International. AkzoNobel has opened a technical application centre in Malmö, Sweden worth €2.5 million for its wood coatings business.
The new facility is one of four global centers working closely with customers to develop application systems to meet their specific manufacturing needs.
In addition to its experimental application equipment, the center is also equipped with several application lines technical declaration of application lines and paint booths of controlled temperature and humidity control. This gives the company the ability to mimic customer conditions in all segments of the industrial timber market.
Several innovations are on display in the malmö centre, such as AkzoNobel's patented technique for applying edge coatings with pinpoint precision, as well as the company's automated system that scans wood through holes and cracks and automatically applies filler. It also includes an installation to demonstrate UV-LED curing, a sustainable wood finishing technique, which uses up to 30% less electricity than competent curing methods.
"This helps us develop new products aimed at improving processes and productivity, particularly in efforts to reduce application costs and the use of solvents and formaldehyde in line with regulatory change," said Anthony Woods, RD&I director of AkzoNobel's wood coatings business.
