Kerry Pianoforte, Editor10.08.20
The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted all aspects of the paint and coatings industry. Automotive refinish manufacturers Coatings World interviewed reported that 2020 has been a challenging year and initial financial goals needed to be readjusted in light of the pandemic.
To combat the slowdown in demand, refinish companies rolled out several new tools to help repair shops use digital options in these times of social distancing.
AkzoNobel suspended its 2020 financial ambition in response to significant market disruption resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We saw market headwinds continue to ease during the second quarter, although our revenue for June was nearly 5 percent lower than the same month in 2019,” said Ed Hilborne, AkzoNobel’s Global Segment manager for Vehicle Refinishes. “During May, our revenue was around 20 percent lower than last year, while market headwinds were strongest during April when revenue was almost 30 percent lower compared with 2019. Trends have differed significantly per region and segment. In Europe, demand for decorative paints rebounded strongly – and faster than company planning assumptions. By the end of the second quarter, China had almost recovered to previous levels, although other regions continued to be impacted by varying degrees of lockdown. As expected, demand for performance coatings continued to improve during the quarter, although remained significantly below the previous year, especially for automotive and aerospace-related markets. What helped to compensate for lower-end market demand was our strong margin management and strict temporary cost-saving measures.
“COVID-19 is posing a significant challenge for the industry,” Hilborne continued. “At AkzoNobel, we closely monitor the pandemic situation and take appropriate necessary measures to continue serving customers and rapidly reduce costs, while at the same time keeping the organization intact and able to respond quickly to changes in end-market demand.”
In response to this challenge, AkzoNobel has continued to roll out digital tools and digital training in the market to support its customers during times of social distancing.
Also, the company expects consolidation to increase in the mid-term as vehicle complexity drives repairers to invest in the equipment required to manage repairs and ensure OEM specifications are maintained.
According to Hilborne, the drive to improve air quality will continue to result in challenges for coatings to reduce emissions, and sustainability is becoming a key factor.
“These have been challenging times for all of us,” said Joel Johnson – BASF Automotive Refinish Coatings – VP. “We have had to find alternative solutions to the way we do things – such as pivoting from a face-to-face environment to virtual while not impacting our customers’ success. One prime example is training. It has been our goal to provide our customers with training to get the certifications they need while putting their health and safety first. Customers can follow these simple virtual solutions: take a virtual course on the BASF eLearning platform; take an online exam on the BASF eLearning platform; receive an in-shop evaluation by BASF tech rep and receive certification. Finding solutions for our customers while keeping everyone safe is our number one priority.”
“During the height of the pandemic and resulting quarantine shutdowns in various markets across the globe, sales volumes in both automotive refinish coatings and automotive original equipment manufacturer (OEM) coatings were adversely affected,” said Tom Maziarz, PPG VP, Automotive Refinish Americas. “While the global pandemic has presented unprecedented challenges, it has also provided us with opportunities. Our team at PPG viewed this as an opportunity to partner with our customers in new and innovative ways to create mutual value. This has been a great opportunity to build even stronger relationships with our customers and listen even more closely to their needs. This included helping body shops prepare for a resurge in business after the shutdown by identifying opportunities for training and improving operational efficiency. Now that markets have reopened, and the population as well as businesses are resuming activities, we are seeing a steady increase in demand.”
Although the pandemic is still not over, there has been an increase in travel as businesses slowly begin to reopen.
“A key metric in the Vehicle Refinish business is kilometers driven,” said Hilborne. “In the short term, this has been massively impacted by COVID-19, which became clear with the significant reduction of vehicles on our roads during lockdown and shelter-in-place orders. We are, however, seeing a return to more normal traffic volumes, which can result in a normalization effect for the VR industry.”
“Aside from the COVID-19 effect, in the mid-term, we would expect that consolidation will increase, as more complex vehicles drive repairers toward investing in equipment needed to manage repairs and ensure OEM specifications are maintained,” he added. “Also, the drive to improve air quality will continue to result in challenges for coatings to help reduce emissions, and sustainability is and will continue to be a key factor. At AkzoNobel, we are constantly looking at how we can make our production and products more sustainable. From a long-term perspective, depending on the timeframe we’re looking at, we could think about robot spraying, 3D printing of parts or even nano-technologies that enable the self-repair of coatings systems.”
“The year 2020 introduced challenges that were difficult to predict – several factors have impacted what collision centers experience today,” said Johnson. “We went from a fast-paced, highly active economy, to lock-down, working from home with limited interaction with others. Regardless of industry or geographic location, everyone has been impacted. For the collision industry specifically, the market is recovering, but the unknown is just how long will it take to return to pre-COVID-19 numbers – as traffic in urban areas is still dramatically lower, and the number of incidents continues to decrease. That reduces demand in collision centers today. We continue to monitor leading indicators and support activities where possible until the economy returns to pre-COVID-19 conditions.”
PPG reported optimism for a full recovery.
“We are seeing miles driven continue to improve and believe congestion will return as more people head back to the office,” said Maziarz. “One of the key challenges continues to be the shortage of qualified technicians, and this problem will only increase in the future considering the average age of a refinish technician is over 50 years old. PPG continues to support a number of organizations to help bring young talent into the industry.”
Many issues are impacting the refinish market. Autonomously driving cars require specific refinish technologies.
“As OEMs increasingly adopt the use of ADAS (advanced driver-assistance systems), body shops are consequently seeing an increase in the complexity and cost of repairs - with the significant effort required to maintain and calibrate these systems in line with OEM specifications,” said Hilborne. “Additionally, the drive to reduce overall CO2 emission of vehicles through weight reduction is resulting in the need for new repair coatings that can cope with light-weight, multi-substrate vehicles while ensuring radar and lidar safety systems are not impacted.
Hilborne noted that a direct impact of ADAS is an expected trend towards smaller repairs. Thatcham is predicting a 14 percent increase in cosmetic repairs by the end of 2020, and this will accelerate further towards 2025 as autonomy levels in vehicles increase.
Environmental legislations also present challenges to the refinish market.
“Tightening of vehicle emission legislation, especially diesel particulates, has increased the number of battery and hybrid power trains in the general car population,” said Hilborne. “Collision repairs for these alternative fuel systems need to be handled in a different way; specifically, curing of refinish coatings on these types of vehicles needs to be done at a much lower temperature to avoid permanent damage to the battery system. We are also seeing a strong move into cosmetic repair coming from allied automotive industries, rather than from traditional collision repair streams, where these activities can be aligned along with glass replacement, mechanical service, or specifically focused on serving the growing trend in automotive
mobility services.”
AkzoNobel launched a digital workshop production measurement system called Carbeat three years ago.
This digital cloud-based tool enables the body shop to track work in progress, identify and eliminate bottlenecks and provide their customers with real-time repair status updates.
“Using traditional coatings at lower temperatures to repair vehicles with battery and hybrid power trains significantly impact performance and reduces body shop efficiency, as these coatings take much longer to cure and thus slow down the overall repair process,” said Hilborne. “At AkzoNobel, we have developed vehicle refinish coatings that can cure at significantly lower temperatures, along with low energy, no heat (using ultraviolet (UV) light) products, which has the double benefit of not only improving efficiency but also reducing energy consumption, CO2 emissions and costs.”
This industry continues to be challenged by a shortage of qualified technicians.
PPG and members of its staff actively engage with several key organizations and charities to bring young talent into the industry.
One such effort, for example, is the PPG Partners in Education Program that pairs PPG with schools across North America.
“The focus is on working closely with select schools to increase the level of student skills, ensure instructors are knowledgeable in the latest technologies and processes and enable PPG customers to locate the highest-quality entry-level technicians,” Maziarz said. “The program offers participating schools the ability to offer PPG Certified Technician status to students who complete a hands-on, observed performance test at the school’s facility. Also, students are eligible to attend one PPG refinish technical training class at no charge to the school. We also actively engage with other organizations to cultivate talent, including Skills USA, The Collision Repair Education Foundation (CREF), and the I-CAR Professional Development Program.
“OEM certification is becoming increasingly important in the refinish industry,” Maziarz continued. “More and more collision centers are looking to obtain OEM certification to stand out from the competition, increase their visibility, and position themselves as repair experts for specific makes of vehicles. Car owners, especially those with Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) equipment installed, prefer collision centers that are OEM certified. Using an OEM-certified shop is a consumer’s best choice in keeping with the original equipment manufacturers preferred and mandated parts, procedures and tooling to complete the repair. OEM certification programs give consumers confidence that the repairs meet OEM standards. PPG has assisted numerous customers in the certification process. We have a team that can advise on OEM certification requirements, including equipment and training. We also provide tools to help collision shops make decisions regarding the certification and which manufacturers to pursue. Our goal is to bring value and profitability to already-certified shops and those seeking certification.”
The automotive refinish market is continually evolving, to meet customer needs companies have to innovate or design, application and performance to stay ahead of the curve.
BASF is moving beyond paint to the entire spectrum of surface solutions.
“We treat various types of surfaces that require specific properties: we color them, we protect them, and we make them functional,” said Johnson. “Functional coatings will be an important enabler as the industry adopts driver assist and autonomous driving technologies.
Maziarz said several technologies are playing key roles in the refinish market across the globe.
“Waterborne technology will continue to play an increasing role in the market due to a continued global drive to reduce solvent emissions combined with the potential for restrictions on the use of exempt solvents. As vehicle autonomy increases with ADAS, the coatings used on the outside will need to act in harmony with the collision avoidance technology. Colors and color effects and specifically how they interact with the sensors of a vehicle will become increasingly important. Another important technological development will be the next generation of refinish products that are faster and easier to use, which helps to reduce cycle times and increase throughput for collision centers.”
Aspartic chemistry-based low-bake/air-dry products are being developed by AkzoNobel. The company recently launched Sikkens Autoclear Aerodry and Lesonal Ultra Air Clear – these clearcoat technologies are exceptionally flexible due to their ability to be cured at ambient temperatures, making them ideal for the refinish of hybrid/ electric vehicles as well as traditionally powered vehicles.
Sikkens Autoclear Aerodry was developed to help body shops maximize their productivity and the need for flexibility. To free up space for another job, businesses can roll out the previous vehicle or panel after a five-minute flash-off and leave it to air-dry for 45 minutes. But if meeting a tight deadline is the problem, body shops can opt for a five-minute bake at 60°C.
Technology is advancing at an increasing pace. “Premium shops want to work with suppliers who provide outstanding technology that’s easy to use, repairs vehicles efficiently, and helps them earn a profit,” said Johnson. To meet customers’ needs, BASF introduced the Glasurit 100 Line. Glasurit 100 Line is a total solution built delivering highly efficient processes for easier, faster and more reliable repairs.
Cycle times are decreased which increases shop capacity which ultimately drives higher profits.
Glasurit 100 Line offers powerful features to boost collision center business efficiency with streamlined processes, time savings on average of 35 percent and paint efficiency on average that goes 20 percent further than competing products.
According to Johnson, Glasurit 100 Line offers the fastest application process in the market, the most sustainable solution in the market, innovative modern basecoat technology, advanced pigmentation and color-matching and state-of-the-art spectrophotometer color retrieval.
“As a total solution, it is more than a sophisticated paint line, it is a comprehensive solution that is paired with digital solutions, trusted partners and the best team in the industry,” said Johnson.
“Shops can discover their potential today by contacting a local sales representative.”
PPG’s biggest innovation has been the development of the Moonwalk automated mixing machine.
More than 250 units are in operation across Europe, and PPG has been receiving tremendous feedback.
Recently, PPG received UL approval on the machines, which will allow the company to bring this innovation to North America.
PPG announced that its automotive refinish business in China launched a new waterborne coating system consisting of an epoxy primer, primer surfacer and clearcoat. The system complies with new environmental and VOC standards in China that will take effect in December 2020.
“PPG is at the forefront of compliance with environmental regulations and product innovation,” said Pauline Yuen, PPG vice president, automotive refinish, Asia. “Through the launch of our new waterborne product offering, our customers are well-prepared to serve their customers with world-class products that comply with the new regulations.”
Launched in June 2020, the new waterborne system offers extremely low VOC content while meeting or exceeding the properties of traditional systems. Operational benefits for automotive body shops include:
Reduced transportation and storage costs: There is no need for special or costly vehicles or warehouses as the new waterborne coatings are classified as non-dangerous goods.
Reduced use of cleaning products: The new waterborne coatings present to customers an opportunity to significantly reduce the use of special solvent-borne products for cleaning of application equipment.
Increased cost savings from minimal VOC treatment: By adopting waterborne coatings, customers can continue using their existing treatment facilities with lower operational costs since waterborne coatings emit significantly lower VOC emissions than solventborne coatings.
“This launch will make PPG’s full waterborne system more accessible to our customers in China,” said Qingfeng Ye, PPG technical director, automotive refinish, Asia Pacific. “It allows PPG to take another step in achieving its sustainability goals while maintaining the product performance that our customers have come to know and depend upon.”
To combat the slowdown in demand, refinish companies rolled out several new tools to help repair shops use digital options in these times of social distancing.
AkzoNobel suspended its 2020 financial ambition in response to significant market disruption resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We saw market headwinds continue to ease during the second quarter, although our revenue for June was nearly 5 percent lower than the same month in 2019,” said Ed Hilborne, AkzoNobel’s Global Segment manager for Vehicle Refinishes. “During May, our revenue was around 20 percent lower than last year, while market headwinds were strongest during April when revenue was almost 30 percent lower compared with 2019. Trends have differed significantly per region and segment. In Europe, demand for decorative paints rebounded strongly – and faster than company planning assumptions. By the end of the second quarter, China had almost recovered to previous levels, although other regions continued to be impacted by varying degrees of lockdown. As expected, demand for performance coatings continued to improve during the quarter, although remained significantly below the previous year, especially for automotive and aerospace-related markets. What helped to compensate for lower-end market demand was our strong margin management and strict temporary cost-saving measures.
“COVID-19 is posing a significant challenge for the industry,” Hilborne continued. “At AkzoNobel, we closely monitor the pandemic situation and take appropriate necessary measures to continue serving customers and rapidly reduce costs, while at the same time keeping the organization intact and able to respond quickly to changes in end-market demand.”
In response to this challenge, AkzoNobel has continued to roll out digital tools and digital training in the market to support its customers during times of social distancing.
Also, the company expects consolidation to increase in the mid-term as vehicle complexity drives repairers to invest in the equipment required to manage repairs and ensure OEM specifications are maintained.
According to Hilborne, the drive to improve air quality will continue to result in challenges for coatings to reduce emissions, and sustainability is becoming a key factor.
“These have been challenging times for all of us,” said Joel Johnson – BASF Automotive Refinish Coatings – VP. “We have had to find alternative solutions to the way we do things – such as pivoting from a face-to-face environment to virtual while not impacting our customers’ success. One prime example is training. It has been our goal to provide our customers with training to get the certifications they need while putting their health and safety first. Customers can follow these simple virtual solutions: take a virtual course on the BASF eLearning platform; take an online exam on the BASF eLearning platform; receive an in-shop evaluation by BASF tech rep and receive certification. Finding solutions for our customers while keeping everyone safe is our number one priority.”
“During the height of the pandemic and resulting quarantine shutdowns in various markets across the globe, sales volumes in both automotive refinish coatings and automotive original equipment manufacturer (OEM) coatings were adversely affected,” said Tom Maziarz, PPG VP, Automotive Refinish Americas. “While the global pandemic has presented unprecedented challenges, it has also provided us with opportunities. Our team at PPG viewed this as an opportunity to partner with our customers in new and innovative ways to create mutual value. This has been a great opportunity to build even stronger relationships with our customers and listen even more closely to their needs. This included helping body shops prepare for a resurge in business after the shutdown by identifying opportunities for training and improving operational efficiency. Now that markets have reopened, and the population as well as businesses are resuming activities, we are seeing a steady increase in demand.”
Although the pandemic is still not over, there has been an increase in travel as businesses slowly begin to reopen.
“A key metric in the Vehicle Refinish business is kilometers driven,” said Hilborne. “In the short term, this has been massively impacted by COVID-19, which became clear with the significant reduction of vehicles on our roads during lockdown and shelter-in-place orders. We are, however, seeing a return to more normal traffic volumes, which can result in a normalization effect for the VR industry.”
“Aside from the COVID-19 effect, in the mid-term, we would expect that consolidation will increase, as more complex vehicles drive repairers toward investing in equipment needed to manage repairs and ensure OEM specifications are maintained,” he added. “Also, the drive to improve air quality will continue to result in challenges for coatings to help reduce emissions, and sustainability is and will continue to be a key factor. At AkzoNobel, we are constantly looking at how we can make our production and products more sustainable. From a long-term perspective, depending on the timeframe we’re looking at, we could think about robot spraying, 3D printing of parts or even nano-technologies that enable the self-repair of coatings systems.”
“The year 2020 introduced challenges that were difficult to predict – several factors have impacted what collision centers experience today,” said Johnson. “We went from a fast-paced, highly active economy, to lock-down, working from home with limited interaction with others. Regardless of industry or geographic location, everyone has been impacted. For the collision industry specifically, the market is recovering, but the unknown is just how long will it take to return to pre-COVID-19 numbers – as traffic in urban areas is still dramatically lower, and the number of incidents continues to decrease. That reduces demand in collision centers today. We continue to monitor leading indicators and support activities where possible until the economy returns to pre-COVID-19 conditions.”
PPG reported optimism for a full recovery.
“We are seeing miles driven continue to improve and believe congestion will return as more people head back to the office,” said Maziarz. “One of the key challenges continues to be the shortage of qualified technicians, and this problem will only increase in the future considering the average age of a refinish technician is over 50 years old. PPG continues to support a number of organizations to help bring young talent into the industry.”
Many issues are impacting the refinish market. Autonomously driving cars require specific refinish technologies.
“As OEMs increasingly adopt the use of ADAS (advanced driver-assistance systems), body shops are consequently seeing an increase in the complexity and cost of repairs - with the significant effort required to maintain and calibrate these systems in line with OEM specifications,” said Hilborne. “Additionally, the drive to reduce overall CO2 emission of vehicles through weight reduction is resulting in the need for new repair coatings that can cope with light-weight, multi-substrate vehicles while ensuring radar and lidar safety systems are not impacted.
Hilborne noted that a direct impact of ADAS is an expected trend towards smaller repairs. Thatcham is predicting a 14 percent increase in cosmetic repairs by the end of 2020, and this will accelerate further towards 2025 as autonomy levels in vehicles increase.
Environmental legislations also present challenges to the refinish market.
“Tightening of vehicle emission legislation, especially diesel particulates, has increased the number of battery and hybrid power trains in the general car population,” said Hilborne. “Collision repairs for these alternative fuel systems need to be handled in a different way; specifically, curing of refinish coatings on these types of vehicles needs to be done at a much lower temperature to avoid permanent damage to the battery system. We are also seeing a strong move into cosmetic repair coming from allied automotive industries, rather than from traditional collision repair streams, where these activities can be aligned along with glass replacement, mechanical service, or specifically focused on serving the growing trend in automotive
mobility services.”
AkzoNobel launched a digital workshop production measurement system called Carbeat three years ago.
This digital cloud-based tool enables the body shop to track work in progress, identify and eliminate bottlenecks and provide their customers with real-time repair status updates.
“Using traditional coatings at lower temperatures to repair vehicles with battery and hybrid power trains significantly impact performance and reduces body shop efficiency, as these coatings take much longer to cure and thus slow down the overall repair process,” said Hilborne. “At AkzoNobel, we have developed vehicle refinish coatings that can cure at significantly lower temperatures, along with low energy, no heat (using ultraviolet (UV) light) products, which has the double benefit of not only improving efficiency but also reducing energy consumption, CO2 emissions and costs.”
This industry continues to be challenged by a shortage of qualified technicians.
PPG and members of its staff actively engage with several key organizations and charities to bring young talent into the industry.
One such effort, for example, is the PPG Partners in Education Program that pairs PPG with schools across North America.
“The focus is on working closely with select schools to increase the level of student skills, ensure instructors are knowledgeable in the latest technologies and processes and enable PPG customers to locate the highest-quality entry-level technicians,” Maziarz said. “The program offers participating schools the ability to offer PPG Certified Technician status to students who complete a hands-on, observed performance test at the school’s facility. Also, students are eligible to attend one PPG refinish technical training class at no charge to the school. We also actively engage with other organizations to cultivate talent, including Skills USA, The Collision Repair Education Foundation (CREF), and the I-CAR Professional Development Program.
“OEM certification is becoming increasingly important in the refinish industry,” Maziarz continued. “More and more collision centers are looking to obtain OEM certification to stand out from the competition, increase their visibility, and position themselves as repair experts for specific makes of vehicles. Car owners, especially those with Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) equipment installed, prefer collision centers that are OEM certified. Using an OEM-certified shop is a consumer’s best choice in keeping with the original equipment manufacturers preferred and mandated parts, procedures and tooling to complete the repair. OEM certification programs give consumers confidence that the repairs meet OEM standards. PPG has assisted numerous customers in the certification process. We have a team that can advise on OEM certification requirements, including equipment and training. We also provide tools to help collision shops make decisions regarding the certification and which manufacturers to pursue. Our goal is to bring value and profitability to already-certified shops and those seeking certification.”
The automotive refinish market is continually evolving, to meet customer needs companies have to innovate or design, application and performance to stay ahead of the curve.
BASF is moving beyond paint to the entire spectrum of surface solutions.
“We treat various types of surfaces that require specific properties: we color them, we protect them, and we make them functional,” said Johnson. “Functional coatings will be an important enabler as the industry adopts driver assist and autonomous driving technologies.
Maziarz said several technologies are playing key roles in the refinish market across the globe.
“Waterborne technology will continue to play an increasing role in the market due to a continued global drive to reduce solvent emissions combined with the potential for restrictions on the use of exempt solvents. As vehicle autonomy increases with ADAS, the coatings used on the outside will need to act in harmony with the collision avoidance technology. Colors and color effects and specifically how they interact with the sensors of a vehicle will become increasingly important. Another important technological development will be the next generation of refinish products that are faster and easier to use, which helps to reduce cycle times and increase throughput for collision centers.”
Aspartic chemistry-based low-bake/air-dry products are being developed by AkzoNobel. The company recently launched Sikkens Autoclear Aerodry and Lesonal Ultra Air Clear – these clearcoat technologies are exceptionally flexible due to their ability to be cured at ambient temperatures, making them ideal for the refinish of hybrid/ electric vehicles as well as traditionally powered vehicles.
Sikkens Autoclear Aerodry was developed to help body shops maximize their productivity and the need for flexibility. To free up space for another job, businesses can roll out the previous vehicle or panel after a five-minute flash-off and leave it to air-dry for 45 minutes. But if meeting a tight deadline is the problem, body shops can opt for a five-minute bake at 60°C.
Technology is advancing at an increasing pace. “Premium shops want to work with suppliers who provide outstanding technology that’s easy to use, repairs vehicles efficiently, and helps them earn a profit,” said Johnson. To meet customers’ needs, BASF introduced the Glasurit 100 Line. Glasurit 100 Line is a total solution built delivering highly efficient processes for easier, faster and more reliable repairs.
Cycle times are decreased which increases shop capacity which ultimately drives higher profits.
Glasurit 100 Line offers powerful features to boost collision center business efficiency with streamlined processes, time savings on average of 35 percent and paint efficiency on average that goes 20 percent further than competing products.
According to Johnson, Glasurit 100 Line offers the fastest application process in the market, the most sustainable solution in the market, innovative modern basecoat technology, advanced pigmentation and color-matching and state-of-the-art spectrophotometer color retrieval.
“As a total solution, it is more than a sophisticated paint line, it is a comprehensive solution that is paired with digital solutions, trusted partners and the best team in the industry,” said Johnson.
“Shops can discover their potential today by contacting a local sales representative.”
PPG’s biggest innovation has been the development of the Moonwalk automated mixing machine.
More than 250 units are in operation across Europe, and PPG has been receiving tremendous feedback.
Recently, PPG received UL approval on the machines, which will allow the company to bring this innovation to North America.
PPG announced that its automotive refinish business in China launched a new waterborne coating system consisting of an epoxy primer, primer surfacer and clearcoat. The system complies with new environmental and VOC standards in China that will take effect in December 2020.
“PPG is at the forefront of compliance with environmental regulations and product innovation,” said Pauline Yuen, PPG vice president, automotive refinish, Asia. “Through the launch of our new waterborne product offering, our customers are well-prepared to serve their customers with world-class products that comply with the new regulations.”
Launched in June 2020, the new waterborne system offers extremely low VOC content while meeting or exceeding the properties of traditional systems. Operational benefits for automotive body shops include:
Reduced transportation and storage costs: There is no need for special or costly vehicles or warehouses as the new waterborne coatings are classified as non-dangerous goods.
Reduced use of cleaning products: The new waterborne coatings present to customers an opportunity to significantly reduce the use of special solvent-borne products for cleaning of application equipment.
Increased cost savings from minimal VOC treatment: By adopting waterborne coatings, customers can continue using their existing treatment facilities with lower operational costs since waterborne coatings emit significantly lower VOC emissions than solventborne coatings.
“This launch will make PPG’s full waterborne system more accessible to our customers in China,” said Qingfeng Ye, PPG technical director, automotive refinish, Asia Pacific. “It allows PPG to take another step in achieving its sustainability goals while maintaining the product performance that our customers have come to know and depend upon.”