AkzoNobel Opens $10 Million
Research Facility in the U.S.
AkzoNobel has opened a new research, development and in- novation (RD&I) center in
Strongsville, Ohio, in the United States.
The $10 million facility will support
several of the company’s Performance
Coatings businesses, including coil, extrusion and packaging coatings.
Featuring full testing, scale-up and
analytical capabilities, it will house
more than 120 staff, including 65 highly
trained scientists and technicians.
Commenting on the opening, AB
Ghosh, managing director of AkzoNobel’s
Metal Coatings business, said: “By ex-
panding our facility in Strongsville, we
are providing a central, state-of-the-art
technical resource for our businesses in
North America, creating the critical mass
for effective RD&I to more efficiently
support our customers. The facility will
also enable us to focus on further improv-
ing the performance and sustainability of
our products.”
Added Performance Coatings RD&I
director, Klaas Kruithof: “This is a sig-
nificant investment which underlines our
focus on technology and product innova-
tion, as well as our commitment to the
North American market. It will be an in-
tegral part of our global RD&I function
and will directly contribute to our overall
growth plans.”
The Strongsville center is the latest
in a series of investments to strengthen
AkzoNobel’s research capabilities in the
region. The company recently announced
that it is investing approximately € 3 mil-
lion ($3.4 million) to expand its RD&I
capabilities in Houston, Texas. The
Houston facility will support the compa-
ny’s Protective Coatings, Marine Coatings
and Specialty Coatings businesses.
PPG Aerospace Donates
Coatings for F- 4 Restoration
An F- 4 Phantom fighter jet on display at
the New England Air Museum was re-
stored with coatings and technical talent
donated by PPG Industries’ aerospace
business to honor the jet’s U.S. Air Force
service during the Vietnam War.
PPG donated high-solids
DESOTHANE HS/CA 8211 military and
defense topcoat in camouflage, Desothane
HS/CA 8800 topcoat in gloss white and
DESOPRIME HS/CA 7700 primer. Kevin
Lee, PPG senior account manager, aero-
space, provided the technical talent and a
personal connection to the aircraft manu-
facturer, McDonnell Douglas.
NEAM volunteer and restoration
technician Jim McGuire contacted Lee,
with whom he had worked in the past,
to ask for PPG help in repainting the F- 4,
which is on loan to the museum from
the U.S. Air Force. McGuire wanted
it restored with its paint scheme from
December 1972, when the aircraft was
flown in a mission that downed an enemy
MiG fighter jet. He knew what it looked
like from a photo provided by the mis-
sion’s pilot and copilot.
The assistance by Lee proved to be
serendipitous. “My first experience in the
aerospace industry came back in 1978 at
McDonnell Douglas, in Tulsa, Oklahoma,
where we completely refurbished the F- 4
aircraft, including repainting.”
Lee selected PPG coatings that would
provide a durable system with good ultraviolet (UV) protection that should retain its gloss and color for years. CW
Index to Companies
This index gives the starting page for a department or feature with a significant reference to a manufacturer of paint, coatings, adhesives and sealants
Subsidiaries are indexed under their own names.
AkzoNobel................................................................................................ 10, 31
Axalta Coating Systems............................................................................. 12, 29
Burtin Polymer Labs and Coating and Foam Solutions ................................... 12
H.B. Fuller ...................................................................................................... 12
Hempel ........................................................................................................... 12
Henkel ............................................................................................................ 12
National Paint Industries................................................................................. 12
Polychem Powder Coatings ............................................................................. 29
PPG................................................................................................10, 12, 31, 50
Rust-Oleum..................................................................................................... 29
Sherwin-Williams ...................................................................................... 12, 29
Valspar...................................................................................................... 12, 29
