Coatings World - March 2017

Coatings World: How did the
market for paints and coatings fare
overall in 2016?

Henrik Andersen: It has generally been a good year for the coatings industry although the markets are becoming increasingly volatile. Overall, we have seen growth in the market but also a few segments with challenging conditions, notably a further weakening of ship-building activity in marine and a limited level of investment in upstream oil and gas. 2016 was also marked by a record level of M&A activity, including a few very big deals. We expect the industry consolidation trend to continue in the coming years. The consolidation trend requires that Hempel has a global presence and continued growth so that we are able to service our customers globally.

Ton Büchner: For Decorative Paints, we saw positive developments in Asia and EMEA. Challenging market conditions continued throughout the year in Latin America, due to economic instability and currency devaluation.

For Performance Coatings, demand trends differed per segment and region, with adverse conditions in the marine and oil and gas industries. Volumes increased for both Automotive Coatings and Specialty Coatings in most regions. Volumes for Powder Coatings were up in all regions and demand for Industrial Coatings was strong in Asia.

John Falder: Overall the market continued to be strong in
most of the diversified fields that HMG operate in. We operate
our company in a huge range of niche business areas. For our
customers and for the UK it’s been an interesting year! From
mid-2016 uncertainty surrounding BREXIT and subsequent
weakening of the pound against other economies is having
mixed effects in increasing raw material price, strengthening ex-
port demand and overall improved stock market performance.

Frank Gläser: On the whole 2016 was a good year for our Group and one in which we were able to exceed our ambitious targets. Above all, our business in central Europe and in the Chinese market contributed to this positive performance.

Boris Gorella: For the past few years, we have seen a trend towards consolidation in the coatings industry and last year was

Coatings World’s 2017 CEO Forum features executives from eight coatings companies offering their insights on the industry. This year’s forum includes CEOs from leading coatings companies from the U.S. and Europe. The participants are Henrik Andersen, President and CEO, Hempel Group; Ton Büchner, CEO and chairman of the board of management and the executive committee of AkzoNobel; John Falder, CEO, HMG Paints; Frank Gläser, CEO, Grebe Holding; Boris Gorella, CEO, Beckers Group; Markus Kamieth, CEO, BASF Coatings; Michael McGarry, chairman and CEO, PPG Industries; and Charles W. Shaver, chairman and CEO of Axalta Coating Systems.