Pittsburgh-based PPG recently opened its $2.6 million center of excellence at its Quattordio, Italy, production site and innovation hub.
The center will increase the efficiency for automotive color development and application by combining color development and application in a single process. This will reduce the lead time for bringing new colors to market, optimizing costs and maximizing color performance.
“With this new facility, PPG will elevate its color development to a new level, utilizing digital tools to simplify and modernize the processes,” Federico Menta, PPG global director, decorative business, Automotive Coatings, said. It is also a critical enabler to fulfill our customer expectations in terms of speed, accuracy and quality.”
The center will use artificial intelligence tools in the color development and quality control processes. A statistical and machine learning tool will reduce the number of color adjustment steps, which will reduce costs and cycle time during the development of basecoats and colored products.
“This project reflects PPG’s ambition to be the first-choice partner to meet customers’ evolving needs for innovative paints and coatings and provide industry-leading solutions that provide productivity and sustainability benefits,” Isabella Ercole, PPG operations director EMEA, Industrial Coatings segment, said.
Quattordio, part of PPG Automotive Coatings, contains a styling center for the study and development of new automotive colors.