INPRA LATINA reached its 20th anniversary. The leading publication of the paints and coatings industry will continue to work for many more years to bring the best information to all its readers.
by Duván Chaverra Agudelo
It was in October 1995 when the presentation of the special launch edition of the magazine for the paints, coatings, adhesives and inks industry, INPRA LATINA, was made. At that time, Max Jaramillo, president of the publishing house Latin Press, Inc., announced to the guild a publication that to this day remains the only one in Latin America within the segment and recognized among all members of the region.
This year, INPRA LATINA reaches its 20th birthday, an anniversary that we can not overlook, because we have witnessed the evolution of the industry, from the slightest changes to the most important made by you, who at the moment of truth are the true protagonists of this story, and thanks to you this publication is still in force and knocking on the doors of your offices or homes to deliver information relevant and that in one way or another contributes to their daily tasks.
Yes. We have witnessed the efforts of a sector that today has as its main goal to achieve the highest efficiency rates in its products, obtain recognition for its environmentally friendly developments and produce innovative technologies that take advantage of the new tools available.
Highlighting relevant aspects in this long history, our launch edition already referred to powder coatings as an alternative that would give something to talk about in the coming years, a situation that has not lost validity, because today this technology developed in the 50s presents ideal characteristics for current needs, such as the absence of Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) in its formulation, the low level of losses (1.0%), that the overspray generated during the application can be recycled and reused, and that they offer a high level of protection and durability.
But there is no doubt that one of the most important aspects that we have to highlight is the reduction of Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) in paint formulations. Government-led regulations to regulate the use of these compounds have forced companies to modify their formulations and find utilities in the development of products with low levels of VOCs, such as greater safety in production and application, lower emissions, lower levels of air pollutants and ultimately, more environmentally friendly coatings.
As expressed by Julián Restrepo (one of our most renowned columnists and who has accompanied us for more than 10 years) in one of his articles, to reduce the levels of VOCs in paints "manufacturers have begun to develop a series of technologies, such as coatings with high solids content, water-based coatings, coatings by high energy curing (or ultraviolet-UV curing), solid (powdered) coatings, and the use of solvents less harmful to the environment. There are even products for the formulation of solvent-based paints with reactive diluents and in water-based paints with reactive coalescing."
And because of initiatives like these, the term "green paints" has been gaining more strength over time. Therefore, we can not fail to highlight the growing implementation of this class of coatings, and that is precisely why we gave it strength as the cover theme of our last edition (20-5) and that has its second part in this issue.
But there's more. another of the most notable evolutions over these 20 years has to do with the equipment for formulation, research, inspection, measurement, among others, which over the years adapt to the needs and greatly facilitate the work of our chemical engineers.
In conclusion, we would like to delve much deeper into each of the topics, but we just want to refer and thank each of you for always being present and participating in one way or another in the development process of INPRA LATINA to reach what it is now.
We thank all the collaborators who throughout the anniversary have passed through our publication leaving an indelible mark on the learning of our readers. The invitation will always be open for them to participate actively.
We hope to celebrate 30 or 40 more years of existence and continue to contribute in the best way to the industry.
For all of the above: Thank you!
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