PPG announces $1.4m upgrade
- November 30, 2017
- Posted by: Alan Feldberg
- Category: Industry News
PPG has announced the completion of a $1.4m investment at its automotive adhesives and sealants (A&S) manufacturing and research and development (R&D) centre in Saint-Just-en-Chaussée, France.
The upgrades to the facility include new structural adhesives and waterborne LASD (liquid applied sound damper) manufacturing cells, improved laboratory and testing space, upgraded equipment to simulate automotive body shop conditions, and improved technical capabilities. This facility enhances the link between PPG’s R&D efforts and customer needs with integrated services and increased resources.
Gary Danowski, PPG vice president, automotive coatings, said, ‘As the automotive industry goes through rapid changes, we’re innovating to support our clients beyond manufacturing and product development. This investment is a continuation of our ambition to support customers in solving some of their biggest challenges.’
The investment at PPG’s automotive adhesives and sealants center showcases the following improvements: Application Centre of Development trial areas have been upgraded to recreate the factory line conditions of customers’ paint and body shops more accurately; the facility’s updated equipment reduces the number of steps between laboratory formulations and manufacturing batches before trials at customer facilities; a dedicated PPG team now guides customers through product development stages and the transition into customer manufacturing; and the improvements allow the Saint-Just-en-Chaussée facility to produce all of PPG’s A&S technologies.
Jean-Marc Pinel, PPG technical director, automotive adhesives and sealants, said, ‘The site has played an instrumental role in strengthening PPG’s position as a reliable and innovative partner for automakers. Our support to customers from start to finish is unmatched in the industry and will allow us to continue to grow both in Europe and globally.’
