BASF enters attractive Ugandan market with coil coatings
- Supplier for steel producer Roofings Rolling Mills
BASF is expanding its business in industrial coatings in the growth market of Africa. Since October 2013, the company has supplied coil coatings to Roofings Rolling Mills (RRM), located in Uganda. BASF and its technical service were also on hand when the new coil coating lines were put into operation.
RRM is part of the Roofings Group, East Africa’s largest steel producer. At its site in Namanve Industrial Park, RRM operates three production lines with an annual capacity of 240,000 metric tons. BASF has supplied a Pevicoat® mixing unit, based on site at RRM. The Pevicoat® unit is a computer-assisted paint mixing system that can mix any color and gloss level within a very short time.
“With RRM, we have succeeded in gaining an important long-term partner, which will allow us to continue to grow in this key region. Africa is an attractive market for our industrial coatings,” explained Phil Green, Business Development Manager BASF´s Coatings division. “For RRM, robust products with high quality and excellent service are crucial. Thanks to our team from Vanderbijlpark, we can guarantee this.” The coatings and the service are provided from BASF’s site in South Africa.
“The African market does play a key role not only in the BASF strategy, but especially in the future growth plans of the Industrial Coatings Solutions unit of BASF”, explains Nils Lessmann, BASF Business Manager Precoatings EMEA. The rise of African markets is a result of increasing population and urbanization rates as well as consumer spending, Therefore BASF aims to further expand the local presence in Africa and tap new long-term business potential.
Coil coatings are used to coat aluminum and steel coils before they are processed further into an array of different products in the construction, household appliance and automotive industries. These products range from refrigerators to building façades. Since the panels are stamped, rolled and joined, the coating has to be extremely flexible and elastic so that it does not flake off. At the same time, however, it has to meet the requirements for scratch resistance.
RRM has invested 125 million dollars in the site in Uganda, including for the coil coating line. The company also acquired technical support from its Japanese partner Yodogawa Steel Works and uses its technologies. Yodogawa Steel Works has produced coated coils for 75 years.
About the Coatings Division
In the Coatings Division, BASF 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 2012 the Coatings Division of the BASF Group achieved global sales of nearly €3 billion. The internet address is www.basf-coatings.com. You can download a copy of BASF customer magazine Coatings Partner from www.coatingspartner.com.
About BASF
BASF is the world’s leading chemical company: The Chemical Company. Its portfolio ranges from chemicals, plastics, performance products and crop protection products to oil and gas. We combine economic success with environmental protection and social responsibility. Through science and innovation, we enable our customers in nearly every industry to meet the current and future needs of society. Our products and solutions contribute to conserving resources, ensuring nutrition and improving quality of life. We have summed up this contribution in our corporate purpose: We create chemistry for a sustainable future. BASF had sales of €72.1 billion in 2012 and more than 110,000 employees as of the end of the year. BASF shares are traded on the stock exchanges in Frankfurt (BAS), London (BFA) and Zurich (AN). Further information on BASF is available on the Internet at www.basf.com.
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