014 going on to reach $15.9 billion in 2016 for the critical applications covered in electronics discussed in the report.

Electrode coatings with enhanced conductivity will prove a key enabling technology in emerging areas such as large area sensors, fuel cells and especially photovoltaics (PV). NanoMarkets believes that advanced materials—such as mixtures of silver and transparent conducting oxides—could provide a way forward to higher efficiencies in solar panels. Conductive coatings sold into the photovoltaics sector will reach $1.6 billion in revenues by 2014.

Because nanomaterials are at an early stage they offer the best prospects for a leap forward in conductive coating technology. Carbon nanotube coatings are already being used to beef up performance in fuel cells, lighting and displays and NanoMarkets also sees a significant market developing for nanosilver pastes for sensors, certain kinds of capacitors and EMI/RFI shielding. While nanomaterials used in the conductive coatings sector today are negligible, by 2014, nanomaterials-based conductive coatings are expected to reach $415 million in revenues.

Also by 2014, more than $450 million in conductive coatings will be sold for antistatic protection and EMI/RFI shielding applications. Growth in this market will be spurred by growth of wireless communications with its inherent need for shielding and higher levels of chip integration which will require more protection from static electricity. NanoMarkets also expects new uses to emerge in this sector such as RF shielding used to prevent access to data stored on RFID chips. It also anticipates that there will be a growing shift from metallic coatings towards the use of conductive polymers for EMI/RFI shielding on cost and environmental grounds.

Further details about the report are available at www.nanomarkets.net.

Specialty chemicals market shrinking

Tim Wright — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 09:13:00 -0500

The global speciality chemicals market is expected to shrink by approximately four percent to $451 billion in 2009, according to SRI Consulting’s report, "Overview of the Specialty Chemicals Industry." The report says the global specialty chemicals industry posted sales of $472 billion in 2008. Due to the current economic conditions, the report said the trend of negative growth will continue until sometime in 2010 and then gradually improve. Some countries and regions will suffer greater decline than others and some will rebound earlier and faster than others. The specialty chemicals market in 2010 is estimated to reach about the same size as in 2008 and then gradually climb during the next three years to reach $530 billion in 2013.

Greenguard certification awarded to Valspar Zenith G-1

Tim Wright — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 09:00:00 -0500

Valspar's new Zenith G-1 solvent-based self-seal topcoat for wood coating applications has received Greenguard certification by meeting the Greenguard Environmental Institute's air quality standard for low emitting products. G-1, a solvent-based topcoat that has very low amounts of hazardous air pollutants (HAPs), is being introduced by Valspar at the National Exposition of Contract Furnishings (NeoCon), held June 15-17 at Chicago's Merchandise Mart. Other benefits of Zenith G-1 include low odor; excellent moisture, chemical and mar resistance; excellent flow, leveling, build and appearance; meets all Kitchen Cabinet Manufacturers Association (KCMA) requirements; and it is compatibile with Valspar wood finish color systems.