COATING 2012 Wrap-Up
Held at America’s Center in St. Louis from
October 9-11, COATING 2012 was an industrial
coating event dedicated entirely to paint and
powder coatings. The show offered unique opportunities
to network with peers, make contact with
key coating professionals, enhance professional
development, and do business with leading manufacturers,
distributors and suppliers, all there for
one reason—coatings.
Going Once, Going Twice, Sold!
The Live Auction was new to the COATING
2012 Show this year. This event was developed to
offer a high-energy event where attendees could
purchase various products and services at great
prices while also donating to charity. The event
was a huge hit, and nearly $20,000 was raised to
go to each donator’s selected charity.
Product Innovations Award
The New Product Showcase was the launching
pad for the hottest new products and services
making their debut at COATING 2012. Exhibitors
who entered became eligible for the prestigious
Product Innovations Award, which recognizes the
top innovative product of the year.
This year’s winner is DeFelsko’s product, the
PosiTector 6000 Coating Thickness Gage. The new
PosiTector 6000 coating thickness gage accepts all
DPM, SPG and UTG probes easily converting from
a coating thickness gage to a dew point meter, surface
profile gage or ultrasonic wall thickness gage.
Advanced models now have WiFi.
Congratulations to the Daily Raffle Winners!
On Day 1, a $250 AMEX Gift Card went to
Monica Salizar, Hi-Tech Metal Finishing. Eric
Pelak of PorterCorp, was the lucky winner of
BlueTooth-enabled Bose Speaker System on Day 2.
And Larry Christ from Litelab Corp. took home a
Samsung Galaxy Tablet on the final day.
Virtual Painter’s Competition
Using VRSim’s newest virtual reality training
system, SimSpray is designed to augment traditional
training of painters. Scores were recorded
and a prize was awarded for the individual with
the highest score each day.
Chemetall Opens Michigan Facility
On October 24, 2012, Chemetall celebrated
the inauguration of its state-of-the-art facility in
Blackman Township, Mich. The $25 million manufacturing
plant will cover 200,000 square feet to
house administrative, manufacturing, warehousing
operations, and a physical testing laboratory.
Nearly 1,000 Chemetall products will be produced
at the 40-acre Blackman site for applications in
surface treatment, metal fabrication, cleaning
and sanitizing.
“The new cutting-edge facility demonstrates our
goal to further expand our surface treatment business
in the NAFTA region. We are committed to
set equally high standards around the globe with
regard to superior quality for our customer and to
low carbon footprint” says Joris Merckx, president
of Chemetall.
Chemetall installed a semi-automated waste
treatment system to reduce process waste water by
90 percent. Automation advancements, including
bulk material handling systems, mixing vessels,
and packaging lines, have been incorporated into
the facility to increase productivity as well as improve
product yield and quality for customers.
Visit www.chemetallamericas.com for
more information.
Pneu-Mech Announces Staff Appointments
Pneu-Mech Systems Mfg.,
a member of the Brawtus
Group, has announced some
staff changes. Jerry Trostle
has been named sales manager.
With more than 30 years
of experience in the finishing
industry, Trostle comes from Wagner Systems
where he served as GM for the last 8 years. He will
be responsible for managing the sales efforts of the
company in North America.
Bill Brawley has been
appointed to system sales.
Brawley comes from AccuSport
International Inc., Winston
Salem, N.C., where he was
responsible for growing Accu-
Sport from an early stage startup
company to a multi-million dollar company in
7 years. He will be responsible for System Sales
with a focus on growing sales into new and emerging
markets.
Pneu-Mech Paint Facilities
(PMFP) has appointed Lee
Howard to sales engineer. Lee
comes to PMPF with over 17
years of wet paint and powder
coating experience. This experience
ranges from supervising
paint lines to being instrumental in the design
and upgrading of major paint projects, including
industrial and automotive. Lee has spent his time
since May of 2011 in a sales position at Pneu-
Mech Systems Mfg. In Lee’s new position he will
draw upon his engineering experience in the heavy
truck and equipment industries.
Say Hello To PCI’s
Newest Members
We have nine companies that have recently joined
The Powder Coating Institute. Please help us
welcome them.
CATEGORY 4
Special Masking, a div of Focused Solutions LLC
Willoughby, Ohio
www.specialmasking.com
CATEGORY 5
Advanced Powder Coating & Sandblasting
Sparks, Nev.
www.advancedpowdercoatingnv.com
Figure Finishing
Manassas Park, Va.
www.figurefinishing.com
Mid-South Soda Blasting
Germantown, Tenn.
www.midsouthsodablasting.com
BTU Powder Coating LLC
High Ridge, Mo.
www.btupowdercoating.com
Suburban Steel Supply Co.
Gahanna, Ohio
www.suburbansteelsupply.com
Powder Coating Solutions Inc.
Lake City, Minn.
www.powdercoatingmn.com
Icon Signs
Duncansville, Pa.
www.814wraps.com
CATEGORY 6
Amariko Inc.
Clarendon Hills, Ill.
www.amariko.com
PCI Certification
PCI has developed the PCI
3000 Certification Program,
which is available to all custom
coaters applying powder coatings,
to acknowledge coaters
who can meet a standard of
product quality that fits their
market and meets or exceeds
all of their market needs and
advertised standards. One such
member, Keystone Koating, is
featured in this edition (see page
28). In addition, PCI offers the
PCI 4000 Certification Program,
which is designed and offered to
all original equipment manufacturers
(OEMs) applying powder
coatings.
The audit process exposes
the powder coater to a thorough
examination of their equipment
and process used for application.
It also examines their business
operation from raw materials
to finished products. This includes
the safety culture within
the company, inventory control,
quality control, process control,
and customer satisfaction. The
entire operation is examined
to make sure that the powder
coater can deliver their expressed
level of quality on a regular basis.
In addition to the initial audit,
the coater is required to perform
routine internal audits and
they are required to schedule an
annual audit by PCI to reaffirm
their continued compliance with
the goals of the program.
During the auditing process
PCI closely examine each of 12
operating elements. These elements
include:
1. Pretreatment of the substrate
2. Ovens used for drying and
curing
3. Application of the powder
coating
4. Incoming material quality
control
5. Training practices and competencies
6. Maintenance of the system
7. Customer satisfaction
8. Safety record and practices within the
operation
9. Process control
10. Warranties, guarantees and performance
expectations
11. Final quality control practices
12. Loading, unloading and packaging
Within each element, the powder coater must
meet a minimum required score in order to receive
the approval of PCI and become certified.
To learn more about PCI’s Certification Programs,
contact PCI’s technical manager, Mike
Wittenhagen via email at mwitten@powdercoating.org.
As of press time, the following companies are
PCI Certified.
Firings Reach Highest
Since 2010
According to an October 25, 2012, blog entry
by Mike “Mish” Shedlock, a registered investment
advisor representative for Sitka Pacific Capital
Management, firings have reached their highest
since 2010. Ford (F), Dow Chemical (DOW),
DuPont (DD), and Advanced Micro Devices
(AMD) all announced mass layoffs in mid-October.
Shedlock reports that North American companies
have announced plans to eliminate 62,600
positions at home and abroad since September
1, the biggest two-month drop since the start of
2010, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
Firings total 158,100 so far this year, more than
the 129,000 job cuts in the same period in 2011.
For more information, visit:
globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com.