The first of its kind, the 2-Wet
Monocoat paint system was designed to help OEM customers
reduce the complexity of the
conventional coating process and increase productivity by fusing the properties of a basecoat and clearcoat into one
coating layer and reducing the number
of drying cycles and ovens from two to
one. The result is a system that needs less
space on the shop floor, which is ideal
for manufacturing facilities with smaller
footprints and for brownfield paint shop
conversions. To create these properties,
while also improving the monocoat’s
appearance, Axalta tailor-made a hyperbranched acrylic polymer for this innovative new product.
“Axalta’s 2-Wet Monocoat paint system was designed to improve appearance
and durability while providing step-change efficiencies for our OEM customers,” explained Steven Markevich, Axalta
senior vice president and president of its
Light Vehicle OEM coatings business.
“Having our 2-Wet Monocoat paint system selected as a 2015 PACE Award finalist reflects our commitment to constant
innovation. Our unique resin chemistry
helped to facilitate the streamlining of the
process and the elimination of steps.”
British Coatings Federation
Says Paint Sales
Outperform Economy
The latest figures from the British
Coatings Federation show that for the
second consecutive year, paint
sales have outperformed GDP,
with an increase
of five percent in
volume during 2014, against economic
growth of three percent.
“We’ve seen excellent growth in the
trade paint sector, which experienced near
double-digit growth, due to the combined
effect of general economic recovery, and
the growth in new house building,” said
Tom Bowtell, chief executive of the BCF.
Woodcare products also had a very
good year with double- digit growth,
helped in part by the much better weather
last year compared to 2013.
Industrial coatings sales have been
disappointing with more or less flat
sales, with a decline in commercial and
infrastructure projects. Similarly, wallcoverings and printing inks have also
struggled, although towards the end of
2014 volumes saw some improvement,
stimulated by growth in packaging inks
and wallcoverings exports.
Looking to 2015, nine out of ten
British Coatings Federation members are
optimistic about sales and growth, forecasting an increase in number of employees, capital investment, sales value and
gross margin.
“The industry is in a really buoyant
mood after the generally excellent year
for paint sales in 2014, and it is encouraging to see such high levels of optimism
as we head into a new year,” concluded
Bowtell.
Axalta Announces
Integrated Title
Sponsorship with Pocono
Raceway
Axalta Coating Systems and Pocono
Raceway jointly announced a multi-year
partnership that will include an integrated
sponsorship campaign and the renaming
of this year’s June NASCAR Sprint Cup
Series (NSCS) race held at ‘The Tricky
Triangle.’ The “Axalta ‘We Paint Winners’
400” marks the first time that Axalta will
be a title sponsor in a NASCAR Sprint
Cup Series race.
As a part of the overall program,
Axalta plans to leverage its sponsorship
across multiple platforms which will include digital and social media, traditional
marketing outreach, and customer and
community race-day events.
“Axalta is proud of its 22-year motor-
sports partnership. As a leader in the US
refinish business, our paint graces race-
cars that burn rubber on the track each
season and we proudly support four-
time NASCAR Cup Series champion Jeff
Gordon,” said Axalta vice president and
head of its North America business, Nigel
Budden. “Now, we are pleased to ex-
pand our racing involvement as Pocono
Raceway’s title sponsor of the upcom-
ing race on June 7th. We look forward
to cheering on Gordon, as he vies for a
seventh win at Pocono Raceway.”
Axalta has a long-history in the racing
industry. In addition to being the sponsor
of the No. 24 Axalta Chevrolet SS, driven
by Jeff Gordon, Axalta is also the official
paint supplier of Stewart-Haas Racing
and Hendrick Motorsports.
“We are very excited to share this
great news, in cooperation with everyone
at Axalta Coating Systems,” said Pocono
Raceway president/CEO, Brandon
Igdalsky. “They have been a great addition to the Pocono Raceway family,
and we look forward to growing this
relationship in 2015 and beyond. What
makes this even more special is the fact
we get to work hand-in-hand with a true
global powerhouse who also calls the
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania ‘home.’”
PPG 2015 Show Truck Tour
Dates Released
PPG Industries’ automotive refinish
business has released the 2015 appearance schedule of its colorful show truck.
The truck, a popular crowd-pleaser at its
tour stops, is a 75-foot 2007 Coronado
Freightliner tractor-trailer rig. This
year it sports a new paint scheme that
highlights the vibrant colors, ingenious
graphics and matchless special effects
that PPG’s advanced refinish products
allow and encourage.
Again this year, veteran PPG driver
Chad Hook will steer the truck across the
country to major custom car and truck
shows sponsored by the Goodguys Rod
& Custom Association, the National
Street Rod Association (NSRA) and other
automotive enthusiast groups. He has
been driving the PPG show truck since
1999 and has never missed an event or
arrived late. He will begin his annual
expedition April 24 with the Goodguys
2nd Florida Nationals and move on to
Nashville, Indianapolis and other destinations across the nation. He will make a
total of 14 stops and end the season with
the Goodguys 18th Southwest Nationals
in Scottsdale, Arizona, Nov. 20.
The complete tour schedule is as follows: April 24-26: Kissimmee, Florida
- Goodguys 2nd Florida Nationals May
15-17: Nashville, Tennessee - Goodguys
10th Nashville Nationals June 5-7:
