$2.45 million in civil penalties
and $300,000 to cover the
agency’s investigative costs.
Lowe’s has not admitted any culpability in the settlement. According to
SCAQMD’s clean air plan, all paints and
coatings are responsible for 23 tons per
day of volatile organic compound (VOC)
emissions in the Southland. SCAQMD’s
Rule 1113 prohibits the manufacture, distribution, sale or use of non-compliant
coatings in the South Coast Air Basin. In
recent years SCAQMD has focused inspections on home improvement retail
stores to ensure that paints sold to consumers comply with air quality regulations, the agency said. Earlier this year
SCAQMD reached a $2 million settlement
with Walmart for Rule 1113 violations involving sale of non-compliant paints and
coatings. In a prepared statement released
by the SCAQMD, Lowe’s regional VP, Jeff
Starnes, said, “Lowe’s takes environmental matters very seriously. We are pleased
to have resolved this dispute without litigation and look forward to continuing a
strong relationship with the SCAQMD.
We will continue to look for opportunities to make our programs even stronger
in the future.”
Bronz-Glow Technologies
in certified application
agreement with Leminar Coils
Bronz-Glow Technologies, Inc. has entered into a certified application agreement with Leminar Coils LLC located in
Dubai of the United Arab Emirates. Leminar Coils is part of the Al Shirawi group
of companies, one of the largest conglomerates in the UAE. Leminar has nine retail
store locations for the distribution of air
conditioning equipment and supplies,
which will now also carry Bronz-Glow’s
line of DIY products. Leminar Coils will
be the primary applicator of Bronz-Glow’s
Husky Coil Coat for replacement coils as
well as coating new equipment. A new
coating facility, currently being established, will service not only residential and
smaller unitary equipment, but also air
cooled chillers entering the UAE marketplace. Leminar Coils will provide factory
coating services, field coating services,
coating sales, and coating applications for
replacement coils they manufacture. The
agreement between Bronz-Glow and Leminar Coils will cover Oman, Qatar as well
as all the Emirates of the UAE.
ASTM International Paint
Committee develops a
new standard for paint
waste disposal
The need for better environmental practices for art studios has led to the development of a new ASTM International
standard, ASTM D7355, Guide for
Artists’ Paint Waste Disposal in Smaller
Commercial or Educational Settings. The
new standard was developed by Subcommittee D01.57 on Artists’ Materials, part
of ASTM International Committee D01
on Paint and Related Coatings, Materials
and Applications.
“The small educational setting might be
allowed by law to flush their paints and
brush cleaning materials down the sink, but
many wanted a more responsible way to
act,” said Bruce Griffin, chief risk officer,
University of North Carolina, Greensboro,
and chairman of the task group that developed the new ASTM standard. “
Manufacturers also encouraged us to continue, as
they often receive requests for a ‘best disposal practice’ but had no good answers.”
Griffin said that ASTM D7355 gives
commercial artists and art teachers in
small school systems a way to deal with
waste from artist paints in an environmentally friendly way. “This is especially
important for those users who are too
small to be regulated by laws or regulations but want to do the right thing,” said
Griffin.
Michael Skalka, conservation administrator, National Gallery of Art, and chairman of D01.57, said that all interested
parties are invited to participate in the
work of D01.57, particularly those with
experience in scientific methodology, statistical analysis of data, chemistry, the
working properties of paint materials, environmental testing of materials for lightfastness and other physical properties
related to paint.
“Members who enjoy art and like the
technical aspects of paint materials are
our strongest participants and advocates,” said Skalka. “We face some com-
plicated challenges in creating standards
that promote quality in art materials.
Understanding technical aspects, espe-
cially for our artist/consumer members,
is the most challenging part of the work
of the subcommittee.”
The subcommittee is currently work-
ing on standards for a variety of art ma-
terials, including acrylic primers, pastels,
inkjet inks, pre-primed canvas and solid
supports for paintings.
AkzoNobel assumes full control
in Mexico joint venture
AkzoNobel Car Refinishes Americas has
bought out its joint venture partner, Comex,
to assume full responsibility for the marketing and distribution of the Sikkens, Les-onal, U-Tech and Wanda brands in Mexico.
During the fifteen year joint venture period,
AkzoNobel solidified its presence and advanced refinish technologies with key businesses in the Mexican market. This has
been achieved through a network of
Comex concessionaries and more than 200
independent distributors. Access to AkzoNobel’s range of car refinish brands will
be available through the current chain of
Comex locations and network of independent distributors.
Hempel opens new factory
in China
Protective coatings supplier Hempel
opened a new manufacturing facility in
Guangzhou, China that includes a new research and development center, which is
the third largest R&D facility within the
Hempel Group. With 56,000 square meters of space, Hempel’s newest and largest
factory, located in Guangzhou, China, is
expected to produce more than 42 million
liters of coatings per year, with a maximum production capacity of 55 million
liters. The Guangzhou factory replaces
Hempel’s oldest Chinese factory in
Shekou, China, and employees have now
moved to the new location. As part of
Hempel’s environmental commitment, the
factory uses the latest technology to re-cover materials and reduce the plant’s carbon footprint. This includes an automatic
batching system to reduce dust emissions
and minimize the manual handling of
powders and a recovery system to recycle
