The Coatings Summit took place January 18-20 in Shanghai, China. This year’s theme was “Shaping the Future of a Dynamic Industry. Widely respected as the industry’s most prestigious and important leadership event, the Summit brings together the industry’s elite and provided attendees with insights into the Asian coatings industry.

The Coatings Summit commenced with remarks from chairman Jüregn Nowak. “Welcome to the Coatings Summit 2017 in Shanghai. It is our goal to provide ideas, inspiration and insight over the next two day. For the first time in its proud history, the Coatings Summit is held in China.”

The Coatings Summit featured presentations by senior executives at some of the largest global paint and coatings companies, with an emphasis on growth strategies for a more international reach. Hiroshi Ishino, president of Kansai Paint, Japan gave the keynote presentation on “The Future of the Coatings Industry.” Ishino spoke about the changing role paint plays for consumers in Japan. “More and more people are designing their houses. In Japan, people are not accustomed to decorative paint in the home. We are promoting painting habits and have started a campaign to promote paint,” he said.

Currently one out of two Japan automakers uses Kansai Paint. One out of four global automakers uses Kansai. Ishino explained that Kansai’s global strategy is to make inroads into new markets in America and Europe. Kansai recently launched two new products with that goal in mind: to combat the Zika virus and other mosquito-borne diseases Kansai offers anti-mosquito paint and to combat the number of air-borne viruses the company launched an anti-virus paint that can kill 99.6 percent of influenza virus. These products will be promoted for use in hospitals, airports and other high-traffic areas. In addition, Kansai has devoted considerable effort into developing a color strategy for decorative paint.

“We aim to be a truly global company,” Ishino concluded.

Jie Hong, chairman of the board and CEO of SKSHU Paint, China presented on “The Chinese Market for Decorative and Wood Coatings.”  He outlined the Chinese market for deco and wood coatings and his company’s focus on R&D. “The brand positioning for SKSHU is ‘green, health and nature’ and ‘3trees, healthy to live’,” said Hong. “In the near future the focus will be much more on environmentally friendly products and health. We currently have an R&D center with 500 post doctoral scientists. We have a vision of being a global top 10 paint and coatings brand and we are committed to creating the world’s most beautiful environmental factory zone.”

Jalaj Dani, president of Asian Paints, India presented “Beyond the Subcontinent: India’s Coatings Industry in Asia and the World.” “In contrast to other global regions, India continues to impress the world with strong growth,” said Dani. “The coatings industry is keeping pace and reaching out beyond the country’s borders. Asian Paints, by far the largest player on the subcontinent is spearheading that effort.”

Henrik Andersen, group president and CEO of Hempel, Germany presented “Succession in the Coatings Industry: Views and Strategies of an Outsider Turned Insider.” Andersen was appointed CEO of Hempel March 2016. His prior role was Group COO for a 500,000 employee service provider. Andersen discussed how he as an “outsider” will lead a coatings company. One of the keys to Hempel’s continued success is its strategy  of “Journey to Excellence.” One of the foundations of this philosophy is outstanding technical support.

“Besides just having innovative products, we have technical support,” said Andersen. We have more than 700 coating suppliers across the globe. Our coatings are a solution, not just a product.”

Boris Gorella, CEO of Germany-based Beckers Group presented “Success Strategies for Global Mid-Size Manufacturers of Paint.” Beckers Group business is comprised of 80 percent coil coatings and 20 percent industrial coatings. Although its headquarters are in Europe, about two-thirds of Beckers sales are in Europe/Africa and the company has been successful in making inroads into all major global regions.

Other presentations included: “ Sino-Foreign JVs: Strategies and Success Stories” presented by Hongmei Yang, general manager of Shanghai Huayi Fine Chemical, “How Policy and Innovation Will Shape the Coatings Industry” presented by Sandra Berg, CEO of Ellis Paint and “Global Cooperation of Mid-Size Coatings Companies in the 21st Century” presented by Stephen Falder, secretary general of the Nova Paint Club.

The next Coatings Summit will be held in 2019. Details have not yet been released.