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Refinish expert from North America wins two awards in international R-M Best Painter contest
SOUTHFIELD, MI, October 10, 2016 – Canadian automotive refinish painter, Myles Veljacic, took home third place and was named the most sustainable painter in the international R-M Best Painter Contest. The Coquitlam, British Columbia, native was presented the awards on September 29 in Clermont, France.
“This contest encourages young automotive refinish painters to be the best by learning to deliver excellence in quality, innovation, efficiency and to accomplish it sustainably,” said Dan Bihlmeyer, BASF Marketing and New Business Development Manager, North America. “As our first time participating, Myles did an outstanding job representing our region.”
Over three days, each participant demonstrated their mastery of collision repair tasks including: preparation, blending, color retrieval, color reading, paint masking, and health and safety. All participants were required to be under 30 years of age and demonstrate a thorough understanding of a variety of paint-related products.
“It was an unbelievable experience,” said Veljacic. “The competition was very tight. I was extremely happy to keep up with 14 of the best painters in the industry.”
Veljacic has worked for Richmond Auto Body in Richmond, British Columbia, for eight years.
Fifteen painters from 15 countries participated in the 12th annual contest. Berry Kooijman of the Netherlands came in first place and Genya Yokota from Japan won second place.
R-M Best Painter business partners included EMM, 3M, SATA, DeVillbiss and Rupes.
Download photo on right, suggested caption: Myles Veljacic, second from left, proudly displays his third place trophy at the R-M Best Painter awards ceremony in Clermont, France. Next to Myles is first place winner, Berry Kooijman from the Netherlands and Genya Yokota from Japan who won second place. Standing behind the winners are (from left to right) Dan Bihlmeyer, BASF Marketing and New Business Development Manager; Jan Ravenstijn, BASF Vice President, Marketing, Automotive Refinish Coatings Solutions, Europe; Katja Scharpwinkel, BASF Senior Vice President, Automotive Refinish Coatings Solutions, Europe and Rene Lang, BASF Vice President, Sales, Automotive Refinish Coatings Solutions, Europe.
About BASF Automotive Refinish
BASF's Automotive Refinish business makes and markets coatings for the collision repair, commercial fleet and automotive specialty markets. Its paint products are supported by technical training programs, advanced color information systems and business management and planning tools. For more information visit www.basfrefinish.com
About BASF
BASF Corporation, headquartered in Florham Park, New Jersey, is the North American affiliate of BASF SE, Ludwigshafen, Germany. BASF has nearly 17,500 employees in North America, and had sales of $17.4 billion in 2015. For more information about BASF’s North American operations, visit www.basf.us.
At BASF, we create chemistry for a sustainable future. We combine economic success with environmental protection and social responsibility. The approximately 112,000 employees in the BASF Group work on contributing to the success of our customers in nearly all sectors and almost every country in the world. Our portfolio is organized into five segments: Chemicals, Performance Products, Functional Materials & Solutions, Agricultural Solutions and Oil & Gas. BASF generated sales of more than €70 billion in 2015. BASF shares are traded on the stock exchanges in Frankfurt (BAS), London (BFA) and Zurich (AN). Further information at www.basf.com.
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