Infomercial from Mitsuba Systems     EFFICIENCY METER               For more Mitsuba products information please visit  www.powdergun.com OR Contact Us: MITSUBA SYSTEMS (I) PVT. LTD., 34/H, Laxmi Industrial Estate, New Link Road, Andheri (W), Mumbai– 400 053. INDIA Tel:  0091-22-2631 8633/2633 4735/56924151/52/53/54      Fax:  0091-22-56924154. Email:   mitsuba@vsnl.com

International Women's Day
International Women's Day (8 March) is an occasion marked by women's groups around the world. This date is also commemorated at the United Nations and is designated in many countries as a national holiday. There are several women who are active in the field of powder coating in India and abroad. We had a short  interview with Ms Jayanthi Prakash of Laxmi Engineering Supplies Bangalore.

Telling about her business Ms Jayanthi Prakash said "Lakshmi Engineering Supplies has been involved in the Distribution business handling Hawcoplast Powder Paints of Asian Paints Industrial Coatings Limited for the past 15 years. We cater to big Business Houses in and around Bangalore and Karnataka."

When asked Does being women make it difficult for you to move around in this male dominated business? she said," Initially I did find it hard to survive in this male dominated business, but with grit and determination I have come out successful in my Endeavour. My husband, who is an Engineer is a pillar of strength and has bestowed his full support in making this business venture a Success.".

Ms Jayanthi also appreciated the role of "India Powder Coating". she said, "I am pleased to note in your Newsletter that you are honoring women entrepreneurs engaged in Powder Coating on Internationals Women's Day"

Asian Paints builds total water mgmt centre in Mumbai
Water scarcity is emerging as a major issue confronting mega-cities like Mumbai. Asian Paints, India’s largest paint company has taken a huge stride towards promoting the cause of total water management by giving the city (and neighboring districts like Thane) its first Total Water Management (TWM) Centre.

The Honorable BMC Commissioner Johny Joseph (IAS), formally inaugurated the centre, which is located in the premises of Asian Paints manufacturing facility at Bhandup.

While inaugurating the centre, the honorable Commissioner highlighted the need for making water conservation a movement in the city and advocated Rain Water Harvesting (RWH) as the need of the hour to rescue Mumbai from a water crisis in near future. The TWM centre is open to all institutions, housing societies, NGOs, manufacturing facilities or any concerned citizen.<more>


Partner Country India
HANNOVER MESSE provides a cutting-edge venue for industrial nations all over the world to showcase their talents. It is the leading annual event for establishing new contacts and reinforcing existing ones at national, European, and international level and is the world's most important technology event for top decision-makers and opinion formers.

Following the enormous success of Russia's participation in 2005, HANNOVER MESSE will be presenting India - one of the world's strongest growth markets - as its partner country for 2006.

Partner country India will offer visitors the perfect opportunity to establish excellent business contacts, pave the way for cooperation agreements and conclude business deals that have their sights firmly set on the future.<more>

DuPont Paint Selected for ATMs in India
DuPont India was recently recognized as the “exclusive and preferred supplier” by National Cash Register Corporation (NCR) USA for their automated teller machines in India. DuPont Refinish Paints developed 41 colors for NCR, the number one automated teller machine manufacturer in the world. DuPont India also was awarded the “Certificate of Merit” for “Speedy Color Customization Process” at the NCR 2005 Supplier Conference.

DuPont Performance Coatings had previously supplied paints for ATM machines imported into India based on individual machine needs. Custom formulations were then provided by DuPont Refinish based on corporate identity standards (colors) of national and multi-national banks.

NCR then awarded DuPont Performance Coatings the “color customization” program to provide exacting service support to vendors who manufacture the steel and plastic parts for their ATM machines. The DuPont Refinish team of Srinivasan, Lalit Palav and Vikram Hande and jobbers from Bangalore and Pondicherry provided valued support to NCR operations.

Cytec Announces Fourth Quarter and Full Year Results; Full Year 2006 Outlook Provided
WEST PATERSON, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 9, 2006--Cytec Industries Inc. (NYSE:CYT) announced today net earnings available to common stockholders for the fourth quarter of 2005 of $18.4 million or $0.39 per diluted share on net sales of $788 million. Included in the quarter is a $2.6 million or $0.05 per diluted share gain related to a favorable tax development in an international jurisdiction and restructuring charges and integration costs of $14.1 million and $0.2 million, respectively (after-tax $10.6 million or $0.22 per diluted share). Excluding these items, net earnings available to common stockholders were $26.4 million or $0.56 per diluted share. <more>

Paints industry to see buoyant growth in ’06
MUMBAI, FEB 19: The Rs 7,740-crore Indian paint industry is projected to grow to Rs 8,200 crore in 2006. The growth is expected to be primarily driven by the decorative paints segment on the back of increased consumer demand, according to industry experts. Demand for industrial coatings will also continue to be buoyant, experts said.
The Rs 4,150 crore decoratives paints business in India is expected to grow 10-12% in volumes, while the Rs 1,250 crore industrial coatings business is expected to grow in excess of 14% by value. Asian Paints is the market leader in decorative paints and Goodlass Nerolac is the leader in industrial paints.

Ashwin Dani, vice-chairman and managing director, Asian Paints, said, "The industrial paint industry has witnessed growth in the automotive and commercial vehicle segment over the past three years, which is expected to sustain. In decorative paints segment, our emphasis will be to continue to grow the market." <more>


Akzo Nobel paints itself a rosy future
Akzo Nobel, the Netherlands-based coatings maker, expects its business in China to nearly double in five years, driven largely by demand for finishing materials used on everything from wood furniture to city buildings.

Akzo Nobel’s ambitions for one of its top emerging markets will mainly focus on supplying a wide range of coating products for urban residences, heavy industry and finished product manufacturing, says Hans Wijers, chairman.<more>

Telecom & IT enclosures manufacturer completes a major capacity expansion to meet its customer's fast growing demand for its products
Hulasi Metals Pvt. Ltd. ( HMPL ), India is pleased to announce the successful completion of major capacity expansion project.

The company has added approx. 20,000 sq feet of production & warehousing area, one new powder coating line, one Amada ® Aries 255 CNC turret punch press and two Amada ® NC bending machines.

HMPL is now ready to meet its customers' increased requirements for telecom, IT and customized racks better. <more>

Berger picks Haryana for new plant
Calcutta, Feb. 1: Berger Paints India Ltd will set up a greenfield automotive paints plant in Haryana for passenger cars, two-wheelers and tractors. In the fist phase, the company will invest Rs 35 crore.

Berger has acquired the land for the project and is in the process of securing other statutory approvals.

The plant will be completed by December 2006 and become fully operational from January 2007 with a single shift production capacity of 500 kilolitres per month per shift.

Managing director Subir Bose said this would be the company’s eighth factory in India. Its other factories are two in Bengal, one each in Pondicherry, Goa, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh and the powder coating plant that was recently started in Jammu. <more>

Painting company earns nod of NASA
The wet and powder paints made by Excell Coatings in Cape Canaveral have stood up to saltwater and rain on patrol boats; dirt and grime on motorcycles; and sand and road debris on humvees for the Florida National Guard.

Being meticulous when spraying on Army greens and banana yellows or baking in a shiny teal for railings that would find a home at Space Coast Stadium has helped the company grow from two people in 1985 to 25 people now.

But it's Excell's work with the space program -- coating material-handling equipment that loads and unloads the space shuttle, solar arrays and crew compartments on the International Space Station -- that got the company a top accolade from NASA, the Space Flight Awareness Team Award.

The honor is given out to several companies a year, a fraction of the hundreds of subcontractors used by NASA and other prime contractors.

Boeing -- which employs 2,000 people locally related to work on the space station, shuttle engines and launching Delta rockets -- nominated Excell for going "above and beyond" its duties to support the space program.

Experts say winning such an award is a prestigious honor for any firm, and that's magnified further for a smaller operation. Having such awards on a company's resume could result in more work or the ability to go after higher bids.<more>


The Wood Coating Market
Designed to provide protective as well as aesthetically pleasing finishes to numerous indoor and outdoor wooden structures, wood coatings and preservatives are in large part linked to the construction and housing markets.

The current market for wood coatings and preservatives is being impacted by a variety of factors including a cautious economic outlook, rising interest rates, and subsequently a slow down in new housing starts, new home sales and remodeling projects versus where the market was three to five years ago, explained Jacquelyn Ferrara, director of marketing—Minwax and Formby’s, Sherwin-Williams Wood Care Products.<more>

Reichhold teams up with two Turkish companies
Less than a week after extending a production partnership in the Czech Republic, Durham resin manufacturer Reichhold Inc. said Tuesday it has formed a marketing alliance with two privately held Turkish companies.

Reichhold, which employs about 200 workers at its corporate headquarters in Durham, has partnered with chemical manufacturer Ege Kimya and chemical sales and distribution firm Prosim, both of which are based in Istanbul, Turkey. <more>

North American Powder Coatings Challenged to Maintain Growth, Profits
As one of the mature powder coatings markets, North America has struggled in recent years to maintain its momentum, according to a new study. Faced with a stagnant market since 2000, the North American powder coatings producers face many challenges to maintain growth and profitability in the period up to 2015.

The report, released earlier this month by Irfab Chemical Consultants, arrived at some striking conclusions. For example, in 2004, the powder coatings market in North America was around 440 M lbs. or 200,000 tonnes, and valued at more than $1 billion

Within the broader NAFTA region, Mexico is rapidly growing in importance for the powder coatings industry. <more>