6 AUGUST 2010

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

the right talent, he added, wouldalso be extremely important. “Theinvestments we are making willfuel our accelerated growth inChina and beyond,” continuedthe CEO. “Enhancing ourtechnological capabilities in Chinais crucial if we are to realize ourgrowth ambitions. As the world’slargest coatings and specialtyChemicals Company, we aredetermined to continue leadingtechnology and productdevelopment and successfullybring new products to market viaour global brands such as Dulux,International and Eka.”AkzoNobel currently employsaround 6,500 people in China,with the country hosting 11% ofthe company’s R&D resources.Revenue for 2009 totalled $1.5bn. The Ningbo site, which hasalready started production ofchelates, will be officially openedin Nov 2010.

Press releases from: AkzoNobel,Strawinskylaan 2555, PO Box 75730, 1070AS Amsterdam, the Netherlands, tel: +31 20502 7555, fax: +31 20 502 7666, website:http://www.akzonobel.com (2 Jul 2010)

Powder coatings: Tiger Coatingsbuilds new plant in China

Austrian coatings manufacturerTiger Coatings GmbH & Co KGin Wels will expand its powdercoatings production capacity inChina. The company will build anew production facility in Taicangwith an investment of around €8M. The new plant will expandTiger’s powder coatingsproduction capacity from 10,000tonnes/y to 15,000 tonnes/y. Thenew facility will also housedistribution, administration andmaintenance activities as well asa research centre for powdercoatings. The new plant isscheduled to come on-stream inFeb 2011 and will primarily supplythe market in China. Tiger’sglobal research centre will remainin Wels. The company achieved a30% rise in turnover in China in2009.

Farbe und Lack, Jul 2010, 116 (7), 6 (inGerman)

Powder coatings: AkzoNobelcompletes the acquisition of thepowder chemicals division of DowChemical

Dutch chemicals andpharmaceuticals group AkzoNobelNV completed the acquisition ofthe powder coatings division ofUS chemicals group DowChemical Co. The transactionincluded important technicalknow-how and significant synergypotentials in the powder coatingssegment. AkzoNobel predicts thatthe market for powder coatingswill continue to rise with a growthrate of between 4-5% above theaverage GNP. The acquisition willexpand the market position instrategic key markets, particularlyin the US as well as theautomotive segment and theindustrial coatings segment.AkzoNobel Group also acquiredknow-how in the MDF andthermoplastics segment. Theacquired activities achieve aglobal turnover of severalhundred million US dollars andinclude around 700 employeesand powder coatings factories inthe US, Europe and China.

Farbe und Lack, Jul 2010, 116 (7), 8 (inGerman)

Powder coatings: GewekaPulverlack changes name to KabePulverlack Deutschland

German company GewekaPulverlack GmbH has changed itsname to Kabe PulverlackDeutschland GmbH in 2010. Thecompany built a new powdercoatings facility in Arnegg inSwitzerland which came onstreamin 2008 with a productioncapacity of between 6000-7000tonnes/y. Kabe PulverlackDeutschland primarily suppliesmarkets in Germany and thebordering Alsace, as well ascountries up to the Far Eastwhere German customers operateproduction facilities. KarlBubenhofer AG andGeholit+Wiemer, Lack- undKunststoff-Chemie GmbH bothown 50% of shares in Kabe and

the company’s executivemanagement remains unchanged.

Farbe und Lack, Jul 2010, 116 (7), 9 (inGerman)

BASF reposition signals globalchange for pigments

BASF will cut roughly 500 fromthe current 2900 jobs in its globalpigment production as the firmrepositions its global pigmentoperation. The move, which willprimarily affect azo pigments andphthalocyanines, will start in 2010and is expected to be concludedby 2013. Around 320 positionswill be eliminated in Europe by2013, primarily affecting sites inGrenzach, Germany and inPaisley, UK. In South America,around 90 jobs will be maderedundant in Guaratingueta,Brazil. Around 80 jobs will be cutat its US sites in Louisville,Kentucky and Elyria, Ohio. Thecompany, which has 22 pigmentssites globally, aims to removecertain products and usecapacities for marketdevelopments. Additionally, BASFCoatings Japan Ltd is introducingits R-M’s waterborne productrange Onyx HD to the automotiverefinish market to replacetraditional solvent-borne coatings.

PPCJ, Polymers, Paint, Colour Journal, Jun2010, 200 (4549), 4

MARKETSIndustrial maintenance coatingsmarket

The US industrial maintenancecoatings market is projected togrow 3.9%/y in terms of volumeand 4.3%/y in terms of valuethrough 2015, according to TheChemark Consulting Group Inc.Industrial maintenance coatingsaccounted for about 5% of theUS paint market in terms ofvolume and about 6% in terms ofvalue. Commercial architectural isthe fastest-growing end-usemarket, and also generates thehighest gross profit margins.