MOSCOW (MRC) -- BASF’s Coatings (BASF) division and Jaguar Land Rover's (JLR) global headquarters have signed a cooperation agreement with Glasurit and R-M, premium refinish paint brands of BASF, to support the development and implementation of JLR’s Global Body & Paint Programme covering 16 importer countries and markets in Asia Pacific, said the company.
Under the agreement, the partners will commit to a long-term strategic collaboration that enables them to exceed the industry standard in vehicle body repair and paint refinish. The partnership includes the supply of refinish products and color-matching solutions. Additionally, a dedicated Regional Body & Paint Manager has been appointed to help develop and implement JLR’s Global Body & Paint Programme in the region.
BASF will work closely with JLR to ensure the total branded paint solutions meet their stringent repair specifications and process standards, supported from a global support network that offers guaranteed methods and expertise. In addition to Glasurit and R-M paint solutions, RODIM®’s user-friendly accessories for painters are included to ensure highest quality and an efficient damage repair process.
As part of the total offer, BASF is also providing comprehensive Advanced Business Solutions (ABS) that help JLR drive profitability and efficiency within its network of authorized body shops and appointed retailers. This includes a set of innovative services, tools, training, and performance management modules designed to improve the processes and overall performance of JLR’s authorized body shop facilities.
"Jaguar Land Rover and BASF are committed to helping their business partners to develop, this year more than ever before given the challenges we are currently facing together,” explained Mike Hill, Global Strategic Account Management, BASF Automotive Refinish Coatings Solutions Europe. “The Global Body & Paint Programme offers a balanced approach, taking care first and foremost of body shop business infrastructure, for example, in facility planning, tooling, and technical compliance. Glasurit and R-M experts, together with the JLR Programme Manager, will support body shops to be more profitable through our unique ABS, tailored to improve JLR’s body shop operations and grow commercial opportunities."
Thanks to the innovative partnership, JLR and BASF ensure a uniformly high international standard across JLR’s authorized body shop network around the world. As such, the guaranteed repair quality through the most efficient processes helps deliver the highest standards of customer service.
"Last year in March, BASF signed the same agreement with JLR for region Europe. This latest agreement has expanded our global footprint and shows the continued trust and commitment to growing the partnership. JLR is also utilizing the latest technologies from Glasurit and R-M to drive growth,” said Hill. “There have been some great examples of teams from JLR and BASF working closely to develop the authorized body shop networks in Europe and identifying high quality repairers that not only meet the high standards and expectations of a premium brand, but also address the geographical challenges. Italy is a very good example as we have seen an increase of over 30% in its authorized network."
As MRC reported earlier, BASF Total's cracker in Port Arthur, Texas, is undergoing maintenance and expected to restart on 23 July, 2020, according to the company's statement in a filing with Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ). An unexpected outage occurred at BASF Total Petrochemical’s joint-venture (JV) olefins unit at Port Arthur, Texas, on Thursday afternoon, 11 June, 2020. The cause of the outage is being investigated, with a compressor shutdown cited as a possible factor, according to TCEQ filing. The JV’s steam cracker at Port Arthur has a production capacity of more than 1 million metric tons/year of ethylene and 544,000 metric tons/year of propylene, according to IHS Markit data.
Ethylene and propylene are feedstocks for producing polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP).
According to MRC's DataScope report, PE imports to Russia dropped in January-June 2020 by 7% year on year to 328,000 tonnes. High density polyethylene (HDPE) accounted for the main decrease in imports. At the same time, PP imports into Russia rose in the first six months of 2020 by 21% year on year to 105,300 tonnes. Propylene homopolymer (homopolymer PP) accounted for the main increase in imports.
BASF is the leading chemical company. It produces a wide range of chemicals, for example solvents, amines, resins, glues, electronic-grade chemicals, industrial gases, basic petrochemicals and inorganic chemicals. The most important customers for this segment are the pharmaceutical, construction, textile and automotive industries. BASF generated sales of EUR59 billion in 2019.
MRC