materials, such as diamond or
glass, but with the toughness
and resilience of metals. These
nanocomposite coatings impart wear and corrosion resistance to
metal surfaces and reduce friction in
sliding wear applications. The PComP
cermet coatings are easy to apply and
machine to tight tolerances for dimensional restoration of worn industrial
components. The PComP family of
coating materials has been designed to
act as a drop-in replacement for competing thermal spray materials that can
be used in existing application systems
based on a unique, patented coating
microstructure that combines the high
hardness zones of a ductile metal in an
optimal geometry. PComP coatings are
up to 70 percent lighter than tungsten
carbide (WC) coatings, and up to 40
percent lighter than the hard chrome
alternative due to the use of light and
low-cost, nitride-based reinforcements.
BASF Green Sense Concrete
Technology Available in the
European Market
BASF now offers its Green Sense Concrete
technology for the resource-efficient production and processing of concrete in
Europe as well. Green Sense Concrete is
a service package from BASF that helps
manufacturers improve the performance
characteristics of concrete such as resilience, workability, durability and environmental friendliness.
The package comprises three components: The optimization of the concrete
mix design by BASF experts, the use of
hyperplasticizers from BASF such as
MasterGlenium, and an eco efficiency
analysis of the concrete mix. The analysis
serves to ascertain economic and ecological performance criteria of the concrete
in comparison to traditional concrete
mix designs. The use of the Green Sense
Concrete technology has for example led
to savings of around 15,800 tons of CO2
equivalents and approximately 25,400
megawatt hours of energy in the construction of the new One World Trade
Center in New York City compared with
a conventional concrete mix design. In
this way, BASF provides solutions for
urgent challenges of the construction industry such as the high share in primary
energy consumption, in greenhouse gases
and in fine dust emissions.
National Paint Industries
Purchases Top Secret
Coatings
National Paint Industries has purchased
the assets of Top Secret Coatings of
Seattle, Washington. Top Secret is a supplier of Military Specification premium
epoxy, silicone, and urethane coatings to
federal, state and municipal agencies and
also the DIY markets nationwide.
“This acquisition broadens our prod-
uct offerings, introducing us to entirely
new market segments that Top Secret
has been serving for many years,” said
Don Schnurr, vice president of National
Paint Industries. “Top Secret also does
a large business through e-commerce,
operating five websites that offer pre-
mium Mil Spec quality coatings to the
DIY market not previously available to
the public. Top Secret offers over 100
colors in 8 different categories of paint,
together with corresponding primers,
sealers, and clear coats.”
National Paint Industries, established
in 1959 manufactures a broad line of
specialty coatings for the pleasure and
commercial marine, hardwood flooring,
swimming pool, and industrial mainte-
nance markets with nationwide distribu-
tion under the Harco, Bluewater, Garco,
Petri, and Wilson Imperial brand names.
BASF Launches Master
Builders Solutions Global
Construction Brand
BASF announced the launch of its new
global brand, Master Builders Solutions,
for the construction industry in Europe.
The global brand strengthens BASF’s industry orientation and reflects its commitment to provide the construction
industry with customized products and
solutions from a single source. Master
UK Paint Sales Up for Eighth Month in a Row
The latest results from the coatings industry, supplied by the British Coatings Federation, reflect the more positive developments in UK construction and manufacturing activity, with Q4 2013 sales volumes up seven percent versus the same
quarter in 2012, significantly outperforming the overall output numbers for the
economy in the same period.
Decorative and industrial coatings sectors performed particularly well, adding
support to the view that the UK economy is finally turning the corner, although
printing ink and wallcoverings sales remaining subdued.
In the decorative sector, trade paint sales increased for the eighth month in a
row with volumes in the last quarter up 11 percent on a year ago boosted by the
continued recovery in the housing and construction markets. The results mirror
improvements in construction products in general, where growth has increased
sharply in recent months and where the outlook remains upbeat for 2014.
Consumer confidence has also improved in recent months and this is now
being reflected in the hard pressed retail paint sector which is also beginning
to show some encouraging increases in recent months with the last quarter as a
whole up five percent on a year ago.
On the industrial coatings side, the picture is more mixed but there have
been increases in five of the past 6 months after a very difficult start to 2013.
Sales litreage in December was up nine percent and by 2. 5 percent for the last
quarter as a whole being broadly in line with the growth in UK manufacturing
output which is now also showing more steady growth.
“The British Coatings Federation statistics provide a unique barometer for the
UK economy, and overall we are outperforming the general manufacturing output
numbers with this performance, which should warm the hearts of even the most
pessimistic amongst us,” said Tom Bowtell, BCF’s CEO.
