PPG has marked the completion of a new $19 million high-performance waterborne and high-solids coatings production line at its Wuhu facility
in Anhui province, China. The new line
enhances the production and service capabilities of PPG’s automotive coatings
business for customers in China.
With the implementation in China of
stricter environmental regulations, automakers have increased the use of low-volatile organic compound (low-VOC)
coatings. The new line at PPG’s Wuhu
plant adds production for environmentally-friendly waterborne coatings to meet
this need as well as the growing overall
demand by automotive manufacturers
and parts makers across China. The new
topcoat manufacturing facility adds process advancements and a higher degree
of automation. In addition, storage tanks
added to the facility help reduce waste at
the Wuhu plant.
“PPG’s high-performance waterborne
and high-solids automotive coatings en-
able our customers in China to meet envi-
ronmental requirements while improving
the quality of their vehicles,” said Vincent
Robin, PPG vice president, automotive
coatings, Asia Pacific. “With this added
manufacturing capability in Wuhu, we
significantly enhance our ability to serve
our automotive customers across China.”
PPG established its Wuhu plant in
2008, to grow its manufacturing foot-
print in China and supply automakers
across the country.
Axalta Coating Systems
Completes Acquisition of
Valspar’s North American
Industrial Wood Coatings
Business
Axalta Coating Systems has completed
its previously announced acquisition
of The Valspar Corporation’s North
American Industrial Wood Coatings
business. Valspar divested the business
in connection with the antitrust approval of its acquisition by The Sherwin-Williams Company.
The purchase price for the transaction is $420 million, subject to certain adjustments set forth in the Asset
Purchase Agreement. The acquired
business had net sales of approximately
$225 million in 2016. Axalta expects
the transaction to be accretive to earnings in the first full year, but less accretive to near-term results including the
anticipated integration costs to be incurred largely in 2017.
The North American Industrial
Wood Coatings business is one of the
leading providers of coatings for OEMs
and distributors engaged in industrial wood markets, including building
products, cabinets, flooring and furniture, in North America. The strong
brands of the business, which include
Zenith, Ultraguard, Lifeshield and
Color Choice, will join Axalta’s portfolio of Performance Coatings products
and services. A shared commitment to
customer care, technical service and
support, as well as a keen focus on innovation in advancing the technology
of wood coatings will provide a strong
platform for future growth in this important industrial coatings market. The
business consists of manufacturing facilities and offices in High Point, North
Carolina and Cornwall, Ontario, an
R&D organization with locations in
PPG Completes $19M Waterborne Auto
Coatings Production Line in Wuhu, China
DURANAR XL Coatings by PPG Used on New Centre Vidéotron in Quebec City
When the design team of Populous and
ABCP Architecture chose to celebrate
the passion Québécois’ have for winter,
ice and snow in Quebec City’s new arena,
they trusted DURANAR XL coatings by
PPG to bring their vision to life.
Fabricated from glass and sculpted
metal panels coated in Pure White Du-
ranar XL coatings by local applicator
Anacolor, Inc., the curtain wall for Centre
Vidéotron draws inspiration from a snowdrift, according to the
Populous website. “We aimed to capture the spirit and culture
of the city in a truly elegant and sophisticated way by selecting
white painted metal panels that are sculptural in form, reveal-
ing an organically shaped band of glass in between,” the firm
explained. “The pure white color reflects light like snow, as well
as offers a blank canvas for projection map-
ping light shows.”
Duranar XL coatings, based on 70-per-
cent polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) resin
supplemented by proprietary PPG resin and
pigment technologies, have been used for
high-end architectural landmarks such as
Centre Vidéotron for 50 years because of
their ability to retain color and gloss through
decades of environmental exposure.
Covering more than 160,000 square feet of exterior alumi-
num panels on the 18,000-seat venue, Duranar XL coatings are
available as three- and four-part systems encompassing a pat-
ented primer, optional barrier coat, durable color coat and clear
protective topcoat. Populous also specified Black Duranar XL
coatings for metal accents and surfaces inside the arena.
