AkzoNobel presented a plan to its employee representatives and its employees in France that includes a €22 million investment to establish the Montataire site as a flagship for decorative paint production This initiative reflects the company’s long-term commitment to industrial excellence and to its operations in France These measures are designed to rationalize ensuring long-term success while maintaining its strong presence in France The proposed plan focuses on streamlining operations This will enhance competitiveness and drive sustainable growth The company also plans to reorganize its commercial and support function and its distribution network including the transfer of some outlets to independent partners and some closures a reduction of up to 211 positions and the creation of 29 jobs is anticipated in France The plan would be progressively implemented from May 2025 to the end of 2026 The consultation procedures for these plans have started with local social partners we’ve been supplying the innovative paints and coatings that help to color people’s lives and protect what matters most Our world class portfolio of brands – including Dulux Sikkens and Interpon – is trusted by customers around the globe We’re active in more than 150 countries and use our expertise to sustain and enhance everyday life Because we believe every surface is an opportunity It’s what you’d expect from a pioneering and long-established paints company that’s dedicated to providing sustainable solutions and preserving the best of what we have today – while creating an even better tomorrow Application Areas Coatings Technologies Legislation Markets & Companies People & Careers Production & Lab Raw materials Sponsored Content Home » News » Markets & Companies » Akzo Nobel announces EUR 20 million investment A total of EUR 15 million will be spent on the company’s aerospace coatings facility in Pamiers which was taken over following the Mapaero acquisition in 2019 production capacity will being boosted by 50% while the funds will also be used to reduce environmental impact and improve safety processes and working conditions The other EUR 5 million will be spent on improving production flexibility at the decorative paints site in Montataire which is one of the company’s most important manufacturing locations for wall paints in Europe The plans for Pamiers include the construction of two extensions one for storage and one for cleaning and waste treatment The project will also enable the company to relocate the production of exterior polyurethane paints for aircraft widely used in Europe from its Waukegan plant in the US Building work is expected to start by the end of 2023 with the new installations at both locations due to be operational in early 2025 Akzo Nobel employs nearly 1,500 people in France and operates four production facilities Limoges (adhesive markings) and Pamiers (aerospace coatings) Demand for sustainable products continues to grow — but decorative coatings must also be durable Striking the right balance is one of the greatest challenges facing the.. has introduced three regional entities in Germany The aim is to decentralise the company’s structure have inaugurated a new laboratory in Shanghai The centre aims to strengthen innovation capabilities in the region US chemicals group Dow is considering the shutdown of two energy-intensive plants in Schkopau and Böhlen The decision follows market overcapacities rising costs and increasing regulatory pressures... Duncan Taylor will take over as interim CEO of Allnex on May 1 who will retire from the company on June 30 Taylor will continue to serve as Chief Financial Officer.. Marcus Jordan has assumed the role of Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of IMCD N.V Find the answers to the most frequently asked questions in our FAQ collection The newly available digitized records provide a detailed account of the process that led to the signing of the loan The digitization and public release of the records from the loan to France are part of the WBG Archives’ effort to make valuable historical records easily accessible under the World Bank Access to Information Policy We look forward to releasing more historical records and hope you will stop by the Visitor Center soon Thank you for choosing to be part of the Voices community The latest blog posts and blog-related announcements will be delivered directly to your email inbox World Bank Group and and the Director of the Knowledge & Information Services Department in the Information & Technology Solutions (ITS) vice-presidency AkzoNobel aims to rationalize enhancing competitiveness and driving sustainable growth The company will reorganize its commercial and support functions including transferring some outlets to independent partners and closing others This will result in a reduction of up to 211 positions and the creation of 29 jobs with implementation from May 2025 to the end of 2026 Consultation procedures with local social partners have begun In 2024, AkzoNobel as part of its Industrial Excellence program already announced the closure of three manufacturing sites in Groot-Ammers (the Netherlands) Production from these sites has been transferred to other locations in the region.  and strategic direction in an exclusive CHEManager International interview CHEManager Spotlight is an exclusive event tailored for practitioners and decision-makers in the chemical industry This part of our event series delves into the latest trends and innovations in logistics to streamline your operations and drive efficiency the decision to open up and expose this structure transformed the space introducing an interior bathed in natural sunlight all images © françois brix atelier hebbelinck, together with hart berteloot AAT preserved the industrial characteristics of the original perret brothers market building the project transformed the abandoned building with the intervention of such programs as a music school the three facilities take advantage of the height of the central wing to integrate the structural core the studio further liberated the zone between the frame and the program to offer gathering space and facilities for artistic expression the double height enhances the acoustic quality of the large centralized halls and take advantage of the natural lighting overhead project name: the perret hall — cultural center of montataire architecture firm: atelier d’architecture pierre hebbelinck and hart-berteloot AAT partners: egis / philippe duval / artscéno / kahle / technicity / joseph abram / pierre toby photography: © françois brix AXOR presents three bathroom concepts that are not merely places of function but destinations in themselves — sanctuaries of style For the last few years due to government-mandated crash regulations and the auto industry's increased focus on vehicle weight reduction, the use of hot stamping and Press-Hardened Steels (PHS) for the body-in-white (BIW) structure has been booming PHS produces ultra-high-strength steel with easy formability by hot stamping and a quenching effect during cooling in the press The most popular and user-friendly PHS grades are Usibor 1500 P and Ductibor 450 & 500, which are produced by ArcelorMittal The unique aluminum silicon (AlSi) coating allows for a simplified hot stamping process with no scale no surface decarburization without protection gas and good corrosion properties on the final product The key point is to remove just the free AlSi coating while leaving in place the thin intermediate layer (AlFe) created during the coating process On parts produced using this patented process the amount of Al remaining in the fused zone is very low The small traces of Al do not affect the weld zone and the high level of mechanical strength is maintained through the weld By using an ArcelorMittal tailored-blanks patented process good corrosion properties are maintained on the final product How is the thin intermediate layer of a few microns left intact? A laser ablation process was developed to fulfill the specifications of this edge preparation. (See the article "Laser ablation for hardening laser welded steel blanks," which appears in the March/April 2010 issue of Industrial Laser Solutions and B Pillar medium-size parts have been manufactured in Europe (Figure 1) Honda R&D America decided to take a different approach for the new Acura MDX model To meet the newest North American severe safety crash tests and the light-weight/low-emission "green" target Honda decided to investigate the concept of a larger It was important for them to take into account the AMTB European know-how in LWB-PHS and forward the hot stamp history by designing larger Honda America started development of the PHS door ring working in cooperation with the ArcelorMittal Global R&D Automotive Applications Center located in Montataire This facility is fully capable of fulfilling the complete PHS and LWB-PHS chain: design parts produce scale Step 1 LWB-PHS demonstrator parts in multilinear design (ablation and welding) Honda LWB-PHS demonstrators were produced in Montataire Montataire's 6kW CO2 LWB laser welding system was upgraded to be capable of fully producing LWB-PHS (Figure 2) 6kW) welding laser was replaced by a 1μm diode-pumped disk laser upgradable to 8kW) with 200 and 600μm fiber cables was installed The removal of the AlSi coating—or "ablation"—process is performed by a Rofin 450 W The 2014 Acura MDX uses the world's first LWB Hot Stamp door rings the Usibor LWB single multi-thickness door ring part (A-B pillars) provides three advantages: Improved energy management through uninterrupted laser produced joints and improved fit and finish (optimum BIW geometry and doors setting accuracy with functionalities in a single Figure 5 shows the location of supply and manufacture of the Acura and also shows how it is manufactured using the laser technology (Step 2) Usibor Coils are produced at the Indiana Harbor plant of ArcelorMittal USA The flat LWB-PHS door ring is produced at AMTB Pioneer (Pioneer a key factory of ArcelorMittal Tailored Blanks Americas Ltd (AMTB A Ltd.) AMTB Pioneer operates seven high power laser welding lines and one fully automated ablation line which is the first of its kind in North America where the top surface material is removed without thermal damage to the inner material This is accomplished because of the high peak laser power (megawatts) this extreme high power is only possible with short pulse lasers both sub-blanks' edges must be ablated on the two faces The original AMTB Europe ablation system used two 450W (average) laser generators—two Q-switched Rofin lasers (with 75mJ pulse energy at 450W a unique Rofin 1kW laser (with 150mJ pulse energy) to simultaneously process the two faces using an integrated beamsplitter The ablation quality is monitored in real time and two key characteristics are observed: ablation depth with a proprietary ablation plasma monitoring and ablation width with a vision inspection measurement system the two LWB sub-blanks (front A pillar and B pillar) are laser-welded to form the final door ring the former CO2 laser welding system was upgraded with a solid-state laser technology: a 5kW fiber laser from IPG Photonics that allows high-speed laser welding The laser is beam-switched on two substation shuttles-one dedicated to the left-hand door ring and the second to the right-hand door ring Hot forming and trimming (Step 3 of Figure 5) of the LWB-PHS Acura MDX door ring is accomplished at Magna/Cosma (Eagle Bend The part is heated up to 930°C and then stamped in a cold die it's one of the world's largest hot-stamped parts currently in production the steel grade reaches 1500 MPa (UTS property) and more than 480 Hv in hardness The dramatic increase in the steel properties makes it very difficult to mechanically trim the final stamped part Cosma uses laser cutting systems to cut the formed door ring into its final shape Using a 3D laser cutting system for trimming eliminates tool wear The success of this LWB-PHS single door ring allows BIW engineers to design more complicated LWB-PHS parts for enhanced body performance Why not a full LWB-PHS body-side (A-B-C pillar Why not laser-blanking: High-speed laser cutting of the primary sub-blanks directly from a coil Usibor 1500 P and Ductibor 450 & 500 PHS grades are registered trademarks of ArcelorMittal RENÉ VIERSTRAETE ([email protected]) is senior process laser expert at ArcelorMittal Global R&D Applications Automotive Centre in Montataire, France, and GARY BLACK ([email protected]) is director of manufacturing technology at Arcelor Mittal Tailored Blanks Americas Ltd