Setting the tone for the industry: CEPE Annual Conference
The pace of innovation in the European coatings sector is picking up. CEPE will be setting the tone in Athens from 27-29 September, with a high-calibre conference programme with new ideas and approaches for top decision-makers among European paints and coatings manufacturers.
Innovations have always been a good driving force for standing out from the competition and being successful on the market. Dr Volkmar Stenzel, Fraunhofer IFAM, will show the form that successful collaboration between a research institute and a coatings manufacturer can take in the field of innovation. This collaboration has produced a self-healing coating technology which enables surface damage on wood substrates to heal by itself and can be used, e.g., to prolong the life of wooden window frames. Stenzel will describe the various stages from research to market maturity. He will also explore the aspects that need to be considered, the hurdles to be overcome, and how both partners can fully unleash the potential of such partnerships.
Innovation and the circular economy
Success is to be found in innovative products, and even more so in a sustainable business model. Carine Lefèvre, Coatings Research Institute (CoRi), will explain how sustainability and innovation can be combined with each other in the paints and coatings sector. It is not just in this sector that sustainability has been one of the major buzzwords of recent years; it has become a mega-trend within society at large, which is calling for more sustainable solutions. Lefèvre will use the example of the circular economy to illustrate projects within the industry that have adopted and successfully implemented this model.
Brand-new topics
This year’s CEPE conference will update participants on the global economic climate. Elections have been or are being held in several European countries. The conference will also address the impact of the election results on companies and the paints and coatings industry. Legislative stipulations and regulations will also feature. The parallel sessions on “Decorative Coatings” and “Industrial Coatings” will examine the topics that are preoccupying the industry at the moment. Didier Leroy and Janice Robinson from CEPE will be presenting the latest developments on titanium dioxide and the biocidal products regulation and advising on the consequences for paints and coatings manufacturers.
Have a closer look at the program of the CEPE Annual Conference in September.
