Coatings World - March 2017

sports can also transform a child’s life for the better,” said Daniel Campos, Managing Director of AkzoNobel’s Decorative Paints business in Latin America.

“We are proud that our partnership
with the Cruyff Foundation helps to make
children’s lives more liveable and inspir-
ing by giving them more access to sports.
Cruyff Courts help give energy to a city
and enable us to give back to local com-
munities in many of our key markets.”
Located in the Nova Iguaçu area
of the city, Urece started as an amateur
sports organization for the rehabilitation
of people with a disability, but has since
gone on to develop gold medal-winning
Paralympic athletes.

PPG Completes Colorful
Communities Project at
Jana Babáka Primary School
in Brno, Czech Republic

PPG has announced the completion of
a COLORFUL COMMUNITIES proj-
ect in Brno, Czech Republic, that helped
to brighten the local Jana Babáka pri-
mary school. The Colorful Communities
program provides PPG volunteers and
products along with financial contribu-
tions to bring color and vitality to com-
munities where the company operates
around the world, such as in Brno, where
PPG operates a Shared Services Center
with about 320 employees.
The project brought together more
than 100 PPG volunteers from the
Shared Services Center and the com-
pany’s architectural coatings business,
along with about 40 teachers and 80
parents of students at the school. Also,
about 80 students helped to design
colorful murals to brightening and up-
dating interior corridors. Together, the
group spent three days revitalizing inte-
riors and exteriors of the school, includ-
ing beautifying the entrances and the
walls surrounding the playground. PPG
provided about $18,500 to assist with
the project, including about 210 gallons
(800 liters) of its Balakryl brand paint
products and Czech brand Primalex.

“No significant investments had been made to upgrade the Jana Babáka school since it was built in the 1950s, and we thought it would benefit the community to give the building a more modern look,” said Iris Finger, PPG managing director of the Brno Shared Services Center. “This revitalization would not be possible without all the volunteers who participated in this inspiring project, which we are sure will bring happiness to both the students and teachers at the school.”

The Colorful Communities program is PPG’s signature initiative for community engagement efforts, with the aim to protect and beautify the neighborhoods where PPG operates around the world. The program increases PPG’s commitment to invest in communities by adding $10 million to support efforts made during a 10-year period. It supports projects that transform community assets, providing PPG volunteers and donated PPG products. PPG completed 11 Colorful Communities projects in 2015, and it expects to complete more than 30 this year.

Sika Automotive Opens
New Factory in Brazil

Sika is tapping into the future potential of the automotive sector in Latin America

AkzoNobel Adds a Colorful Sparkle to the New
McLaren-Honda Formula 1 Car

The 2017 McLaren-Honda Formula 1 racing car was launched today, when fans caught their first glimpse of the MCL32’s new Tarocco Orange livery - a color developed by AkzoNobel in conjunction with McLaren-Honda.

The company’s color expertise has enabled the world championship winning Formula 1 team to maintain links to their 1960s roots and heritage, while bringing a new image and sparkle. The new Tarocco Orange color provided a striking contrast to matt black and gloss white finish when the new car was launched today at the McLaren Thought Leadership Centre, in Woking, UK.

“Our color and coatings expertise
shows up in many unexpected places,
even in Formula 1,” said Peter Tomlin-
son, Managing Director of AkzoNobel’s
Vehicle Refinishes business. “We share
a passion with McLaren for creating
efficient, high performance technol-
ogy. McLaren-Honda Formula 1 team
is known for their iconic livery and the
new color will add a new chapter to this,
which we are proud to be part of.”
The two companies have been work-
ing closely together since 2008, when
AkzoNobel first became official supplier
of paint solutions to the McLaren-Honda
Formula 1 team. McLaren-Honda will
use the company’s premium Sikkens
brand for its Formula 1 cars for the whole
of the 2017 season, which starts in Mel-
bourne, Australia, on March 26.
Added Jonathan Neale, COO of
McLaren Technology Group: “Since
McLaren began its partnership with Ak-
zoNobel, we’ve always been looking at
ways to push paint technology to its fur-
thest extent. We’ve already explored the
practical limits of chrome finishing, re-
ducing our carbon footprint and reduc-
ing curing times. Now, with the McLaren-
Honda MCL32, we’re really leveraging
AkzoNobel’s colour expertise and tech-
nology. The results are stunning.

“We’ve also made significant progress in reducing the average curing time of bodywork parts by more than half, and lowering the paint shop’s carbon footprint by up to 80 percent. We will continue working with AkzoNobel on further innovations as we investigate coating possibilities, both for now and for the future.”