Axalta Coating Systems has announced its new Global Innovation Center will be located at The Navy Yard in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. The 16,000m2 facility will be home to Axalta’s global research, product development and technology initiatives, and it will partner with the company’s other technology centres in the Americas, Europe and Asia-Pacific.

The project is being developed by Liberty Property Trust and Synterra Partners, and Axalta has entered into a long-term lease agreement for the building. Project construction is expected to be complete in late 2017. Upon reaching full operation in 2018, Axalta will bring at least 190 new jobs to Philadelphia with the possibility of additional positions in the future. Axalta’s global corporate headquarters is already located in Philadelphia, and its North America headquarters is located in Glen Mills, Pennsylvania, with a customer training centre in Exton, Pennsylvania.

Axalta Chairman and CEO Charlie Shaver, Pennsylvania Secretary for Labour & Industry Kathy Manderino, and Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter, announced the project at The Navy Yard.

“Innovation is central to Axalta’s growth and ability to meet the needs of our customers years into the future,” explained Shaver. “Coatings are a critical component of so many everyday products. Cars and other vehicles, motors and electronic components, automotive parts, white goods and countless other materials exposed to the elements rely on coatings to make them not only beautiful, but also more durable, energy-efficient and productive. Our Global Innovation Center will ensure Axalta sets the pace for coatings technology around the world.”

Axalta’s team of scientists and technicians at the Global Innovation Center will develop next generation coatings products and keep pace with emerging application needs. Vehicles increasingly use lightweight plastic and composite materials, which require special coatings formulations, to save fuel. Regulations and customer demands call for newer waterborne coatings. Customers engaged in vehicle manufacturing and repair require faster and more productive application systems and technologies. Developing products to suit these and other needs will be the mission of the Global Innovation Center and Axalta’s worldwide research and development network. 

Secretary Manderino said, "Axalta locating its Global Innovation Center in Philadelphia is tremendous news for Pennsylvania's workforce. The addition of nearly 200 high-paying jobs will stimulate the local economy and help to spur continued growth at The Navy Yard in Philadelphia.”

Philadelphia Mayor Michael A. Nutter said, “Axalta’s decision to expand further in Philadelphia and bring its Global Innovation Center to the Navy Yard is further evidence of Philadelphia’s standing as one of the nation’s leading innovation hubs and a place for exciting businesses to start, stay and grow. We were excited to welcome Axalta’s global headquarters to Philadelphia in 2013 and this additional presence, bringing almost 200 new jobs by 2018, is a signal of its commitment to our city.”

As one of the region’s most vibrant and progressive business locations, The Navy Yard provides the perfect setting for Axalta’s expanded research and product development capabilities. Proximity to the company’s global corporate headquarters provides easy access for Axalta staff to move between headquarters and the new Global Innovation Center, allowing for ease of collaboration and partnership. The Navy Yard’s dynamic campus offers an exceptional workplace to attract new talent as Axalta continues to expand its workforce and to develop products. The campus is ideal for researchers accustomed to academic settings, providing an environment conducive to teamwork and the sharing of ideas in a variety of unique indoor and outdoor settings.

Barry Snyder, Senior Vice President and Chief Technology Officer at Axalta, explained, “product development is a collaborative endeavour. Axalta’s technology spans polymer, colloid and materials science that bring chemistry, rheology and optics to bear on coating formulation and application. The Global Innovation Center will bring together our world-class experts and next-generation tools to deliver solutions that will meet the needs of our customers around the world.”