NPCA/FSCT Annual Meeting and
CoatingsTech Conference
Recently merged NPCA/FSCT held its Annual Meeting and
Industry Leadership Conference and CoatingsTech Conference in Indianapolis.
BY KERRY PIANOFORTE
ASSOCIATE EDITOR
The recently merged National Paint and Coatings
Association and the Federation of Societies for
Coatings Technology (NPCA/FSCT) held the 122nd
Annual Meeting & Industry Leadership Conference and
CoatingsTech Conference April 26-29 at the Indianapolis
Marriott Downtown in Indianapolis, IN.
NPCA ANNUAL MEETING
NPCA’s Annual Meeting commenced with opening
remarks from Andy Doyle, president of NPCA. “Welcome
to Indianapolis,” said Doyle. “Thank you for your participation and support this past year. Our program over the
next two days should be very interesting.” He then went
on to introduce the newly elected officers of NPCA.
William Mansfield, CEO of Valspar has been elected vice
chairman and treasurer. Chris Connor, chairman and
CEO of Sherwin-Williams has been elected chairman.
The recent merger between NPCA and FSCT was also
addressed. “As you know we have faced many challenges,”
said James Weil, outgoing chairman of NPCA. “The merger between FSCT and NPCA is a pivotal time for our
organization. The merger will allow us to offer additional
services as NPCA/FSCT.”
Doyle and Weil gave the audience an overview of current
legislation that NPCA has been involved in. “This year NPCA
played an instrumental role in supporting Sherwin-Williams
in an important case in Rhode Island,” said Doyle.
KEYNOTE ADDRESS
In his keynote address, John Dizard, a columnist for the
Financial Times, discussed the current economic crisis
and offered his insight into global market recovery. “My
topic is demographics and the economy; your future
already happened,” said Dizard. He cautioned that in
order to understand the state of the capital market, “we
need to spend less time on headlines and more time on
census data. Capital markets are about older generations
putting up savings to employ and house younger ones. All
else is commentary and book keeping,” he explained.
According to Dizard, a wave of realized losses is on the
way, however there is hope for suppliers for housing and
durables. “But, business models need to adapt. More conservative mortgage underwriting means more responsible homeowners.”
The annual meeting also featured talks from a number
of other distinguished guest speakers. Highlights of the
talks included a presentation from Steven Reinstadtler,
Bayer MaterialScience’s market development market
and leader of its coatings and green building initiatives
on “Sustainability in Paints and Coatings – Making it
Chris Connor (left), NPCA’s newly elected chairman, presented
outgoing chairman, James Weil, with the George Baugh
Heckel Award.
