Valspar to Acquire Inver Group
The Valspar Corporation has entered into
a definitive agreement to acquire Inver
Holding S.r.l., a leading industrial coatings manufacturer in Europe. The transaction is expected to close in the fiscal
fourth quarter, subject to regulatory approval and customary closing conditions.
Financial terms were not disclosed.
Inver Group is headquartered in
Bologna, Italy and generated sales in
2012 of approximately €160 million
($200 million). Founded in 1934, the
company specializes in liquid and powder coatings products as well as resins
that are used in a variety of industrial
applications including off-road equipment, auto and off-road parts, architectural aluminum windows, railways
and trams. Owned by the Domenichini
family for three generations, the company serves customers primarily in
Italy, the United Kingdom, France,
Germany and Poland.
“Consistent with the growth strat-
egy for our industrial coatings business,
the acquisition of Inver Group signifi-
cantly strengthens our position in the
large and attractive European coatings
market and provides operational syner-
gies with our existing operations,” said
Gary Hendrickson, Valspar’s chairman
and chief executive officer. “Inver’s
strong product portfolio and customer
focus have successfully delivered results
through numerous business cycles. With
Inver, we gain a proven leadership team
that is a strong fit with Valspar’s cul-
ture. Our customers will benefit from
the expanded technologies and service
we will provide together.”
Giovanni Domenichini, chief ex-
ecutive officer of Inver Group, added:
“Inver is delighted to join forces with
Valspar, adding Inver’s strong custom-
er focus, leading technology and track
record of success in the European in-
dustrial coatings market to Valspar’s
global footprint and commitment to ex-
cellence. We believe this combination is
10 | Coatings World
an important step toward developing a
market leading presence in Europe that
also will be a platform for truly superior global growth in our industrial coatings businesses. Our family has proudly
owned Inver and we are now proud to
join the Valspar family.”
Benjamin Moore Remains
Highest in Customer
Satisfaction According to
J.D. Power and Associates
Benjamin Moore has been ranked highest in interior paint customer satisfaction by J.D. Power and Associates for
the third consecutive year. According
to the 2013 Interior Paint Satisfaction
Study, Benjamin Moore maintained
its leading position over 11 other
paint brands by receiving 800 on a
1,000-point scale (a 10-point increase
over 2012’s 790 score) and performing
particularly well in the key areas of application, durability, product offerings
and design guides. The consumer study
is based on responses from more than
6,800 respondents who purchased and
applied interior paint within the past 12
months. Additionally, Benjamin Moore
received the top spot when the award
was inaugurated seven years ago.
“Receiving this prestigious award
affirms everything we do,” said Bob
Merritt, Benjamin Moore’s president
and CEO. “We’re constantly focused on
having a best in class approach to sci-
ence and technology for our paint and
a best in class brand that matters to our
customers, dealers and contractors.”
J.D. Power & Associates bases sat-
isfaction with paint brands by evalu-
ations from customers who purchased
and applied interior paint during the
past year. It measures six key factors:
application, product offerings, durabil-
ity, price, design guides, and warranty/
guarantee. In addition to interior paint
brands, J.D. Power and Associates also
ranks paint retailers across five key
www.coatingsworld.com
factors: facility, selection, staff, services provided, and sales/promotions.
AkzoNobel and Solvay
Form Partnership
AkzoNobel and Solvay have signed
a three-year agreement whereby
AkzoNobel will increase the use of renewable raw materials in its paints and
coatings, building on an existing partnership between the two companies.
Under the terms of the deal,
AkzoNobel will progressively increase
the use of Solvay’s bio-based epichlorohydrin, or Epicerol, which is already
contained in many of the company’s
resins for its coatings products. The
agreement underlines the commitment
of both parties to play a key role in sustainable development and expand the
use of renewable raw materials.
Developed and patented by international chemical group Solvay, Epicerol
is the process used to produce bio-based epichlorohydrin from renewable
glycerol. Epicerol has a substantially
lower carbon footprint compared with
most fossil-produced epichlorohydrin,
according to the company. By 2016,
AkzoNobel aims to source 20 percent
of its total epichlorohydrin demand as
bio-based material.
New to this type of agreement is the
partnership model between two chemical groups on the one hand, and their
suppliers and customers on the other.
It builds on a supply agreement for renewable solvents which both companies
announced three months ago, with the
project outlined to take more than three
years of collaborative work in the value
chain, starting immediately.
Epichlorohydrin is a chemical intermediate to make epoxy resins, which
are base ingredients for certain coatings. AkzoNobel and Solvay will work
closely with their respective suppliers
and customers to facilitate the use of
Epicerol to produce AkzoNobel’s resins,
