Covered Autumn 2023

COVERED Autumn 2023

BCF celebrates its first female president in 111-year history coatings.org.uk

Associate

02 Covered Autumn 2023

CONTENTS

Editorial

03

Sharon Harte: BCF’s incoming 35th President

04

Meet our new Regulatory & Sustainability team

06

It’s tough out there!

08

BCF consults on first edition of its 2050 Net Zero roadmap with members

10

PaintCare update

11

Road to Net Zero Seminar

12

Defra delays packaging EPR deadline until 2025

14

Raising the coatings industry profile

15

Guest blog: Unintended consequences

16

In-can preservation of water-based paints 17

Whilst every care has been taken in compiling this publication, and the statements contained herein are believed to be correct, the publishers and the promoters will not accept responsibility for any inaccuracies.

Reproduction of any part of this publication without permission is strictly forbidden.

BCF make no recommendation in respect of any of the advertisers, and no recommendation may be implied by way of the presence of their advertisements.

British Coatings Federation Ltd Spectra House, Westwood Way Westwood Business Park Coventry, CV4 8HS Email: info@bcf.co.uk Website: coatings.org.uk Telephone: 02476 935 390 Registered in England 745398 This publication has been produced with due consideration to the environment, and has been printed by a carbon balanced printer.

Paper used for this publication has been recycled - please recycle again after reading.

Joint industry effort to help consumers be more sustainable when painting

18

BCF produces new poster to advocate for best practice in bodyshops

19

Challenging spurious green claims

20

The latest on titanium dioxide

21

BCF lobbying update

22

Awards 2023 shortlist announced

24

Annual Conference discusses key sector issues

26

Geoff Mackrill awarded coatings industry’s Silver Medal

27

BCF celebrates 10 years working with Community Heartbeat Trust at third annual Charity Cycle

28

New members

33

Obituary

37

BCF’s new Office Manager

38

Upcoming events and meetings

39

Covered Autumn 2023 01

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EDI TOR IAL

By Tom Bowtell Chief Executive Officer of the BCF

Since the last issue, we’ve hired, and hopefully you’ve had a chance to meet Kathryn, Kerry and Patricia, who all joined us in the Spring. Together with Ciara and David, we now have a really strong and wellresourced team, to support you on regulatory affairs, lobbying and sustainability, which are the three key topics members look to us for. You can read more about the new starters on page six.

has created what I think is a really strong plan, which you can read all about on page ten.

There is a lot going on this Autumn, starting with the BCF 2023 Awards, which will be taking place later in October, about the time this issue goes to press. See page 24 for details, and good luck to all the finalists!

We hope to be getting closer to signing off the launch of PaintCare later this year as well, so more news on that next time, and we’ll be launching some new indicatives on equity, diversity and inclusion, which the BCF board will be working on at their November meeting.

After that, we will be launching our Net Zero Roadmap at a special Road to Net Zero seminar in November, which will focus on those elusive scope 3 emissions.

This is a major initiative for the industry, and our new Sustainability Manager, Patricia,

Our Net Zero Roadmap will also be the focus of our Parliamentary event in December, where the key messages on why our sector is so important and valuable will be showcased in a new report being launched to politicians and policy makers, based on our work with Hanover.

Elsewhere in this issue, we’ll look back on a really successful charity bike ride in June, which raised over £20,000 for the Community Heartbeat Trust, and our Conference in May, where

we celebrated Geoff Mackrill’s Silver Medal, and Guy Williams handed over the BCF Presidency to Sharon Harte from Dacrylate.

We’ve got a Q&A with our first female President on page four.

I’d like to highlight the brilliant but also very funny brush cleaning video that we’ve had made together with the PDA and Bagnalls – kudos to Sophie in our marketing team, who got it finished just before going off on maternity leave! See page 18 for a link to watch. Congratulations to Sophie on becoming a mum to her little girl in September, it’s such fantastic news.

Finally, I’d like to thank Nadine Saxon for all she’s done for the BCF in the last six years – I’m gutted to be losing her, but I’m also proud we continue to develop and grow talented people in the team, and I’d like to wish her all the best in the future.

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Sharon Harte: BCF’s incoming 35th President BCF’s 2023 Annual Conference in May marked the close of previous BCF President Guy Williams’ two-year tenure, with the baton being passed to incoming President, Sharon Harte of Dacrylate Paints.

Sharon becomes the first female President of the BCF – or its predecessor organisations – in its 111-year history.

We caught up with Sharon to discuss how she felt about her new appointment and upcoming work as BCF’s President.

How do you feel about becoming the first female president of the Federation?

I am honoured to be taking on the position of President of the British Coatings Federation obviously. The opportunity to support and lead an award-winning and progressive Federation with a committed membership, an outstanding team of exceptional and passionate staff talent reinforced through a highly accomplished board and nonexec committee is a unique opportunity in anyone’s career.

That said, I look forward to the day when a woman being elected President of a manufacturing trade organisation is no longer news or noteworthy by virtue of its uniqueness and gender association.

economy. I look forward to playing my role in promoting this value and the importance of the overall sector to the UK economy – some £4 billion a year and employing over 15,000 people.

I am also passionate in my advocacy for gender parity and inclusivity in

04 Covered Autumn 2023

It shows that there are women in senior roles in the sector and that positions of leadership are increasingly open to them. I was elected not because I am a woman, but because I was a long-standing board member of the BCF and my colleagues saw me as someone to help drive through the organisation’s and sector’s priorities for the next few years. I hope that as more women take more senior and visible leadership roles it will inspire even more young women to enter the industry. There are great careers to be had and made.

What are your priorities for your time in office?

Why do you think you were selected for the role?

I have worked in the coatings sector for a decade, having previously worked in print and broadcast media, and have been a BCF Board member for a large proportion of that time. As a business leader from the SME sector, I am passionate about UK manufacturing and the broader coatings industry is a vital but unseen part of our national

What do you think your achievement says about the position of women in the sector?

manufacturing. I am determined we will progress the Federation’s wider ED&I goals; identify, inspire and train the workforce of the future; and further both the Federation’s and the sector’s environmental goals.

To continue the work of my predecessors to drive and deliver exceptional member value and maintain exceptional member satisfaction levels. This has been achieved by supporting members on the issues that matter most to them.

In the last few years, this has been achieved by helping them through the myriad of legislative and regulatory challenges (following regulatory divergence from the EU), on the back of Covid-19 and in generally challenging economic times.

I also want to make sure more people know the importance of coatings in everyday life. Our members’ products are everywhere: they protect, enrich and enhance the beauty of the world around us, as well as enabling communication and self-expression.

They prevent decay and corrosion and make products last longer.

They have a massive role to play in improved sustainability. We have a huge success story as an industry and I want us to shout louder about our positive impact on the world around us.

increasingly employing more women in a variety of jobs, with many now on their own Boards.

the sector and feel confident about progressing in their careers. It is a virtuous circle. It is about normalising the situation. However, there is still more to be done to encourage more young women to take STEM subjects at school and university to widen the pool of talent available for some of the more technical jobs. This outreach is something BCF is looking to work on over the coming year.

What needs to be done to recruit more women to the sector and help them advance when they get there?

Part of the answer is the visibility of women in key roles in the sector already. BCF, for instance, has three regulatory affairs managers and a sustainability manager, all of them women, all of them with science backgrounds. The BCF Board has more women on it than ever before, and our member companies are

The more this is seen and known the more likely it is women will apply to enter

Sharon with some of her team at Dacrylate Paints

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MEET OUR NEW REGULATORY & SUSTAINABILITY TEAM

CIARA DEMPSEY Regulatory Affairs Manager

The BCF have recently completed the hire of three new members of staff: Kathryn Tearle and Kerry McLoughlin have both joined BCF as Regulatory Affairs Managers, and Patricia Durany-Fernandez has been appointed as BCF’s firstever Sustainability Manager. They will work alongside Ciara Dempsey (Regulatory Manager) and David Park (Public Affairs Manager) in leading the way forward in Regulatory, Sustainability and Public Affairs for the paints, coatings, printing inks and wallcovering sectors.

How do the ‘Regulatory and Sustainability’ team support BCF members?

Regulatory Affairs: We support our members by ensuring we keep up to date with the latest UK and EU legislation which is relevant to our sector and inform our members promptly of any changes/updates via written communication, webinars, training and meetings.

We also offer member support by publishing a number of technical publications and guidance documents and answering member queries on a variety of different topics.

Sustainability: We support members on their individual Net Zero journeys by providing the tools and guidance to measure their carbon emissions, identify emission ‘hotspots’ within their supply 06 Covered Autumn 2023

KATHRYN TEARLE Regulatory Affairs Manager

chains and come up with carbon reduction plans. We also lead on the Sustainability Committee and offer various webinars on a number of key sustainability topics, such as scope 3 emissions, grants and funding, etc.

When and why did you join the BCF? Kerry: I joined the BCF in May 2023, with 7 years regulatory experience working at U-POL as their Regulatory Manager, who are an automotive refinish manufacturer and also a BCF member. I am extremely passionate about regulatory affairs and having a practical knowledge of the sector and an understanding of the struggles the coatings industry and the UK faces, I wanted to be part of an organisation that would be able to make a difference.

Additionally, having worked with the BCF for several years and chairing the BCF Global Chemicals Group, I always admired the knowledge, expertise and passion they showed and am excited to now be a part of the team.

Kathryn: I joined the BCF in April 2023 with a background in the UK chemical industry, within R&D, regulatory affairs and emergency response. In my previous role, I was a member of the BCF CLP Panel and Global Chemical Group.

Having worked with the BCF for several years, I was excited by the opportunity to join the team and the opportunities and challenges that the role brings. I am pleased to be

KERRY MCLOUGHLIN Regulatory Affairs Manager

PATRICIA DURANY FERNANDEZ Sustainability Manager

part of the team and look forward to working with and supporting the membership.

Patricia: I joined the BCF in April 2023 as BCF’s first ever Sustainability Manager. I’m from Spain, I have an engineering background and I moved to the UK in 2012 to complete an MSc Environmental Engineering and Business Management at Imperial College London. Since 2013 and before joining the BCF I worked for one of the UK’s leading waste management companies, Viridor, where I was responsible for compliance and systems support across all power generation sites in the UK. After my daughter was born in 2022, I decided to take a career change and focus on the environment and sustainability, which is my true passion. I’m very happy to be part of the BCF team and I look forward to facing the challenges that we, as a sector, will have to deal with to reach Net Zero by 2050.

What are your responsibilities?

Kerry: I predominately look after the industrial and professional groups, wallcoverings, and the global chemical group at the BCF. Within these groups I am responsible for updating the groups on legislative changes such as the upcoming building regulations, or leading BCF projects such as challenging online sales of professional products.

Across all of the BCF meetings, there

are many topics that overlap such as CLP, and as a regulatory team we collectively look after specific areas within these topics, that are related to our groups.

Kathryn: I mainly look after issues that impact across the industry, such as CLP, transport regulations and biocides and thus am responsible for the Marine Coatings Group and cross-sector groups, for example the Associate Technical Committee, CLP Panel, CDG Panel and Safety Advisory Panel.

Patricia: I look after BCF’s Sustainability Committee and I’m responsible for delivering the BCF Net Zero Roadmap. I will report against the industry’s baseline for carbon emissions on an regular basis in order to monitor and measure carbon reductions, and I will help members identify key areas that should be targeted for carbon reduction initiatives in our industry.

Ciara: I lead on UK REACH, and look after the Printing Inks Technical Committee and the Decorative Coatings Technical Committee. I also work with Kerry and Kathryn to support the Intumescent Coatings Group and the Classification Labelling and Packaging Panel. I am secretary to the Food Packaging Value Chain Alliance which is a cross-association group with interest in food contact materials.

What do you see as the biggest challenges in 2023 and 2024 for the members?

Regulatory team: UK REACH, which Ciara is leading on, has to be one of the biggest challenges. Alongside this, the continued divergencies we are starting to see between UK and EU regulations such as CLP and BPR. There are significant changes to EU chemical legislation coming down the line under the Green Deal and this will increase the divergence

between the now separate regulatory systems.

Sustainability: Measuring carbon emissions across our membership, particularly SMEs. This will initially focus on scope 1 and 2 emissions, as these are within our members’ direct control. Scope 3 emissions, particularly those from raw material suppliers, are the largest contributor to emissions in the sector and are difficult to quantify.

Outside of work, what are the most interesting things you’d like to share with BCF members?

Kerry: I am currently renovating my house, so I spend most of my weekends learning new DIY skills. I also love to plan new adventures and experiences; one of my fondest memories was skydiving over the Franz Josef Glacier in New Zealand and whilst I’m proud I experienced this, it’s safe to say I wouldn’t be in a rush to do it again!

Patricia: I love spending time with my little daughter (she’s just turned 18 months) and visiting my family and friends in Spain. I enjoy baking and I think I’m pretty good at it! I like practising yoga when I have the time. I love music from the 60’s and 70’s, and I collect vinyl records of a variety of styles, including soul, reggae, rock, etc.

Ciara: I have two girls at primary school, so between them and work I am kept quite busy! I enjoy running and reading too (I know not as exciting as skydiving – I am certainly more on the risk-averse aside). My family live in Ireland so I love going over there for visits, as well as to Brussels where I grew up.

Kathryn: I spend many hours during the summer months watching my youngest son play cricket whilst enjoying the sunshine and the winter months arranging lifts so that I don’t have to stand in the cold or rain and watch junior football games! When not acting as a taxi service, I enjoy walking in the local countryside and baking cakes. I have four children, including two hungry teenage boys, so there are never enough cakes to go around!

CALLUM PLUMMER Marketing Executive Intern

In BCF’s Marketing team, Marketing Executive Sophie Dunham has now gone on maternity leave as of September. She has had a beautiful baby girl, and both are doing well. The whole BCF team would like to send Sophie our best wishes at this very special time.

We’d also like to welcome Callum Plummer as our new student intern, who will also be acting as Sophie’s maternity cover in her absence.

Callum is currently studying Photography at Coventry University, and his hobbies include his deep love for wildlife photography, selling his photos online or showcasing them to his followers on social media. He also enjoys supporting his hometown football club Coventry City FC, being an annual season ticket holder for as long as he can remember. He is looking forward to meeting members at upcoming BCF events and supporting in BCF’s marketing activities.

Covered Autumn 2023 07

Steve Collinge Managing Director Insight Retail Group

08 Covered Autumn 2023

It’s tough out there!

It’s tough out there at the moment, not just for high street retailers like Wilko, but for Home and Garden retailers of all kinds, whether long established big-box businesses, ecommerce specialists or marketplaces, business is not easy to find.

At the beginning of the year, I think we all expected 2023 to be really challenging, due primarily to the cost-of-living crisis and accelerating inflation. But interestingly, the poor year has never really materialised, as many companies experienced far better than forecast sales in the first half of the year. Whether this was due to the leftover Covid savings or the housing investment following the large number of house-moves in 2021 and 2022 it’s rather difficult to say.

However, as the year has progressed, the poor weather and the slowdown in house sales and transactions, has begun to have its impact on retailers and suppliers alike. There’s a fascinating, direct correlation between the volume of paint sold in the UK and house moves. If you look back over the last 20-30 years, the chart is like a trainline, with housing transactions clearly fuelling paint and broader home improvement sales.

Data tells us that the reason for this is simple. When people move (whether to an existing property or a new home) one of the first purchases they make on the weekend after moving is Paint. Consumers begin to focus on making the home their own and paint is the quickest, easiest, and often most cost-effective way to achieve this.

Retail commentators often talk about the fact if we’re not moving, then we must be spending at least the same money on home improvements ‘improving rather than moving’ they say.

Although this is partly true, the reality is that if we decide to stay where we are, we’ll maybe take on one or two room projects over several years. However, when we move, over the same period, we will usually decorate the entire inside of our new homes, sometimes the exterior and often paint the fence and the decking too.

The facts are these - according to the latest National Statistics, the provisional non-seasonally adjusted estimate of the number of UK residential transactions in July 2023, was 86,190, a huge 22% lower than July 2022 and 9% below the numbers from June 2023.

The BCF data from July ‘23, tells us that the Decorative Retail Paint market suffered in July, declining 8.5% on a year ago, following what was a more encouraging May and June, meaning the rolling quarterly figures are up 2.6%.

The recent and sad demise of Wilko can’t really be blamed on falling house moves, but it certainly played a part. The truth is, that the 400 store Wilko business really shouldn’t have failed. It was a well-loved brand operating in a discount category during a cost-of-living crisis and consumers should have been turning their backs on the established retailers and flocking into the Wilko stores, but they didn’t. As one of the top 20 retailers of Decorative Paint in the UK, this is huge blow for all the manufacturers and brands who in some cases have been supplying Wilko for decades.

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BCF consults on first edition of its 2050 Net Zero roadmap with members Patricia DuranyFernandez,

Sustainability Manager In October 2021 the BCF Board of Directors, on behalf of our members, pledged that the coatings industry will reach Net Zero carbon emissions by 2050. BCF is committed to help its members achieve this target and has developed a Net Zero Roadmap for our industry as a guide to support members on their individual Net Zero journeys.

The BCF Net Zero Roadmap highlights the role of our industry in achieving Net Zero and has been developed with the help of BCF’s Sustainability Committee and written by BCF’s Sustainability Manager, Patricia DuranyFernandez. The comprehensive roadmap is being reviewed by BCF members at the time of going to print. Coatings Care is a key part of BCF’s Sustainable Coatings campaign and our commitment to Net Zero, and it will continue to drive improvement across a range of environmental and safety measures.

Also, PaintCare will be a key waypoint in our Net Zero journey that will establish a circular economy model for leftover paint in the UK, aiming to achieve a target of 75% leftover paint recycled by 2030.

The roadmap defines the industry’s baseline for greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, which will be used to track our progress against the

10 Covered Autumn 2023

Net Zero target. The industry has agreed to use a base year of 2018, and this will be used to cover the paints, coatings, printing inks and wallcoverings sectors as a collective.

Measuring the GHG emissions arising from business activities over a defined period will determine the organisation’s carbon footprint, which is an important starting point in any Net Zero strategy. The roadmap explains some of the calculation tools and guidance available for BCF members to measure their GHG emissions.

According to the data gathered as part of the roadmap, we have established that scope 3 emissions (emissions that a company does not have direct control of up and down the value chain) represent over 95% of our industry’s carbon footprint.

This means that managing these emissions will be a critical success factor in our Net Zero journey.

Therefore, we have chosen scope 3 as the focus for an event later in the year: the ‘BCF Road to Net Zero Seminar’, which will take place on Tuesday 14th November 2023 in Nottingham. The seminar will also include the official launch of the BCF Net Zero Roadmap.

We also held a ‘Carbon Reporting & Scope 3 Emissions’ webinar with Trident Utilities for BCF members in September to help gain an understanding of how to measure their carbon footprint, identify the challenges around scope 3 emissions, light up emission ‘hotspots’ within their supply chains

There are four key areas in which our industry will need to act to and map out their carbon contribute to enabling the impacts.

UK to Encouragingly, nearly 50 BCF achieve its Net Zero target, which members attended thedetail webinar. are described in some in the roadmap: • •

•

•

Energy efficiency, such as using renewable energy and low carbon hydrogen as a fuel.

Resource efficiency, such as developing new products and technologies including biobased sources, and promoting recycling.

Carbon capture, utilisation and storage, establishing decarbonisation clusters through carbon transport and storage networks.

Supply chain collaboration, promoting communication and engagement between manufacturers and suppliers to explore emission reduction opportunities (scope 3).

It is important to note that this roadmap is just the start of the journey, and a lot more work will be required in each of the four areas to make Net Zero a reality.

A final version of the roadmap, together with a quick start guide to help members on their Net Zero journey will be made available to members before the November launch.

PaintCare update It has been another very busy period for PaintCare as work continues to develop the model and cost for the programme.

Resource & Waste Management Expo Leftover Paint Collection and Reprocessing Trial A small paint collection and reprocessing trial has been set up in conjunction with W&S Recycling and Paint 360.

Collection bins (dolavs) have been placed on two HWRC sites in Dorset managed by W&S, which allow consumers to drop off their left over paint. When full, W&S take the dolavs back to their recycling centre where they separate water based and solvent based paint containers and any non compliant material received from the HWRCs. Separated solvent based and non compliant materials are sent for incineration, The water based paint containers are then packed into open topped IBCs and delivered to Paint 360 who use the paint in their remanufacturing process.

The trial has provided valuable data on what and how much is being collected and its quality. Data on process efficiency in terms of collection, transporting and sorting/ separation at the recycling centre is also being collected.

PaintCare had a stand at the recent RWM Expo Exhibition at the NEC in Birmingham. This is the leading exhibition for those involved in the waste and resource recovery industry and PaintCare exhibited to gauge interest in and opportunity for PaintCare within the sector.

Considerable Interest in the programme resulted in two busy days. Visitors fell broadly into three categories: local Authorities and HWRC managers who universally wanted to be involved in the programme, waste companies ranging from the national waste and resource recovery companies to local waste collectors. They all collect paint as part of their business and were interested in the programme. The final category was facility and site managers ranging from housing associations, housebuilders, factory managers to film studios and shopping centres. All have paint left over after their projects or clients projects which is difficult and expensive to dispose of and they saw potential value in PaintCare to them.

This data is being used to refine the national PaintCare model.

Next steps •

Visit the PaintCare website:

Finalise new operational plan with BCF decorative paint members Presentation of revised operational plan to BCF Board in Q4 2023 Phase 1 rollout early 2025 if approved

• •

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Covered Autumn 2023

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Road to Net Zero Seminar 2023 Tuesday 14th November 2023, Hilton Nottingham-Gateway

Road to Net Zero: Working with the paints, coatings, printing ink and wallcoverings industries’ supply chain to drive a reduction in scope 3 carbon emissions.

On Tuesday 14th November, BCF are hosting the ‘Road to Net Zero Seminar’ at the Hilton NottinghamGateway. Scope 3 carbon emissions are any emissions that a company or organisation does not have direct control of and can include emissions upstream and downstream within the supply chain.

A staggering 80% of an average company’s carbon footprint is produced by scope 3 emissions and this is likely to be even higher for many in the coatings sector. It is therefore critical for the coatings industry to work with suppliers and customers on supply chain decarbonisation in order to reach Net Zero emissions by 2050.

Pricing If you have any queries, please contact Lorraine Beard at lorraine.beard@bcf.co.uk.

The event is open to Full and Associate member companies, as well as to nonmembers. All prices are exclusive of VAT. If you are not a BCF member company and would like to book, please contact info@bcf.co.uk.

Package

BCF Member

Non-Member

Standard Ticket Price

£125 (+ VAT)

£250 (+ VAT)

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Speakers Noel Ferguson, Head of Net Zero and Energy Solutions, Trident Utilites

Introduction to Scope 3 Emissions and how they can be measured Mike Cairns-Terry, Principal Engineer, Progressive Energy The role of lowcarbon Hydrogen in achieving Net Zero Christophe Hein, Market Manager, TotalEnergies Fluides Innovative Products and Solutions to Achieve Net Zero Dr William Beer, Terrafend and Tunley Sustainable Production and Recycling

Katie Chong, Senior Lecturer, Supergen Bioenergy Hub / Aston University

Juliette Cauchy, Sustainability Manager, Imerys

The Role of Minerals within the Paint and Coatings Decarbonisation Journey

Biobased sources for Sustainable Chemicals Tony Heslop, Senior Sustainability Manager, BASF

Dr Rob Portsmouth, Senior Vice President Sustainability and EHS, Venator

Reducing Scope 3 upstream emissions: What are Suppliers Doing?

The Role of Titanium Dioxide in reducing Scope 3 Emissions Lauren McKenzie, Sustainability Portfolio Manager, Synthomer

Danielle Heward, Optimo

Managing change and stakeholder engagement

Value chain colaboration to drive change. An overview on Lifecycle Assessments

James Norton, Think Incentives

Innovation Funding

Venue The Hilton Nottingham Gateway is a mile off the M1 at junction 26. It is two minutes from Cinderhill Tram Stop with links to Nottingham city centre, three miles away.

Sponsored by:

For more information or bookings scan the QR Code here:

Covered Covered Autumn Spring 2023 13

Defra delays packaging EPR deadline until 2025 In an ironic, nominative-determinative twist, the deadlines for payment of fees and registration of data for Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) for packaging scheme have been extended. More details on these changes are summarised below but, right at the start, it is worth saying that BCF welcomes these delays.

The reality is that EPR was not in a fit state to go live.

Businesses from all over the country were still unsure of many of their obligations and the Government was well behind schedule itself in delivering key components of the scheme, not least in the appointment of a scheme administrator. Defra had been holding ‘Business Readiness Forums’ giving guidance to companies, although many of these sessions were cancelled and the ones that were held raised so many questions and criticisms it was clear something had to give. The delays allow further consultation on a range of issues, not least the definition of ‘household waste’. As things stand, sales that are not specifically, directly made to a business end user have to be classed as ‘household’ waste. So professional use materials - including paints for the aero sector - sold via a distributor would come into scope, as would paint sold through builders’ merchants. So would IBCs, oil drums, beer kegs and so on. This situation is not credible and I very much hope the consultation will lead to a more proportionate and workable solution before deadlines need to be met.

What are those new deadlines?

The EPR fees themselves were due to kick in from October 2024, based on data recorded from this year.

That has now been delayed by 12 months, so EPR fees will not be paid until October 2025.

In terms of reporting of packaging data, the deadlines have not been extended, as such. Instead, the initial reporting dates of 1st October 2023 for large organisations, and 1st April 2024 for small organisations

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will no longer be enforced. Defra is still encouraging the submission of data at an early a date as possible – in order to help them develop the EPR scheme – but there will be no legal enforcement on reporting until 31st May 2024. In reality, this means an extension on reporting, should companies wish to take it up. In the meantime, in-scope businesses with reporting obligations can now register online via the Gov.UK website.

BCF will be responding to the ongoing consultation in order to try and improve some of the many sticking points remaining. If you have queries about the scheme, please contact David at david.park@bcf.co.uk and he will do his best to help.

David Park, Public Affairs Manager

RAISING THE COATINGS INDUSTRY PROFILE Over the past year or so, BCF has been looking to build a more coherent communications strategy.

We want to better explain to key decision makers who we are as an organisation and a sector, as well as why we matter by explaining the breadth and depth of the products you, our members, make and how important they are to the UK economy and society as a whole.

This goes hand in glove with our lobbying work because, put simply, the more people who understand who we are and why we matter, the easier it should be to explain why we are asking for particular changes to regulations or legislation.

At the moment, we have excellent contacts with experts in each Government Department we deal with, but we are less good at the more ‘retail’ selling of ourselves more widely to policy- and decisionmakers. The need for this has been demonstrated as we carried out some baseline polling of MPs. This showed, pretty much as expected, that very few MPs have heard of the BCF and, if they have, they don’t know much about us. Just 28% said they had heard of us and even then, 20% of that total said while they had heard of us they don’t know anything about us. More importantly, subsequent polling questions showed that MPs also don’t know much about the coatings industry or the key issues facing the sector.

With an election coming up, we have an opportunity to reach out to current MPs afresh but also engage with new candidates and, after the election, new MPs. So, we have been working hard to distil the messages we want to pass on into a new ‘narrative’ document.

Coatings industry elevator pitch: • •

•

•

What we make is everywhere, with coatings essential to consumers and industry alike.

The products we create are transformative. They protect, enrich and enhance the beauty of the world around us, as well as enabling communication and self-expression.

Our coatings play an essential role in the transition to a sustainable future: prolonging the life of goods, vehicles and infrastructure; and protecting and enabling renewable energy sources such as wind turbines and solar panels.

We are a British manufacturing success story: a net exporter, a generator of jobs, with industries worth around £300 billion per annum to the UK relying on our products.

Underneath these sit other, more detailed points we want to get across, based around themes of essentiality of paints, coatings and printing inks, together with what they contribute to liveability, sustainability, and the economy.

This process has involved a lot of BCF members and we would like to thank everyone who gave up their time to help shape this piece of work. The next step is to turn that internal narrative document into an outward-facing report – with more facts and case studies - we can use to promote ourselves more effectively, which we will be launching at the House of Commons later this year. The narrative will also help us frame other external communications in future. And, armed with these key messages, we will start to be a lot more proactive in seeking out MPs and other decision-makers and influencers so hopefully more than 28% of MPs will have heard of us the next time we poll them.

On a related topic, CEPE is running its own social media campaign to highlight the importance of decorative paints. Launching in October, decorative paint members will be asked to join in, sharing CEPE graphics and content, as well as reinforcing the key points with their own posts. We will be sharing more details in due course so please keep an eye out for how you can get involved.

Covered Autumn 2023 15

Guest blog: Unintended consequences

By Stephen Falder General Secretary of NOVA Paint Club Awaab Ishak died in 2020, eight days after his second birthday, as a direct result of black mould in the flat he lived in.

A coroner has said the death of an “engaging, lively, endearing” twoyear-old from prolonged exposure to mould in his family’s flat should be a “defining moment” for the UK’s housing sector.

When I read the dreadfully sad headline and coroner’s comment I wondered, that whilst this is clearly a defining moment for the housing sector to get its act in order, do we also need to reconsider the current approach for evaluating and rejecting effective

anti-bacterial agents used in a number of different household items including coatings?

Why do I say that? The current approach basically bans the use of any biocidal product that has demonstrated certain hazards.

However, the purpose of a biocide is to stop bugs from growing so it seems very logical that they could have hazards. So surely the issue is managing the risk of their use, rather than simply banning them because of a theoretical risk that could come from their use at a much higher concentration?

The consequences of the current approach of dramatically reducing or totally removing preservatives and antimicrobials from paints and coatings, particularly, but also consumer products generally, and the inevitable consequences of this have not been thought through.

It is, of course obvious, if you reduce drastically or remove completely some part of a product it will not be there and it will, equally obviously, no longer do what it did.

Nobody would seriously suggest in the interests of weight reduction/fuel saving that it would make sense to remove seat belts and airbags from cars, the safety benefits there are well understood and valued.

Yet one of the safety features of paints & coatings in both storage and use is: preservatives and biocides are subject to progressive and aggressive reductions both in diversity and amount, seemingly without it being acknowledged that if you remove antimicrobials there will be more microbial growth.

Modern water-based coatings display many if not all of the characteristics of a food/carbon source for a range of microbes.

The only defence against these is to add some form of antimicrobial treatment, I do not think it is wise and sensible to remove these safeguards without something that is equally effective in its place.

Once applied a paint film containing biocide at reasonable in can preservative levels will exhibit mould suppression for a considerable time.

With the rare but real risk of death from mould spores in buildings anything that helps reduce the spore burden should be welcomed not abolished.

I recognise that biocides need to be used with care and sparingly, but that is already the case with paints, to reduce them more is not just a stock/shelf-life matter.

16 Covered Autumn 2023

In-can preservation of water-based paints Water-based paints are preserved with the use of biocides, preventing microbial attacks from happenng inside the can. However, the number of effective in-can preservatives available to the industry is decreasing. It is thus important that active substance /product type combinations are supported and renewal applications are submitted to ensure the availability of effective in-can preservatives for formulators of water-based products such as paint, resins, adhesives and detergents.

Historically, the most widely used in-can biocide substances came from the isothiazolinoneand formaldehyde releaserfamilies. Industry has moved away from the use of formaldehyde releasers as in-can preservatives. As such, isothiazolinones are the main preservative family used in water-based paints.

Isothiazolinones are skin sensitisers, although of different potencies. A number of skin sensitisers have been classified under EU CLP with low limits for skin sensitizing induction. This leads to the classification of the paint as a skin sensitiser at the low concentrations required for the preservative to be effective.

In addition, the BPR Authorities when approving the CMIT/ MIT 3:1 Mixture for biocidal use concluded that these products should not be sold to consumers.

The BPR position on allergens is alarming and has not been taken by any other legislation.

Indeed, once informed of possible allergic reactions, consumers can still make the choice and buy the product, for example for food containing traces of nuts.

The threat of a further reduction in available biocidal products for in-can preservatives is of concern. This could lead to the development of tolerance by micro-organisms: it is well known that in order to prevent the development of tolerance, a wide range of mode of action is required. This is an existing problem on its own and potentially an increasing one as a consequence of the reduction of approved biocidal active substances.

The approval of an active substance is defined for a number of years and is renewable. Active substance / product type combinations will expire unless a renewal application is submitted before the expiry date. It is important that the active substance / product type combinations currently available on the GB market are supported through the review programme to ensure the continued availability of the existing approved substances.

The approval of skin sensitizer in-can preservatives has been widely discussed by Member State Competent Authorities.

A proposal to accept gloves as suitable risk management measures for consumers buying water-based paints classified as skin sensitizing due to the presence of biocide active substances has been welcomed.

The CEPE Biocides WG produced a document which was shared with the Commission to provide additional information on the practicality issues when supplying gloves with waterbased paints.

The BCF continues to represent the industry’s interests and has led the way with biocides lobbying. Chaired by BCF, the Alliance of Chemical Assocations’ Preservatives group meets with representatives from the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) on a bi-annual basis to discuss the positives and importance of preservation, and the essential need to have a wide choice of preservatives to ensure the protection of waterbased consumer products.

Within GB, the GB Biocidal Products Regulation (BPR) operates independently from the EU BPR. To enable active substances to be made available on the GB market, they must be approved for a product type and appear on the GB Article 95 list.

Kathryn Tearle,

Regulatory Affairs Manager

Covered Autumn 2023 17

Joint industry effort to help consumers be more sustainable when painting The BCF and the Painting and Decorating Association (PDA) have collaborated to produce a new video which will help consumers save time, money and resources when painting.

Many DIYers are wasting paint, water and time by unnecessarily cleaning brushes and rollers before the end of a project. As well as tips on how to store paint brushes and rollers overnight, the video explains how to recover paint from painting tools before washing them.

The new video was filmed with PDA member Bagnalls, a leading UK painting and decorating contractor, and produced in-house by BCF. The decorating tools used in the video were kindly donated by Purdy.

By following the guidance, the key savings identified in the video are: • • •

Recovering up to 75% of paint lost by cleaning paint brushes and rollers correctly after use Spending four times less time cleaning painting tools Using 10 litres less water

As trade bodies for the UK Decorative Paint industry, both BCF and PDA are committed to actively supporting sustainability initiatives being undertaken by the sector.

Both BCF and PDA have committed to schemes leading projects are Paint Green from PDA and PaintCare from BCF. Tom Bowtell, CEO of the BCF, commented: ‘Sustainability is core to BCF’s work. This new video is a great example 18 Covered Autumn 2023

of how small changes can make a big difference. If every household followed these guidelines, we could collectively save approximately 2.5 million litres of decorative paint per year, the equivalent of 100 Olympicsized swimming pools!’

PDA Chief Executive, Neil Ogilvie, said: “This new video fits perfectly with our Paint Green’s campaign aim to help PDA Members create systemic change to protect the environment.

‘We are initially focusing on waste and taking up existing schemes for paint and container recycling – however, we are already getting feedback from Members on further steps towards sustainable working practices that we can introduce in the future.’

Joanne Gualda, Director at Bagnalls, commented: ‘There are many ways in which Bagnalls is addressing its impact on the environment from paint can recycling to donating leftover paint to projects through our established Community Paintbrush scheme. We were more than happy to support the BCF, the PDA and other painting industry experts in creating an informative video that portrays such an important environmental message.’

To watch the video on YouTube, click here:

BCF produces new poster to advocate for best practice in bodyshops Kerry McLoughlin, Regulatory Affairs Manager

For members of the BCF that supply isocyanate-containing paints, they have a responsibility to ensure that their products are used safely. Over recent years the incidence of asthma caused by exposure to isocyanates has been significantly reduced, however the risk to users still remains, if the correct precautions are not followed.

The BCF continue to raise awareness of the dangers from isocyanates and the precautions needed, and as part of its new PaintSafe campaign page.

Working with the HSE Motor Vehicle Repair Forum, a poster has been produced for use in vehicle refinishing bodyshops. The BCF have funded the printing of the poster and working with the Auto Body Professional (ABP) magazine, have printed 10,000 copies of the poster which have been distributed with the magazine and to the BCF Vehicle Refinish members. Members can find a copy of the poster along with additional pictograms, which provide the information in a more visual format on the BCF Paintsafe website.

PAINTCANOPENER.CO.UK Made in Solingen / Germany Covered Covered Autumn Spring 2023 19

Challenging spurious green claims David Park, Public Affairs Manager

We continue to develop and pursue the aims of the BCF Green Claims Guide for Decorative Paint – available on our website under the sustainability drop-down – which was launched last year. The point of the Guide was to try and tackle the instances where some companies are misleading consumers with unsubstantiated green claims about their products. This will make it easier for consumers to be sure of the attributes of products they buy, as well as help create a level playing field for the industry.

We recently met with the Competition and Marketing Authority (CMA) about our Guide and the whole issue of Green Claims in general.

We discussed the need for clear definitions and a much more standardised taxonomy so consumers can make informed decisions. While the paint industry is not a focus of their current priority workstream, they were pleased to hear of the action we were taking and will be there as a point of contact for us to engage and liaise with in future.

Also, over the past through months, we have written to and met with CEOs of companies where concerns have been raised with us about the green claims on some of their products.

We have had mixed results, although some of the conversations have been very productive, with support for our efforts in this area, and a willingness to adapt. This links in with our efforts to create a Brand Owners Forum and to work

20 Covered Autumn 2023

more closely with this group to help exchange concerns and best practice. This work is described in more detail elsewhere in Covered.

Where other companies remain much more recalcitrant, we are considering what other actions might be appropriate, including referrals to the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) and Trading Standards where necessary.

We will also let our contacts at the CMA know of our concerns.

Finally, we have recently added to our Guide a BCF position on claiming paint to be ‘vegan’.

This follows a growing number of people in the UK pursuing a vegan lifestyle and who want to understand the provenance of the products they are using in this context, i.e. whether they contain animal-derived products.

BCF members want to ensure that we have a common understanding about the meaning of the term ‘vegan’ when used in reference to decorative paints.

So, what is a vegan paint? Our Decorative Coatings Council and Technical Committee has agreed that members may refer to a paint product as ‘vegan’, if the paint meets the following conditions: • • •

•

The paint does not contain any intentionally added animal-derived ingredients.

The paint has not been tested on animals.

However, ingredients in the paint may have been tested on animals. Note that this would not usually have been done by the paint manufacturer, but further up the supply chain for regulatory compliance reasons e.g. for REACH. Optional: Some paint manufacturers may choose to utilise a third-party to get external verification that their paint is vegan (e.g. analysis to ensure that there is an absence of animal-derived DNA).

The Green Claims Guide, and our actions based upon it, will continue to evolved. In the meantime, if members come across companies making what might be spurious green claims, please get in touch with us.

On the 12th of September we ran a webinar in partnership with the Titanium Dioxide Manufacturer’s Association (TDMA). In November 2022 the European Court of Justice ruled that the classification of titanium dioxide as a category 2 carcinogen should be annulled. There were two principal grounds for annulment: • •

An error was made in the assessment of the reliability and acceptability of the study on which the classification was based.

A classification can only apply to a substance that has the intrinsic property to cause cancer.

In February this year, it was announced that the European Commission and French government were appealing this ruling. Shirley Fodor (TDMA Legal Task Force, Tronox) noted that the appeals process would take one to two years, and reminded members that the classification remained in place until the appeals process had concluded.

Ruth Wintersgill (TDMA Vice Chair, Venator) also spoke about the engagement that TDMA has had with the HSE with regards to the classification of titanium dioxide in Great Britain. Of course, the European Court of Justice ruling to annul the classification has no jurisdiction in the UK. Therefore, the TDMA is exploring the options and legal mechanisms by which the classification may be changed in the Great Britain (Northern Ireland continues to follow the EU). While it’s notable that the UK did not support the carcinogenic classification when it was part of the EU, this does not mean there is a quick fix process to remove the carcinogenic classification from the GB Mandatory Classification List (MCL) for titanium dioxide. It seems likely that a new MCL proposal will be required to amend the classification, and this may be a lengthy process.

Dr David Lockley (Chair of TDMA Scientific and Regulatory Committees, Venator) highlighted the significant investment that the TDMA is making in terms of scientific and regulatory activities. In essence the purpose is to perform a gap analysis and ensure that as much data as possible is made available to allow the industry to defend the critical raw material where appropriate. The scientific programme was launched in 2018 and includes the commissioning of new studies and partnering with universities and research organisations. Dr Lockley noted that the findings from the studies continue to show that titanium dioxide is safe.

The BCF will continue to work closely with TDMA to ensure members have the latest information on this important topic.

Ciara Dempsey, Regulatory Affairs Manager

Covered Autumn 2023 21

In addition to a substantial amount of time spent on pushing back against aspects of the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) for packaging scheme – covered elsewhere – it continues to be a busy time in terms of lobbying.

Some potential good news around the need for separate UK CA markings. At the beginning of August the Department for Business and Trade announced that for the 18 regulations it was responsible for, businesses would be allowed to continue to use the EU CE mark, instead of having to go through a separate process to gain a UK ‘CA’ mark. This was common sense, recognising an equivalent standard exists in the EU and preventing the need for separate testing and marking. However, this is only a partial win as the Department responsible for CA markings on construction products – DLUHC – has yet to confirm it will follow suit. As this is the regulation likely to affect members most, we continue to lobby for a similar common-sense solution for construction and other products.

Finding a workable, proportionate mechanism for UK REACH remains the number one priority for the BCF. We are members of a Defra/industry technical working group which has been helping Defra look at options for an Alternative Transitional Registration (ATR) model, and we have also started to have discussions about how the UK REACH fee structure might work, although the latter is hard to comment on without knowing what the registration model looks like! We expect to finally hear something about an ATR very soon, and hope that whatever Defra finally puts forward will be more workable, proportionate, and cost-effective for industry – certainly less than the £2-3 billion Defra estimate its original UK REACH model would cost.

Separately to UK REACH, which is looked after by Defra, we continue to talk to the HSE, which has responsibility for Biocides policy and CLP regulations in GB. HSE has been extremely generous with its time, arranging meetings with us and others in the sector to proactively discuss the direction of policy travel in these areas. By the time this edition of Covered is published we should have met with their senior team once more, raising issues of concern and making sure they understand the needs of our sector. We will report back on the outcome of that meeting at future BCF committees.

22 Covered Autumn 2023

BCF LOBBYING UPDATE David Park Public Affairs Manager BCF’s own Public Affairs Manager David Park provides an update on our ongoing talks with Government on key issues for our members and the wider industry.

The Home Office are informally consulting with us and others about the potential impact of limiting the sale of products containing acetone to consumers under Poisons and Explosive Precursors legislation. This contact is at an early stage and we have had good discussions with officials, explaining how particular limitations might impact on members. Aerosols seem most likely to be affected, should any new legislation be considered, and we are working closely with members to explore different mitigations. To stress again, this is informal consultation at this stage and there are no new regulatory options currently in front of Ministers. However, it is welcome we are being involved in discussions at such an early stage, which will hopefully avoid the chaos and last-minute worry about the reclassification of GBL and BDO under the Misuse of Drugs Act last year!

At one of our regular catch ups with the Defra Air Quality Team, they informed us there is an internal review of the effectiveness of the Paint Directive in the UK. The Directive was introduced by the EU some 20 years ago with the aim of reducing VOCs in paints. We have been asked to supply evidence to help in the review, both to help quantify the impact of the Directive but also the work our sector has had to put in to comply. We are keen to stress that industry invested heavily in R&D, reformulation and in new equipment and that the aim of the Directive has been largely met: e.g. 84% of decorative paints are now water-based. However, it is also an opportunity for us to highlight continued concerns about non-compliance in the Vehicle Refinish sector by some bodyshops, and how we might want to see the law changed in future to generate a more level playing field. Overall, we welcome the fact Defra proactively sought us out for our views at this early stage: it shows the importance of speaking regularly to different Government Departments to keep ahead of changes.

At a broader level, we are approaching what is probably the last Budget before the next General Election. We have been working with Make UK and the CBI to feed into the pre-Budget process to call for measures to benefit the manufacturing sector. From support for R&D and capital investment to using the apprenticeship levy more effectively, and from measures to create energy security and to support the move to Net Zero, we have been pushing for Budget interventions from Government that will assist members. We have also started to engage with Opposition Front Bench teams on manifestos, including the Labour Shadow Environment Minister, who has responsibility for chemicals, waste and recycling, among other things. We will look to produce a list of BCF manifesto ‘asks’ for all parties well ahead of the election being called in order to try and influence the various political parties own manifestos.

Covered Autumn 2023 23

Awards 2023 Thursday 19th October The Grand Hotel, Birmingham

The 2023 BCF Awards finalists have now been announced!

Many thanks to our sponsors, who make the event possible. Thanks also to all our independent award judges.

This year’s award finalists are as follows:

Sustainable Innovation Multinational Award Sponsored by: Shortlisted:

Sustainable Innovation SME Award Sponsored by:

NEW CATEGORY FOR 2023 Race to Net Zero Award Shortlisted:

Shortlisted:

Student of the Year Award Sponsored by:

Marketing Campaign of the Year Award Sponsored by:

Shortlisted: Diversity and Inclusion Award Sponsored by:

Courtney Turner

Patrycja Zuchowska

Shortlisted:

Rebecca Jones

Melanie Brogden 24 Covered Autumn Winter 2022 2023

Shortlisted:

Dulux Trade

Young Leader of the Year Award Sponsored by:

Apprentice of the Year Award Sponsored by:

Coatings Care Progress Award Sponsored by:

Shortlisted:

Shortlisted:

Kris Richens

Molly Kershaw

Nathan Featherstone

Brandon Morgan

James Davis

Katie Sterrett

Melissa Strowbridge

Chris Morton

Olly Sheppard

Shortlisted:

Dulux Decorator Centre

Richard Morgan

Coatings Care Overall Best Performer Award Sponsored by:

Excellence in Training Award Shortlisted:

Sean Kelly

Customer Service Award Sponsored by:

Shortlisted:

Dulux Academy

Shortlisted: Corporate Social Responsibility Award

Dulux Decorator Centre

Shortlisted:

We have now sold out of our Awards tickets!

Good luck to all our 2023 finalists, we look forward to welcoming you in October!

Covered Autumn 2023 25

BCF ANNUAL CONFERENCE & DINNER 2023 Thursday 25th May Radisson Blu East Midlands Airport

Annual Conference discusses key sector issues

Over 150 senior business leaders and decision-makers from the UK's paints, coatings and printing ink sectors gathered in Derby for the 2023 BCF Annual Conference.

Lead Sponsor SPONSORED BY

The opening session heard from industry experts on the UK political and economic outlook. Starting the day was Oxford Economics, who outlined the sombre outlook for the short to medium-term global economy, following the three major shocks that hit us all between 2020 and 2022: Covid, inflation and war. Next, the delegates heard from the Shadow Minister for Business and Industrial Strategy, Bill Esterton MP, who looked back on the last 12 months of UK politics, and what support Government should be giving to businesses.

The Bank of England reported the latest economic forecasts for the UK. The next theme was the road to Net Zero, and the industry’s progress since the BCF Board of Directors’ commitment to Net Zero by 2050. The conference heard from the National Centre for Atmospheric Science on the scientific basis of the causes of climate change, followed by Green Alliance, who provided insights from their recent analysis and report on the UK chemicals industry.

This was followed by a constructive panel discussion highlighting the importance of creating a more diverse workforce in the UK coatings and printing ink sector, featuring BCF members who are working on ED&I strategies in their companies as well as specialists from external organisations. Chaired by Tom Bowtell,

the panel session also highlighted the work of BCF’s Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Committee, which drafted a statement of commitment to the subject for BCF’s Board of Directors, which was received with unanimous support in February, and is working to create a long-term strategy to provide ED&I support for BCF members in the future.

The keynote speaker, Stacey Copeland, told her inspiring story of how she represented her country in two sports, football and boxing. As a footballer, Stacey represented England U18s, and played in the English women’s premier league. As a boxer, Stacey won a European silver medal before turning professional and making history in 2018 when she became the first-ever British woman to win the Commonwealth title. The Conference closed with BCF CEO, Tom Bowtell, taking to the stage to outline BCF’s highlights of the last year, and the challenges facing the sector.

The event ended with the BCF annual evening dinner, with entertainment from comedian Patrick Monahan.

The event also raised over £2000 for the event’s charity partner, Community Heartbeat Trust, which has installed over 750 lifesaving defibrillator stations in red phone boxes across the UK, with paint provided by BCF member companies.

Image: ED&I panel session, from left to right: Sharon Harte, Dacrylate; Natalie Wong, BASF; Emma Stark, Sherwin Williams Consumer Brands Group; Darren Sharpe, Bluewater Consultancy; Justine Fosh, Cogent Skills 26 Covered Autumn 2023

Geoff Mackrill awarded coatings industry’s Silver Medal

Geoff Mackrill was awarded the coatings industry’s highest honour, the Silver Medal, at the British Coatings Federation Conference in Derby on May 25th.

Geoff took over the running of his family business, Teal & Mackrill, in Hull in 1999. He has been active within the BCF since the early 2000s and has led BCF’s campaigning with Government departments on several key issues – most notably defending the use of anti-fouling coatings for the marine sector with HSE and Defra.

Serving on the BCF Board of Directors since 2002, Geoff also currently holds the chair of the BCF Marine Coatings Group, a position he has held for the last five years. On top of this, he spent six years representing the UK paints industry in Europe as a board member of CEPE, the European coatings association. Geoff helped ensure BCF maintained its seat at the table, facilitating the British Coatings industry to be represented within Europe post-Brexit.

Tom Bowtell, Chief Executive of the British Coatings Federation, commented: “Geoff exemplifies the commitment to the industry that the Silver Medal was developed to recognise. He has been a prominent figure in the coatings industry both in the UK and Europe and is a huge advocate for the BCF. We would like to thank Geoff for his support and expertise throughout the years and congratulate him on this very much deserved accolade.”

Covered Autumn 2023 27

BCF celebrates 10 years working with Community Heartbeat Trust at third annual Charity Cycle Sponsored by:

In support of

28 Covered Spring Autumn 2023 2023

BCF is celebrating a decade of supporting the Community Heartbeat Trust (CHT), donating more than £100,000 and transforming more than 750 unused iconic red phone boxes into life-saving defibrillator stations through the Minutes Matter campaign.

In June, BCF held its third annual charity bike ride in support of CHT, starting at their office in Coventry before covering the breadth of the local Warwickshire countryside. This year’s event had a recordbreaking 83 riders, over double the number in 2022, who raised over £19,000 for CHT. BCF participants have now cycled a total of 12,265km, a distance equivalent of travelling from London to New York and back. This builds on the more than £25,000 raised in previous years’ bike rides and donations from various BCF events.

BCF has been working alongside CHT since 2013, through the Minutes Matter campaign. BCF members use their expertise to provide a paint system of undercoat and traditional red topcoat (worth around £75) to every local community that installs a defibrillator from CHT in a disused phone box. As of today, BCF members have given approximately £56,000 worth of paint to transform 750 unused phone boxes across the country into defibrillator stations.

BCF’s partnership with CHT was born out of a tragic event in BCF CEO Tom Bowtell’s village, one that could have been prevented had there been a defibrillator nearby. For every minute that someone in cardiac arrest is not receiving CPR or the assistance of a defibrillator, their chance of survival decreases by 10 per cent. The UK Resuscitation Council suggests a defibrillator should be no more than five minutes away from wherever medical treatment is required.

The CHT, by repurposing thousands of decommissioned and unused red phone boxes, aims to preserve the lives of 60,000 people, the number of those who suffer from cardiac arrest every year.

Tom Bowtell, CEO of BCF, said: “I am inordinately proud of the work we do with the Community Heartbeat Charity, now in our 10th year of partnership through the Minutes Matter campaign. This has given 750 communities across the UK access to a potentially life-saving defibrillator, plus giving a new lease of life to iconic red phone boxes found in most villages. I would like to thank our members for their kind and generous contributions and look forward to hitting the 1,000-phone box conversion mark in the not-toodistant future!”

Martin Fagan, National Secretary of the CHT said: “The Community Heartbeat Trust charity is delighted to partner again with the BCF on its annual bike ride and thanks the BCF team and members for all their support, over the years. Cardiac Arrest affects 60,000 people a year across the UK and the current survival rate post-hospital is only nine per cent. We aim to increase this to 50% by providing the correct defibrillators for communities and grassroots sports, but also by having these supported by education programmes, long-term resilience programmes and Governance. To date, we have delivered over 8,500 programmes throughout the UK. We have just concluded discussions with BT about a programme for the next few years to have even more disused phone boxes available. Changing technology is also bringing new opportunities, so this is a very exciting time to be involved in this important area.”

BCF would like to thank everyone who has taken part in this years’ Charity Cycle and donated.

A special thanks to all our sponsors ASFP, AkzoNobel, BioCote, Dacrylate Paints, Inx International, Tronox, U-POL, and Whittle Industry Data, whose support of our Charity Cycle Ride is invaluable.

To read more about the campaign, and find a defibrillator near you, visit www.minutesmatter.org.uk.

Covered Autumn 2023 29

SURCON 2023

Inspiring Colourful Futures Tuesday 21 and Wednesday 22 November 2023 Warwick Conferences, University of Warwick OCCA’s mission is to promote links between academia and the coatings industry to support technical and scientific discoveries, create innovative products and encourage talented students to take advantage of the diverse prospects for employment that are available in this sector. It is this interaction that has enabled the industry to achieve technical and commercial success in the past and will support the development of new solutions to future challenges.

SURCON 2023 will provide both a forum and a networking opportunity for researchers, engineers and technologists from academia, government laboratories and industry to present their findings, exchange ideas, share insights, make new friends and renew old acquaintances. OCCA has a proven track record of bringing academics and industry R&D professionals together and would like to encourage academia and industry to support collaboration by submitting papers and posters at this event.

The 2 day event will provide an opportunity to showcase innovative science and technologies related to surface science and surface coatings, including paints, inks, adhesives and sealants. The conference will deliver 14 presentations and 2 panel sessions over the two days. The Conference Dinner, to be held on Tuesday evening, will provide a backdrop for important networking between academia and industry.

For more information please scan the QR code or see: www.occa.org.uk/events

Inspiring Colourful Futures 30 Covered Autumn 2023

New members

If you would like to find out more about the opportunities available to our members, and the support we provide, please contact Ali Brown at: alison.brown@bcf.co.uk.

Full members

Associate members

Barrettine Products

Grolman

Manufacturers of Woodcare, Construction chemicals, Surface Protection and Home improvement products.

Grolman Limited are the UK element of the broader Grolman Group which covers Europe, North Africa and Asia. We are distributors of specialty materials into a broad range of application areas, most notably the coatings and printing inks sectors. Our portfolio covers Pigments, Fillers, Additives, Resins and some more specialised Performance Materials. We are committed to achieving Net Zero by 2050, as defined by the Science Based Targets Initiative and we hold Ecovardis Platinum certification.

Bristol based Barretine Products are a proud family business with an excellent reputation for quality and service. All products are formulated to the highest standards and performance. Our range is trusted by Professionals and Retail customers. With 140 years of award winning innovation and service. Barrettine serves customers in the Trade, DIY, Decorating centres, Builders & Timber merchants, Garden centres. Agricultural distributors/merchants, Shed/fence manufacturers throughout the UK.

www.grolman-group.com

www.barrettinepro.co.uk

Trident Utilities

Terrafend

At Trident, our purpose is Making Energy Simple with a specific focus on helping companies transition to a Net Zero carbon future. We apply an innovative approach to guiding businesses to lower their carbon consumption and save money. This is through the procurement of energy and water supply contracts, risk management and compliance, and we also deliver technical services to manage consumption and reduce and optimise costs.

Terrafend, a cleantech company, is unlocking the potential of a circular economy with sustainable solutions that manufacturers–and the planet–can rely on. We reinvent cleaning processes to enable businesses to reduce risk, waste and carbon footprints. Our patented cleaning methodology, Ambimization®, combines chemical and mechanical engineering to provide revolutionary, clean technology that removes hydrocarbon solvents, caustic solutions and heated chemicals from manufacturing processes. With Ambimization®, businesses can reduce their waste outputs by up to 93.3%, decrease VOCs by up to 99.6%, and eliminate solvents entirely.

www.tridentutilities.co.uk

www.terrafend.com Covered Autumn 2023 31

New members Associate members

Azelis Azelis are a leading supplier of raw materials into the coatings, adhesives, sealants and elastomers industries. Representing numerous blue chip suppliers, our team of technical experts are on hand to answer customer needs.

Our tag line “Innovation through formulation”, is not just a slogan. We have a global network of laboratories to help customers, and suppliers with formulations.

We are proud to be the first recipient of EcoVadis platinum within the speciality chemical distribution sector. www.azelis.com

Semkim Semkim was founded in 1984 by the late Ms. Ayhan Semiz and Mr. Ahmet Semiz with a focus on the trade of paint and paint chemicals.

In 2003, the company expanded its operations by establishing a new factory in Izmir, located on the west coast of Turkey near the beautiful Aegean Sea. Semkim’s production primarily focuses on the manufacturing of alkyd and varnish products, specifically tailored for the paint and ink industry. www.semkim.com.tr

Protex Chemicals Protex Chemicals Limited are a wholly owned subsidiary of French company, Protex International. We are responsible for the supply of Synthron branded products for the coatings, inks and speciality chemicals markets in the UK. We offer a range of additives and speciality resins with functionalities including flow and levelling, substrate wetting, defoaming, pigment dispersion, rheology modification, water repellence, and many other niche properties for use in aqueous, solvent-free and solvent-based systems. www.protex-international.com/en

32 Covered Autumn 2023

Associate members Think Incentives Think Incentives is a professional services consultancy specialising in innovation focused funding and support. We provide advice and education around grant funding and tax incentives, as well as patenting and other IP protection measures. As a business, we have strong science and engineering backgrounds and extensive experience in manufacturing and production settings, which we combine with our experience from the Big4 consulting environment.

We work with businesses of all sizes in all sectors. www.thinkincentives.co.uk

Halborns Ltd We are a leading boutique employment law firm, specialising in straight-talking, solutions-focussed employment law advice. We pride ourselves on building proactive, practical partnerships with SME, national and global clients, enabling us to craft creative solutions to challenging employment issues and achieve better outcomes for our clients’ business. We have extensive experience of partnering with Trade Associations and Federations (such as the BMF) to deliver our unique brand of people support to their members. www.halborns.com

Vogelsang Vogelsang is a leading supplier of rotary lobe pumps and has a wide range of pumps suitable for the paint and coatings industry. Whatever the application, Vogelsang’s pumps are built to handle abrasive chemicals, tough adhesives, high pressures and even gentle pumping needs.

All of Vogelsang’s pumps are easy to maintain and can be quickly serviced on-site, reducing stoppage time. They are also economical to run, reducing operational energy costs. www.vogelsang.info

Covered Autumn 2023 33

New members Associate members

H2 Compliance UK Limited H2 Compliance is a full-service chemical and environmental consulting firm dedicated to successfully introducing our customers’ products onto global markets. We help our clients ensure compliance and market access by applying our breadth of knowledge to the business complexities of topics including REACH, UK REACH and REACH-like programmes, GHS implementation worldwide (SDS and labelling), PCN and element1™ chemical management. www.h2compliance.com

Newson Gale For over 40 years, Newson Gale has been leading the way in hazardous area static grounding control, serving industries where processes generating static electricity have the potential to ignite flammable or combustible atmospheres. Newson Gale offers a wide range of static grounding and bonding solutions which mitigates static charge accumulation by using practical and innovative design and ensures effective static control on three levels – grounding and bonding clamps, visual verification and interlockable control systems. www.newson-gale.com

System Laboratories System Laboratories offer a range of reaction to fire tests using modern equipment and under accreditation of the United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS). We specialise in a fast turnaround testing and EN 13501-1 classification service for:

System Laboratories UK

BS EN ISO 1182:2020–Non-combustibility BS EN ISO 1716:2018–Heat of combustion (Calorific value) BS EN 13823:2020 –Single Burning Item test (SBI) BS EN ISO 11925-2:2020–Single flame source (Small flame) BS EN ISO 9239-1:2010 – Flooring test www.system-labs.co.uk

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Obituary

Carl Circus

As remembered by his colleagues

Carl Circus worked for Sikkens and AkzoNobel for over 25 years. Combining technical and commercial roles throughout his career, his expertise on wood coatings and timber species was highly respected throughout the industry.

He was a keen sportsman and enjoyed playing cricket and football. He was a supporter of his beloved hometown team St. Ives Town Football Club.

Another of his passions was music, and he loved playing the guitar.

Family was very important to Carl, and the team at AkzoNobel remain in close contact with his wife Carol, and his three children Thom, Joanna and Annabel.

He will be missed by his colleagues as a loyal friend, and as a font of all knowledge (his detailed responses to technical queries were legendary).

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BCF’s new Office Manager Joanne (Jo) Jones will be joining the team as BCF Office Manager and Executive Assistant to the CEO in mid-October, and will be at the BCF Awards to meet some of the members. Jo has held similar positions in several prominent local companies, including most recently Kagool, Britishvolt and the Premier Group. Jo likes spending time with family and friends, cooking and gardening. She is married has three step sons, two step grandchildren and a Shih-Poo, called Alfie.

We are very sad to be losing Nadine Saxon from the BCF team. Nadine has been offered a fantastic opportunity as Operations Director at the ASFP and will be joining them in November after the BCF board meeting. Nadine was the first employee at the new Coventry office and helped build the fantastic team we’ve got today. She has given outstanding support both to Tom as CEO, but also to the wider team in her HR role, and of course the Board of Directors as well. We all wish her all the best in her new role and for the future.

PROMTEK CONDOR

Helping factories takeoff With Condor Cloud, we handle all the maintenance and administration of your Condor server, including updates and security patching.

36 Covered Autumn 2023

Upcoming events and meetings

All BCF meeting are now face-to-face at our offices in Coventry unless otherwise stated.

October

November

December

Visit our website to keep up to date with latests meetings, events and to register.

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Where the Industry Meets Surfex is the UK’s event for the paints, inks, coatings and surface technology industry featuring a large exhibition running alongside a comprehensive programme of scientific, technical and topical industry content.

With extensive access to a whole spectrum of suppliers, scientists and industry experts, Surfex delivers the ideal meeting place to develop new ideas, source solutions to technical challenges, find inspiration, enhance knowledge and address key issues.

Visit www.surfex.co.uk to find out more and investigate exactly what you can achieve at Surfex.

EXHIBITION THE CUTTING EDGE SURFACING SCIENCE TECHFOCUS INDUSTRY INSIGHT

Supported by:

4-5 June

Organised by:

38 Covered Autumn 2023

2024

Coventry Building Society Arena