Coatings World - January 2017

catalyzing the demand for high-performance coating additives.” Taking a closer look at the American market, Grand View Research recently published a report – Americas Coating Additives Market Analysis By Formulation (Waterborne, Solventborne, Powder), By Function (Rheology Modification, Biocide, Wetting & Dispersion, Antifoaming, Impact Modification, Flow, De-Waxing), By Product (Acrylic, Urethane, Fluoropolymers, Metallic, Alkoxylates), By End-Use (Automotive, Architecture, Industrial, Wood & Furniture) And Segment Forecast To 2024 – which determined that the American coatings additives market size exceeded $1.60 billion in 2015. A rapid expansion in the infrastructure and the automobile industries has led to significant demand for the protective enamels in the region.

Researchers found that the renovation and restoration of old architectures have gained momentum in most of the economies in the region over the past few years.

“Several new constructions and mega infrastructure projects have also been sanctioned over the past few years especially in the U.S., Canada, Brazil, and Argentina. This factor is anticipated to lead to a higher usage of coatings, thereby creating a sustained demand for the additives in the construction sector in the region,” the report stated.

“Countries including the U.S. and Canada are focusing on
green construction since the past few years, and the trend is
expected to continue in the near future. The industry has wit-
nessed a shift in consumer trends regarding reducing reliance
on petrochemical-based additives to moderate volatile organic
contents (VOC) emissions. This has led to high rate of penetra-
tion of waterborne formulations across various architectural
and industrial applications especially in mature economies of
Canada and the U.S.”
Grand View Research found that the majority of these condi-
ments are mostly derived from petrochemicals, except for some
such as cellulose and vegetable oil. “The low crude oil prices
from the last few years have positively impacted the market and
will continue to be so till the prices get stabilized, researchers
determined,” researchers stated.

New product and technologies innovation, such as the powder-based formulations and acrylic-based primers, is expected to penetrate the customer base in the near future. Technological advancements, moderate pricing, and diverse product portfolio are anticipated to be the major factors driving the industry over the foreseeable future.

Rising health awareness and the existence of inflexible policies over VOC content in the region have forced the formulators to either use additives that help reduce the content of volatile organic compounds or to shift to waterborne formulations.

“The high requirement for bio-degradable and environment-friendly coating additives with enhanced durability and performance is expected to drive the industry growth in the region,” researchers found.

“Constant innovations and development of bio-degradable
agents with multiple functions are expected to remain one of the
major buying criteria for these products. Additionally, long-term
contracts with domestic suppliers or manufacturers may help in
tackling volatile pricing and uninterrupted supply.”

Market growth, raw material costs

Echoing some of the aforementioned research findings, David
S. Grabacki, president of Keim Additec Surface USA, said that
“from our perspective and regarding the materials we are pro-
ducing in our group, which include solid and water based wax
additives, also non-wax-based specialty coating additives, we
see the coatings market in Europe at a stable level, while there is
in North America and several Asian countries still an increasing
demand for high quality coatings additives.”
Shailesh Shah, Ph.D, global strategic marketing- formulation
additives at BASF, believes that in 2016, the additives market
grew globally with greater growth in water-based applications.
He expects the modest growth to continue for 2017.

“Many of the same raw materials are found in resins, dis-
persions and additives,” Shah said. “Since additives are not the
main cost contributors in a coating, the market is not dependent
on fluctuations in the raw material costs, but on growth of the
underlying coatings market.”
ANGUS Chemical Company saw good growth in 2016,
particularly of its nitroalkane-based additives, which pro-
vide value-enhanced multifunctional performance to archi-
tectural coatings.

Kent Alexander, business development leader, North America industrial specialties at ANGUS, said that in addition to paints and coatings, ANGUS’ specialty additive and fine chemicals are also used in life sciences, metalworking fluids, personal care, pharmaceuticals and other applications. “We see opportunity for growth in 2017 as formulators continue to upgrade their low- and no-VOC paint formulations to meet increasing regulatory requirements and satisfy consumer preferences,” Alexander added.

Eastman Chemical Company’s Jami Arrowsmith, architectural coatings business manager, pointed out that additives are used for specific functions and typically at low levels in a formulation. “Even at low levels,” Arrowsmith said, “additives address key issues and improve critical properties of the final formulated product for its given application. Pricing is typically based on added value and not determined by input raw materials, so inherently, additives are less influenced by raw material pricing. Additives pricing is typically more stable and slower to move up or down based on changes in underlying feedstock costs.”

Making the right choice

When considering an additive, formulators have to balance many factors. Functionality, sustainability, customer needs – the list is as varied and multifaceted as customers themselves. Grabacki, of Keim, said that it is “critical that the additive manufacture have a comprehensive understanding of the application, system and intended result before an additive can be recommended.