GUANGZHOU, China — Coating resins and additives supplier allnex announced a partnership with Alibaba to launch a flagship store on the e-commerce company's business-to-business (B2B) platform, 1688.com. This e-store marks a key milestone in allnex's e-commerce ambitions.

At the forefront of the production of specialty chemicals, allnex offers an extensive range of products including innovative liquid resins and additives, radiation-cured and powder coating resins and additives, and crosslinkers for use on wood, metal, plastic and other surfaces. The company has a long-term commitment to developing green technologies and sustainable solutions. It aims to provide customers with more sustainable products by reducing VOC emissions, energy consumption and the use of hazardous substances, while increasing the amount of renewable and recycled materials in its durable products.

As one of the major markets for allnex, China has enormous market potential, which acts as a driving force for the company’s growth. With the rapid development of online technologies, specifically the e-commerce industry, digitalization has moved to the top of the agenda for enterprises in China. The platform will not only expand allnex’s distribution channels, but also allow its products and services to reach customers more efficiently in the fragmented market.

Benoit DeBecker, VP Strategy and Commercial Excellence, said, “Alibaba’s 1688.com is the world’s leading B2B purchasing platform. As a pivotal part of allnex’s efforts to follow the trend of digitalization, allnex will use this online platform to complement its traditional sales channels. This will allow the company to reach different types of customers quickly and more easily. It will also enable us to bring customers more diversified green products and solutions. This is how we plan to make high-quality, advanced and sustainable coating resins more accessible to our customers in the local market."

Talking about this collaboration, Wang Hai, Vice  President  of Alibaba Group, General Manager of Alibaba B2B Business Division, noted, “We are very pleased to see companies like allnex, who lead the way in fostering sustainability, opening stores on 1688.com to enhance their e-commerce strategy in China. I believe that strong cooperation between Alibaba and allnex can help provide quality resources and services for more small and medium-sized enterprises. In order to cover a wider network of cities, we will continue to work hard to combine both online operations and the service capabilities of offline dealers through the channels available at Alibaba. Our ultimate purpose is to better serve our target customers and seek out new sales opportunities.”

The first batch of products offered by the online store include powder coating resins, ultraviolet (UV) and electron beam (EB) energy-curable resins, liquid coating resins, and coating additives.  

PowdCRYLCOAT^® 4488-0 and CRYLCOAT 4659-0 are examples of allnex’s powder coating resins. CRYLCOAT 4488-0 is a carboxylated, super-durable polyester resin. Systems based on CRYLCOAT 4488-0 are suitable for use in direct-fire gas ovens and can withstand 10 years of Florida outdoor exposure depending on formulation. CRYLCOAT 4659-0 is a super-durable carboxyl functional polyester resin for use with HAA curing agents or TGIC to manufacture super-durable powder coatings. Coatings based on CRYLCOAT 4659-0 exhibit outstanding flow and are blooming-free. These two products are suitable for use in industrial metals, paints, coatings, coils and pre-coated metals.

UV EB energy-curable resins include tripropyleneglycol diacrylate (TPGDA), dipropylene glycol diacrylate (DPGDA), trimethylolpropane triacrylate (TMPTA), bisphenol A epoxy diacrylate(EBECRYL^® 600), 1,6 hexanediol diacrylate (HDDA), and propoxylated glycerol triacrylate(OTA-480).

Liquid coating resins include TIRES^® 2803, a soybean oil fatty acid modified short-oil alkyd resin that is water-based, dries fast, and has good wettability with matting agents. It can be used in two-component polyurethane primers and matte finishes.

Coating additives include CYCAT^® 296-9 catalyst, a unique, clear liquid acid catalyst developed to accelerate the cure of amino resins, and MODAFLOW^® 9200, an acrylic flow modifier. They enhance the performance of paint formulations by modifying rheological properties, improving flow and leveling, reducing foam, facilitating pigment dispersion, accelerating cure and crosslinking, and improving adhesion as well as reducing defects.