Speciality resins make a splash in M&A

MARCH 2011 5

F O C U S O N P O W D E R C O A T I N G S

raise its NPG capacity in Yeosu,Korea, by 35,000 tonnes/y to100,000 tonnes/y by 2H 2011.

Chemical Week, 31 Jan 2011, (Website:http://www.chemweek.com)

PPG powder primer meets newmilitary specification for CARCcoatings

PPG Industries’ industrialcoatings business announced thatits MLP80000 primer coatingmeets the new US MIL-DTL-32348 Type I military specificationfor chemical-agent-resistantpowder primers. Chemical-agent-resistant coatings (CARCs) areapplied to military vehicles, suchas tanks, personnel carriers andequipment transporters, and tomilitary vehicle components, suchas antennae or gun turrets. Inaddition to their camouflagecolouring and ability to resistchemical and biological agents,CARCs feature properties thatprevent infrared (IR) detection byenemy forces.

The US Army ResearchLaboratory issued the new MIL-DTL-32348 specification for aCARC powder primer and topcoatin Nov 2010 with the intent ofincreasing the military’s use ofpowder coatings on militaryvehicles and components. Inaddition to being resistant tochemical and biological agents,CARC primers approved underMIL-DTL-32348 Type I must meetspecific corrosion-resistance andintercoat-adhesion requirements.They must be able to withstanddegradation by ultraviolet (UV)light, resist decontaminationsolutions, impart low gloss andsheen secularly, and be validatedto work with military-specifiedexterior topcoats by meetingspecific physical testingrequirements. PPG Industries’vision is to continue to be theworld’s leading coatings andspeciality products company.

Press release from: PPG Industrial Coatings,One PPG Place, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania15272, USA, tel: +1 888 774 2001, e-mail:ic-na@ppg.com, website:http://www.ppg.com (7 Feb 2011)

Speciality resins make a splash inM&A

Three fairly recent transactions inthe speciality coating resinssector appear to indicate astrategy among market players toboost their rankings intechnologies geared for faster-expanding niche applications.Omnova Solutions’ €225 Mpurchase of Eliokem Internationalfrom AXA Private Equity givesOmnova additional acrylic,styrene butadiene and nitrilechemistries, plus complementaryproducts for speciality latex andoil field applications. The mergedbusinesses will remain based inthe USA. The second deal isArkema’s offer to purchase Total’sSartomer, Cray Valley and CookComposite Polymers for €550 M.Arkema’s acquisition of Total’sphotocure and coatingsoperations not only improves itsstanding as a speciality coatingresins supplier, it also extendsthe downstream integration of thefirm’s acrylics line, permitsimplementation of developmentsynergies and gives it access toAsia’s rapidly expanding markets.DSM, meanwhile, has proposedto buy a 51% share in Taiwan-based AGI Corp, a producer ofUV curable resins and othermaterials for paper, wood andgraphic arts plastic coatings inks.The acquisition will expandDSM’s UV technology platform.

PPCJ, Polymers, Paint, Colour Journal, Jan2011, 201 (4556), 10 (Website:http://www.polymerspaintcolourjournal.com/)

MARKETSEurocoat and the global coatingsmarket

Some exhibitors at the Eurocoat2010 fair are discussed. In 2009,Dow achieved a turnover of $45bn, with 52,000 employeesaround 214 sites in 37 countries.The Caldic Group, Netherlands,distributes and makes chemicals.It was established in 1970 and it

has a turnover of €600 M. CaldicItaly established in 1988 has aturnover of €40 M.

A table entitled Global CoatingConsumption, in bn litres showsthe data for 6 regions in 2008and 2009 with the % change.Pacific Asia went from 8.16 to8.23, Europe went from 4.91 to4.64, North America from 4.85 to4.50. A table entitled 2009 Top10, shows AkzoNobel,Netherlands, $15.13 bn, PPGIndustries, USA, $11.36 bn andSherwin-Williams, USA, $7.01 bn.A table entitled 2009 GlobalSales (US$ bn) Coatings showsthe breakdown by application and%. Construction leads with 53.0(57%), next Assembly with 25.1(27.0%), Packaging with 2.3(2.5%) and Transport 11.2(12.0%).

Double Liaison, Dec 2010, (578), 16-22 (inFrench)

Chemrez Technologies reportsconsolidated sales for Jan-Sep2010

Chemrez Technologies Inc (thelargest producer of environment-friendly oleochemicals and resinsin the Philippines) announced a26% growth in its consolidatedsales for Jan-Sep 2010 toPhilippines Peso 4.5 bn(compared with Philippines Peso3.6 bn for Jan-Sep 2009). In adisclosure to the Philippine StockExchange, the green technologyfirm said sales volume was 8%higher compared to the sameperiod last year. Chemrez said25% of this increase came fromexports, driven by the highdemand for amides and esters asused for the detergent and soapsectors in overseas markets. Onthe other hand, the firm’s variousresin products have registeredmixed volume results. Therevenue mix is 58%oleochemicals, 38% resins and4% powder coating. Gross profitfor the period improved by 2% toPhilippines Peso 584 M(compared with Philippines Peso569 M in Jan-Sep 2009) even as