Finishing - July-August 2022

6 NEWS www.finishingmagazine.co.uk
British Coatings Federation launches new Trace VOC Globe to
recognise extremely low VOC paint products
Gemu restructures
GEMÜ is reorganizing its company management team. Graduate
industrial engineer Matthias Fick (above) will be appointed as
managing director of global operations within GEMÜ Germany's
company management team on 1st July 2022. This appointment will
further strengthen the company management team, comprising Gert
Müller, managing partner, and Stephan Müller, managing director.
As a result of strong growth in recent years, the Global Operations
and Supply Chain Management (SCM) department at GEMÜ has
steadily grown in importance and has been instrumental to the
company's successful development. With a view to further growth, the
company management has decided to incorporate the management of
this department directly into the company management team.
As part of this reorganization, GEMÜ is also partly restructuring its
management structure at the divisional manager and senior head of
department levels. In addition, the company management team is
increasingly shifting its focus to strategic decisions for the entire
GEMÜ Group and the management of international subsidiaries.
In Matthias Fick, the company management team is gaining a highly
experienced production, logistics and supply chain management
expert and long-time GEMÜ employee. Mr Fick started his career at
GEMÜ back in 1994 as a logistics controller. Two years later, he was
named Head of the Order Processing Centre, before being appointed
as Head of Logistics/SCM in 2007. Ever since, Matthias Fick has
played a decisive role in shaping global production, logistics and
supply chain processes in various management projects. Most recently,
as the Divisional Manager of Global Operations & SCM, Matthias Fick
has been responsible for GEMÜ's global production, logistics and
supply chain management.
Perstop acquired
Perstorp Group is to be acquired by PETRONAS Chemicals Group
Berhad (PCG).
Jan Secher, president and CEO of Perstorp said, “We are excited to
become part of the PETRONAS family. I see a strong commonality in
values and priorities for how to take our respective businesses forward,
meeting the challenges and opportunities of the future. By tapping
into PCG’s strength and market leading position in the Asia Pacific
region, we are confident that Perstorp can continue to develop into its
next phase of growth. Being part of PCG means Perstorp gets the
scale to increase the pace of innovation and accelerate our sustainable
transformation, which is at the forefront of the chemical industry.
PCG’s and Perstorp’s businesses complement each other very well.”
From May 2022, decorative paints manufacturers will be able to
adopt the use of the statement ‘TRACE’ Volatile Organic
Compounds (VOC) as part of the British Coatings Federation (BCF)’s
VOC Globe scheme to improve communication to consumers
highlighting which products have the lowest levels of VOCs. The
TRACE globe will be used for products with VOC content of less
than 0.1%.
Paints contain different levels of solvents, also known as VOCs.
Solvent content can vary from negligible amounts to, in a very small
number of products, very high levels. Given that VOCs contribute to
atmospheric pollution, the industry is committed to reducing the
level of solvent in paints. Decorative paint manufacturers have
significantly reduced the presence of VOCs in their products over
the last two decades, with 84% of decorative paints now sold on the
market being water-based, and therefore low or very low VOC.
The VOC Globe scheme is part of a wider initiative by the
coatings industry to raise consumer awareness of the amount of
VOCs contained in decorative paint products, allowing consumers to
make more informed, and hopefully greener choices. Greater
involvement from paint manufacturers in the scheme will also
greatly help paint recyclers separate solvent-based and water-based
leftover paint with ease, which aids reuse and recycling.
The British Coatings Federation takes the position that the use of
the terms ‘Zero-VOC’ and ‘VOC-free’ are false claims and should
not be used in the paint industry. There will always be a trace
element of VOCs, even if no raw materials containing VOCs have
been added. Even water can contain trace amounts of VOC, supply
chains for the manufacture of paint are often complex and VOCs,
even at negligible amounts, can also be introduced during any part
of the process, through using raw materials that naturally contain
VOCs, to processes that introduce VOCs, such as washing raw
materials. It is impossible to ensure that every batch of paint is
completely free of VOCs because of the potential for trace solvents
to be introduced at any point throughout the supply chain.
Market growth
The global market for 2K
protective coatings is forecast to
register a 5% value CAGR from
2022 to 2032, expected to
reach a valuation of US$ 14.66
Billion, according to a recently
recalibrated study published by
Fact.MR. As of 2022, the
industry is poised to document a
market value of US$ 9 Billion.
Demand is likely to accelerate on
the back of extensive
applications in the civil and
commercial construction
industry.
From 2016 to 2021, sales of
2K protective coatings surged at
a 4% value CAGR, with the
market concluding at US$ 8.73
Billion. 2K protective coatings
play an important role towards
enhancing the life of buildings,
swimming pools, marine projects
and roads by protecting them
from rust, acid rain, growth of
algae & fungi and adverse
climatic conditions.
Demand for epoxy resins has
especially increased, due to its
various benefits including
enhancement of durability of
coating as compared to other
coatings. Besides, epoxy resins
are more effective in protecting
surfaces from humidity, acid,
alkali and seawater.
Finishing – July/August 2022