Coatings World - October 2015

with its joint venture partner, four refinish training centers, and a Global Color Lab. Axalta also operates its Asia Pacific Innovation Center and its Asia Pacific Regional Headquarters in Shanghai.

BASF Opens R M Refinish
Competence Center in
Vietnam

MT Paint Chemical Production and Trading Co., Ltd., BASF’s exclusive importer for R-M products, has opened its second Refinish Competence Center (RCC) in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. This new training facility, with a total area of 800 square meters, is double the size of the first RCC in Hanoi and further strengthens R-M’s position as one of the leaders in the automotive after-market in Vietnam.

At the RCCs, a significant number of trainees and business partners who want to enhance their skills as refinish spray paint professionals can be trained. The new Center consists of a color mixing room, spray booth, preparation area, classrooms and other advanced equipment from several International brands. The training programs will be focused on environmentally friendly waterborne paints and will include courses on application techniques, color matching, and the optimal use of paints to reduce waste and processing time.

BASF has established more than 70 RCCs around the world and more than 20 RCCs in Asia Pacific, serving the automotive refinish coatings industry and attracting the best young talents into the collision repair business. Last year, around 20,000 professionals were trained worldwide and over 3,500 in Asia Pacific.

Axalta Coating Systems Introduces Warranty Program for Architectural Powder Coatings Line in China

Axalta Huajia Coatings, a joint-venture of leading global supplier of liquid and powder coatings, Axalta Coating Systems and Huangshan Yongjia Group Co.

Ltd., has developed a new warranty pro-
gram for its Alesta architectural powder
coatings premium line in China.

Alesta powder coatings are established performers that meet rigorous architectural specifications set forth in AAMA 2603 and 2604 or equivalent standards. The American Architectural Manufacturers Association (AAMA) is the source of performance standards, product certifications and educational programs for the fenestration industry.

Axalta’s Alesta AD, SD and UD premium powder coatings offer superior durability and come in a wide selection of colors and gloss levels. Alesta powder coatings also contain virtually zero VOCs and no targeted HAPs.

The new program offers a warranties for Alesta AD, Alesta SD and Alesta UD powder coatings. Alesta AD polyester-based powder coatings come with a 10 year Gold Warranty and meets AAMA 2603 requirements or equivalent. Alesta SD polyester-based powder coatings surpass AAMA 2604 requirements or equivalent and come with a 20 year Platinum Warranty. The fluoropolymer-based Alesta UD series powder coatings come with a 30 year Diamond Warranty and offers many advantages such as superior weathering and mechanical properties.

“Axalta’s powder coatings provide
excellent properties to deliver better mar
resistance, improved abrasion resistance
and improved hardness,” said Michael
Cash, President of Axalta’s Industrial
Coatings business. “This new Warranty
Program supports Axalta’s commitment
to supply our global customers with du-
rable and high-quality products that meet
rigorous requirements.”
“We are pleased to now be able
to offer this new warranty program
for our customers in China,” said Xu
Xiangming, General Manager of Axalta-
Huajia Coatings. “With this new war-
ranty program, we can bring added
value to our customers and improve the
customer experience.”
Axalta is focusing on adding new in-
novative products to meet the growing
demand for high quality powder coating
solutions for customers worldwide. The
Company has launched several new coat-
ing products globally this year including
Alesta ZeroZinc Prime NA, an epoxy
resin-based and zinc-free primer, and the
Alesta Global Color Collection, an archi-
tectural powder coatings line.

Sika Opens Fourth Production Site in Russia Sika is continuing to increase its production capacity in Russia through new and expansion investments. In Volgograd, in southern Russia, a mortar factory and a plant to produce concrete admixtures are being opened. At the existing site in Lobnya, 30 km north of Moscow, a new production facility, which will manufacture polymers for concrete admixtures, is coming on stream. The investments are aimed at strengthening Sika’s position as a market leader in Russia for concrete admixtures.

Over the past three years Sika has increased sales considerably in its target markets in Russia, thus growing faster than the market as a whole. In order to cope with high demand and further increase its market share, Sika is investing in expanding its production capacity in Russia, where it already has three plants in St. Petersburg, Rzhev and Lobnya.

The existing plants will supply the north-west of the country and central Russia, while the plant in Volgograd will supply product technology to the construction industry in southern Russia. As a result, transport times and costs for customers will be optimized.

Paul Schuler, Sika Regional Manager EMEA, said: “Despite cautious forecasts for 2015, Sika is confident that there is long-term potential in Russia’s infrastructure and industrial construction sectors. The new production facilities will contribute greatly to improving our cost structure in Russia, as transport costs and import duties will be eliminated. This means that Sika is very well positioned to consolidate its long-term market leadership, in particular for concrete admixtures, and to gain further market share.”