In November, the long-awaited Chemistry and Automotive conference was held at Metropolo by Golden Tulip - a modern conference centre. It was the 7th edition of this international conference, which attracted the attention of representatives of numerous leading automotive and automotive-related companies, scientists, manufacturers of chemical materials, equipment as well as local and international press.
Over 100 participants, 2 days filled with speeches, demonstrations of modern equipment and solutions - with the entire event ending with panel discussions - were a recipe for a successful conference.
Maybe it is time for hybrids?
The opening speech was given by Tomasz Banaszak and Marcin Nadera from the CX80 company, who talked about hybrid adhesives in the automotive and railway industries. According to the representatives of this company, many years of experience allow them to tailor products to the individual needs of customers. CX80 hybrid adhesives are odourless, safe for workers, environmentally-friendly, free of solvents, tin and other harmful substances. They guaranteed that they can be used without primers, which certainly gives them a big advantage over other systems. Currently, thanks to the scientific cooperation with the Poznan University of Technology and the West Pomeranian University of Technology, a range of four new products was developed, which were proudly demonstrated during the speech.
Why plastics and why is it so difficult to paint them?
This topic was covered by Goksin Bozdogan from Kansai Altan, who gave a speech entitled "Challenges and Bottlenecks in Painting of Automotive Plastics". Specialists working in the automotive and railway industries deal with a wide range of plastics with different properties on a daily basis. The speaker discussed changes in the materials used in the automotive industry over the last years, various applications of plastics, and presented a list of challenges and bottlenecks related to painting plastics as well as methods for dealing with them. It was an extremely valuable speech for those with hands-on experience in painting such parts - both inside and outside cars.
Is humankind losing their exclusive rights to make decisions?
Without doubt, the third speech met with a lively discussion of the participants. Phil Coady from SPOSEA B.V, which deals with data and software in a broad sense, gave a speech entitled "Predictive smart analytics utilizing machine learning and Artificial Intelligence". The participants had a chance to learn more about artificial intelligence, which - given the advances in science - is and will be increasingly present in every field of industry. It is data that are the driving force of the industry and businesses and it is humans that have to try to catch up with the ever-developing technology and keep acquiring new skills. Humans and technology will surely be two different - however coexisting - worlds in the future.
Modelling and simulations as the best solution for bond design
The next speech was given by Tobias Waffenschmidt, Eng., PhD, from 3M - "Characterization, Modeling and Simulation of Structural Adhesives and Adhesive Tapes". 3M puts great emphasis on scientific research, to which it allocates significant re-sources. Investments in research and development constitute 6% of its activity, which makes 3M a leader in this field. The speaker presented advantages of adhesive systems, in particular of materials having various properties as well as numerical analyses of bonds of this type. Such analyses are one of the best tools for proper bond design and evaluation. In addition, they allow possible defects and changes to bonding strength over time to be predicted.
Large-scale production? How about automatic quality control?
In the next speech "Industry 4.0 - robotic control of coatings", Tomasz Więckowski from Eurotom presented an innovative solution for automatic paint coating quality measurement - Wave Scan Robotic. Unlike manual devices, this device measures e.g. paint thick-ness using ultrasound as well as sparkle and grainness of a metallic pigment directly on the production line. As a result, a high repeatability of results is achieved, human errors are eliminated, and a large number of measuring points and their averages is ensured. The device is very accurate thanks to the LED system.
Gluing coverings? How about using PSA tape?
Damian Rogala from Converting Company giving a speech entitled "Application of PSA in gluing coverings in public transport vehicles - ecology, economy, work safety". Converting Company is a renowned manufacturer of adhesive materials for strate-gic customers from automotive, transport, and related industries. Types, technologies, and application of pressure-sensitive tapes were demonstrated. PSA adhesive materials are widely used in the automotive, railway, and road industries and wherev-er emphasis is placed on the environment, shortening production processes, and reducing operating costs in addition to mate-rial strength.
How about giving one-layer paints a try?
The next speech entitled "NOVOL - Direct to Metal Topcoat - one-layer paint systems" was given by Andrzej Tyrka from Novol - a leading manufacturer of industrial paints in Poland, whose products are exported to nearly 60 countries worldwide. The comparison of the product by Novol - gruntoemalia [paint and primer in one] with an alkyd surface coating system - was demonstrated. The new Novorust product has a much shorter drying time, high UV resistance, high anti-corrosion properties, and lower material consumption, which means a significant reduction of operating costs and VOC emissions. However, Novol did not stop manufacturing alkyd systems because they are still used in some countries.
You can choose between powder or liquid paint.
"Painting innovations - Coating Systems for Car Components" was the title of the speech delivered by Jan Herdegen and Peter Luckmann from Karl Worwag Lack-und Farbenfabrik. Flagship solutions for both wet painting and powder coating were presented, with particular attention being paid to braking system parts, various types of covers, and parts of vehicles including the suspension and chassis. It was shown how accurately paint can be applied wherever necessary. All products that were presented have high mechanical, anti-corrosion, and chemical resistance.
And now something for the environment, or a concern for clean air.
The first day of the conference ended with a speech by Zeller+Gmelin&CO.KG entitled "Clean Air Solutions". Paweł Tarnawski demonstrated solutions in the field of cleaning car paint shops and keeping them clean. A wide range of options available allow such solutions to be adapted to the needs of all paint shops, with a simultaneous concern for the environment. They also include chemical flushing agents, which - pursuant to EU's emissions directives - are constantly being improved, while their properties were discussed in detail during the speech.
In addition to the appropriate product quality, employees' qualifications are most important
The 2nd day of the conference was opened by Przemysław Kuśmierek from Bodo Müller Chemie, who gave a speech entitled "A practical approach to the introduction of bonding standards in the plant (DIN 6701, DIN 2304)", in which he demonstrated possibilities of training sessions and courses for persons responsible for bonding and how to evaluate their skills (production training for adhesive bonders and European Adhesive Specialist training), certification of plants and employees, and audits. The issue of certification and classification of adhesive bonds was also addressed.
Powder coatings and their wide application
The theoretical part of the conference ended with a speech by Konrad Bączek from AkzoNobel entitled "The latest trends and technologies used in powder coatings at the automotive industry". This company is one of the first to stop using heavy metals while at the same time maintaining very long life of powder coatings. The use of AkzoNobel powder coatings in the automotive industry is very versatile and covers almost all vehicle parts starting from roof rails, whose powder coating leads to a considerable re-duction of production costs, and ending up with truck cabins. In addition, a black powder coating with a gloss of over 90%, which successfully replaces the method of applying liquid paint three times, was demonstrated. As an achievement outside the automotive industry, the well-known Nord Stream system was demonstrated, to which the AkzoNobel powder coating was also applied.
What will the industry be up against in the near future?
The end of the conference saw panel discussions with the participation of experts, representatives of vehicle manufacturers, and suppliers of paints, films, and adhesives. The discussions were very lively and tackled topics related to the future of painting and adhesive systems, during which different and frequently opposing views clashed. What is more, the audience asked additional and often tricky questions, to which the speakers tried to provide exhaustive answers although doing so was difficult at times. The answer to the question of the direction in which the industry will go was not clear-cut. Will it be dominated by new generations of liquid paints or powder coatings or will films get into a large portion of the market? No definite answer was found for adhesive systems either. The interest in the topic and participants' responses revealed that this form of discussion should be continued as an additional way of deepening knowledge and voicing opinions.
Undoubtedly, the conference was a very successful one and filled with lots of fresh information from the chemical sector intended for the automotive and railway industries. In anonymous questionnaires, the participants of the conference agreed that they were looking forward to the next editions of the conference, preferably in a year's time already.
On the request of participants, the next conference will be organized in Wroclaw, on September 17 - 18, 2020, on which of course please fill invited.