BASF Coatings introduces waterborne basecoats in Romania

Pitesti / Münster. BASF Coatings is the first paint manufacturer to introduce waterborne basecoats in Romania. BASF Coatings’ waterborne basecoat technology is used to coat carmaker Dacia’s Logan and new Sandero models, which are produced at the Dacia plant in Pitesti, around 150 kilometers from Bucharest. All of the colors come from BASF’s Color Design Studio Europe that has made BASF a leader in Europe in design competence. BASF is also in charge of logistics and warehouse administration of the coating products. Seventeen BASF employees work in three-shift-per-day operation to ensure the procedure runs smoothly. Each day, 1,400 vehicles are coated at the Dacia plant. Plans call for 400,000 new vehicles to leave the plant each year starting in 2010. Thierry Herning, head of Global Account Management PSA Renault-Nissan and Frédéric Bouvier, head of Renault Account Management in Europe, are pleased about the partnership with Dacia. “BASF’s presence for so many years on the growth market of Romania and experience gained there, the new distribution center in this region, which will help us supply customers quickly, the quality of the products and the competence of our employees on site at our customers’ facilities make us a partner they can count on"

Partnership with customer, team commitment, organisation and technologies are the key factors of this headache free situation, says Herning.

Romania is a significant growth market in Europe and an important hub in the BASF network, which ensures that the customers receive the support they need. After all, BASF Coatings’ products and services have been valued by carmakers and suppliers for years. BASF Coatings has made a name for itself with the introduction of new products in Romania. In addition to the waterborne basecoat system, these new products primarily include new colors for Dacia. However, BASF also contributed its expertise during the construction of the new production line.

The introduction of waterborne basecoat at Dacia is one of the highlights of BASF Coatings’ commitment. In contrast to solventborne basecoats, water replaces the majority of the organic solvents in waterborne basecoats. The resulting reduction in solvent emissions means a considerably lower impact on the environment – a huge advantage of the technology. While in 1997, the rate of use of waterborne paint systems was 20 percent throughout the world, today the share has risen to approximately 35 percent. During the mid-1980s, BASF Coatings employees developed the waterborne basecoat technology. Today, even 20 years later, its product properties and ecological quality continue to set the global standards for the technology.