Sherwin-Williams acquires Flex Recubrimientos
The Sherwin-Williams Company has
acquired certain assets of Flex
Recubrimientos, Acabados Automotrices
and related companies.
Headquartered in Monterrey, Mexico,
the privately owned companies are leading manufacturers and distributors of
automotive after-market body fillers,
putties, primers and other vehicle refinish products.
With 150 associates, the Flex group of
companies has built a strong market
share and distribution presence in
Northern Mexico with sales of approximately $14 million.
The Flex group currently operates a
manufacturing facility in Monterrey
with distribution warehouses in
Monterrey, Mexico City, Guadalajara
and Tijuana.
PPG, KANSAI EXPAND ALLIANCE
IN EUROPE TO INCLUDE HUNGARY
PPG Industries and Kansai Paint have
expanded their alliance, known as PPG
Kansai Automotive Finishes (PKAF), to
include the sale of automotive coatings
to Japanese-owned or operated OEMs in
Hungary. The business was transferred
from a previous venture between Akzo
Nobel and Kansai Paint.
“Global OEMs are continuing to add
capacity in Eastern Europe, as it is one
of the fastest-growing regions in the
automotive industry,” said Richard J.
Rurak, president, PKAF. “The expansion
of the alliance will enable us to better
serve the needs of Japanese automotive
manufacturers and parts suppliers
operating in Hungary and may lead to
future opportunities for collaboration in
other areas of Eastern Europe.”
BASF EXPANDS WATERBORNE
BASECOAT PRODUCTION
BASF Coatings started the expansion
of production and lab capacities at its
Würzburg site. The investment
amounts to approximately € 21 million. The groundbreaking ceremony
marked the launch of the construction
phase. Production capacities will be
expanded, and state-of-the-art dispersion and dispensing techniques will be
implemented. Basecoat development
will be concentrated in a newly built
lab building. Additional application
facilities are being set up to cover lab
and production needs. Overall, the
capacity at the Würzburg site will be
expanded by approximately 30%. The
first facilities are scheduled to start
up in the second half of the coming
year. The production launch of the
entire project is then planned for the
first quarter of 2009. Approximately
20 new jobs will be created as a result
of the expansion efforts.
SIGMAKALON ACQUIRES A
MARKET LEADER IN SOUTH AFRICA
SigmaKalon has acquired the South-African company Neutron Paints with
its headquarters in Cape Town and a
manufacturing facility in the region of
Cape Town. It has 60 employees. The
company manufactures and sells high
performance, architectural decorative
coatings mainly in the region of Western
Cape, Eastern Cape and Northern Cape.
The business will be integrated in one
of the SigmaKalon South African operations—Prominent Paints Pty (Ltd).
Prominent Paints Pty (Ltd) is located in
Alrode, Johannesburg. It currently
ranks third in the South African decorative paints arena with an 8.5% market
share in value at national level.
“We are particularly looking to
increase our footprint within the
Western Cape Region,” said Yvon
Porhel, Prominent Paints managing
director. “This region accounts for 16% of
the national paint market and gaining a
loyal customer base within this province
is key to our national strategy of grow-
ing our distribution network. The acquisition of Neutron Paints will allow us to
meet this goal.”
“This is an excellent opportunity to
consolidate our presence in the promising market of South Africa,” said
Stéphane Beaucourt, board member of
SigmaKalon Group with responsibility
for decorative coatings in this part of the
world.
TOR COATINGS ACQUIRES
BOLLON FIRE PROTECTION
UK-based Tor Coatings Ltd. has
acquired the Bollom Fire Protection
brand and assets. All Bollom fire protection products will now be manufactured
by Tor Coatings to the original, tested
and certified formulations.
Tor Coatings has a history in the field
of passive fire protection having been
involved in flame retardant coatings
technology since its conceptual stage in
the early 1970s. Bollom Fire Protection
is well known for its range of intumescent and flame retardant base coats,
paints and clear varnishes.
SHAWCOR TO PROVIDE PIPE
COATING SERVICES FOR DEEP
PANUKE PROJECT
ShawCor Ltd. has announced that its
subsidiary, Shaw Pipe Protection Ltd.,
has received a contract in excess of $40
million to provide a negative buoyancy
coating for EnCana Corporation’s Deep
Panuke offshore project in Nova Scotia.
The award was made to Shaw & Shaw
Limited, a Nova Scotia registered company, owned by Shaw Pipe Protection
Ltd. of Calgary and The Shaw Group
Limited of Halifax. Shaw & Shaw successfully provided coatings for the
Sable Offshore Energy Tier 1 and 2
Projects in 1998 and 2002 respectively.
The success of Shaw & Shaw in
Atlantic Canada has been the result of
combining Shaw Pipe Protection’s glob-
