2016 marks an important milestone in the history of Axalta Coating Systems as it celebrates 150 years of creating innovative industrial coatings. Axalta’s heritage dates back to 1866 when its first products were developed in Germany and since then the company has grown into one of the world’s leading manufacturers of liquid and powder coatings. Today the company is responsible for the supply of leading refinish paints from the Spies Hecker, Standox and Cromax brands. 

Axalta Chairman and CEO Charlie Shaver comments, “All of us at Axalta are excited to reach this important milestone in the history of our company. Over the next 12 months we will celebrate our past and build on our extensive knowledge and experience for the next 150 years. With nearly 13,000 employees and 120,000 customers in 130 countries, we will continue to use advanced technologies to develop next generation coatings while providing outstanding quality and service in the years ahead.”

From the earliest products that supplied European carriage manufacturers with colourful coatings in the nineteenth century, Axalta evolved to meet the needs of an automotive industry that flourished in the twentieth century. In the 1920s, Axalta introduced the first quick-drying, multi-colour lacquer line for automobile production in the US. Company scientists developed the L,a,b color equations that became a key analytic tool in the catalogue of colour science. In the subsequent decades, technology at Axalta evolved to produce coatings that were increasingly durable and productive. In the 1980s, the company ushered in the first environmentally-responsible liquid coating systems with the introduction of waterborne coatings. 

Building on experience acquired with its original Spies Hecker and Standox products, Axalta branched out to provide refinish technicians with improved coating products and systems. In the 1990s, the Cromax family of waterborne products was introduced to automotive body shops. Handheld spectrophotometer colour tools were developed to help provide excellent colour matching, which saves repair time and reduces waste.

Axalta’s portfolio of products has also grown to include many innovative industrial coatings products, while it has also proved hugely successful in the provision of coatings for heavy duty vehicles through its Imron line.