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, […]
Frank Kirmis Named Director of Sales and OEM Relationships for Pro Spot Europe and Asia
Pro Spot announced that Frank Kirmis was named its new Director of Sales and OEM Relationships for Europe and Asia. In his new role, Kirmis will help Pro Spot continue to build relationships with European automobile manufacturers, develop its European sales strategy and build up distribution service networks. Kirmis will help oversee our expanding locations […]
Automechanika and IBIS Announce Events in Frankfurt and Shanghai
The International Bodyshop Industry Symposium (IBIS) and the international Automechanika trade fair announced that the upcoming Automechanika fairs in Shanghai and Frankfurt will each feature an IBIS regional event. Michael Johannes, vice president mobility and logistics at Messe Frankfurt commented, ‘We are delighted that we can offer our trade fair guests such a prestigious conference […]
Axalta to Build New Refinish Facility in the Netherlands
Axalta (NYSE:AXTA) announced it has signed an agreement to develop a new, state-of-the-art facility in Tiel, Netherlands for its refinish business. Once construction is completed, Axalta’s global refinish brands – Cromax, Spies Hecker, Standox and Syrox – will relocate from their current location to the new facility on Business Park Medel, both in Tiel, in […]
Europe Moves To Mandate Advanced Driver Assistance System to Reduce Accidents
The European Parliament is backing new measures to improve road safety and reduce road accidents. The rules would make a number of safety features compulsory in new cars. EU roads are the safest in the world with an average of 49 road fatalities per million inhabitants, against 174 deaths per million globally. Although road fatalities […]