The 34th Western Coatings Symposium & Show once again drew an impressive crowd to Las Vegas, NV. The biennial event attracted a record-breaking 1540 participants to the Paris Las Vegas Hotel and Convention Centre from October 20 through October 23. Those in attendance benefited from 160 exhibitors’ demonstrations of the latest coatings advances and the presentation of 110 technical papers, offered by 122 speakers in well-attended sessions. Additional highlights included student presentations and a wide range of networking opportunities.
The event began with a welcome reception sponsored by BASF and Azelis on Sunday, October 20, at Drai’s Nightclub. The event provided the opportunity to connect with coatings industry colleagues and to enjoy the entertainment. Attendees were treated to a Vintage Vegas theme with appearances from The Rat Pack and Marilyn Monroe.
Monday morning’s opening session began with a welcome from Eunice Leung, president of WCS and program co-chair from the Los Angeles Society for Coatings Technology (LASCT). Her greetings to attendees were followed by a presentation of the first-ever WCS Outstanding Service Award to Larry Teachout of Behr Process Corporation. He currently serves as the WCS technical program co-chair and has been contributing to the coatings industry since 1988. At the session, a 2018 Samson-Adler Distinguished Service Award was presented to James Calkin, retired vice president of the HORN Company. A stalwart supporter of the coatings industry, Calkin has been a member of the LASCT for 50 years, during which he served on the Society’s board of directors from 1987 to 1993 and as president from 1990 to 1991.
Monday’s keynote address was delivered by Dr. John Gilbert, chief research and development officer of Behr Process Corp. He presented insights on the theme, “People, Place, Process, and Products: The Inner Workings of Development Today.” Discussing the key enablers for product development in today’s environment, Gilbert said that he believes a good product development program is enhanced by people who have earned their doctorates. However, he stressed that creative and management skills are just as important; in fact, only 14% of his R&D team have earned a doctorate degree.
Gilbert provided the example of the redesign of his company’s new office space to demonstrate how a “place” can add to successful product development. Gilbert explained that the company was in favor of an open space concept with the management team located in the center of the building in the company’s laboratory. He stressed the importance of being easily accessible to the team.
He also emphasized the pros and cons of having a process in place, noting that a process brings order to chaos and garners management support for new ideas. However, he believes that sometimes uncontrolled chaos and undefined deadlines have their place. “For example, it’s hard to tell a manager what date you’ll discover a new invention,” he said.
A highlight of Monday afternoon was the Leadership Panel Discussion entitled, “Mergers & Acquisitions: Impact on You and Our Industry.” The panel included Sandeep Bhatt, president of DSM Coatings Resins for North America; Steve Waterman, vice president R&D—Product Development of Behr Paint Company; Denise Hartmann, senior vice president, Dispersions, Resins & Additives, North America at BASF; Hector Rodriguez, VP Business Segments & Strategy of Ravago Chemicals North America; and Gary Leroux, president and CEO of the Canadian Paint and Coatings Association.
Moderated by Greg Williams, section manager, Applied Research of Behr Paint Company, the panel addressed the ways in which their organizations have been impacted by mergers and acquisitions. Hartmann reported that BASF averages approximately 70 acquisitions each year. “Acquisitions that we’ve made over the last 10 years have changed our culture for the better and to focus more on the customers,” she said.
Leroux believes mergers and acquisitions will continue within the industry, but these present significant challenges to the Canadian market. “Market dominance is our biggest problem. Millions of dollars are being divested resulting in the consolidation of the market,” he explained. Rodriguez stressed the importance of finding balance between distributors and customers with as little disruption as possible during a merger. “The faster you can provide clarity, the better off everybody will be,” he said.
At the start of Tuesday’s session, Kevin O’Leary of Miller Paint Company received the 2019 Samson-Adler Award. O’Leary became an active member of the Pacific Northwest Society for Coatings Technology (PNWSCT) in 1982. He spent eight years on the Society’s board of directors, including two as president. O’Leary has chaired the Annual Portland Charity Classic for Make-A-Wish Foundation for the past 25 years, which has helped raise more than $105,000.
Bev Spears, a past-president of PNWSCT, was also presented with the WCS Outstanding Service Award. She was recognized for her many contributions to WCS and PNWSCT over the years and as being a pioneer who helped pave the way for the female leaders in the industry.
Award presentations were followed by a keynote address by Dr. Richard D. Jenkins, global group president for Arkema Coatings Resins. He offered insight on “Innovation in Relationships Between Coatings Companies, Suppliers and Co-Suppliers.” According to Jenkins, “Consolidation along the coatings value chain has reduced the flexibility and increased volatility and is not likely to reverse,” which is why he believes focus should be placed on more intimate supply chain collaboration. He said that pricing volatility in the industry has been accelerating since the new millennium. “Increased financial pressure should be offset by working smarter,” Jenkins added.
The student posters and presentations once again proved to be a popular highlight of the WCS. Winners of the 2019 Student Poster Competition included first-place recipient ($1200) Kristinza Tope from Arizona State University for her presentation, “Formation of Atomically Precise Surfaces Using Size-Selected Clusters.” Second place ($600) was awarded to Caleb Chang from Cal Poly SLO for presenting “Molecular Nanocomposite from LC Templating.” Third place ($300) was given to Heather B. Ehrgott for her presentation on “Synthesis and Characterization of Polymer-Grafted Cellulose Nanofibrils.”
WCS is a non-profit organization. All proceeds from registrations, exhibitions, and sponsorships are used to promote continued education and awareness of the newest technologies in the chemical and coatings industry. The 35th Western Coatings Symposium and Show will be held in 2021 in Las Vegas.
CoatingsTech | Vol. 16, No. 11 | November/December 2019