Coatings World - April 2012

RPM Acquires Australian Auto Repair and
Industrial Coatings Business

RPM International Inc., though its Rust-Oleum Group, has acquired HiChem Paint Technologies Pty. Ltd., an Australian manufacturer of automotive af-termarket coatings, as well as specialty coatings for industrial applications and home maintenance. Based in Hallam, Australia, HiChem has annual sales of approximately $23 million. HiChem manufactures and markets a wide range of vehicle repair, general industrial and home maintenance coatings and products for both do-it-yourselfers and professionals sold under the Motospray and HiChem brands. The acquisition expands RPM’s presence in the Australian market with well-respected brands and enhances its operational capabilities in the region by providing new distribution channels and local manufacturing. HiChem will continue to be led by its existing management team, including founder and former owner Ivan Moldovan.

current and future regulatory limits that may be set on colorants used for tinting paint. “This is the latest step in our commitment to green technology and it aligns with our greener by design philosophy of being as eco-efficient as possible,” said Wendoll.

Wendoll said Dunn-Edwards’ color
lab and colorant supplier worked for
several years to develop these propri-
etary zero VOC colorants.

Index to Companies

This index gives the starting page for a department or feature with a signifi-
cant reference to a manufacturer of paint, coatings, adhesives and sealants.
Subsidiaries are indexed under their own names.

Dunn-Edwards launches zero VOC colorants for tinting

Dunn-Edwards has launched zero VOC colorants for tinting, which virtually eliminates volatile organic compounds from paint.

“While high quality, zero VOC paints
have become widely available in recent
years, there was still the issue of conven-
tional colorants adding VOCs back into
the paint,” explained Robert Wendoll,
director of environmental affairs. “Now
we can offer low odor, more environ-
mentally friendly paints in any color,
while maintaining lower overall VOCs in
all of our tinted water-based products.”
Zero VOC colorants are currently
available in all of Dunn-Edwards 16
Northern California stores, and rolling
out to the remainder of its 92 stores over
the next few months. This new technol-
ogy allows Dunn-Edwards not only to
make greener paint, but to comply with
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