BASF opens new Shanghai training center for automotive spray painters

• Booming automotive market creates demand for spray painters and body shop staff

Shanghai / Muenster. BASF Coatings has opened a new training center in Shanghai to meet the burgeoning demand for automotive spray painting professionals and body shop staff. The training center will further strengthen BASF Coatings’ competencies in providing enhanced refinish coatings solutions – high quality products bundled with the best application techniques and training.

“These days, repairing damage to a car's finish is a highly complex process. It takes constant training at all levels to achieve perfect results in just the wink of an eye, with spray gun in hand. The opening of this international standard training center will allow us to further support the professional development of spray painters and body shop staff in China, and has demonstrated our commitment to supporting after-sales networks in China,” said Hans-Juergen Becker, the head of BASF Coatings International Trade (Shanghai) Co. Ltd.

The new Refinish Competence Center in Shanghai provides training for spray painters from authorized service centers and body shops working with leading distributors. Successful participants learn the best techniques for painting and repairing car brands such as Mercedes Benz, Audi, Volkswagen, and Peugeot Citroen, as well as other leading brands. Courses last for four days each and range from beginning spray gun use to advanced color matching. Faculty of the center include a permanent trainer as well as a BASF Coatings national trainer.

Attendees of the inaugural courses at the Center, which is equipped with the latest spray guns and ovens, have provided positive feedback, including this comment from a SVW 4S shop painter: "I am very satisfied with this training; it greatly improved my knowledge of color matching." The Center can train up to 600 specialists per year.

Following the opening of training centers in Beijing, Shenyang and Guangzhou, it is BASF Coatings' fourth Refinish Competence Center in China. BASF Coatings now has over 47 Refinish Competence Centers worldwide, reflecting the rapidly growing automotive industry, both in China and the rest of the world. Statistics from the Shanghai Bureau of Transportation shows that the number of auto repair chain stores in the city established through MLS, partnership, authorized partnership, joint ventures and other forms had reached 350 by mid-2007, and is growing rapidly . There are also hundreds of independent body shops, serving a booming population of cars in the city. In Shanghai alone, the number of individual passenger cars had already reached 410,000 by the end of 2006 and the number of civil passenger cars reached 620,000. The newly established Center will serve this automotive sector and the surrounding region as well.

About BASF Coatings
BASF Coatings, the Coatings Division of the BASF Group, develops, produces and markets a high-quality range of innovative automotive OEM coatings, automotive refinishes and industrial coatings as well as decorative paints. BASF has significant market positions in the Coatings sector in Europe, North America, South America and the Asia/Pacific region. In 2007 BASF Coatings achieved global sales of almost 2.6 billion euros. The internet address of BASF Coatings is www.basf-coatings.com

About BASF
BASF is the world’s leading chemical company: The Chemical Company. Its portfolio ranges from oil and gas to chemicals, plastics, performance products, agricultural products, and fine chemicals. As a reliable partner, BASF helps its customers in virtually all industries to be more successful. With its high-value products and intelligent solutions, BASF plays an important role in finding answers to global challenges such as climate protection, energy efficiency, nutrition, and mobility. BASF has more than 95,000 employees and posted sales of almost €58 billion in 2007. Further information on BASF is available on the Internet at www.basf.com.

BASF has been a committed partner to Greater China since 1885. It is one of the biggest foreign investors in the Chinese chemical industry. The company currently has more than 6,000 employees and operates 23 BASF wholly owned subsidiaries and 10 BASF joint ventures. In 2007, BASF achieved sales of about €4.4 billion in Greater China. For further information, please visit www.greater-china.basf.com.

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