May We Suggest an Additive?

As competition becomes stiffer and demand for new and improved coatings continues to grow, paint formulators face added pressure to develop quality, cost effective coatings in a timely fashion. Formulating can appear to be going fine, maybe even head of schedule, until a problem such as sagging, yellowing or the dreaded fisheyes is encountered, threatening to delay development.

Before all hope is lost, consider an additive as a potential problem solver. Thickeners, driers, anti-settling agents and surfactants can help solve formulating problems and get paint and coatings products out of the labs and into the marketplace.

According to the Freedonia Group, additives and modifiers accounted for only six percent of total paint and coatings material volume demand in 1999. But they can help solve major performance problems.

"Additives are just a small part of the cost of overall formulation," said Michael Oliveri, Shamrock Technologies' director of marketing, coatings, worldwide. "However, a specialty additive often can provide an invaluable, even essential, performance edge."

Recognizing the nee