PPG has announced the opening of its new European Central Powder Coatings Research and Development (R&D) Center in Milan, Italy. The company said the facility’s expanded capabilities, which include a customer application center, will enhance and accelerate powder coatings product development. Financial details of the investment were not disclosed.
The R&D center will focus on innovating powder coatings product development, demonstrating advanced powder technologies and providing best-in-class customer and technical support. The Milan facility is a European hub for cross-technology research and development, hosting laboratories for other businesses that include automotive OEM and refinish coatings.
“The new powder coatings R&D center boasts a critical mass of capabilities that will significantly strengthen our product development and application efforts,” said Olivier Magnin, PPG technical director, industrial coatings, Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA). “We also can leverage competencies at the site, including our corporate color group, our global center of excellence for waterborne coatings, and our state-of-the-art analytical and weathering lab, as One PPG.”
PPG is a leading supplier of powder coatings to the automotive, transportation, appliance, furniture and other markets. The company expanded the business with its 2020 acquisition of Alpha Coating Technologies, which manufactures powder coatings for light industrial applications and heat-sensitive substrates, and its 2021 acquisition of Wörwag, which makes liquid, powder and film coatings for industrial and automotive applications. PPG recently agreed to acquire the powder coatings business of Arsonsisi, including a manufacturing plant in Verbania, Italy.
“The investment in our Milan facility demonstrates our long-term commitment to delivering novel powder coatings technologies to exceed our customers’ expectations,” said Anne Banuls, PPG powder business manager, industrial coatings, EMEA. “The customer application center will include a design and color showroom where we can really inspire our customers and help us further accelerate growth in our powder coatings business.”
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