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Ultra savings for UV-cured powder coatings
F O C U S products abound in the product literature of many raw material suppliers, which are mainly related to bio-based chemistries or the wider use of nanomaterials (p 6). Shale gas or “fracking” has become a major source of fuel in the United States and there is a move to introduce this controversial process in the UK. It is not expected to offer any energy price reductions for UK users. Novomer Inc has found a more profitable outlet for shale gas by extracting carbon dioxide and ethane-rich gases to convert them into low cost chemicals such as acetic acid and butanediol (p 7). Its proposed production plants could become a major source of these chemicals which are widely used globally in coatings and offer a low cost challenge to oil based products. Most governments are predicting the end of the recession basing their conclusions on modest increases in employment. At best these are modest bleeps, which can be reversed almost on a weekly basis. Until global economies can find worthwhile employment for the mass of unemployed workers, both male and female, there will be no worthwhile recovery. New industries are needed to put people back to work, for their spending power is the only sure way of achieving a real recovery. Sid Harris
TECHNICAL Ultra savings for UV-cured powder coatings “UV-curable powder coatings are viable substitutes for solvent liquid coatings”, is the theme of a recent article by Michael Knoblauch, President DVUV Powder Coating and Keyland Polymer, which was published in the January issue of Products Finishing. 2
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Demand for VOC-free coatings is increasing, and that demand will accelerate as more global regulatory attention is paid to products containing solvent and producing carbon emissions. Many countries already have, or will enact, regulations limiting the manufacture and use of solvents and evaluating various carbon tax schemes. This regulatory pressure is motivating coating consumers and users alike to seek out coatings that are classified as “low VOC” and can be used as substitutes or replacements for solvent containing coatings. This shift is challenging resin and coatings suppliers to develop new products and modify existing lines, an increasingly difficult proposition, given the new materials and solutions required. The fastest growing segment of the coatings industry is waterborne liquid coatings, which use water as a major solvent constituent material, but may contain other types of solvents such as alcohols, amines and ethers. These other solvents assist with leveling and performance properties. Liquid coating products dominate the $100 billion global coatings industry and are the product leaders in three broad industrial segments: architectural, manufacturing and marine speciality coatings. Now it can be shown that UV-cured powder coatings are becoming a viable substitute for solvent-borne and solvent-containing liquid coatings. The ability to finish heat-sensitive substrates and various other products with UV-cured powder
C O AT I N G S coatings extends their market reach beyond that of both thermal powder and liquid coatings. Powder coating, which currently represent approximately 10% of the global industrial coatings market, are 100% VOCfree and meet all air quality regulatory requirements with respect to manufacturing and application. There are two types of powder coatings: thermal cured and ultra violet (UV) light cured. Thermal powder coatings require time and thermal energy to melt and cure the applied powder coatings. UVcured powder coatings melt rapidly to provide a uniform film, which is then almost instantly cured with UV light energy. The article includes a number of graphical comparisons of five different industrial coatings. System one is a water-borne acrylic stoving enamel. System two: an alkyd air dry enamel with low VOC. System three: a zeroVOC acrylic. System four: a UVcured powder coating, spray to waste. System five: a UV-cured powder, reclaimed. The first graphical comparison is described as a “Process Temperature/Dwell Time Analysis” which shows that UV-cured powders are significantly faster and use much less energy in finishing a medium density fibreboard (MDF) substrate. There are certain constraints to the use of UV-cured powder coatings. UV curing is “line of sight”, for the UV beam has to see the object or surface to cure the applied film. Certain profiles or parts with shadows can be difficult or even impossible to
Return on Investment Analysis System
Panels produced/ day 8 hour shift
Revenue generated per day @ $23.00/ panel
Revenue generated per year 250 days
Months for payback based upon 10% operating margin and $1M investment
1st year ROI % Net annual operating margin ÷$1M
1 2 3 4 5
413 388 148 1,164 1,164
$9,499 $8,924 $3,404 $26,772 $26,772
$2,374,750 $2,231,000 $851,000 $6,693,000 $6,693,000
50.5 54.8 141 17.92 12.31
23.7% 22.5% 8.5% 67% 97.5% FEBRUARY 2014
F O C U S cure with UV light. It is also not practical to retrofit an existing system to apply and cure UV powder coatings. Unfortunately, very few companies are applying UV powders, and until the installed base of application systems expands, the growth of UV powder coatings will be limited. However, UV powder coating is an exceptionally viable replacement for solvent liquid coatings and can be applied on a variety of substrates; ferrous and non-ferrous and heat sensitive substrates such as wood, plastics and composites. These are substrates that cannot be coated with thermal powder coatings or some types of solvent coatings. Time advantages and their marked improvement in production rates are a prime benefit of UV powder coatings. A separate graph shows the cost advantage for each system. The three liquid systems are two coat systems of primer and top coat. System 5 UV powder reclaimed has the lowest cost per square foot and a transfer efficiency of 95%. System 2 has the next lowest cost per square foot, followed by system 4 UV powder, sprayed to waste, with a 65% transfer efficiency. The UV powders produce an equal number of parts and considerably more than any of the liquid systems. The typical time to produce a finished part with UV curing is 20 minutes, start to finish. In this comparison, the spray to reclaim saves $1,071 per eight-hour shift. This comparison uses a selling price of $2/sq ft or $23 per part. The production rate for both UV powder systems is the same, producing $26,772 gross revenue per shift. This is 2.8 times the gross revenue production of the best performing liquid system. Original Source: Products Finishing, Jan 2014, 78, (4), 18-21 (Website: http://www.pfonline.com) © Gardner Business Media Inc 2014. Michael Knoblauch can be contacted at 001 216-741-5511
FEBRUARY 2014
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INDUSTRY NEWS AkzoNobel retains DJSI number one ranking AkzoNobel has retained the number one spot on the Dow Jones Sustainability Indices (DJSI). AkzoNobel CEO Ton Buechner says, “Sustainability is fundamental to our strategy of connecting value creation to resource efficiency and maintaining our DJSI leadership status underscores our belief that sustainability is business and business is sustainability.” He also credits the company’s employees for helping to make sustainability an integral part of their business activities and company culture. The DJSI is one of the world’s most influential sustainability indices. It benchmarks the sustainability performance of leading companies based on environmental, social and economic performance, including forward-looking indicators. Original Source: Coatings World, Oct 2013, 18 (10), 20 (Website: http://www.coatingsworld.com) © Rodman Publishing 2013
C O AT I N G S is planning to redeploy employees and to hire new staff at the 3 sites it is retaining. The group claims to be the world market leader in prelacquering (a continuous and highly automated process for coating metal before production). Prelacquering coatings are mainly used in the construction and consumer goods sectors. Original Source: Chimie Pharma Hebdo, 2 Dec 2013, (656), (Website: http://www.industrie.com/chimie/) (in French) © ETAI Information 2013
AkzoNobel to invest €50 M in facilities in China AkzoNobel is planning to invest more than €50 M in the construction of manufacturing facilities in Chengdu, China, which is part of the company’s goal for strategic growth. The investment is in the company’s powder coatings and decorative paints segments. The powder facility and the deco plant will start production in 2014 and 2015, respectively. Original Source: PPCJ, Polymers, Paint, Colour Journal, Nov 2013, 203 (4590), (Website: http://www.polymerspaintcolourjournal.com/) © Quartz Business Media Ltd 2013
Asian Paints closes down unit Coatings: AkzoNobel to close two factories in Sweden and Germany In order to optimize its production network, AkzoNobel has announced plans to restructure its European prelacquering coatings business. Its operations will be concentrated at 3 strategic sites: Malmo, Sweden; Lipetsk, Russia; and Hilden, Germany. This will mean the closure of its factories in Gamleby, Sweden and Nuremberg, Germany in Jun 2015. 280 jobs will be affected by the closures. With effect from start 2014, production operations in Gamleby will start being transferred to Malmo and Lipetsk. Operations in Nuremberg will be transferred to Hilden. A European development centre will be established in Malmo. AkzoNobel
Asian Paints Ltd’s subsidiary, Asian Paints Industrial Coatings Ltd (APICL), has stopped operations of its powder coatings plant in Himachal Pradesh due to a drop in the processing volume of powder coatings. The closure took effect on 25 Nov 2013. APICL’s plant in Gujarat will continue its normal operations. In 2Q ended 30 Sep 2013, Asian Paints reported a 36.66% rise on its consolidated net profit at Rup 326.84 crore, up from Rup 239.16 crore in the same period of 2012. Consolidated net sales were at Rup 3084.06 crore, an increase from Rup 212.41 crore in 2012. (1 crore=10 M, 1 lakh=100,000). Original Source: Business Line, 26 Nov 2013, 2 (Website: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com) © The Hindu Business Line 2013
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TECHNICAL Ultra savings for UV-cured powder coatings “UV-curable powder coatings are viable substitutes for solvent liquid coatings”, is the theme of a recent article by Michael Knoblauch, President DVUV Powder Coating and Keyland Polymer, which was published in the January issue of Products Finishing. 2
O N
POWDER
Demand for VOC-free coatings is increasing, and that demand will accelerate as more global regulatory attention is paid to products containing solvent and producing carbon emissions. Many countries already have, or will enact, regulations limiting the manufacture and use of solvents and evaluating various carbon tax schemes. This regulatory pressure is motivating coating consumers and users alike to seek out coatings that are classified as “low VOC” and can be used as substitutes or replacements for solvent containing coatings. This shift is challenging resin and coatings suppliers to develop new products and modify existing lines, an increasingly difficult proposition, given the new materials and solutions required. The fastest growing segment of the coatings industry is waterborne liquid coatings, which use water as a major solvent constituent material, but may contain other types of solvents such as alcohols, amines and ethers. These other solvents assist with leveling and performance properties. Liquid coating products dominate the $100 billion global coatings industry and are the product leaders in three broad industrial segments: architectural, manufacturing and marine speciality coatings. Now it can be shown that UV-cured powder coatings are becoming a viable substitute for solvent-borne and solvent-containing liquid coatings. The ability to finish heat-sensitive substrates and various other products with UV-cured powder
C O AT I N G S coatings extends their market reach beyond that of both thermal powder and liquid coatings. Powder coating, which currently represent approximately 10% of the global industrial coatings market, are 100% VOCfree and meet all air quality regulatory requirements with respect to manufacturing and application. There are two types of powder coatings: thermal cured and ultra violet (UV) light cured. Thermal powder coatings require time and thermal energy to melt and cure the applied powder coatings. UVcured powder coatings melt rapidly to provide a uniform film, which is then almost instantly cured with UV light energy. The article includes a number of graphical comparisons of five different industrial coatings. System one is a water-borne acrylic stoving enamel. System two: an alkyd air dry enamel with low VOC. System three: a zeroVOC acrylic. System four: a UVcured powder coating, spray to waste. System five: a UV-cured powder, reclaimed. The first graphical comparison is described as a “Process Temperature/Dwell Time Analysis” which shows that UV-cured powders are significantly faster and use much less energy in finishing a medium density fibreboard (MDF) substrate. There are certain constraints to the use of UV-cured powder coatings. UV curing is “line of sight”, for the UV beam has to see the object or surface to cure the applied film. Certain profiles or parts with shadows can be difficult or even impossible to
Return on Investment Analysis System
Panels produced/ day 8 hour shift
Revenue generated per day @ $23.00/ panel
Revenue generated per year 250 days
Months for payback based upon 10% operating margin and $1M investment
1st year ROI % Net annual operating margin ÷$1M
1 2 3 4 5
413 388 148 1,164 1,164
$9,499 $8,924 $3,404 $26,772 $26,772
$2,374,750 $2,231,000 $851,000 $6,693,000 $6,693,000
50.5 54.8 141 17.92 12.31
23.7% 22.5% 8.5% 67% 97.5% FEBRUARY 2014
F O C U S cure with UV light. It is also not practical to retrofit an existing system to apply and cure UV powder coatings. Unfortunately, very few companies are applying UV powders, and until the installed base of application systems expands, the growth of UV powder coatings will be limited. However, UV powder coating is an exceptionally viable replacement for solvent liquid coatings and can be applied on a variety of substrates; ferrous and non-ferrous and heat sensitive substrates such as wood, plastics and composites. These are substrates that cannot be coated with thermal powder coatings or some types of solvent coatings. Time advantages and their marked improvement in production rates are a prime benefit of UV powder coatings. A separate graph shows the cost advantage for each system. The three liquid systems are two coat systems of primer and top coat. System 5 UV powder reclaimed has the lowest cost per square foot and a transfer efficiency of 95%. System 2 has the next lowest cost per square foot, followed by system 4 UV powder, sprayed to waste, with a 65% transfer efficiency. The UV powders produce an equal number of parts and considerably more than any of the liquid systems. The typical time to produce a finished part with UV curing is 20 minutes, start to finish. In this comparison, the spray to reclaim saves $1,071 per eight-hour shift. This comparison uses a selling price of $2/sq ft or $23 per part. The production rate for both UV powder systems is the same, producing $26,772 gross revenue per shift. This is 2.8 times the gross revenue production of the best performing liquid system. Original Source: Products Finishing, Jan 2014, 78, (4), 18-21 (Website: http://www.pfonline.com) © Gardner Business Media Inc 2014. Michael Knoblauch can be contacted at 001 216-741-5511
FEBRUARY 2014
O N
POWDER
INDUSTRY NEWS AkzoNobel retains DJSI number one ranking AkzoNobel has retained the number one spot on the Dow Jones Sustainability Indices (DJSI). AkzoNobel CEO Ton Buechner says, “Sustainability is fundamental to our strategy of connecting value creation to resource efficiency and maintaining our DJSI leadership status underscores our belief that sustainability is business and business is sustainability.” He also credits the company’s employees for helping to make sustainability an integral part of their business activities and company culture. The DJSI is one of the world’s most influential sustainability indices. It benchmarks the sustainability performance of leading companies based on environmental, social and economic performance, including forward-looking indicators. Original Source: Coatings World, Oct 2013, 18 (10), 20 (Website: http://www.coatingsworld.com) © Rodman Publishing 2013
C O AT I N G S is planning to redeploy employees and to hire new staff at the 3 sites it is retaining. The group claims to be the world market leader in prelacquering (a continuous and highly automated process for coating metal before production). Prelacquering coatings are mainly used in the construction and consumer goods sectors. Original Source: Chimie Pharma Hebdo, 2 Dec 2013, (656), (Website: http://www.industrie.com/chimie/) (in French) © ETAI Information 2013
AkzoNobel to invest €50 M in facilities in China AkzoNobel is planning to invest more than €50 M in the construction of manufacturing facilities in Chengdu, China, which is part of the company’s goal for strategic growth. The investment is in the company’s powder coatings and decorative paints segments. The powder facility and the deco plant will start production in 2014 and 2015, respectively. Original Source: PPCJ, Polymers, Paint, Colour Journal, Nov 2013, 203 (4590), (Website: http://www.polymerspaintcolourjournal.com/) © Quartz Business Media Ltd 2013
Asian Paints closes down unit Coatings: AkzoNobel to close two factories in Sweden and Germany In order to optimize its production network, AkzoNobel has announced plans to restructure its European prelacquering coatings business. Its operations will be concentrated at 3 strategic sites: Malmo, Sweden; Lipetsk, Russia; and Hilden, Germany. This will mean the closure of its factories in Gamleby, Sweden and Nuremberg, Germany in Jun 2015. 280 jobs will be affected by the closures. With effect from start 2014, production operations in Gamleby will start being transferred to Malmo and Lipetsk. Operations in Nuremberg will be transferred to Hilden. A European development centre will be established in Malmo. AkzoNobel
Asian Paints Ltd’s subsidiary, Asian Paints Industrial Coatings Ltd (APICL), has stopped operations of its powder coatings plant in Himachal Pradesh due to a drop in the processing volume of powder coatings. The closure took effect on 25 Nov 2013. APICL’s plant in Gujarat will continue its normal operations. In 2Q ended 30 Sep 2013, Asian Paints reported a 36.66% rise on its consolidated net profit at Rup 326.84 crore, up from Rup 239.16 crore in the same period of 2012. Consolidated net sales were at Rup 3084.06 crore, an increase from Rup 212.41 crore in 2012. (1 crore=10 M, 1 lakh=100,000). Original Source: Business Line, 26 Nov 2013, 2 (Website: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com) © The Hindu Business Line 2013
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