Metallic Pigments
June 2016 www.coatingsworld.com Coatings World | 35
Ron Levi, president of New Brook International, said that by
far, the most important factors are the environmental, shipping
and handling regulations, which he says have gotten much stricter.
“The cost of doing business with these products has risen
considerably and has been passed along to the customers down
the line,” Levi said.
Raw material costs are one contributing factor to price in-
creases in a multitude of industries. Sun Chemical’s Hollman
said that effectively managing raw material costs is “critical to
maintaining stable pricing for our customers.”
He added, “The last 12 months have seen many changes
in supply, currency exchange rates and the price of petroleum
derived goods. Our global manufacturing team has invested in
designing production processes with a high degree of flexibility.
This flexibility allows us to globally source raw materials and
utilize our global manufacturing footprint to consistently deliv-
er quality, service and innovation in this highly volatile period.”
Emerging markets
Metallic pigments are versatile, eye-catching and increasingly
utilized to differentiate products in competitive markets. Strong
markets have historically included industrial and automotive
markets. According to Silberline’s Nataro, there is also demand
in protective coatings markets, automotive OEM and refinish
coatings. “Metallic printing inks are also adding flash and piz-zazz to packaging and paper, creating new effects that catch the
eye,” he said.
Hughes, of ECKART, said that there is steady demand in the
automotive and the electronics segments in spite of the decline
in pure silver in the automotive sector.
“However, we continue to see an increase in the use of me-
tallic and special effects in designed colors,” he said. “For ex-
ample more metallic blues, reds and other colors. We expect
this to increase in the future along with the use of more pure
silver metallic based on the development of the new pigments
we are developing.”
The automotive segment, which has been the key driver for
global metallic pigment demand, has remained steady in North
America and is showing modest gains in Europe, according to
Hollman of Sun Chemical.
“Sun Chemical has seen strong demand for Benda-Lutz
SPLENDAL vacuum metallized pigments for high end automotive interiors. We are also seeing increased usage of our new high
performance stain resistant metallics for wheel coatings. For
topcoats, new color trends emerge every year,” Hollman said.
New technologies, products
Metallic pigment suppliers are frequently introducing new technologies to the market. What follows is information on these
new innovations from select manufacturers, in their own words.
ECKART America Corp.
To support the North American and global needs in the automotive OEM market and industrial applications, ECKART has
invested in an application center in Louisville, KY. ECKART
continues to expand its STAPA UCP products. These pigments
have a proprietary encapsulation that offers the highest stability and brilliance in solvent- and water-based coatings. In addition to its Ultra Chemical Performance, STAPA UCP display a
pronounced optical dark flop. Their smooth, untextured surface
along with the extreme fineness provides a unique brilliance and
light reflection.
New Brook International
Along with its supply partners New Brook continues to focus
on bringing brighter bronze powders to the market with the pop
and shine required by today’s formulators. On the aluminum
side the company is stressing a transition away from aluminum
powders to pastes or forms with other carriers, which satisfy
current safety and storage regulations.
Schlenk
Schlenk Metallic Pigments continuously work on improving
surface treatments of its effect pigments to make its products
more durable and fit for easier and wider use for its customers.
Schlenk Metallic Pigments has successfully introduced its super-durable powder coating aluminum series POWDAL SDT. With
the new and further improved surface treatment, customers can
achieve highly durable metallic powder coating finishes with improved application abilities. Furthermore, Schlenk has launched
its new polychromatic rainbow-effect pigment MULTIFLECT.
Silberline Manufacturing
Due to the ever-increasing regulations, Silberline has developed
products specifically aimed at the waterborne industrial coatings
market. As the trend towards water based coatings continues
into the future, Silberline has developed numerous chemistries
and surface treatments that have allowed the formulators to create dazzling metallic effects in a water based coatings system
without the worry of hydrogen gas generation or loss of any
optical properties. Silberline’s commitment to water based technology has given rise to two new product lines: SILBERCOTE
AquaPellet and STARBRITE Reveal AQ.
Sun Chemical
Sun Chemical has recently introduced Benda-Lutz COMPAL
WS, a new range of highly concentrated, VOC-free aluminum
preparations for coatings. The company also recently expanded
its Benda-Lutz MAXAL EC product line to include finer particle
sizes allowing for smooth metallic finishes combined with the
durability of its MAXAL EC pigments.
Sun Chemical’s Benda-Lutz COMPAL WS is a new range of
highly concentrated, VOC-free aluminum preparations for inks
and coatings. Designed for long term gassing stability in aqueous environments, COMPAL WS can be used in both water or
solvent based systems, providing maximum formulation flexibility. Each grade of COMPAL WS preparations is delivered
in an easily dispersible granular form for safe and easy handling, improved shelf stability, and numerous other advantages
in transport. CW
