Joint product search for coating formulations

Essen, Germany. More market transparency, workload reduction for formulators, and the start of an industry-wide network: the companies Evonik, Lanxess, and Synthomer will present the foundation of a unique product search for the coatings industry at the American Coatings Show from April 5-7, 2022. The COATINO® formulation network will offer specialty additives from Evonik, polymer resin binders and dispersions from Synthomer, and iron oxide pigments from Lanxess, with products from other suppliers to follow. A new type of search allows users to find products by their material class, and for the first time, also by their regulatory properties.

"COATINO® is not just a material database, but a comprehensive platform providing detailed information and helpful advice about formulations for coatings and inks," explains Gaetano Blanda, head of the Coating Additives business line at Evonik. "This is precisely the unique selling point of our formulation network: users should be able to filter, select, and integrate all the relevant products into their desired formulation, tailored to their specific requirements."

At  www.coatino.com, users can choose between different raw material classes and manufacturers, but also set filters to search for the essential product properties they require: Food contact, eco-label, VOC content or regional availability are just a few of the possible filter criteria that can be applied across the raw the materials. In the next step, the user will get access to detailed product information such as technical, regulatory or safety data sheets. There is also the option of easily ordering free samples or contacting the manufacturer directly. Once the desired product has been found, COATINO® provides guiding formulations or can even calculate completely new formulations. The initial products from Evonik Coating Additives, Lanxess and Synthomer will also be complemented by those from other raw material manufacturers. In addition to additives, binders, and pigments, in the future other materials like fillers for example will also be included in the network.

"COATINO® consistently takes the user by the hand when selecting suitable raw materials for creating targeted formulations," says Daniela Schmitt, Market Segment Manager Coatings at Lanxess' Inorganic Pigments Business Unit. "The automated recommendation of suitable iron oxide pigments with their specific product properties in coatings applications is a good example of this: COATINO® does not leave customers alone with the products but provides concrete assistance in the application."

A total of 15 companies already belong to the formulation network and the aim is to transparently bundle all the information needed to formulate the optimum coating easily in one single space. The partners do not only include raw material producers, but also hardware and equipment manufacturers, as well as technology and media companies. In this way, COATINO® creates a self-contained ecosystem that benefits the entire coatings industry.

"The industry is challenged to map all the different classes of raw materials to bring about successful formulations. COATINO® is the first online platform to do this in a meaningful way and then to link suppliers together with each other," says Raymond Somich, Global Marketing Director from Synthomer. "In addition to the common regulatory challenges, we are already working on other topics such as assessing the sustainability of products and providing transparent classification.  We are thinking about how we can improve the customer experience to simplify formulating design work and help our customers find solutions faster.”

Evonik Coating Additives' new sustainability strategy is already contributing to this endeavor: Evonik Coating Additives not only evaluates the environmental footprint of its specialty additives, but also looks at their environmental impact throughout the whole value chain. Additional measures therefore include a clear focus on the ecological handprint, continuous review of its own product portfolio using Portfolio Sustainability Assessments (PSA), and evaluation by rating agencies such as MSCI or EcoVadis. For the new formulation network, this consideration is now being expanded and discussed jointly with the COATINO® partners.

The new product search marks the starting signal for many new digital applications to benefit the coatings industry. Evonik Coating Additives is already in talks with numerous other companies worldwide to add further products, data, and expertise to the network. Basically, any company that contributes to coating formulations with its solutions is welcome to join the COATINO® formulation network.