10 June 2026 Seminars

Paint production often relies on corrections at the end of the manufacturing process, when the complexity of the product is high, making them very tedious and costly. ORONTEC is focused on early process control and offers a portfolio of modern measurement devices aimed at preventing error propagation along the production process to increase productivity. We want you to rethink your production processes! The presentation will demonstrate this philosophy with three examples:

• Q-Chain® LCM, a liquid color measurement device to monitor the milling process of pigment pastes; milling times can be reduced by up to 25%, while simultaneously eliminating the need for tinting steps later in the process
• MagnoMeter XRS®, a device that is sensitive to interactions at liquid-solid interfaces (e.g. pigment-additive). We will demonstrate its use in the quality control of coatings, e.g. stability / compatibility of pigment pastes or the consistency of incoming raw materials as well as of batch-to-batch production
• Delcor, a new, non-destructive method to evaluate corrosion test panels. Benefits: higher reproducibility/accuracy; the re-usability of test panels leads to savings in test chamber space, material, energy and waste

As the European coatings industry moves toward a more sustainable, design-driven, and experience-oriented future, innovation must extend beyond just performance. Solutions must also connect with the evolving visual and tactile expectations of consumer interests.

In this presentation Lorama Group will highlight how our sustainable solutions, colourants, and additive technologies support manufacturers in anticipating Colour, Material & Finish (CMF) trends for 2026–2027. Through a lens of market insight and design forecasting, we’ll explore key directional shifts in colour and surface aesthetics and pair complimentary solutions to demonstrate how companies can align with these consumer demands.

Attendees will gain perspective on how marketing foresight and materials innovation can intersect, helping formulators and brand owners develop coatings that not only perform but inspire.

UV radiation damages polymeric coating systems and substrates. UV Absorber additives are often included in coating formulations for protection. Traditional organic UV absorbers are consumed by exposure to solar radiation, limiting the lifetime of the coating. In contrast, inorganic UV absorbers are not consumed in situ, so extending the coating lifetime. Some inorganic UV absorbers are photoactive, generating radicals which degrade the coating.
Advanced inorganic UV absorbers based on cerium oxide nanoparticles are not photoactive and will not degrade the coating. Water and solvent based dispersions, both with uniform small particle size, allow transparency in coating films.

The coatings industry continues to face ever-increasing legislative pressure, driven by concerns surrounding health, the environment, and product safety.  While well-intended and usually necessary, it can have unintended consequences and restrict long-established products, introducing novel challenges for formulators.  Recent case studies include microplastics in seed coatings, biocide labelling, Titanium dioxide classification, and PFAS.  This fast-paced regulatory landscape requires inventive formulating to deliver solutions and high-quality products to customers.  The industry constantly evolves and roles surrounding regulation are more critical than ever.  This evolution also means that there is an increasing requirement for collaborations between industry and academia to negotiate these regulatory constraints. This paper aims to highlight formulating challenges using recent examples driven by regulatory changes.

Consistent colour delivery in coatings plays a critical role in customer satisfaction, perceived quality, production efficiency, and overall brand strength. Robust colour management practices enable paint and coatings manufacturers to achieve reliable colour consistency across all touchpoints, improving efficiency, fostering customer confidence and cohesion in brand representation. This presentation examines approaches to standardizing colour throughout the entire value chain—from manufacturing and quality control to digital channels such as e-commerce—and highlights practical methods for facilitating effective, end-to-end colour management.

Automotive clearcoats are expected to deliver long-lasting gloss and protection, even under frequent mechanical stress from washing and everyday use. Traditional approaches to improving scratch resistance rely on making the coating harder through increased crosslinking, but this strategy reaches natural limits of carbon-carbon bond and can make the coating brittle. Hard particles such as silica are another option, yet they typically distribute evenly throughout the film, which means a high amount is needed before the surface performance improves.

We introduce a new approach that allows silica to move preferentially toward the surface during film formation. By pairing the particles with a specially designed carrier resin, the additive becomes surface-active, enabling stronger scratch and mar resistance at lower loadings and cost-effective option. This translates directly into better durability during car washes, improved resistance to everyday rubbing or contact, and enhanced protection against dirt accumulation and graffiti.

Because the carrier-resin concept can be applied to other functional materials, it opens new opportunities for developing clearcoats with targeted and more efficient surface performance.

When the Formulation Hits the Market: Delivering Sustainable Coatings Without Losing Performance or Trust, explores the gap between formulated performance and real-world application. Drawing on perspectives from raw material suppliers, technical service teams, and end users, it addresses performance gaps in low-VOC and PFAS-free systems and how companies manage customer trust when sustainability trade-offs become visible in the field.

This workshop examines what happens after sustainable coating formulations move beyond decision-making and into real-world use during production, application, and long-term performance.

It highlights a common gap: products that meet sustainability and regulatory goals on paper can face unexpected challenges when scaled up or applied in the field. The focus is on practical realities such as performance inconsistencies, application variability, durability concerns, and how these issues affect customer trust, warranties, and liability.

The session opens with a “reality check,” outlining where promising formulations often fall short once deployed, and emphasising the disconnect between laboratory results and real-world conditions. It then moves into case-led perspectives, where contributors share first hand experiences covering both successes and challenges to illustrate how expectations and limitations play out in practice.

A panel discussion explores key tensions, including performance gaps in newer sustainable systems, the balance between durability and sustainability claims, and the challenges of maintaining quality and consistency during application. It also addresses how companies communicate with customers and manage risk when trade-offs become visible.

The workshop concludes with an interactive problem-solving session, where participants bring real scenarios and receive practical, experience-based advice. Overall, the session is designed to help organisations better manage the transition from formulation to market, ensuring sustainable coatings perform reliably while maintaining trust.