3M Company, 3M Deutschland GmbH, 3M Innovative Properties Company, sia Abrasives Deutschland GmbH and sia Abrasives Industries AG have settled patent infringement lawsuits brought by 3M in the District Court of Mannheim in Germany and the Federal Patent Court in St. Gallen, Switzerland, and Robert Bosch GmbH has withdrawn its related opposition to 3M’s patent […]
Jim Muse Appointed VP of Refinish for Europe, Middle East and Africa at Axalta
Axalta (NYSE:AXTA) today announced the appointment of Jim Muse as Vice President of Refinish Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) effective immediately. He succeeds Adrien Schrobiltgen in this role. Muse first joined Axalta in 2013 as part of the North American refinish leadership team and was awarded the Axalta Senior Leadership Award in 2015 for […]
LKQ Divests a Majority of Bulgarian Business
LKQ Corporation (NASDAQ:LKQ) announced it has merged its subsidiary Auto Kelly Bulgaria EOOD with Elit Kar OOD. LKQ now owns a 20% equity interest in the combined business, which will continue to operate under both the Elit Car Group and Auto Kelly brand names. In addition, the combined business will acquire parts from LKQ’s aftermarket […]
BASF Seeks to Strengthen Refinish Business with Acquisition of Belgian Internet Accident Management Service and Vehicle Lifecycle Management Platform
BASF announced September 30 that it acquired a majority share of the internet platform UBench with offices in Turnhout and Geel, Belgium. Both companies have agreed not to disclose financial details of the transaction. The transaction includes UBench International NV, CarRoll BVBA and DLight BVBA. Regulatory approvals are not required. BASF says the transaction strengthens […]
Arnd Franz Named to Succeed John Quinn at LKQ Europe
LKQ Corporation (NASDAQ:LKQ) announced that John S. Quinn, Executive Vice President and CEO of LKQ Europe, has submitted his notice of retirement and Arnd Franz, currently Chief Operating Officer of LKQ Europe, has been selected to succeed John effective October 1. Arnd Franz joined LKQ in April of this year after spending most of his […]
3M and Saint-Gobain Settle Paint Spray Patent Dispute
3M Company and Saint-Gobain Abrasives Inc. announced they have settled a long-standing patent dispute in Europe that related to 3M’s Paint Preparation System (PPS) and Saint-Gobain’s “Norton Paint Systems” (NPS) brand. The settlement covers infringement actions brought by 3M under several European patents against Saint-Gobain Abrasives in Germany and in France and corresponding actions by […]
BASF Named Preferred Partners of Jaguar Land Rover Europe, Receives Global OEM Award
Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) European headquarters recently signed a cooperation agreement with Glasurit and R-M, BASF’s refinish paint brands. BASF also received a Global Purchasing Excellence Award from JLR. As JLR’s sole preferred paint partners, they will not only supply the refinish products and color matching systems but also provide dedicated program managers via service […]
PPG Launches Automated Paint Mixing System in Europe, Middle East and Africa
PPG (NYSE: PPG) today announced the launch of its Moonwalk automated paint mixing system for the Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) automotive refinish industry. The self-contained system brings a new level of speed, precision, quality and color consistency to the body shop mixing process. The MoonWalk system is sized to fit all mixing rooms […]
BASF Opens Renovated Refinish Competence Center in Spain
BASF celebrated the official opening of its Refinish Competence Center at Marchamalo, Guadalajara, Spain. The training center is dedicated to teaching collision repair shop technicians, distributors and large automotive companies in Spain and Portugal about its premium brands Glasurit and R-M. In addition, it hosts numerous events intended to promote the training of young future […]
Lincoln Electric Completes Purchase of Turkish Welding Equipment Company
Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO) announced it has completed the purchase of the controlling stake of Kaynak Teknigi Sanayi ve Ticaret A.S. (Askaynak) to advance Lincoln Electric’s regional growth strategy in Europe, the Middle East and Africa . “We are pleased to welcome the Askaynak team into Lincoln Electric ,” stated Christopher L. Mapes, Chairman, […]